Sunday 20 December 2009

ANGELIC HOSTS

Well, the season-to-be-jolly is almost upon us and the Christmas movies are stacking up in cyberspace like aircraft waiting for a runway.

Here, for example, are the closing moments from one of my all-time favourite movies, Frank Capra's 1946 classic, It's a Wonderful Life...




And, no doubt, as you're dressing the Christmas tree (always supposing that you didn't put it up four weeks ago and it has already shed all its needles and and been trashed by the kids and the cats) you'll find a little angel to pop on the top.

There is, I've discovered, quite a trade in Christmas angels. The Christmas Decorations & Gift Store has a couple of pages of them.

There are a great many white ones with blonde hair and at least one African American angel with a braided ponytail tied with gold lame ribbon.

Their dress sense is, if you'll pardon the pun, immaculate: one sports "a beautiful gown of ivory damask and pink crushed velveteen"; another has a dress of "sheer lace with an ivory and gold glitter holly design on the skirt and sleeves [and] off-white faux fur collar, cuffs and hem."

But angels do not come cheap: prices range from $6.96 (down from $8.00) to $83.41 (was $100) for the 16-inches tall Animated Table Angel...

The Animated Table Angel has 8 clear mini lights around the bottom of the base that illuminate the Angels dress. She also carries a mini light in each hand that is topped with a clear acrylic star.


The Animated Angel has delicate, ivory, feather wings that move forward and back along with her torso. Her head moves forward, tilts down softly then makes a gentle circle to the left and bends softly back and to the right, then comes forward again.

At the same time her wings, torso and head are moving her arms open and come together again. These motions are continuously repeated. Her elegant gown is shinny winter white poly satin with sheer white organza covering her long poly satin sleeves. The bodice is winter white brocade with sheer white embroidered organza lace around the neck, accented with a row of small gold beads.

Attached to the candles in each of her hands is a bow of sheer white organza ribbon with gold edging and a white poly satin flower with gold beads. Behind the bow is a soft white feather. At her waist is a bow formed from narrow white poly satin ribbon with gold and white edging with a flower of sheer, pale yellow organza.

The skirt has a panel of sheer white embroidered organza. The stitching is in white and iridescent threads. She is wearing a circlet of two double rows of faux pearls in her curly, soft blonde doll hair. The Angel has porcelain head and hands.

Do Not Pick This Angel Up By The Head or Arms

On the subject of picking up angels, one could, alternatively, go for something like this...



9 comments:

Suzanne said...

Oh, yes please, Brian! Can he slip into my Christmas stocking? (pun definitely intended there!)

SharonM said...

No, Suzanne - we'll have to share him - I'd certainly like to pull his cracker (ditto on the pun front).

scb said...

Suzanne and SharonM -- Me too, please!

Oh my stars, that is one heavenly angel... I've been trying very hard to come up with a suitably angelic, Christmasy pun. Perhaps if I stare at him long enough...

Brian Sibley said...

Well, ladies, the question is are angels male or female --- or neither? According to GotQustions.org:

"The Bible does not necessarily support the idea of angels being male or female. Whenever gender is specifically 'assigned' to an angel in Scripture, it is male (Genesis 19:10-12; Revelation 7:2; 8:3; 10:7). However, this does not necessarily indicate that angels are male.

"Matthew 22:30 seems to indicate that angels are 'sexless', without gender: 'At the resurrection people will neither marry nor be given in marriage; they will be like the angels in heaven.'

"If angels do not procreate, there is no need for gender, at least not in the sense of human gender distinctions."


There again, of course, he may just be..... GAY!

scb said...

From the look of things, that angel is decidely male, and while he might be gay, he might not. He's definitely angelic for ALL to look at, of whatever angelic persuasion one happens to be. She said, staring.

Brian Sibley said...

I wonder if the feathers tickle? ;-)

scb said...

I suspect the feathers [i]do[/i] tickle...

I was just thinking that the male angel would look well, hung on anyone's Christmas tree..

(You may or may not choose to actually post this comment...)

Jen said...

he's taking a deserved rehearsal break from Swan Lake @ Sadlers Wells.
I wouldn't mind mopping his brow either!Talking of angels, gender & physicality, Wim Wenders film, Wings of Desire, explores the idea of angels becoming mortal, may be you have seen this beautiful movie?
Coleme:the sensation of feathers on skin

SharonM said...

I've just realised - I'm allergic to feathers, which means that this particularly alluring angel would have to take off his wings - and his other clothing too... just in case feathers had become attached.