Ornament Review: Mrs. Claus's Stove - 2012 Hallmark Signing Event Piece

Stars: 5 out of 5

Pros: Lots of great details. So fun to look at.

Cons: Expensive and hard to find but worth it.

The Bottom Line: 

So many details

Collaborative ornament

Of old fashioned stove

Mrs. Claus is Busy Baking Some Treats on Her Old Fashioned Stove

Every year, the Hallmark artists work together to create a special piece for their events.  For the last few years, they have been creating various pieces of furniture in Santa and Mrs. Claus's house.  For the 2012 artist signing events held around the country, they created Mrs Claus's Stove.  I was lucky enough to attend a signing and get one.  I just love it.

This is an old fashioned wood stove, and that's just perfect.  It's exactly what I can see Mrs. Claus baking on.  It's mostly white with light green accents on the edges.  There are even shelves above the stove itself, and they hold such things as a Santa and Mrs. salt and pepper shaker, a canister set, and cookie molds.  On the top of the stove itself, there is a coffee pot and another pot with a snowflake on top plus a cookie sheet with sugar cookies cooling on it.  The larger of the two doors opens, so you can see that more cookies, these using the cookie mold now resting on the top shelf.  Off to one side is some bread cooling, while on the floor on the other side a mouse is sticking his head out of some black boots.  Finally, there's a snowman utensil holder with some various spoons sticking out of the top.

I think I've covered just about everything, but it's hard to tell for sure.  That's because there are just so many little details to it.  Every time I look at it, I see something different.  While the stove is about six inches high, the individual pieces are small.  Yet the details on them are beautiful.  I just love sitting and staring at it.

I already mentioned that this is an old fashioned stove.  Some people might not recognize it as such since it now belongs in the antique category.  But to me that is part of the charm.  You couldn't add all these details to a modern stove either.  I'm not saying I want to go back to stoves of this era, but it makes such a better ornament.

You'd think with four legs on the stove, you'd be able to set the stove down and it would be level.  On mine, you can certainly set the stove down, but it wobbles just a bit.  I'm still comfortable with it sitting out on display.  You'll only notice it if you are looking for it.

There's a little loop on the front of the top shelf you can use to hang it on your tree.  It is an ornament after all.  Hanging it is where you will find the only flaw, it tips slightly to the right.  You'll certainly notice it, but it's a small flaw in my eyes.  The ornament is a bit on the heavy side, which isn't a surprise given it's size.  As a result, you'll want to find a very sturdy branch to hang it on.

While all the ornaments I buy are fun, some of them really are works of art.  That's certainly the case with Mrs Claus's Stove.  I wasn't planning to buy it, but the more I looked at it, the more I had to have it.  It's really that beautiful.

Original Price: $34.95