Resl Lenz - West German Ornaments?

[fielden]

I am looking for the history of Resl Lenz Christmas ornaments. What company produced them, for how long, etc. Most Resl Lenz ornamants have a small red sticker that has an angel and says: Resl Lenz Made in W. Germany.

I've been searching the web but so far have been unsuccessful in locating any information.

I do know the ornaments were made at least during the 70's (when my mother purchased several) and at one point were offered in the Smithsonian gift catalog at some time which called them reproductions of 1890's style ornaments.(Gleaned from an ebay listing). They were also sold by specialty stores in the U.S. such as Bronner's in Michigan. I don't know if the ornaments are still made but I'm guessing not since I can't find them online anywhere.

The ornaments themselves are typically clear glass balls, with a foil figure (tree, santa, angel, snowflake, etc.) hanging inside, and a foil star bottom.

Any history, pointers, or leads gratefully welcomed.

-j fielden

[morethanwords99]

Hello, I have an angel ornament marked Germany and it also has a gold star on the back, I have it listed right now and also have not found any information on it. I actually cannot make out the entire mark, and it is stamped on the bottom. The only word I can make out is Germany. I just wanted to see if it is similar to your ornaments. I look foward to finding out. I will also give you feed back If I receive any info.

[toomanyscotts]

I purchased a set of 4 from F.A.O. Schwarz in 1971. They have animals inside and are very treasured, will probably be fought over by our children when we're gone!

[mygarryowen]

Hi, I just noticed your question about Resl Lenz ornaments. They are still produced in Germany and I have been getting them from a couple with an online business. The Resl Lenz company is family owned and they produce the ornaments in their home. I believe they had a larger business at one time but now just work out of their home. Resl Lenz is the name of the wife, she assembles the ornaments. Her husband designs and cuts the figures. They purchase the hand blown glass ornaments. They were thinking about closing their business but then their daughter decided to try and take over. I have been purchasing these ornaments for many years. I found them mainly around Chicago area and in some imports shops locally in the 70s and 80s. I am only aware of this one distributer now and they contacted me after I bid on some of their ornaments on eBay. The ornaments were no longer available in stores after the early 90s. This is the url for the distributer I've been purchasing from. They have pictures of the ornaments they off er and are very good to deal with.
http://deutschlandcollectibles.com/

[redcowboychristian]

I was given a clear glass ornament with a small deer inside. The deer was a reddish tan with white spots and its butt was a white heart.
When I was divorced, my ex-wife kept the ornaments, and I have lost it. It was very special to me, since it was given to me when I was a small boy.
I would like to know if anyone has any idea where I might find one. I have been searching for it for nearly twenty-five years.
I believe it was a German ornament, and the deutschland collectibles site has similar ones, but the deer was not shiny...actually it looked kind of fuzzy. I would literally pay any price if I could find one. Any ideas?
Iain

[missyssale]

I will be putting some up I bought at an estate sale. Unfortunately I have none with a deer. The glare from the glass make them a challenge for me to photograph. And I'm hoping the insides stay intact as they are shipped.

[pollyf42jj]

Does anyone know how to clean the INSIDE of the Resl Lenz balls? Mine are over 20 years old and though I wrap them carefully after each Christmas, they are dusty and no longer twinkle on the tree.

[wihonda007]

Not sure if you are still looking, but I just posted 1 Resl Lenz ornament on ebay. It has a bell inside and I am selling it in a lot along with other ornaments from Anthropologie. Good luck.

[stki88]

Hello all,

I am not sure, if this is still interesting.

I am Resl Lenz' granddaughter, and now my mother Juliane Muijsson-Lenz has taken over the business (some years ago).

My grandmother started with the ornaments 50 years ago and she and also my grandfather are still very busy helping my mum with the business.

Should you be interested to learn more about the history of Lenz - Kugeln just have a look at our homepage: www.resl-lenz.de

By the way if you want to clean the balls inside, open the golden top very carefully, then you take a paper towel with some cleaning agent on it and bind it around some kind of stick (like a pencil). Then you can clean the inside very carefully and fix the top again.

We also have trade partners for the USA. More information you can find on our web site.

It was a pleasure for me to read that my grandmother's balls have travelled so far and that some of you have them already for such a long time. I am very proud of my grandmother who started a business all on her own 50 years ago. I thank you very much and wish you all the best!

Yours Brigitte Kirmeier (former Muijsson-Lenz)

[djmdasha]

My mother collected these ornaments and when she passed the 6 children divided them up. My sister lost all of hers when her tree fell last year and I am looking to replace some of them. It was nice to read the story about them

[acraftycrow]

Thank you so much for all this wonderful information. I have coveted the orange tree ornament since I was a child and eventually ended up with it now hanging on my own tree! I just love these ornaments so much and would love to collect them all, they are just so beautiful and, for me, bring back happy memories of Christmases past. Thank you so much to you and your family for carrying on your grandmother's business!

[madelineparis001]

I am listing a tree topper soon, thanks you for the information.

[kuna907]

THank you so much for your information!!!

[jhol81143]

You can purchase Resl Lenz ornaments from deutschlandcollectibles.com - they are very reasonably priced.

I lived in Germany from 1968-1974 and purchased many Resl Lenz ornaments during that time frame. Many of the ornaments I purchased there are more complex than those currently sold - more fancy punchwork in the foil hangings inside  the glass bulb, braiding applied to the foil, and etc.  However, many of the ones I purchased are the same as those sold by Deutschland Collectibles now.

I have no knowledge as to their manufacturing history or how long they were produced prior to the time I purcahsed those I own.

[mygarryowen]

I have been buying these ornaments since the 1970s when I was first out of college, usually at Lord & Taylor or Marshal Fields in Chicago. A few years ago I located a couple in Indianapolis, Indiana that have a website dueschtlandcollectibles.com (unfortunately right now it doesn't seem to be working very well) however they also sell on ebay. Go to ebay and type in resl lenz. They are Steve and Judy Carbone and they buy direct from the people that make the ornaments. I think Judy told me that Resl was the wife's first name. They made these ornaments out of their home in Germany and continue to do so today.  Their daughter took over the production in the last few years. Steve and Judy make trips to Germany and bring them back with them for resale on their website and on ebay (their ebay listings are buy now and the ornaments usually run from $9-10 for the smaller sizes and $14 for the medium size. They used to have a larger ornament in limited quantities but I think these are more difficult to ship. The ornaments are beautiful, I have a whole tree full of them and have also bought them as gifts for family members.They make a great heirloom piece to pass on to family and friends. I hope this helps you find what you are looking for, good luck.

Mary English

Bernard, IA