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14 Vintage Christmas Decorations You Can Buy Today

It can be nice to bring back old-school Christmas charm. These vintage Christmas decorations will bring you back to the days of leaving out milk and cookies for Santa and being too excited to fall asleep.

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Vintage Christmas decorations
via FreshBreezeVintage/etsy.com, via amazon.com (2)

Vintage Christmas decorations

Take yourself back in time this holiday season with these vintage Christmas decorations. If you miss the days of tinsel, bubble lights, and Christmas villages, no need to dig through your grandparents’ attic because you can actually still buy a lot of these items today. While they may not have the same significance as something that was passed down in your family for years, they’ll still make your house feel extra cozy and allow you to start making new Christmas memories. If you’d rather get crafty, here are some DIY Christmas decorations that anyone can make.

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Stained glass candle holders
via etsy.com

Stained glass candle holders

$18.50

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These gorgeous vintage candle holders are built with a cast iron candle holder on the back of the stained glass. If you want to skip the candle you can place these on a window sill and let the sunlight pass through. These are real vintage Christmas decorations (all from before 2000) so some of the glass panels do have cracks in them, but that just gives it a little extra charm.

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Snow Village Christmas
via amazon.com

Snow Village Christmas

$88.21

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Decorate your table or hutch with this vintage porcelain house. This one features intricate details and even an inner scene through the living room window on the first floor. Amazon has a few different houses to choose from so you can get creative and build an entire village. Don’t forget to add some fake snow to really tie the look together. This is what Christmas looked like the year you were born.

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Bubble Light Strand
via amazon.com

Bubble Light Strand

$44.95

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Give your tree a pop of color this year with these vintage bubble lights. This Bubble-Brite set will give your tree the perfect vintage feel. This strand is seven feet long, and don’t worry—if one bulb burns out the rest will stay lit.

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Ceramic Christmas Tree
via amazon.com

Ceramic Christmas Tree

$39.99

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These were a staple at Christmas celebrations many years ago. It can be hard to come by ones that look authentic, but this one has amazing customer reviews, is beautifully hand-painted with a glossy finish, and has 64 multicolored bulbs and a seven-pointed star on the top. It’s only 15 inches tall so it’s the perfect size for any table, desk, or mantel.

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Glass mini ornaments
via macys.com

Glass mini ornaments

$31.99

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These fun vintage Christmas decorations are part of Kurt Adler’s Early Years collection at Macy’s. This set comes with 24 mini ornaments that will give your tree that old-world nostalgic charm. Bonus: They’re on sale right now for Black Friday, so grab them while you can.

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Kissing Ball
via CynSellsVintage/etsy.com

Kissing Ball

$24.99

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Nowadays you typically see mistletoes, but people used to put up kissing balls, a hanging mistletoe ornament, around the holidays. This one on Etsy is from Hallmark and was made in the ’70s. Sadly, there is only one available so if it’s sold out by the time you’re reading this, check out these other vintage kissing balls on Etsy. Take a look at these vintage Christmas ads from the past 90 years.

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Stockings
via FiddleDeeDooDah/etsy.com

Stockings

$40

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These vintage stockings will bring some unique cheer to your mantel this Christmas. They are made of red felt and since they’re from the ’50s, they have a few tears and imperfections on them. If these don’t fit your exact style or color scheme for Christmas, Etsy has many more homemade ones to choose from.

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Drinking glasses
via AgsVintageCove/etsy.com

Drinking glasses

$55

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Whether you’re leaving cookies and milk out for Santa or enjoying some eggnog around the table, these glasses will take you back to the good old days. They come in a set of four and are in great condition. They’ll look great with your Christmas decor or they make a good hostess gift. Check out these vintage photos of what winter used to look like.

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Christmas cards
via GiftOtheGab/etsy.com

Christmas cards

$7.83

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If you don’t have time to make Christmas cards this year, order these 1950s cards instead. A pack includes six cards and envelopes and the Etsy shop allows you to download the images digitally so you can print them yourself. Your family and friends will love receiving these throwback cards in the mail. Check out these vintage Disney Christmas cards from every decade.

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Tinsel
via amazon.com

Tinsel

$4.27

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Tinsel everywhere! Drape it over the tree, the mantel, or around the doorways and windows. It will give your house some Christmas sparkle. This Brite Star tinsel is highly rated and comes with 2,000 strands. Yes, it might be a pain to clean up come the new year, but the twinkling light reflecting off of the shiny tinsel is the nostalgia we all need right now.

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Christmas figure candles
via ssanteaksGreatStuff/etsy.com

Christmas figure candles

$18

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These candles from the ’50s are one of the vintage Christmas decorations that aren’t meant to be used but simply displayed around your house. This six-piece set comes in the original box and has never been used. The box they come in also has a nice vintage charm and would look great displayed under the tree.

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Putz cardboard houses
via RetroLovern/etsy.com

Putz cardboard houses

From $16

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Putz Christmas houses have been around since the early 19th century. They are small cardboard houses decorated with glitter (to represent snow) and they often have a hole in the back or bottom for you to insert a candle to illuminate the cellophane windows. This set includes three little houses, one large church with a steeple, and one smaller church with stained glass windows.

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Window candles
via stoneridgeattic/etsy.com

Window candles

$22

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Many people still decorate their windows with candles, but they don’t look like this anymore. These ivory, retro candles from the ’60s are the perfect vintage find. They have fake wax melting down the sides and a sturdy, wide base. These window candles come in a pack of four.

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Bottlebrush trees
via FreshBreezeVintage/etsy.com

Bottlebrush trees

$26

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Bottlebrush trees are popular again today and can be found at most stores that carry Christmas decor, but they were first popular in the ’40s and ’50s. This vintage set of six was made in Taiwan and they are much simpler than the sparkly ones you’ll find today. They have gold wooden bases and the turquoise blue/green color of the trees will really pop against your other Christmas decor. Next, read through these sweet vintage letters to Santa from almost 100 years ago.

Morgan Cutolo
Morgan Cutolo is a former senior production editor at Trusted Media Brands. She graduated from the University of New Hampshire in 2016, where she received her Bachelor of Arts in Journalism. In her free time, she likes exploring the seacoast of Maine, where she lives, and snuggling up on the couch with her corgi, Eggo, to watch HGTV or The Office.