Archive for the ‘Ornaments News’ Category
Wednesday, July 14th, 2010
Local Montana artists displayed an extensive array of handcrafted ornaments.
Our search for unusual ornaments lead us to the National Folk Festival in mile high Butte, Montana last week. We were pleased to see so many local artists with one-of-a-kind ornaments made from a variety of materials ranging from art glass to buffalo horns. It was a delightful assortment of designer ornaments, and the artisans were so willing to share their techniques and ideas with the folks who crowded around their booths.
Many of the artists spend the cold winter months coming up with fresh ornament designs and producing ornaments in preparation for the various fairs and festivals in the summer months. The National Folk Festival is a real favorite for the ornament artists partly because the Butte community is so supportive and attendance at the festival was around 200,000 people over a three day period.
Our first stop was at the Folk Art of Norway booth where we had a nice chat with ornament artist Patti Jo Meshnik. Patti Jo uses the traditional Norwegian art of Rosemaling to hand paint her colorful glass ornaments. Rosemaling began in the 1600’s when Norwegians began painting their walls and furniture with summer flowers to brighten their homes during the cold winter. Another favorite from Norway are ornaments depicting birds and the Kornband. A Kornband or sheaf of wheat is saved from the harvest to be set out for a Christmas Feast. A native of Montana, Meshnik says that her Norwegian heritage influenced her style of painting and that it took several years to learn the art of Rosemaling. Every ornament at Folk Art of Norway is signed and recorded in a log and some of her art has the logged number secretly embedded in the painting.
There were also wonderful wearable ornaments created by Kevin and Valerie Pourier using buffalo horns. Oglala Lakota, the Pouriers were the recipients of the 2006 Archibald Bush Foundation Artist Fellowship and the 2005 Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian Visiting Artists Fellowship as well as many other awards for their buffalo artforms. Recognized world wide by collectors, their wearable ornaments are displayed in several museums, including the Smithsonian National Museum and the Royal Museum of Scotland. Using traditional techniques of the buffalo people, the artists work together to shape and carve their jewelry and wearable ornaments into the predetermined design. The intricate process is lengthy and comes only with years of practice. The artform is completed when they inlay the buffalo horn with semi-precious minerals. You will want to read more about these charming artists at KevinPourier.com.
Our third visit was with Leonda of Browning, Montana who uses colored glass to create vibrant ornaments. She says that her favorite ornament is the red buffalo which has real buffalo fir for the tail. She cuts the colored glass into the shape that she wants, and then she uses copper to enclose that shape for a finished look. She often uses copper for the tails and manes of the animal ornaments. Leonda has a great assortment of ornaments mostly depicting Montana life and animals. The pretty blue horse above is so nice that we brought it home to display in our office. An experienced artist who has worked with art glass for many years, she will create custom ornaments for you if you call her at 406-338-3158.
Thanks to the citizens of Butte, Montana for supporting the arts.
Article and images used with permission from the artists
Tags: artglass ornaments, buffalo horn ornaments, buffalo ornaments, Butte, Christmas decorations, Christmas gifts, Christmas ornaments, collectible ornaments, Crafts, ethnic ornaments, Folk Festival, folk ornaments, glass Ornaments, handcrafted ornaments, Kevin Pourier, Lakota ornaments, Montana ornaments, native american ornaments, Norwegian ornaments, rosemaling, wearable ornaments
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Friday, June 25th, 2010
Tennessee is the home of the only freshwater pearl farm in North America.
Pearls have long been recognized as a symbol of purity and their popularity has remained stable for centuries. Pearls for ornaments and jewelry are formed by oysters or mussels on farms found mostly in Japan, China, South Seas and of course in Tennessee. Freshwater pearls are rarely found naturally in the Tennessee washboard mussel. Most of the pearls are grown at the only culturing farm operation in North America at Birdsong Resort near Camden, Tennessee on the Tennessee River. The pearls are composed of concentric layers of a crystalline substance called nacre which is calcium carbonate. It is this nacre that gives the pearl its lustrous iridescence and accounts for must of the pearl’s beauty.
When we toured the Tennessee River Freshwater Pearl Farm in May, we were lucky to have been escorted by Adrienne who is the designer of the freshwater pearl cabochons which her customers use as ornaments. She explained how the pearls take the shape of ornaments. Adrienne said that there are different methods of seeding the mussels for pearls and that the implant method is the most suitable for making freshwater pearl ornaments since it gives the pearl farmer the most options for shapes and sizes. The implant or seed is made of the same material as the mussel shell and can be shaped to any size prior to implanting and it is actually implanted in the mussel. A round implant causes a round pearl to be formed and a triangle implant in the mussel will form a triangle pearl.
