Every year, PNC Bank calculates the “true cost” of the Twelve Days of Christmas. I wrote about it 7 years ago, when the twelve gifts, bought individually, cost $39.1K. Link: FIRE Station Fun – What Do The 12 Days of Christmas Cost? Link: PNC Bank – Cost of Christmas I’m not sure where you would procure most of the gifts in the Victorian musical fantasy, … Continue reading 12 Days of Inflation
Sending Christmas cards used to be a huge part of the holiday season. Families would sit down together, write personal messages, and mail cards to loved ones. I even used to sell engraved Christmas cards door-to-door in the Summer when I was in grade school. Still, the tradition is waning. According to the US Post Office, the number of Christmas cards sent through the mail … Continue reading Christmas Cards: A Tradition Gone By?
A few years ago, I wrote about my hobby of collecting antique Shiny Brite Christmas ornaments from the 1940s-1960s. Since I retired in 2016, I’ve probably collected upwards of 50 of them. Among all of the things you could collect, Shiny Brites were very affordable. I’d pick up a glass lantern, UFO, or a curvy tree for just $4-$6 on average. If I found a … Continue reading Inflationary Christmas Treasures
It’s the busy season for charitable organizations as the end of the year comes close. The end of the calendar year is also the end of the tax year, so 501c3 non-profits hope to close out 2023 strong. Unfortunately, giving trends haven’t been positive for a while. The chart below shows American giving over the last 40 years. While there is some bounce in the … Continue reading Ring Out The Year Charitably
What’s the temperature down to just 10° F the other morning, I decided to try out mall walking. It seemed like the quintessential retiree activity on a cold winter morning. A friend was supposed to join me, but he texted me that morning to say that 9:30a was “too early” for him. 🙂 When I arrived at 9:30, the mall was still closed. It was … Continue reading Deck The Malls …
Happy Twixtmas! Twixtmas? Yes, the time “betwixt” Christmas/Hanukkah & New Years. Say it to yourself in a haughty English accent and it might sound authentic … Twixtmas). Twixtmas is the latest way to describe the extended holiday season, formerly known as “Christmas Break”. It’s the time when many people are off work, or work demands slow dramatically because so many others are out of the … Continue reading Happy / Merry Twixtmas!
It’s been a busy November, but I’ve never been so organized heading into the holidays. I like to load up the month with all of the ‘work’ of the holidays so that I can just goof-off and enjoy ourselves between now and New Year’s. My approach this year was inspired by something I saw used at our metro zoo. I’ve been involved with the zoo … Continue reading Pre-Holiday Organization
As I do every year, over the last month I’ve used my personal Facebook feed to countdown the days from Thanksgiving to Christmas. This year’s vintage countdown focuses on the great illustration/design from vinyl album covers of the 1940-60s. Hope you enjoy seeing some old favorites … 🎼 25 Days to Christmas – Mitch Miller released this colorful album in 1958. He role of chorale … Continue reading Vintage Christmas Album Covers
I saw a news segment earlier this week about the supply chain issues on the west coast and how it may impact toys at Christmas. The ‘Toy Industry Expert’ went out of his way to ensure everyone there would be plenty of toys from Santa Claus, but the news person did her best to try to create holiday hysteria anyway. I fell for it. Within … Continue reading An Early Start …
As I do every year, over the last month I’ve used my personal Facebook feed to countdown the days from Thanksgiving to Christmas. I’m sharing the countdown more broadly through this blog post.
2017 Countdown: Vintage Christmas Advertising
2018 Countdown: Christmas Classic Toy Countdown
2019 Countdown: Illustrated Christmas Magazine Covers
This year’s countdown is a trip back in time through the 1970 JCPenney Christmas Catalog. My Dad worked his whole career as a JCP store manager and my brothers and I memorized almost every page.
I hope you see some favorite toys, mod outfits, entertaining gifts, and wonderful memories in these pages from 50 years ago. Note on the cover of the catalog it says that “toys and giftware orders need to be placed by August 28th” … already more than 90 days ago!
All scans are from the amazing christmas.musetechnical.com archive
🎅🏻 27 Days to Christmas – Snoopy & his Peanuts Pals earned a 2-page spread in the 1970 JCP catalog. To adjust for inflation, multiply the prices 7x. No doubt all of these toys & watches would be vintage ‘collectibles’ worth more than that on eBay today.
🏈 26 Days To Christmas – Uniforms for the newly merged NFL + AFL were popular fifty years ago in the JCPenney Christmas Catalog. The Chiefs had beat the Vikings in the Super Bowl the previous season and the Cowboys were on their way to beat the Colts in the January 1971 championship. Did they photograph the same kid in all 26 team uniforms?
⭐️🥃 25 Days to Christmas – Drinking & smoking were a big part of the 1970 holiday season. Lots of sophisticated bar sets, decanters, and lighters – with a full length fencing foil (left) to add to the fun!
🎁 24 Days to Christmas – 1970 fashions from the JCPenney Christmas catalog put Mrs. Roper from ‘Three’s Company’ into context with ‘quilted culottes’ and ‘shimmering caftans’ …
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