In-Store Artist Signing Local Club Host Gift
Members of the 16 local clubs hosting a 2012 In-Store Artist Signing event will receive a repaint of the 3rd in series Frosty Fun Decade, as a special thank-you gift for their efforts in hosting an event.
Frosty Fun Decade
Special Edition
What Were The Top 10 Ornaments (by units moved) During 2012 Ornament Premiere?
The Magic Cord, the “light string” extension cord used to power the ornaments of the same name, was the most popular item picked up during Ornament Premiere. Three factors contributed to this years unusual leader. In addition to a well received promotion (Free Magic Cord with the purchase of any Magic Cord Hallmark Keepsake Ornament), the Magic Cord technology has started to catch on and is gaining wider acceptance and thirdly, the release of popular designs including: Trimming the Tree, a Frosty Friends complement piece; Peanuts Pageant and two series pieces as Magic Cord ornaments.
The highest selling ornament during this same period was Cookie Cutter Christmas, the 1st in series piece by Nina Aubé featuring a sweet snowmouse inside a festive cookie cutter. For a complete list of the other ornaments that rounded off this years top ten (twelve) please see below.
#1 MAGIC CORD
(promo)*
13′ long.
Regularly $5.95 USA
#2 COOKIE CUTTER CHRISTMAS
1st in the series
By Nina Aubé. 2¾” h.
$12.95 USA QX8301
#3 SWEET MOUSE
(Free KOC gift)*
By Katrina Bricker. 1½” h.
Regularly $7.95 USA LPR3801
#4 FROSTY FUN DECADE
3rd in the series
By Tammy Haddix. 3¼” h.
$9.95 USA QX8284
#5 PAINTED BUNTING
8th in the Beauty of Birds series
By Edythe Kegrize. 4″ w.
$14.95 USA QX8101
#6 MAGICIAN MICKEY
1st in the Mickey’s Movie Mouseterpieces series
By Ken Crow. 2½” h.
$12.95 USA QX8294
#7 SEASONS TREATINGS
4th in the series
By Sharon Visker. 3¼” w.
$9.95 USA QX8074
#8 STERLING ROSE
25th in the Mary’s Angels series
By Robert Chad. 3″ h.
$9.95 USA QX8271
#9 FROSTY FRIENDS
33rd in the series
By Tom Best. 3¼” w.
$12.95 USA QX8044
#10 CORN POPPER™
Fisher Price™
By Rodney Gentry. 2½” h.
$12.95 USA QXI2664
#11 LIONEL® NUTCRACKER ROUTE
CHRISTMAS TRAIN LOCOMOTIVE
17th in the LIONEL® Trains series
Wheels turn. Handcrafted and metal. 3¼” w.
$19.95 USA Qx8211
#12 SNOW BUDDIES
15th in the series
By Tammy Haddix 2¾” h.
$12.95 USA QX8024
*NOTE: During Ornament Premiere both the Magic Cord and Sweet Mouse were FREE with a qualifying purchase, as such we have included the top 12.
Ornament Reveal Clue #10
This year, four Keepsake Ornaments will be revealed during Ornament Debut Weekend. You can get a head start guessing what those ornaments might be by watching our series of video clues right here.
Here’s the tenth clue to one of the four Keepsake Ornaments that will be revealed during Ornament Debut Weekend, October 6 & 7, at your Hallmark Gold Crown store.
Click on the image below to play the video.
Voice over (Steve Goslin): When the art director told me I was going to do this particular ornament, I was very excited. It just so happened that I have this vehicle at home. We picked him up in a farm field and cleaned him up and my sons named him General. I knew every curve and every nut and bolt when I was getting ready to sculpt it. It was like doing one of my friend. So I hope you’ll be excited about him to.
Share your thoughts in the comment section of this post.
General
Ornament Debut Reveal #4
Jeep®
2013 In-Store Artist Signing Events
In Addition to next years national KOC event, Hallmark will be having four In-Store (Keepsake ornament artist) Signing events in 2013.
Retailers will compete later this year in the “Keepsake Ornament Gift of Memories Weekend Contest” (December 7-9, 2012) to win one of these highly coveted events.
Winners will be announced during the first quarter of 2013.
Swap Party Register-to-Win Prizes
Participating Hallmark Gold Crown stores will each be giving away two Silver (repainted) Frosty Astronaut ornaments as part of an in-store register-to-win drawing that will be held in conjunction with a new Swap Party* event (October 14, 2012).
NOTE: Prizes will be limited to 2 ornaments per participating Hallmark Gold Crown store.
Astronaut Frosty
Special Edition Repaint
Astronaut Frosty
* Swap Party – An In-Store sponsored event that helps mystery ornament shoppers complete their sets by giving them a chance to trade mystery ornaments.
Two Turtle Doves Pulled From Shelves
Due to a non-safety-related quality concern affecting it’s aesthetics, Two Turtle Doves, 2nd in the Twelve Days of Christmas series, has been pulled from store shelves and placed back in production.
As a result of this unexpected quality issue, this ornament will not be released until October 6.
Two Turtle Doves
2nd in the Twelve Days of Christmas series
UPDATE (7.15.12):
Although Hallmark has not released specifics regarding the aesthetic concerns that prompted them to pull the Two Turtle Doves late last week, here are some of the predominant quality issues that have been observed:
- The registration on the bird’s eyes is off (the paint doesn’t align with the sculpt).
- The gold paint, applied to accent the title and verse engraved into the birds bodies (which should have been wiped off) was left on and appears thick and blotchy.
- The lavender paint on the birds heads and tails is smudged and finger prints appear in the paint.