It sounds more simple than it really is of course, because there is a 3-5 year wait after the mussel with the implant is moved to the farm in the Tennessee River while mother nature works her magic. It isn’t all magic however, because the mussels are closely monitored during this time for temperature and water quality and there are very few technicians that are skilled at implanting the seeds into mussels. It took many years before the Japanese technique of culturing pearls was successfully adapted to the Tennessee native waters and mussels, and 1984 was the first year that a productive harvest was turned. Thanks to the diligence of culturing farm founder John Latendresse, cabochons and jewelry (wearable ornaments) can be viewed and ordered at TennesseeRiverPearls.com . If your interest is peaked, you can read more about the process of culturing freshwater pearls and perhaps even tour the Tennessee River Pearl Farm & Museum.
Article and images used with permission from BirdsongResort.com
Tags: Cabochons, Christmas ornaments, freshwater pearl cabochons, Freshwater pearl ornaments, handcrafted ornaments, Tennessee Ornaments, unique ornaments
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Friday, May 28th, 2010
These beautiful glass ornaments were once reserved for princes.
The handblown glass ornaments made by the artists at Sama Ornaments reflect a grace that has been handed down for many generations. 
The ancient craft of glass blowing was developed in Mesopotamia and Egypt in the 2nd millennium BC and has evolved into a modern and efficient technique that allows the beautiful ornaments to be sold today at an affordable price. Once cost prohibitive for everyone except for princes and the very wealthy, most of the ornaments now are sold for under $20 US. The staff at Sama Ornaments has also written an excellent history of Egyptian ornaments.
The hand-made glass ornaments are made in Egypt using a high quality heat resistant glass and 24k gold to embellish the details of the glasswork. All of the designs are created in house with more than 200 new ornament and perfume bottle designs every year. The artisans at Sama Ornaments are also willing to design new shapes with new dimensions to please their clients.
During the glass blowing process, there are several quality control points, assuring that the design that is taking form is the intended size and shape. Completing the glass ornaments involves several steps and each of the steps may be performed by a different artist or technician. A glass blowing technician begins heating and shaping the glass and does not use any molds. There may be several pieces that are worked on, depending on the intricacy of the design. The craftsmen begin etching the ornaments and the artisans paint the designs. Now the ornaments are ready to be heated for 5-6 hours to set the colors. After cooling, the Egyptian ornaments are painted with gold and then heated again. Subsequent quality checks for bubbles, color and over all design are made before the ornament is ready to be packaged by Sama Ornaments.
Article and images used with permission from SamaOrnaments.com
Tags: Christmas decorations, Christmas gifts, Christmas ornaments, collectible ornaments, Egyptian ornaments, glass Ornaments, handblown ornaments, handpainted ornaments, handrafted ornaments, history of ornaments, how to make ornaments
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Friday, May 14th, 2010
“Necessity is the mother of invention.”
It was around 400 BC that Plato said necessity is the mother of invention, but that maxim could easily apply to the early days of FMH Collectibles. Self taught artist and owner Frances McFarland began painting ornaments because she wanted to give Christmas presents to her family and friends at a time when her funds were very limited. What was unlimited was her creativity and passion for art, and that boundless artistic ability took shape in the form of beautiful handpainted glass ornaments. There seemed to be no end to Frances’ resourcefulness.
Frances McFarland Horne still credits her family with planting the seeds for this thriving ornaments business. Her mother suggested she create custom ornaments for family members one Christmas, just after Frances had finished grad school and money was too tight for Christmas shopping. From then on, Frances painted ornaments and tailored them to each family member. A few years later, her brother started pushing her to go into business after she gave him an ornament representing his fraternity, and her father extolled the advantages of e-commerce.
Frances finally followed her family’s advice in 2009. She applied for licensing from several Greek-letter organizations and began building her website, and a family tradition became an online business. FMH Collectibles was “invented” out of the need to create personal ornaments as gifts. Although much of her made-to-order work is for fraternities and sororities, the handpainted glass ornaments can be personalized for wedding favors, birthday gifts, graduation gifts and class reunions.
Custom ornaments are available at the FMH Collectibles website for anywhere from $15.00 to $30.00. Discounts are available for larger orders, and a wholesale program is available for retailers. Visit the site to order your ornament, and become a fan of her page on Facebook to receive updates.
Article and images used with permission from FMHcollectibles.com.
Tags: Christmas, Christmas gifts, Christmas ornaments, collectible ornaments, corporate ornaments, fraternity ornaments, glass Ornaments, graduation ornaments, handpainted ornaments, keepsake ornaments, logo ornaments, personalized ornaments, sorority ornaments, wedding ornaments
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Friday, May 7th, 2010
Personalized ornaments are a great way to honor graduates of all ages.
