I've been thinking about Christmas prezzies I got as a kid.
I remember most of the big stuff in the Sixties. Its the little things that fell between them I'm struggling to recall. They will have been tucked into nooks and crannies on the settee of larger gifts.
A few thoughts are coalescing round miniature jigsaw puzzles. They may have come in square boxes about the size of a cassette and maybe two inches deep. I'm thinking Kings and Queens or Wild Animals maybe?
Another half-notion is of nails, string and a hammer. A sort of cats cradle art board in a box, which you could then put on the wall. I'm seeing owls or even a knight?
Painting by Numbers is seeping into my mind too. Tiny little plastic pots protruding from a card frame with several numbered drawings inside. Oh, and a few brushes. I can't recall any I did though.
I know I got Wallwalkers. They were just brill. Like little plastic bed frames that could walk down windows. Mine had a purple face.
Parker pens. Got one every year. They always had an metal arrow as the clip. It came along with an Oxford geometry set in a tin.
I can see Pyro dinosaur models like T. Rex and Anklyosaurus. These kits were hugely important to me as I was obsessed with dinosaurs as a nipper. Right up to being around 45 if you'd ask me what I wanted to be when I grew up I would have said a paleontologist.
I can also see Revell Beatles kits like John, the kookiest of them all and Paul, the fabulous one. But these weren't mine I don't think. They were my big bros on his chair.
Garnishing all this was a sprinkle of chocolate. A selection here, a chocolate orange there, a box of chocolate 'Just' brazils and maybe a box of coffee cremes. How I loved those all those wonderful chocs.
I'm sure there were many more nik naks and toys but for now I'll ask you readers what small Xmas gifts you recall in your stocking, under the tree or on the sofa?
Jigsaw puzzles.I can remember usually getting several on any given Christmas,mostly from grandparents and aunts/uncles.My faves were made by Springbok and sold at Hallmark Card and gift shops.They always were subject matter that I liked.Dinosaurs,Outer Space,Ocean Life,they also made cool Halloween themed puzzles that I didn't mind getting for Christmas at all.I also remember getting 2 glow in the dark monster puzzles,Phantom of the Opera and Creature from the Black Lagoon.I think they were Whitman's.Later in Winter,when snow was piling up outside,the whole family would do puzzles together.Those dinosaur models...another gift that every family member knew I couldn't get enough of.I assembled them and played with them like toys.As a result,not too many of them survived to present day.Luckily,Revell has resurrected the Aurora dinosaur line and Lindberg has re issued the Pyro line,so Im re-visisting my childhood in my fifties.Stocking stuffers?I remember these candies made of clear barley sugar and shaped like little toys.they had sticks in them so I guess they were lollipops.Sticky and super sweet,I haven't seen these in decades!
ReplyDeleteSuper memories Bri. Those monster puzzles sound amazing. I'd have loved them. Glad to hear you were a dinosaur nut like me. Must be great to reacquire the Pyro and Aurora models. I was always fascinated by adverts for the Tar Pit with the vulture and the sabre=toothed tiger. the smilodon, my fave ancient mammal. never heard of those barleysugar toys. I've had barleysugar twists. Amazing menories.
DeleteTV and comic related annuals were always a constant crimbo companion throughout childhood, Woodsy. Anything from Star Trek, Man From UNCLE, Doctor Who, Thunderbirds, Aeronauts, Fantastic Four, etc. They were always guaranteed and always welcome. I still have a lot of them boxed away :)
ReplyDeleteme too Tone but not much at all that's survived my childhood. The oldest book I have is a large picture book about the Golden Fleece. It has a Zodiac Toys sticker on it. Thats from childhood. I managed to keep lots of Kung Fu books from my teens. I also have my dad's entire encyclopedia set of books about WWII. I used to sit and flick the thousands of pages when I was a kid. The war was never that far away in the Sixties as both my folks fought in it. In a strange biut of nostakgia I have managed to get most of my 'old' books back from car boots and charity shops over many many years! Sad I know!
DeleteMy folks have a got a picture of my sis and I in bed with ma and pa and there's a clear shot of as I remember an Alan Moore footballer action figure and a SPV from Captain Scarletn I need to check these photos again for the little gems!! -Mark J Southcoast Base
ReplyDeleteSounds wonderful that photo Mark! I didn't know there was an Alan Moor action figure! Yes, dig it out. I have always thought a reader might unearth a snap of their Project SWORD toys from back in the Sixties but not as yet.
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