Many years ago, I began to collect ornaments by Christopher Radko. I'm sure you are all familiar with him and his story (which you can read here), and know how beautiful his ornaments are. The fun part for me, though, was finding them. Yes, this was a long time ago, and long before he appeared on QVC! When I traveled, I'd always make sure to seek out the local Christmas stores to see if they had any of these treasures. And, one at a time, I would purchase them. It was a very slow process, as they were quite pricey, but I thought they were so beautiful, reflecting a true old world style.
This great guy was my first; he's so, so different looking than the ones I find now.
This is a sweet stocking from the Little Gems collection; I love these small ones.
A great Santa with a tree;
Hurricane Katrina commemorative ornament;
Oops! My #2 Assistant, Midnight, deciding which ornament to play with NEXT! Please note the wooden ornament already on the floor; I put those on the bottom!
A sort of upside down jester;
A little gingerbread house.
The 'newer' ornaments just don't seem to hold the charm for me that the older ones did; also, they're too easy to find now, thus taking a lot of the joy out of the 'chase.' (And, that's really OK. I probably have 40-50 of these, and storage in this house is at a premium!)
I have some other ornaments that I hope to share later. I'm just beyond overjoyed tonight that I finally got this tree decorated!
Hoping that everyone has had a good weekend. A lot of you will have snow this week...ENJOY!
I'll be sharing with these lovely hostesses this week:
Masterpiece Monday ~ Boogieboard Cottage
Mop It Up Monday ~ I Should Be Mopping The Floor
Nancy, I just love Christopher Radko ornaments. No one does Christmas like he does. Wonderful post- xo Diana
ReplyDeleteThanks, Diana. I'm so happy you enjoyed it!
Delete~N
I love Christopher Radko ornaments too. I remember watching him on QVC many years ago. Thank you for sharing your collection.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Carolyn! I'm so happy you commented!
Delete~N
I have many Radko ornaments. I love them.
ReplyDeleteCynthia
They are certainly beautiful, aren't they, Cynthia? Thank you for visiting!
Delete~N
I believe Christopher Radko sold his company and that is why the ornaments of today don't have the look or quality of the older ones. I, too, have collected his ornaments since 1991 and enjoy them immensely. They are very fragile and I am finding after years of storage some will take a beating...not happy about that!I had the opportunity of meeting Mr. Radko twice once while shopping in NYC at a local home store on the upper West side and again at Fortunoff in White Plains, NY..(that store no longer exists). He is very charming! Treasure your ornaments! Those old ones will hold their value for future generations.
ReplyDeleteWhat interesting information, Maureen! I think the early 90s is when I started collecting as well. I try to wrap mine carefully after I take them down; the ones that have broken have been ones that I've dropped (!). Thanks for sharing this information!
Delete~N
They are all just adorable, and the colors are so vibrant. I have never heard of them before. Thanks for sharing:)
ReplyDeleteThanks, Dawn. The colors are truly vibrant, but...they're so easy to find now, so it's not quite as much fun as it used to be (but that was a long time ago!)!!
DeleteNancy
You have a lovely and vast collection. I believe he bought the company back. I have one Radko. They are way out of my price range now.
ReplyDeleteOlive: and they are Waaaay out of my range, too, now. It was such fun a long time ago trying to find them. Not so much anymore :( Thanks for your comment!
Delete~N
Hi Nancy! Oh, your ornaments are so beautiful. I've always admired his things but couldn't afford them. I have a few knock off CR ornies and a friend came over and said, oh, you have some CR ornies. I just smiled and thought - I wish! :)
ReplyDeleteYour little kitty is adorable! ;) So funny.
Be a sweetie,
Shelia ;)
Well, Shelia, since I retired I can't afford them anymore, either! Collecting was a very slow process as I only bought one or two a year! I'll tell Midnight he's 'adorable!' Thanks for visiting!
Delete~N
Im somewhat of a christmas fanatic and im in love with your blog, i love christopher radko ornaments thanks for putting up all the pictures, and sharing them with us!
DeleteLance! Thank you so much, and I'm so happy that you enjoy my blog. I tried to comment earlier, but my e-mail is having a mind of its own!
DeleteThanks for visiting!
Have you ever seen or heard of his pink bunny slippers ornament? I am having trouble finding anything about them especially value. thanks, Tracy
ReplyDelete