Antoinette has done it again this year - bigger and better than ever with a
second putz depicting a harbor scene. (She lives on the New England seashore and
is a veteran sailor.) With all the triple closeups you can click on, I simply
had to conserve site space and loading time, so this year am providing a
click-box to take you to her Christmas Page where you can peruse these and
Putzes Past at your leisure, and read her lovely reflections on The season.
The harbor scene, featuring the "new" Lionel #58 lamp posts and several
"new" houses.
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The secondary mantel putz.
Check out her little microcosmic story scenes between the houses.Antoinette has
never lost that wondrous childlike play-acting imagination that putzes
are all about.
Bravo!
Carl & Emily Rice
The Rice's have done their putz featuring their earliest "First Period"
pieces
this year ...
A magnificent collection. Fine pieces all!
Vintage Photos
Tom Hull captured these online for us. The real stuff from "The Day"
"In studying the close up pictures I noticed that they are probably from two
different years. Though the set up is very similar I noticed that the small
fir branches affixed to the stable are different. Also in the foreground is
electric train track and barely visible in the background is part of a tunnel.
1939 and 1940 perhaps? Obviously close in time." Tom
The wide-radius "0-72" track in the foreground came in in the mid-'30's to
accomodate the super "Stream-Line" trains so new and fashionable at the time.
Every boy just dreamed of getting a "streamliner!" Though still available in the
'30s, the huge "standard gauge" track just visible on the right is of 1920s
vintage contruction, showing that these people-whoever they were - had been at
this for quite some time. Boy, I sure would like to have seen the trains!
No trains this year? Definitely from different years...
LOVE these old photos!
Introducing Jim McLean
Jim's a relative newcomer to the site, but is really into putzing.
That's a German goosefeather tree, by the way.
Some really nice houses, here, - classic Barclay figures, and I expect we'll
see more in the future.
Jim says he is getting into making houses of his own. Also, "kit-bashing" of
sort. taking old beat-up houses and refashioning them into something new. These
appear to be pretty much original, however. Note the balconey-porch and
stairwayed "greenspot" in the background. We all love that one!
Another Old Putz Photo:
Found this one on a very nice site displaying a collection of old Christmas
pictures.
"Hey, Ted, did you catch this single photo with an under-tree
putz from that website that Chris sent and that you forwarded
around? [ http://www.squareamerica.com/sa1.htm ]
Not much, but it's something for the archives. Note, too,
the mica spilling over onto that Turkoman oriental rug. Lotsa
luck getting that out." - Antoinette
Home Made
I am hearing from more and more folks making
their own houses this year. Sue Stewart made these ...
"My real challenge was to make a house resembling my sister's rather modern
house with many windows and decks! I think i succceded in giving it that 'putz'
style." - Sue
Introducing Ted Howard
Ted is from Callahan, Florida also relative newcomer to the site, but is really
into putzing,too. His house gets really filled with Christmas every year.
"Ted. - Another Christmas come and gone. It's the end of January and I almost
have all the decorations down. Sixteen trees went up in the house this year
along with numerous decorated garlands and all sorts of other fun Christmas
goodies. I haven't had much of a chance to build anything else over the past
months. But, I hope to start again soon. I thought I'd join everybody else in
sending along a few pictures for you to enjoy. These are from a couple of my
trees - one in my dining room on a server and one from my living room. As you
can tell I find it most enjoying to just put a hodge-podge of things
together to make up my little towns.
Keep up the good work and we'll be talking to you again soon."
Ted Howard
Janet Watt
-found these wonderful old snapshots in an antique shop in Columbia, SC - dated
January 1941, which means they were most probably from Christmas 1940 ..
That's a 6 foot goosefeather tree!
Let's try a little blow-up "magic" on that putz...
That little birdhouse up a pole in the second photo is metal. I have one. Also
the little doghouse in the third. It's metal, too - Barclay, I think. I wish we
could get these clearer, but Mike and I were working with little 2 1/2" by
3 1/2" snapshots. These are blown up from a little strip along the bottom less
than 1/2" high.
Grandma is looking at one one the boy's best gifts. With a bit of computer
blow-up
trickery, we can see that it is a lavish hard-bound book on flying model
airplane construction. This was as hot with boys of the 1930s as video games are
today, but differed greatly as something you could learn real skills from - and
share with Dad.
Barbara Healy -
- caught this old putz photo for us on eBay.
Very interesting, this, because it's so formal!
Castle. Formal grounds. Neat neat neat! Crisp crisp crisp! Perhaps we had a
military family, here. Neat-freaks for sure. Those things do tend to go
together. We'll never know, but what we do know is that this is OLD!
Are those not gaslight fixtures? And do you see any electric lights on the
tree? Just a very few glass ornaments, and check
out the toys on the periphery. And the sepia tone of the print. I'd put this
anywhere between the "Gay Ninties" and World War I. Not a cardboard house to be
seen!
Thank you Barbara!