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Every Ornament Tells a Story

If every ornament tells a story, then the Pink Sleigh is our state library, and owners Brett and Susan Haddad are the reference librarians.

Packed with New England charm, the popular Westbrook shop engulfs the patinaed interior of an antique sheep barn that's packed with a slew of brilliant holiday baubles of all descriptions. Open seasonally from July through December 24, the Pink Sleigh's thousands of ornaments, as well as hundreds of other holiday wares, cover every alcove, nook, and cranny. Many areas are separated by category to help shoppers with their holiday hunt.

Vying for attention among the ornaments are holiday décor staples such as sleigh bells, small-scale Christmas trees, wreaths, garlands, lights, ribbons, pillows, table runners, books for kids, games, distinctive nutcrackers, heirloom advent calendars, and much more.

"We're thought of as 'the ornament store' but we really have everything you need for the holidays, as well as an abundance of ornaments," says Susan.

For sheer holiday ambiance, there's nothing quite like pulling open the Pink Sleigh's wonderfully worn wooden door. As sleigh bells jangle, the first sight is the shop's centerpiece: a show-stopping, twinkling, heavily decorated tree.  Stretching over 12 feet high into the barn's second-story loft, the tree's branches are laden with hundreds of white and silver ornaments of all descriptions. The overall effect creates a "Winter White," theme, says Susan, who changes the theme every year.

The Haddads were once themselves fans of the charming little shop, which has been part of the local merchant landscape for 55 years. Twenty-four years ago, they jumped at the rare chance to become the third owners of the Pink Sleigh. The couple left corporate careers and still love every minute they spend curating the Pink Sleigh's amazing array of gifts, goods and ornaments.

"We look for categories we know people love, and we try to find new and unique things each year, and things that are wonderful and whimsical," says Susan of the shop's vast ornament inventory. "We had a gentleman who came in here the other day who was looking for a ketchup bottle ornament. Where else would you find a ketchup bottle ornament?"

Can a ketchup bottle ornament tell a story? In the eyes of the person giving it as a gift or hanging it on their tree, the answer is likely yes, says Susan.

"One of the rewarding things is making people happy and having the things that they need," she says. "These ornaments have a special meaning to people."

For example, "... a lot of people want to have an angel ornament," says Susan, pointing to one of dozens on display. Done in clear glass, the delicate little angel's robe encases a thin white feather.

"There's a story that when you find a feather, it means your angels are nearby, or it's a sign your loved ones in heaven are well," says Susan.

Brett says customers also often seek out glass "spirit balls," filled with colorful interior glass swirls. The shop's glittering spectrum includes hues of peacock, rainbow, dusky rose, and jewel tones.

"These are some of my favorite," says Brett, carefully sharing one of the heavy, handcrafted globes. "They're made out of the volcanic ash from Mt. St. Helen's in Washington."

"They're also called 'witch balls'" Susan adds. "Their story goes back to an Old English, centuries-old superstition that the strands in the balls collect all the mischievous, evil spirits; so they can't do any harm."

Looking for a more traditional Christmas ornament? Start with birds, both of glass and feathered varieties, says Susan. Birds were one of the very first ornaments German glass artisans crafted to decorate Christmas trees. Among the many types and species of birds hanging around the Pink Sleigh are a collection of German-made replicas of the first glass bird ornaments.

"The story is German glassblowers often kept wild birds in their workshops during the winter months, since the sound of the gas flames prompted the birds to sing; and they would release them outside when spring came," says Susan.

Another traditional German ornament: the humble pickle, purveyed here in several sizes.

"The story is that it's the last ornament to be hung on the tree," Susan explains. "And the first child who finds it on Christmas morning gets an extra gift. As the children get older, you use a smaller pickle, because it's harder to find."

Other ornaments shoppers search out at the Pink Sleigh mark milestones which tell their own stories, such as graduations, anniversaries, or even those of expectant parents.

"I had a woman the other day who gets her family ornaments for all of the major things for the year, new baby, new home, new puppy – we have all kinds of pet ornaments" says Susan.

Far and away the most-asked-for milestone ornament each year is, "Baby's First Christmas," says Brett. "We have a rack of them!"

