Ornament Review: A Merry Magical Christmas - 2011 Hallmark Frosty the Snowman Ornament

Stars: 4 out of 5

Pros: The song clip

Cons: Too much glitter, sculpt is nothing special

The Bottom Line: 

I could have passed but

Song clip made this ornament

A must buy for me

The Magic Elevates an Otherwise Average Ornament

I grew up watching Frosty the Snowman, so I decided I should get a Hallmark ornament of Frosty for my collection.  But I just needed one.  At least that's what I thought until I saw A Merry Magical Christmas, this year's Frosty ornament from Hallmark.  While the sculpt isn't super special, the magic elements really elevates it for me.

The ornament shows Frosty leaning on one foot in the snow.  It looks like he is juggling three rather large snow flakes over his head.  Those flakes are attached to a rather obvious wire, something that detracts from the ornament for me.  Frosty is wearing his trademark black hat plus a yellow and red scarf with his pipe in his mouth.  The only other character on the ornament is a small red bird that is looking at Frosty.  If you hang the ornament facing out, you can barely see the detail on the bird.  Both Frosty and the bird are standing on a solid white circle that actually does a good job of looking like snow.

So if I don't think the ornament looks like anything special, why did I get it?  This ornament is what Hallmark dubs a "Magic" ornament, which in this case means it have sound.  It requires two button batteries, which are included with the ornament.  When you press the button hidden on the side of the ornament (and it is hidden pretty well), you get about a 30 second clip of Jimmy Durante singing the song from the TV special.  That was all I had to hear to know it was coming home with me.  I love the special and that version of the song enough to need to get it.

The base sits on three small knobs that allow the sound to come out of the speaker even if the ornament is sitting on the ground.  It also keeps the ornament balanced if you set it out.

The hook for hanging the ornament is located on the front of Frosty's hat.  The ornament tips to the right, and it's noticeable.  But here's the weird thing.  Frosty is leaning enough to the left that he is straight up and down when he's hanging, but the base looks a little crooked.  Honestly, the ornament looks okay whether it is hanging or sitting.

One final note - this ornament is covered in glitter.  There is no way to touch it without getting glitter all over you.  It really makes the ornament sparkle, so I like the effect, but I wish it didn't get all over my hands even when I press the button to play the song.

I could have easily passed on this ornament if it didn't have that clip from the song.  Despite the fact that it's not the greatest ornament of the year, that clip makes A Merry Magical Christmas an ornament I'm glad I've added to my collection.

Original Price: $17.95