New for 2016 - Christian Werner's Zoo Set
We have carried Christian Werner's
folk art for several years now and are delighted to offer his new Zoo Set this year -
Christian Werner of Seiffen (since 1985) is one of only eight who work in Reifendrehen, or ring-turning. Ring-turned animals have been made for generations. As the wooden ring turns,
the Reifendreher meticulously uses chisels to create precise grooves in the moist spruce wood. The raw shapes of each animal, the Tiger here being an example, 
are sliced off the wooden ring using a hammer and knife. The toy maker's skilled hands carve the animal's final shape, embellish it with tails and ears, and finally they are painted by the workshop's artists.
The set includes the zoo platform with a pond, trees, elevated tiers for delightful display, and a separate "Cave" that sits on top WITH 12 sets of zoo animals - each set includes an adult (the same size as Werner's Size Small animals) with an offspring. The young animals are unique to Werner's collections and are adorable. You can add to your zoo with additional adult animals found here.
The sets of animals included in the Zoo Set are: Elephant, Camel, Giraffe, Deer, Lion, Zebra, Panda, Polar Bear, Tiger, Crane, Pastas Monkey, and Rhinoceros.
Enjoy the classic folk art of ring-turning - Reifendrehen - since the 1800s
Follow our Pinterest board on Christian Werner here
A My Growing Traditions Folk Art Sampler - Celebrating the Best
The perfect gift of art! or, simply enjoy this sampler - a very special and wonderful opportunity to discover the artists we all treasure... and save $20.00
Christian Werner's Large Noah's Ark
We are pleased to now carry Christian Werner's wonderful Large Noah's Ark.
The Erzgebirge folk art world has produced "toy" Noah's Arks since the mid-1800s. During the 18th and 19th centuries thousands of Noah's Arks made their way into American and European homes. Today, Reifendreher (ring-turner) Christian Werner is renown for making the most exquisite Noah's Arks in the Erzgebirge. Werner has perfected the Ark itself. Using old factory pattern books, he has created an Ark that is reminiscent of the classic early ones found in an 1840s catalog.
We offer his Ark as a "complete set" - the Ark, Noah and his Wife, and 12 detailed animal pairs: sheep, pigs, elephants, rooster and hen, dogs, bears, cows, giraffes, cats, horses, camels, and doves. Or buy the Ark alone and create your own set.
The ark opens to stalls under the roof and space in the hold to display and store your animals.
Ring-turned animals have been made for generations. As the wooden ring turns,
the Reifendreher meticulously uses chisels to create precise grooves in the moist fir wood. The raw shapes of each animal, the Tiger here being an example,
are sliced off the wooden ring using a hammer and knife. The toy maker's skilled hands carve the animal's final shape, embellish it with tails and ears, and finally they are painted by the workshop's artists.
The ark measures approximately: 20" long x 13-1/2" high x 7-1/2" wide.
Build your own and/or find additional animals - Pairs (2 x 2) or One Alone (1 x 1)
An incredible classic piece of Folk Art.
Christian Werner - the Ring-Turner / Reifendrehen / Wood Carver at Work
With his woodworking workshop in Seiffen (Germany's Christmas Capital), the Erzgebirge, Germany, Christian Werner is one of only eight master craftsmen in Reifendrehen - ring-turning.
His work is truly exquisite!! You will want to read the German blog post available here (even though the article about Werner is a bit whimsical in Google translation it is worth the read and includes additional photographs of Werner). AND we know you will enjoy the video below of Werner at work in his Seiffen studio.
My Growing Traditions, of course, offers a selection of his folk art -
From left to right: the Bremen Town Musicians, the Bernese Mountain Dog, and a wonderful mixed-media Pack Donkey
plus sets of his Cows and Sheep
and we look forward to adding more in 2015.
Enjoy our Christian Werner Pinterest Board!