The staff at OrnamentsAndMore.com is very enthusiastic about expanding their site and adding new and exciting products. Right now, they say that it’s time to celebrate Spring! 
Graduation ornaments are a big seller this time of year. Add Pomp and Circumstance to a recent graduate’’s Christmas tree this season with a graduation ornament from Ornaments and More. Browse through their selection of graduation Christmas ornaments to find the one that is perfect for the graduate in your life. Mark this important milestone in a student’s life with a graduation ornament personalized with the graduate’s name, school or university that they graduated from, and the year of graduation.
The traveling Ornaments.com team has noticed an increase in ornaments being used to decorate offices, homes, vehicles, and schools year round. Ornaments are becoming very popular as gifts for all occasions, and personalized graduate ornaments are in vogue as gifts for everyone from high school graduates to doctoral candidates. Retailers are noticing the trend too, as evidenced by more ornaments vendors online as well as the extra space that brick and mortar stores are consigning to ornaments now.
Consider a graduation ornament to honor and commemorate a graduate’s achievements and a job well done! A treasured keepsake personalized graduation ornament helps the graduate remember his high school and college graduations with great pride and a real sense of accomplishment for many years to come. “ConGRADulate” someone who has just earned a degree from law school, medical school, nursing school or pharmacy school with a meaningful ornament from Ornamentsandmore.com. The best part is that the graduation Christmas ornaments you order will be professionally personalized FREE of charge by one of their highly-skilled calligraphers with the utmost care. The ornaments are delightful and the personalization is the “icing on the cake.”
OrnamentsAndMore.com also offers one of kind Baby’s First Christmas ornaments, Engagement & Wedding ornaments plus many more unique gift ideas! Be sure to check out their newly added “Best Sellers”, “What’s New for 2010?” and “1st Christmas Ornaments” categories. You will find exceptional quality at an affordable price and your personalized ornament will be remembered and enjoyed for a life time.
Article and images used with permission from OrnamentsAndMore.com.
Tags: collectible ornaments, college ornaments, graduation, graduation gifts, graduation ornaments, high school graduation, keepsake ornaments, personalized ornaments, school ornaments
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Friday, April 30th, 2010
The name Catch an Image gives you a glimpse as to what you might expect from this versatile ornament business. The only limitation to the ornament design is your imagination. Owners Danny and Mindi Searcy run the photo ornament business in which they put logos, pictures, wording of all kinds on sports and family ornaments. Danny modestly says that he makes pretty cool ornaments. I think you will agree that the Searcys have developed an interesting method of creating ornaments that has evolved from the scientific into the artistic.
They say that the process is pretty simple, but that it takes some practice to get it right. The ornaments at Catch an Image are made from pvc plastic with an air valve inside the ornament. The ornaments are not breakable, so there are no trips to the emergency room to get brightly colored glass out of your bare foot. The process involves capturing an image through taking a picture with an ordinary or digital camera, or using an image a customer emails, or using a printed photo which the staff scans onto a computer. Any image can be put on these ornaments, and the Searcys have designed ornaments for their customers that include everything from baby pictures to sports teams to weddings.
After the image is scanned to the computer, it is either inserted into a simple program template, or a new design is created especially to suit the image. Once the design is finished, it is printed on a special printer that uses transfer paper. The image is printed out in reverse so that when the image is placed on a ball or ornament, it is facing the right way. After the image is cut to size and taped to the ornament, it is put in a heat press, using various pressures. Next, the ornament is fitted with the hanger and sprayed with either a matte, or glossy finish. Now the ornament is complete.
Danny and Mindi both have full time jobs, but they really enjoy making ornaments and sports balls for businesses and individuals. Many of their customers put images of their pets on ornaments, and Danny says that he and his wife have even been asked to attend family reunions to make ornaments for entire families. For golden wedding anniversaries, they have had people bring them vintage pictures of their parents and ask him to design ornaments depicting the couple 50 years ago and another ornament with a present day image of the anniversary couple.
New parents send in their baby photos to put on ornaments and then send in a new photo each year, eventually filling the entire tree with pictures of their children from newborn to grownup. Now, that is a gift that Grandma would love.
Article and images used with permission from catchanimage.com
Tags: baby ornaments, baby's first Christmas ornaments, Christmas decorations, Christmas ornaments, collectible ornaments, corporate ornaments, how to make ornaments, ornaments, personalized ornaments, pet ornaments, photo ornaments
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Friday, April 16th, 2010
An ornament collector’s dream….beautiful ornaments from all 50 states!
