Wednesday, September 21, 2011

The Putz village idiot



On a recent trip, I spent some time at an antique mall where I attempted to purge the display case of a vintage Christmas collector who was downsizing.



There was entirely too much to choose from so I kept my looting limited to vintage glass bead garlands and little vintage cardboard (Putz or not) buildings, mainly because I had to ship it all back to Oregon.



Honestly, I don’t know a Putz house from a housecoat but this seller had so many of these little buildings so inexpensively priced that I bought them strictly for their curb appeal despite the missing church spires, sub-standard glitter application or other aesthetic disfigurements.

(Proving ignorance can be bliss.)



In the corner of the display case was a handwritten note taped to the wall suggesting a visit to this seller’s vintage Christmas website.  (If you head over there, I would suggest turning down the volume on your computer and perhaps investigating anti-seizure medication beforehand as there is a lot going on.)

photo courtesy of Papa Ted's Place

One of my favorite pages on this website is the one where this (very schooled) collector has compiled photos and prices paid on eBay for vintage Japanese-made miniature houses along with his colorful commentary regarding whether the buyer made a wise decision or not.


photo courtesy of Papa Ted's Place

I also love the page with glimpses of these vintage Butler Brothers Christmas catalogs and am now pining for a catalog of my very own.

Santa, are you reading this?




23 comments:

  1. I don't know anything about the little village buildings, either, but they are sooo cute. The glass bead garlands are quite the find...you're ready for Christmas....I'm not!

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  2. LOVE it! you had me laughing from the title on, These are addictive you know! Hope you'll link this up to VIF tomorrow, xoxo

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  3. What a great Xmas haul! Love those little houses...that's my kind of neighborhood! I'm heading over to the website; thanks for the warning.

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  4. Oh my....you scored! I so love the little houses, I have several but really know nothing about their worth either.

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  5. I had more fun reading those ebay comments...really? Certainly did find the goods here. No worries I forwarded this right on to Santa! Smiles...Renee

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  6. 1. Was just about to contact you; worried you were somehow trapped in Garage Where No Cars Can Park; glad to see you were otherwise occupied. 2. I figured you would forgive me for clicking on that link before, it must be said, I finished reading your most entertaining post. 3. I have visited that site before because I immediately recognized availability of replacement Putz windows and doors and got as giddy as I did the first time I saw it. 4. I think that's all. Did any of this make sense? Attempted to write after exposure to excellent vintage Christmas.

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  7. Love the title of this post - LOL! I ran straight to my vintage 1931 Montgomery Ward catalog to see if there was a Christmas section but none to be found - DANG!

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  8. How fun... I love the little houses and have way too many myself. But hey, they're little and cute, and they have glitter on them!
    Mary

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  9. Loving the strands of beads!!
    Great finds
    Amy

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  10. *Love the bead garland. It's gorgeous.
    *Love Papa Ted. The Ebay commentary was priceless.
    (Loved the Vintage Whites market. It was worth the drive and I'm definitely going again next year.)

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  11. I love the glass bead garland! I have several strings of it, but haven't gotten them out since we got our crazy Border Collie/Lab mix -- I won't take the chance on their breaking!

    It made me laugh when you said you bought the little houses for their 'curb appeal'!

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  12. What a fun haul! I will check out that website, too! ♥

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  13. Hello:

    I slid over from My wife's blog
    Kayteejanes House. We love the Putz houses.
    and have close to 80 in our collection.

    I also collect trains and at Christmas they go hand in hand.

    This is a gentleman that makes custom Putz style houses. Check him out.
    Mark Harley


    http://www.littleglitterhouses.com/

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  14. Good thing I was not tagging along with you as we would have had to battle over the display case at the antique mall...we would have been after the same thing. Quite a holiday score!
    Off to check out your link. Missed you!

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  15. What a haul!!! I love those little cardboard houses. I have approximately 12-14 which I hang (had to hot glue a ribbon on the back)on a mini holiday tree. Lucky you!

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  16. Wow, that site was a bit busy. I do think that the putz houses are naturally a little bit cheap looking. I love them and have a few in my collection, but just by nature the glitter is a little misapplied and the trees may be a little askew. I think it adds to their charm.

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  17. It looks like a lovely little community that I would like to live in, despite the missing church spire! I've gone ahead and muted the volume and now I'll go check out that site!

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  18. Love that garland! Look into mercury glass wreaths too! I'm an hoarding some bulbs now so I can make one for Christmas...The ones I have seen are like $200 bucks! Yikes... BUT we all know it will probably cost all of $20 to make it! (Wink) Happy Junking!!

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  19. I thought of Laurie when I read this post - and there she is commenting :)
    Great finds!
    Sue

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  20. Oh, my! I'm drooling with envy. I would of done the same thing. We would make some pair :)
    If you see Santa next.... Let me know!! LOL!
    xxx Liz

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  21. Thanks for sharing the vintage Christmas website. I needed a good belly laugh this morning!

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  22. I have been a papated's fan for a few years; just bought some replacement windows from him for my own little putz collection. How wonderful that you scored some of his collection! He is definately Mr Putz!

    Ruthann

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