Christmas is the celebration of the birth of Jesus. The story of the Nativity and the events surrounding the birth of Jesus are the reason for the season. However, many traditions that are around today have their roots in pre-Christian winter festivals. These include the importance of candles. decorations made from evergreen boughs, and decorated trees symbolizing everlasting light and life.
I love Christmas and love to decorate with many of the vintage items that belonged to my mother. Shinny-Brite ornaments top my list of favorite Christmas things and I have a growing assortment. They have now become collectible and command healthy prices on ebay. I have a collection of Santas and Santa ornaments too. My favorite Santas were made by my friend, Anne. My nativity set took years to complete. I painted several of the plaster figures that were a gift from my mother each year till it was done.
The Shiny-Brite company produced the most popular Christmas tree ornaments in the United States throughout the 1940s and '50s.
In 1937, Max Eckardt established "Shiny-Brite" ornaments, working with the Corning Glass Company to mass produce glass Christmas ornaments. Eckardt had been importing hand-blown glass balls from Germany since around 1907, but had the foresight to anticipate a disruption in his supply from the upcoming war. Corning adapted their process for making light bulbs to making clear glass ornaments, which were then shipped to Eckardt's factories to be decorated by hand. The fact that Shiny-Brite ornaments were an American-made product was stressed as a selling point during World War II.
Dating of the ornaments is often facilitated by studying the hook. The first Shiny-Brite ornaments had the traditional metal cap and loop, with the hook attached to the loop, from which the ornament was hung from the tree.
Wartime production necessitated the replacement of the metal cap with a cardboard tab, from which the owner would use yarn or string to hang the ornament. These hangers firmly place the date of manufacture of the ornament to the early 1940s.
Following the war, Shiny-Brite introduced a line of ornaments with a newly designed metal hook that provided the user with two lengths of hanger. The long hook traveled through the center of the ornament and exited the bottom, where it attached to the foot of the ornament. This provided the "short" hanger. Unlatched from the bottom, the entire length of the hook was available, allowing the ornament to dangle at a greater distance from the tree limb to which it was attached. This arrangement was designed to allow the ornament to fill sparsely limbed areas of a natural tree.
The increasing popularity of the aluminum artificial Christmas trees first manufactured in 1958, made this device far less attractive to the consumer, as an artificial tree had no gaps to be filled. The added expense of the lengthy hanging wire coupled with the diminishing need caused this feature to be discontinued in 1960.
During its peak, Shiny-Brite had four factories in New Jersey, located in the cities of Hoboken, Irvington, North Bergen, and West New York. The company's main office and showroom were located at 45 East 17th Street in New York City, NY.
Shiny-Brite's most popular ornaments have been reissued by Christopher Radko since 2001.
This info from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shiny_Brite_ornaments