CHRISTMAS CARD HEAVEN

SEASONS GREETINGS

The sending of Christmas card has many stories accredited to it but i am going to go with the one that started in good old England back in 1843 by the first director of the Victoria & Albert Sir Henry Cole whom was far to busy to be write personal greetings to all of his acquaintances so decided to commission the artist John Calcott Horsley to illustrate a greeting he could send to one and all with just a simple signature.  The card features 3 panels with a family enjoying the festivities of the season with the words A Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to You, and what a thing he started as the following year over 27000 Christmas card were sold and sent to loved ones.  Though in the picture there was the clinking of glasses and this did cause quite a stir to be putting alcohol and religion on one page and the importing of cards from England to the US began then come 1975 it took the bright skills of a German Lithograph to publish the first print off of Christmas Cards in the US and he certainly became the Hallmark of the day as by 1881 he was printing 5 million cards a year.  And nowadays we have other mediums of sending cards...bring in the E-card where you can design your own animations and Personalise your greetings and at the click of a button it can be sent to all corners of the globe.  The theme of Christmas cards have changed with fashions over the years they started off depicting good deeds to be done like helping the starving or the elderly then they became a little jolly with lots of children frolicking with animals in winter scenes.  he 20's saw the fashion set and art deco design and i love 1950's which had cutesome girls with jolly messages.  I have chosen a few of my favourites here

1900's Smoking Dog...could you imagine this being published now!

No Christmas would be complete without a little Disney

A little insight into the creation of Santa Claus's Red Suit

1920's Stylish Winter Scene

Love the pic sent of herself in the corner of this beautiful 1920's Card

Bringing some fun into Christmas in the 1930's

1940's Cocktail season...one of the first cocktails I learnt how to make properly

1950's Fashion Fun

How beautiful the ladies were in the 1950's

And Finally a "selfie" card which is oh so Kitsch x

PLEASE LOOK AFTER THIS BEAR

Late 50's Paddington Bear  Barkcloth Curtain Print

With many a childhood memory of Paddington Bear that has spanned across all generations since the 1960's you can imagine how thrilled I was when I found this pair of delightful curtains... in fact I had two pairs but one sold very quickly.  They were baby blue and this gorgeous baby pink.... I wonder if they were originally bought for twins or did they buy twos pairs because back in the early 60's you did not know what the stork was going to bring.  I date them late 1950's Early 60's for the simple reason that they are the original Peggy Fortnam drawings for Michael Bonds first book.  The fabric is a cotton bark cloth which is a large indicator that they are 50's early 60's.  The Book came out in 1959 with Peggy's illustrations, before becoming an illustrator Peggy was an art teacher, painter and textile designer.  The early drawings did not have Paddington wearing so many clothes and he did not start wearing his boots until 1962.

 Back then they would have been hung with just neutral painted walls, as getting the nursery ready was not as easy as when you know what you are getting then curtains would be added after the baby is born to suit boy or girl, this way as your child grew you just changed the soft furnishings and did not have a total re-decorate like we so often do now with fancy wallpapers and borders etc...in the 50's it was still very often a make do and mend mentality after the war.

I just love the expressions on Paddingtons face as he is going about his day .... very rare beauties indeed.