Then, there are ornaments people love to pick up "just for fun," says Susan, who gets kick out of decorating the shop's "Sweet Tooth" tree every year.

"People love the cupcakes, the donuts, the candy bars... and for some reason this year, these are selling very quickly," she says, pointing to a delightfully tempting rendition of a Dairy Queen "Blizzard."

An ornament category that's a perennial popular pick is all things ballet and any characters from Tchaikovsky's classic Nutcracker Suite Ballet.

"It's amazing how many people have little girls who dance," says Susan. "And people always are looking for Nutcracker Ballet ornaments -- Clara, Herr Drosselmeyer, the Mouse King and the Prince. The ballet was performed in America for the first time in 1940, and it's become one of the world's most celebrated holiday traditions."

Another ornament which tells the story of Christmas is, of course, any Santa Claus ornament. The Pink Sleigh carries Santas of all sorts (think Surfing Santa, Chef Santa, even Irish Santa). But do you know why he has that famous face? Susan does.

"Santa, as we know him today, became popular in the famous poem by Clement C. Moore, 'The Night Before Christmas.' He described Santa as a jolly elf with twinkling eyes, dimples, rosy cheeks and a beard as white as snow," she says. "That verse inspired the illustrator, Thomas Nast, to create a drawing of Santa for Harpers Illustrated Weekly in 1863. This is the Santa we know today, and he is an ever-popular theme for an ornament."

Some of the newest stories Susan has to share come from the Pink Sleigh's array of Fair Trade ornaments. Her favorites are from Thailand. The dangling designs, made of metal and wire and spangled with colored beads, celebrate animals, hobbies, holiday items, celestial themes and more. They're fabricated by over 400 village neighbors who turn out scores of pieces using traditional metal working skills.

"They have now been making these for over three decades, in what was once a chronically poor village, where families used to have to separate because people had to go in search of work," says Susan. "Now, they work in their community at fair wages to produce these ornaments."

Another Fair Trade success story can be seen in a group of whimsical, all-natural felt ornaments handmade in Kyrgyzstan. The animals, fairies, snowmen and Santas are crafted using traditional felting methods in studios founded and run by women artisans.

Yet another very cool Fair Trade story is about a group of Peruvian gourd ornaments. The humble gourds, grown from seed, have been transformed into wonderfully carved and colorful creatures.

"They go to a master artist who hand-carves the designs, and then the design is burned in, using techniques dating back 4,000 years," says Susan. "The fire creates all of the different shades of colors."

The Haddads also share stories of ornaments made by local New England artists, such as the Niantic craftswoman who creates beautiful sea glass ornaments which can double as sun catchers.

"She takes daily walks along the beach all year long to collect treasures from the sea, and creates these handcrafted ornaments from sea glass, shells, shards and sand," says Susan.

A Deep River artist crafts colorful felt ornaments done in the shape of the state, with a heart over the shoreline.

"They're popular because they can be kept as a souvenir or shared with someone to send with love from Connecticut," says Susan.

Hand-painted and decorated glass balls by a Westbrook artist include those with delicate swirls of designs and others making a statement with the words "Connecticut" and "Westbrook."

The story of several shoreline towns is told through eye-catching blue and white ornaments made in the manner of authentic Dedham, Mass. pottery by New England artisans. Snowflakes, sailboats and other shapes include many tagged with town names of Westbrook, Old Saybrook, Old Lyme, Essex, Clinton, Killingworth, Guilford, Madison or Branford.

Suffice it to say, a Christmas tree filled with an array of many different ornaments tells volumes of stories, says Susan. Each year, as new ornaments are added, so are new chapters.

"When you put them out every single year, you remember their stories, or you remember the people who gave a certain ornament to you," she says. "That's why everything in the shop is meant to be a keepsake. I think people are looking for something that has meaning, something that has quality, something that's going to become a keepsake that they can put out every year."

The Pink Sleigh, located at 512 Essex Road (Route 153) in Westbrook, is open seasonally (July through December 24; hours vary). For more information visit www.pinksleigh.com, find the Pink Sleigh on Facebook or call 860-399-6926.