The Wood Workers Shop - An Advent Calendar and our Traditional European Artisans
As we near this holiday season we realize that My Growing Traditions is truly about celebrating with the best of European folk art and Christmas. The artisans and their workshops whose folk art we offer are ones that represent the premier of their genre. All of them have histories that go back decades, some closing in on 100 years, and some beyond. They are artisans that have perfected their art and are recognized world-wide as masters in their field. They have been instrumental in creating and maintaining tradition. We carry Inge-Glas of Germany Christmas ornaments - the oldest Christmas ornament company in the world (since 1596) - and Marcel Carbonel Santons (since 1935) of Marseille, France, the preeminent Santons workshop.
And, we rejoice in the smaller workshops of the Erzgebirge, Germany - from the official German Christmas Village, Seiffen, and the toy-making villages that surround.
These wood-working artisans are so beautifully depicted in Brück und Sohn's (printer Meissen, Germany since 1793) Advent Calendar - The Erzgebirge Woodworker's Shop.
Click here for Brück und Sohn's other Advent Calendars available on My Growing Traditions.
Our fondness for the Woodworker's Shop Advent Calendar led us to want to share with you photos of the workshops of many of the artisans that we carry.
Christian Werner of Seiffen (since 1985) specializes in the exact work of the Woodworker's Shop - he is one of only eight who work in Reifendrehen, or ring-turning.
Bettina Franke has followed in her parents footsteps and carves wonderful Santas and nativity figures. Her workshop like Christian Werner's has flourished since the fall of the Berlin wall and the end of communism in Eastern Europe. 
The Emil Helbig Workshop (since 1933) of the toy making village of Grunhainichen in the Erzgebirge is renowned for their exquisite figures - here the wood carver works on a cat.
Classic Angels and many other wonderful wooden figures have been created by the Wendt and Kuhn Workshop in Grunhainichen since 1915.
And last but not least, we want to share with you here this picture of the creation of a wood-chip tree, or Spanbaum, a folk art that dates to the 1930s.
We have been privileged over the years to visit the workshops of each of these artisans - a true joy and an experience that has cemented our desire to make their work available to you.
Christian Werner's Very Special Fir Trees
We all know the artisan Christian Werner for his animals. With his workshop in Seiffen, the Erzgebirge, Germany, Christian Werner is one of only eight master craftsmen in Reifendrehen - or ring-turning. Beyond his wonderful creatures, Christian Werner has revived a lost art with his production of very special fir trees.
As explained in the Werner catalog:
"the production of intricate and highly detailed toys began in the Western Erzgebirge in 1861. Economic production of cardboard products gave rise to an industry that employed more than 1200 workmen and 140 engravers. When the last factory, in Buchholz, closed in 1953, it wasn't just the pretty toys that disappeared from the market. Along with them went the know-how and craft skills needed to make them, from making the tools used to produce them through to the application of the last lick of paint."
He revived this lost craft in creating the fir trees that we offer in these two sets. They are delicate and precise, and help to create these true-to-life forest scenes.
For photos of the history and workshop of Werner enjoy our Christian Werner Folk Art and Ring-Animals board on Pinterest.
Gingerbread House Fairy Tale Advent Calendar
We are ever so pleased to be able to offer this German Gingerbread House Advent Calendar.
Glitter-dusted and 3-Dimensional, this special Advent Calendar folds out to form a Gingerbread House. It sets up very nicely in the middle of a table so that the children can easily enjoy it from all sides. A wonderful holiday table centerpiece.
Three Fairy Tales are seen on the sides of the house: Hansel and Gretel, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, and the Bremen Town Musicians. The calendar stands 8" high x 9.5" wide x 5" deep and is made in Germany.
My Growing Traditions also offers Hansel and Gretel, the Wicked Witch, and an Inge-Glas ornament of the Gingerbread House itself.
We also carry Inge-Glas' Snow White and the Seven Dwarf ornaments
and a wonderful wood carving of the Grimms' Fairy Tales Bremen Town Musicians by the Christian Werner Workshop of Seiffen, Germany.
Enjoy a Fairy Tale Christmas!
