Note: This is an archive of "Papa" Ted Althof's online tribute to cardboard Christmas "putz" houses and their history. At Ted's request, this archive was established in early 2012. Except for critical updates and announcements, it will remain as Ted left it in October, 2012.
For more information, please scroll to the bottom of the page.

World War I Christmas poster WW I Christmas shopping poster
Note from Editor: The buildings on this page are no longer available. As far as I can tell, Karl Fey ceased selling his houses in November, 2012, soon after this site's author Ted Althof died. We are leaving this page up both because it is part of the site archive and to pay tribute to one of the great modern putz house builders. If you're in the market for a custom putz house of the quality shown on this page, check out Howard Lamey's LittleGlitterHouses.com. Or check out the "Howards' How-To" section of that page and learn to build these yourself. We HAVE removed some verbage insisting that Karls buildings are still available - that was true the last time Ted accessed this page, but is not true at this time.



The catalog below is maintained only as a reference to Karl's total work. Not all the items will be available at any given time. New types will be coming on.


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"DIMESTORE DWELLINGS"
by Karl Fey




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Here introducing -
- Karl Fey -


Karl's been personally creating his "Dimestore Dwellings" on a very limited basis for just a few years,now, so they'll likely remain quite collectible and rare. But, mainly, they are just utterly charming with a special "sugar candy" quality and all-original designs that nonetheless strongly harken back to the Golden Era of the 1930s. These would make handsome Christmas gifts or the beginnings of your family Christmas legacy.
Just look at them and see if you don't agree!



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New cardboard Christmas village house for sale
New cardboard Christmas house for sale
This marvelous, LARGE blue mansion measures 10"wide by 5" deep and 6" high. Just look at those wonderful rounded-porticoed porches!
#F-1000:
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New cardboard Christmas putz house for sale
New cardboard Christmas house for sale
Also big! 8"wide by 5" deep by 6" high. Classic "T" wing 2-story house with charming long balcony.
#F-1001:


New cardboard Christmas house for sale
Big again! 8" wide,5" deep,5"high. Double dormer charmer!
#F-1002:
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New cardboard Christmas house for sale
Magnificent high spired church: 10 1/2" tall! - the ideal centerpiece of any village skyline. And it has a wonderful raked perspective, reminiscent of the Japanese antiques. Base size is 6 1/2" wide by 5" deep. Standout piece!
#F-1003:
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New cardboard Christmas house for sale
New cardboard Christmas house for sale
Just had to show you two views! The balconey of this big, towered multi-storied flat-roof is the real story here. Large, "L"-shaped walk-around with semi-enclosed veranda below. 8" by 5" by 5" high.
#F-1004:
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NEW!

Inroducing the LOG CABIN style!

New cardboard Christmas house for sale

This is an almost perfect reproduction of an actual,early '30's "Made in Japan" original(see: "House of the Month, Feb.,2005) - and one of the largest and most elborate of the "Loggies" - 8" X 5" X 4.5"

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Notice that double porch ..
New cardboard Christmas house for sale
FL-1000:
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NEW!

Introducing the NEW "LAKKIE!" style!

New cardboard Christmas house for sale
The "Lakkies" were made back in the late'20's/early '30s by the Japanese as an economical way to fill up a tinplate train layout. Trains and accessory buildings of those days were high-gloss enamelled sheet metal, and very expensive.
New cardboard Christmas house for sale New cardboard Christmas house for sale













It took us collectors a while to figure what the "Lakkies" originally had been intended for, because over the decades even the best-preserved had become warped and dingy to some degree. Karl has made the first new one in at least 70 years and it proves the point. It looks exactly like high-gloss metal. You can even see the side porch roof reflected in the shiny end-wall.

Not all people made winter-scene putzes, and the "Lakkies" also fit well into green summer themes where there were no trains involved.


