ON THE COVER -
December Issue 2005
Christmas Card Greetings From
the White House.....by Robert Reed
It must be quite a
thrill to actually receive a Christmas card from the President
of the United States. For more than half a century there have
been official greeting cards from the White House going out to
a select number of people for the holidays. The traditional
practice has endured through bright days and dark days,
through times of peace and times of conflict. Today the
Christmas cards of presidents past are a significant area of
holiday collectibles.
Christmas Ornaments-A Time
Honored Tradition.....by Judy Penz Sheluk
For many of us, decorating the Christmas tree is a time
honored tradition. Who hasn’t stopped to remember the meaning
behind a particular ornament before hanging it on a tinseled
branch? Yet trimming an evergreen tree, at least in North
America, did not begin until the 19th century. In
Germany, Christmas trees date back to the 15th
century, when evergreens were used in church plays. Adorned
with apples, the evergreen symbolized a Paradise tree.
THE ANTIQUE DETECTIVE
Cases
for Collectors
Q. I have an very dark set of pine family room furniture that came from a very expensive furniture store back in the late 1970's. I am tired of this dark look and want to refinish the set lighter. Is there any thing special I need to do with this set or do you think the dark color will come out when I strip the old finish off the set?
Main Street Show in Dunedin....by
Carol J. Perry
Hurricane Wilma was still a couple of days away, but the
skies were overcast for the Dunedin Annual Fall Antiques Fair.
The big outdoor show, filling several blocks of Dunedin's
attractive downtown section of Main Street, featured upward of
seventy-five dealers. The clouds overhead provided a pleasant
source of shade for much of the day as shoppers browsed and
bought along both sides of the wide street which was closed to
vehicle traffic for the day.
