Ornament Review: Teensy Nutcracker - 2017 Hallmark Ornament

Stars: 5 out of 5

Pros: Great looking tiny nutcracker

Cons: Mouth hard to move

The Bottom Line:

Shrunken nutcracker

Looks great in his smaller size

Great for mini tree

For the Nutcracker Collector’s Mini Tree

While I don’t have a large collection of nutcrackers or nutcracker ornaments, I always enjoy getting a cleverly done variation on the theme.  So when I saw that Hallmark was releasing a Teensy Nutcracker as part of this year’s miniature ornament line, I knew I had to get it.

This nutcracker is a king.  He’s got a crown on his head and rosy checks.  The dominate colors are blue and gold with just a little bit of black and red.  He’s very traditional looking.

And that’s one thing I love about him.  There’s no doubt that this is a nutcracker.  He’s not quite perfectly traditional, but he’s close enough that you’d know exactly what he is when you look at him.

And yes, his mouth moves when you lift the lever on his back.  Well, sort of.  It’s very hard to get the lever to move, but you can do it.  This is a common feature since I’ve tried several in the stores, and all of them were hard to move as well.  The plus side of this is that he won’t wind up with his mouth gapping open in a few years.  And it’s not like you could really crack a nut in an ornament this size.

I mentioned this is a mini ornament, right?  Because he’s only an inch tall.  Considering his size, he’s got some good detail on him.  And that also makes me very willing to forgive his mouth not moving easily.  I would have been fine if his mouth didn’t move at all.

Considering his size, it’s probably best to hang him.  As with most nutcrackers, he hangs straight.  But if you do want to set him out, like most nutcrackers, he has a nice flat base as well.

Now that I am collecting mini ornaments (darn Hallmark for making so many cute ones), I’m glad to have a nutcracker for my mini tree.  Teensy Nutcracker lives up to his name, but if you want one, you’ll love him.

Original Price: $7.95