It’s My Party! Vintage Seasonal Decorations

Article and photos by Donald-Brian Johnson

Halloween and Thanksgiving and Christmas.

HalloweenandThanksgivingandChristmas!

HALLOWEENANDTHANKSGIVINGANDCHRISTMAS!!!

The holidays sure come at us in a rush, don’t they? Before you know it, all those grinning pumpkins are gone, replaced by plump turkeys, then by even plumper Santas. And we’re not even up to New Year’s Eve. Or Valentine’s Day. Or Easter. Or. . .well, you get the picture.

Fortunately, vintage table decorations make prepping for each year’s hailstorm of holidays a snap. Who can resist orange crepe paper streamers, festooned with cackling witches? Party napkins emblazoned with Santa’s smiling face? Or honeycomb centerpieces starring festive Christmas trees, cheery snowmen, and gobblers galore? (In my book, those are the best of all!)
When I was a kid growing up in Minnesota, there was nothing I liked better than family holiday dinners. Not because I enjoyed cooking (my kitchen skills were—and are—sorely lacking), but because any holiday get-together meant a visit to the local drug store. There, right next to the greeting cards, were the latest honeycomb table decorations from Hallmark. For just a dollar per packet, you could have Santa putting a star on the tree. . . Frosty twinkling merrily under his battered top hat. . . and Tom Turkey arrayed in a honeycomb of red, yellow, and brown feathers. I’d pick one out, and dash home. The packet was carefully opened, the cardboard elements punched out, the honeycomb expanded. Little paper tabs (and some Scotch tape) held it that way.

The cardboard pieces were tucked into place, and the fully assembled centerpiece took center stage on the dining room table. The holidays (any holidays) had finally arrived!

Honeycombs first appeared in Germany during the 1890s, as an embellishment on Valentines. Visiting businessman Martin Beistle saw them, and thought they’d make a fine addition to his Pennsylvania paper company—not just on cards, but as ornaments and three-
dimensional centerpieces. By 1910, Beistle Company creations were brightening tabletops around the country.

Completing the picture: paper tableware, courtesy of Dennison Manufacturing. In addition to themed tablecloths and napkins, Dennison introduced a décor enhancer no party planner would be without: crepe paper! Taking its name from the French word for crinkled fabric, crepe paper could pretty much do it all. Crepe paper streamers wound across the ceiling. Illustrated crepe paper panels dressed up dull walls. But why stop there? According to Dennison’s,
colorful, textured crepe paper was perfect for just about everything, from Halloween costumes to windowshade accents. And to spur sluggish imaginations, Dennison published a cartload of “how to” booklets, beginning with its best-known title: the Bogie Book.

From 1909 through 1935, Dennison’s Bogie Books were a reliable harbinger of Halloween in all its spooky glory. The title was a nod to the goblin-like “Bogey Man.” The creepy cover illustrations featured traditional Halloween horrors like witches and black cats terrifying the unwary. Inside each Bogie Book was info on just about every decorative detail needed for an eerie Halloween. Want a “Mossy Chandelier” hanging over the dining table? Just “drape your lamp fixture with grey crepe paper cut into fine fringe.” How about “Ballroom Ghosts”
guaranteed to “haunt the dancing party?” “A stuffed crepe paper bag makes the head; crepe paper panels over wire form the body.” (In case you haven’t guessed, most projects called for a generous use of Dennison crepe paper. Well, it was their book.)

A seemingly endless guest list of Dennison instructionals soon followed. There were Christmas party booklets (“For an eatable place card, what could be quainter than a very small lolly-pop, its face surrounded by crepe paper flower petals, its stick planted in a green gum drop?”). There were card party booklets (“Little designs cut from napkins are useful in decorating score cards.”) Lots of other party ideas sprang directly from the imaginations of Dennison copywriters: a ‘round-the-world “Good Neighbor Tour”. . .a rousing “Texas Hoe-Down”. . .a mouth-watering “Kitchen Candy Pull.”

For present-day party-givers, here’s news worth celebrating: many Dennison booklets remain available in both original editions and reprints. Most sell for under $20, as do vintage paper napkins and tablecloths. Original Halloween Bogie Books, however, can soar up into the hundreds, along with picturesque crepe paper panels in hard-to-find mint condition. As for those honeycomb centerpieces, they remain a great eBay bargain at $10-15, so snag one for your next shindig. While not “brand-new from your local stationer’s,” it will still meet the Dennison goal: “making the table merry and colorful—filled with the real party spirit—a success in every way!”

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Honeycomb decorations courtesy of Maureen Maher.
Photo Associate: Hank Kuhlmann
Donald-Brian Johnson is the co-author of numerous Schiffer books on design and collectibles, including Postwar Pop, a collection of his columns. Please address inquiries to: donaldbrian@msn.com