My Favorite Things: A Look at Jewel Brites and Evergleams

It’s time to ring in a New Year and put away some of my favorite things from this past Christmas. I’m busy packing up a few plastic ornaments that once caught my eye at a thrift store . I was taken in by their three dimensional scenes (dioramas), their bright colors and various shapes. They come in plastic teardrops, rounds, and boxy lanterns. I enjoy looking at the miniature scenes within, seeing the tiny plastic greenery, fake snow, and figurines.

Some of my plastic Christmas ornaments are from the 1950s. I wonder where they’ve been and how many trees they’ve decorated?

The plastic dioramas are called Jewel Brite ornaments and were manufactured by Decor Novelties, Inc. of Whitman Massachusetts more than 70 years ago. Back then a single plastic ornament cost about 25 cents. Sets of four were often priced at less than a dollar.

Jewel Brites were popular ornaments of the 1950s and 1960s. They were lightweight and perfect for the novel aluminum Christmas trees. They were popular with families of young children and advertised as affordable and unbreakable.

Aluminum Christmas trees were popular from 1959 until the early 1970s. Our neighbor purchased an early one. My first sight of it returns to me now as a technicolor memory. I recall seeing their tree standing all alone in a darkened living room. It was lit only by a revolving color wheel which made its branches sparkle and sent rainbows around the room. Very futuristic! I was awestruck and had never seen anything like it!

Who started this futuristic craze? By far the most popular aluminum Christmas tree came from Manitowoc Wisconsin and happened quite by accident. In December 1958 a toy manager for Aluminum Specialty Company saw a metal Christmas tree in a Chicago storefront window. It was bulky and expensive but sparked an idea. The manager quickly bought one of the metal trees simply to take it apart at the Aluminum Specialty Company and study its design. They already made house wares, toys, and some Christmas decorations so surely they could make a better, more affordable Christmas tree. It would be sleek, silver, and represent the space age.

The Manitowoc aluminum tree was presented at the American Toy Fair in March of 1959 by the Aluminum Specialty Company. It was a novelty created at just the right time period and found its way into hundreds of homes by the Christmas of 1959. In 1960, it was given a brand name, the Evergleam, and millions were sold in the 1960s.

The original Evergleam tree cost up to $25 and came in 4-7 ft sizes. Many models sold for as little as $10. The tree came boxed and ready for assembly with a trunk-like silver pole and dozens of branches covered with aluminum needles. You inserted each branch individually into holes on the trunk. Some 6-foot trees had 91 branches! The Evergleam was marketed as reusable, no need to purchase a new tree next year! It was kept safely in its cardboard storage box. Later models included paper sleeves to protect the aluminum branches from wear and tear.

About 80 percent of Evergleam trees came in silver. A smaller percentage came in green, gold, or pink. You can see original Evergleam trees on display each December at the Wisconsin Historical Museum and at storefronts around Manitowoc. At the museum, you can have your photo taken while sitting in a retro 1950s living room complete with an aluminum Christmas tree.

My Jewel Brite ornaments would have looked great on an Evergleam tree! Yet many aluminum trees were displayed without any ornaments at all. And they were never ever draped in electric lights! It wasn’t safe! Remember that aluminum trees are great conductors of electricity. Revolving color wheels, costing less than $5, were a favorite aluminum tree accessory.

Why did aluminum trees go away and lose favor? Some blame a negative presentation of them in the televised 1965 special, A Charlie Brown Christmas. If you remember the story, Lucy wanted the biggest pink aluminum tree available while Charlie Brown yearned for something real and traditional, no matter the size. Charlie Brown returned from shopping carrying his well known skinny green Christmas tree. He chose it over all the large and colorful aluminum trees in the lot.

Finding favorite ornaments is on my “to do” list this year. Locating some missing Jewel Brite ornaments without resorting to EBay is going to be a challenge. Getting an aluminum tree for them might be also taken into consideration.

Meanwhile I’d like to find the remainder of an ornament set. You see, I have only one wiseman. Years ago, Jewel Brite sold three wiseman dioramas along with a nativity scene of Mary, Joseph, and the Christ Child. They were a set of four teardrop shaped ornaments. It will be interesting to see if those or other Jewel Brites are in someone’s closet!

Today there is a revival of Evergleam-type trees and retro ornaments. A book, “Seasons Gleamings” was written in 2004 by Shimon and Lindemann and is credited with sparking a renaissance of the aluminum Christmas tree. In 2018, an extensive catalog-type book was done, “The Wonderful World of Evergleam” by Theron Georges. He carefully detailed every size and style of Evergleam.

What is the appeal of an aluminum tree anyway or the charm of old plastic ornaments? For some people it’s a reminder of their childhood and for others it’s something different and a bit of a novelty.

Years change places —2024 becomes 2025, I like to remember and reflect while I plan, wish, and dream. Perhaps I’ll think about more favorite things and wonder what makes them so special.

As I pack away my Jewel Brite ornaments for another year I wish you all a Happy New Year!

“Everything old is new again”
– Jonathan Swift. (written in the 1700s)