- The pink under paint on the birds necks and breasts is absence with the darker over spray applied directly to the unpainted piece.
- From Digital Dreambook user marylynn, “I boldly ‘went behind the curtain’ at my Hallmark store yesterday, and while I loved the sculpt, the colors were exceedingly pale – almost like a paint wash. It was a huge contrast from the bold colors of the Partridge last year. It took me a while to come to love the boldness of the Partridge’s non-traditional colors, but I did. I was expecting the same ‘tone’ this year, and was mildly disappointed. I did not see any other defects – certainly nothing to warrent a recall.”
SOLD OUT List (7/10/2012)
With Ornament Premiere just days away, retailers have received their first SOLD OUT list*. The list includes the following eight ornaments:
MAMA’S DELIVERY VAN
Complement to Mama’s Ristorante Italiano
29th in the Nostalgic Houses and Shops series
QXG4571
Hallmark Gold Crown Exclusive
LET’S GET IT ON
QXG3224
PEACE ON EARTH
3rd and Final in the Windows of Faith series
QX8011
Hallmark Gold Crown Exclusive
MARY POPPINS
Disney Mary Poppins
Precious Moments
QXD1011
Hallmark Gold Crown Exclusive
STUDENT TEACHER BARBIE®
BARBIE™ ORNAMENT
QXI2674
TWEED INDEED BARBIE® DOLL
BARBIE™ ORNAMENT
QXI2681
CHARLES WOODSON
Green Bay Packers
QXI2094
HINES WOOD
Pittsburgh Steelers
QXI2201
Hallmark Gold Crown Exclusive
* Sold Out List – A list of the ornaments that are no longer available for retailers to reorder. That said, keep in mind that any ornaments ordered prior to the sell out will be shipped to retailers. This includes their Ornament Premiere shipment (which is 60% of their initial order) and a second smaller September shipment (the remaining 40% of their initial order). Depending on the quantities a retailer initially ordered, it may be faced with an early sell out. If you are looking to purchases any of these ornaments (especially those that are denoted as Hallmark Gold Crown Exclusives) you may want to do so early in the season or get on your local retailers waiting list.
Ornament Reveal Clue #9
This year, four Keepsake Ornaments will be revealed during Ornament Debut Weekend. You can get a head start guessing what those ornaments might be by watching our series of video clues right here.
Here’s the ninth official clue to one of the four Keepsake Ornaments that will be revealed during Ornament Debut Weekend, October 6 & 7, at your Hallmark Gold Crown store.
Click on an image below to play the video.
Voice Over (Debra Murray): I have had a long history with this character, starting back when I was a child myself. This character was very inspirational in regards to fashion and careers. I found this to be a great icon for my daughter to enjoy and play with as well as help her dream about what it was she would like to be in the future.
Share your thoughts in the comment section of this post.
Barbie Beauty Center/Barbie Styling Head
(Ornament Debut Reveal #2)
By Debra Murray. 3¼” w.
$17.95 USA QXI2711
2012 Dream Book iPad App Now Available
The 2012 DREAM BOOK iPad App is now available to download for FREE.
Once uploaded, users can swipe through the pages of this digital edition of the 2012 Dream Book to see more than 300 new designs and find out about each Keepsake ornament’s special features, including sound, light and motion.
Additionally this years Keepsake Ornament line is highlighted like never before, with behind-the-scenes video clips (including interviews with Mike Adair, Robert Chad, Joanne Eschrich, Kristina Gaughran and Tom Best), audio samples (dialogue and music from 20 of the more than 50 ornaments with sound), high-definition images (zoom to see the details of each ornament) and a 360º rotation view of 20 ornaments.
The app also has a built in search feature which can find a specific ornament using a keyword or product ID, and a Wish List building feature which allows users to create (and maintain) a list of their planned purchases by simply clicking on the desired ornaments. Once complete the list can then be printed or emailed.
It’s All In the Details
Several popular past year Keepsake ornaments have been incorporated into the design of “Time for Toys,” 2nd in the “Once Upon a Christmas” series, including: two 1st in series ornaments, a popular wooden toy and a design element from another piece.
Time For Toys
2nd in the Once Upon a Christmas series
Keepsake Artist contributions:
- Santa & ornament base – Robert Chad
- Work Bench – Orville Wilson
- Robot – Nello Williams
- Pipe in Gift Box – Joanne Eschrich
Interesting Details:
- Santa is painting “Waddles”, a wooden duck pull-toy (QX8952) from ’01 by Sharon Visker.
- Miniaturized versions of the 1st in the “Robot Parade” series (QX6771) from ’01 by Nello Williams and the 1st in the “A Pony for Christmas” series (QX6316) from ’98 by Linda Sickman sit on Santa’s work bench along with the “Pipe in Gift Box”, which was Joanne Eschrich’s contribution to “Mrs. Claus’s Cupboard” (QXC5033), the ’11 Keepsake Studio collaborative piece, and a Tracy Larsen train rests on the floor.
- The base includes embossed images of: (counter-clockwise) “Snowy Surprise”, membership ornament (QXC4529) from ’99 by Tammy Haddix, “Love to Shop”, 2nd and Final in the Forever Friends series (QXM8935) from ’05 by Sue Tague, “Cuddly Lamb” (QX5199) from ’91 by Anita Marra Rogers, “Penguin Races”, penguin on sled (QXM8155) from ’05 by Kris Gaughran’s and the “1968 Murray Jolly Roger Flagship”, 6th in the Kiddie Car Classic series (QX6279) from ’99 by Don Palimiter.