The exclusive line of ornaments is designed from 50 paintings of the 50 states painted by the internationally acclaimed artist and sculptor William D Gaither. Each of the unique ornaments depicts the official state bird and tree, and also includes the capitol and state flower. Presented very nicely in gift boxes, the back of the ornaments can be dated and personalized.
Artofthestates.com is owned by Arnold Ingram and he has sold the state ornaments worldwide since 1975 to gift shops and some of the most prestigious department stores. The ornaments are now available online to the public and are priced very reasonably right now at $6.25 each. That is a 65% savings over the normal catalog price and further discounts are available in larger quantities.
Now, after 35 years in the gift and ornaments business, Mr Ingram is offering his company Art of the States and the world rights to produce this unique line of state ornaments for sale. This is a wonderful opportunity if you are ready to be the owner of your own ornament business. Visit the site and you will immediately recognize the potential for these delightful ornaments.
Article and images used with permission from artofthestates.com
Tags: Christmas gifts, Christmas ornaments, collectible ornaments, glass Ornaments, graduation ornaments, keepsake ornaments, made in America, state ornaments, wholesale ornaments
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Thursday, February 11th, 2010
Create fun and inexpensive holiday ornaments for every holiday.
With all of the hustle and bustle of the December and January holidays in the past, it’s time to think about Valentine’s Day and the ornaments that can be made for a Valentine’s Day tree! Valentine’s Day decorations and ornaments are growing in popularity, and kids have always enjoyed making Valentine’s Day gifts for classmates and friends. This year, why not spend an afternoon with your children creating Valentine’s Day ornaments that are fun and inexpensive?
Valentine’s Day ornaments do not have to be elaborate to be beautiful. In fact, one of the latest techniques is to create these ornaments out of recycled materials! Using things you have around the house or buying recycled art supplies can be a fun and inexpensive way to encourage creativity. Here are a few ideas for items you may have around the house that can make for beautiful Valentine’s Day ornaments.
- Yarn (left over from a knitting project or other misc.);
- Tissue paper (check in some of the gift boxes you saved from Christmas);
- Old greeting cards (Valentine’s or not);
- Candles (melt the wax and use as glue);
- Ribbon and/or bows (check those Christmas gift boxes again);
- Newspapers or magazines (paper mache is so much fun).
The options are really limitless! Get creative and have fun. Making Valentine’s Day ornaments is a wonderful way to spend a cold, wintry afternoon with your children. Once you’ve got a variety of ornaments, decorate a Valentine’s Day tree and give the rest away as gifts. At the end of February, be sure to store the ornaments in a safe place so you can enjoy them next year!
Article and images used with permission from UltimateChristmas.com.
Tags: Crafts, handrafted ornaments, how to make ornaments, ornament storage, Recycled Ornaments, Valentines Day gifts, Valentines ornaments
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Monday, December 28th, 2009
The Mexican corn husk angel Christmas ornaments are handcrafted in Mexico.
Delightful as Christmas ornaments or as a guardian angel over your desk, these adorable corn husk angels are made by hand from natural corn husks. The angel ornaments are handcrafted by a small group of artisans in Zapopan, Mexico. The mother and son team have only 7 employees and they have been designing and creating the ornaments for fifteen years and sell the colorful angel ornaments at LaCasaMexicana.com. You will also find the Mexican ornaments featured on the Ethnic Ornaments page at Ornaments.com.
The process of producing the corn husk ornaments involves several steps before the ornaments are ready to market and nothing goes to waste here. After the corn is picked, the leftover husks are put in a room with lava rock and sulfur. The sulfur is vaporized and that step gives the leaves a whiter color and fumigates the leaves, ridding them of any insects. The husks are then wetted and taken out to dry three to four times. The leaves are then dusted and it is time for the artists to get to work on the ornaments. The hair on the angels is from the silk on the ear of the corn. The serape is handmade from acrylic and cotton textiles and the eyes are painted on with a pen.
The Mexican corn husk angel ornaments are great for adding a colorful touch to your holidays and would make very nice wedding favors and gifts too. Priced at only $4.95 each, you can let your imagination go and share the little angel ornaments with your party guests. The angel ornaments are works of art and each one is distinctive with variations in color and size, making them even more collectible.
Article and images used with permission from LaCasaMexicana.com
Tags: angel ornaments, Christmas decorations, Christmas gifts, Christmas ornaments, collectible ornaments, Corn Husk Ornaments, Crafts, ethnic ornaments, handcrafted ornaments, hispanic ornaments, keepsake ornaments, Mexican Ornaments, wedding ornaments
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