FLK-1000:
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New cardboard Christmas house for sale
A smaller, but still good sized church ( 5 1/2" wide by 3 1/2" deep by 8 1/2" tall )with a metal cross atop the steeple as so many of the old ones had.
#F-2000:
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New cardboard Christmas house for sale
The same church as above in different color scheme.
#F-2001:
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New cardboard Christmas house for sale
The Side Entry with that delicate railing! Yes! Also quite large -8" wide by 5" deep by 5" high.
#F-1005
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New cardboard Christmas house for sale
New cardboard Christmas house for sale
"The Blue House:"
The latest edition! Size is 7"wide, 5" deep and 5 1/4" high - a nice big one. Just look at the frontal structural details!
#F-1006:
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New cardboard Christmas house for sale
A smaller house, but charming in yellow with it's large, rounded dormer. 5 1/2" wide by 3 1/2"deep by 4 1/2" high: about the size of most old Japanese classics.
#F-2002:
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New cardboard Christmas house for sale
Classic smaller 5 1/2" by 3 1/2" by 4" double humped roof and arched "stained glass" windows.
#F-2003:
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New cardboard Christmas house for sale
A variation in roof and color on #F-2003 above. Same size.
#F-2004:
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New cardboard Christmas house for sale
Another 5 1/2" by 3 1/2" by 4" Classic in green.
#F-2005:
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New cardboard Christmas house for sale NOTE: All the houses have the large, round hole in back for lights, just as the old "Made in Japan" houses do. The modern tiny clear lights work fine. You can bunch several inside. Or, if you have the old 15-volt C-6 type, they will fit, also.

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Keep Watching! More houses to come!

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Alas! The days of being able to pick up the little cardboard Christmas houses in Woolworth's for a nickel or a dime are forever gone, but Karl's "Dimestore Dwellings" are actually a great bargain in these present times. If you think them expensive, just look at what the old originals are fetching online!

ONLINE AUCTION PRICES

TABLE of CONTENTS



holly
For information about this site, please contact us at:
http://cardboardchristmas.com/papateds/contact.htm

Copyright 2000-2012 Theodore H. Althof,Jr.Except where noted, the contents of this website and all it's pages and submissions therein contained are the intellectual property of Theodore H.Althof,Jr. All rights are reserved. (Background musical selections are,of course, excepted.)

Note:
This archive was set up at Ted's request in early 2012, and, except for critical updates and
announcements, will remain as Ted left it in October, 2012.
The archive is kept online with the help of volunteers from the following affiliated sites and resources:
- Christmas Memories and Collectibles -
Visit the FamilyChristmasOnline site. Visit our collection of resources for collecting, restoring, and making your own cardboard Christmas houses. Return to the OldChristmasTreeLights Welcome page Visit Howard Lamey's glitterhouse gallery, with free project plans, graphics, and instructions. Visit Papa Ted Althof's extensive history and collection of putz houses, the largest and most complete such resource on the Internet. Craft and collectibles blog with local news of Croton NY.
- Family Activities and Crafts -
Click to see reviews of our favorite family-friendly Christmas movies. Free, Family-Friendly Christmas Stories Decorate your tree the old-fashioned way with these kid-friendly projects. Free plans and instructions for starting a hobby building vintage-style cardboard Christmas houses. Free building projects for your vintage railroad or Christmas village. Click to find free, family-friendly Christmas poems and - in some cases - their stories.
- Trains and Hobbies -
Visit the Internet's largest resource on choosing and displaying Christmas trains. Visit Lionel Trains. Click to see Thomas Kinkaded-inspired Holiday Trains and Villages.
Learn about backyard railroading with Family Garden Trains
Click to see HO scale trains with your favorite team's colors.
Resources for O gauge and On30 model railroading
- Music -
Carols of many countries, including music, lyrics, and the story behind the songs Wax recordings from the early 1900s, mostly collected by George Nelson.  Download them all for a 'period' album.
Best-loved railroad songs and the stories behind them.
Heartland-inspired music, history, and acoustic instrument tips. Own a guitar, banjo, or mandolin?  Want to play an instrument?  Tips to save you money and time, and keep your instrument playable.
The struggles and influences of early Jesus Musicians and others who laid the groundwork for the Christian music and worship that is part of our lives today.