Ornament Review: Season's Treatings #4 Repaint - Coconut Snowman Cake - 2012 Register to Win Hallmark Ornament

Stars: 5 out of 5

Pros: Big changes to a delicious ornament

Cons: Only necessary for the die hard collectors

The Bottom Line: 

New background, accents

Same delicious snowman cake

Special ornament

Changing Colors Around a Coconut Cake

With the exception of one ornament in the series, Hallmark has now offered repaints (sometimes called colorways) of all the ornaments in the Seasons Treatings series.  There was an added challenge to getting the colorway for the 2012 Seasons Treatings since it was only offered as the prize in a drawing, but I happened to snag one.

As the repaint name implies, the basic ornament stays the same – so the ornament is still a coconut cake snowman on a baking sheet.  He’s surrounded by a spatula and a bowl of frosting.  And this snowman is wearing a top hat and scarf while his face is decorated by frosting for eyes, a carrot for a nose, and licorice for a smile.  His arms are also licorice, and he's got hard peppermint candies for buttons.  To top it off, he's wearing a black hat with a bit of holly in it.

So, what did they change?  Not much, to be honest.  They switched out some reds and greens, but kept the rest of the ornament the same.  The baking sheet itself is now green while the spatula is now red.  And the scarf the snowman is wearing is now red with blue dots and fringe.

Because the baking tray is such a large part of the impression of the ornament, the fact that it is changed is huge.  This is probably the most noticeable difference in an ornament in the series.  While the tray is pretty to look at (then again, I love green), it doesn't stand out quite as much from a green Christmas tree as the red original does.  The shade of green is light enough that you can still see it, however.

Some have complained that his eyes look weird in the original since they are pink frosting with a black center.  The green background neutralizes them a bit more, but they are still mostly pink here.  Personally, I never had a problem with the eye color, and I think it still looks fine.

With the nice flat back of the baking sheet, you can lay this one easily on a flat surface.  You won’t really be able to see the cake, on the other hand, unless you are standing directly over the ornament.  Even though it is not an official part of the series, mine has the 4 in a Christmas tree for the fourth ornament in the series.

I recommend hanging this one by the ring at the top right hand corner.  Slip a hook through there, and you’ll find it hangs by a jaunty angle.  This is on purpose and actually a fun part of the ornament and series as a whole.

I like having both versions of this ornament, so I was thrilled when I won it.  For most collectors, having both would probably be overkill.  However, if you really feel the need to own everything in this series, you’ll want to track down the 2012 Seasons Treatings Repaint.

And check out the rest of the Season's Treatings series.

Original Price: Free, but valued at $9.95