A Christmas Collection

For Juli Postol of Woodbury, Christmas begins shortly after Thanksgiving when dozens of boxes are carried down from the attic and she carefully begins unwrapping all 2,000-plus ornaments.

The boxes are carefully marked to indicate both the contents and where they are to be placed: Santas, Santa’s boots, snowmen, angels, toys, pink ornaments, tree toppers, lights, living room, dining room, kitchen, feather tree, small tree, big tree.

Postol began her collection of vintage ornaments 34 years ago, after discovering just prior to her first Christmas with her second husband, that her treasured ornaments from her childhood had been misplaced.

There was nothing to put on the tree, no special memories to recall childhood and family as each ornament is removed from its packaging and placed wistfully on the tree. And that’s what Postol’s collection is about. “The whole point is that it’s sentimental,” she says. “It takes you back to your childhood.”

Postol’s cherished collection of Victorian-era ornaments not only includes spun glass and pressed board ornaments of the time, but also magazines, postcards and greeting cards of the period, which she also displays in her home during the holiday season.

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