Christmas tree in rhinestones with bell - pink, milky white and royal blue stones

The fine story of the rhinestone Christmas trees.

The beautiful vintage Christmas trees - are handmade old rhinestones. Most are unique, but there may be a few models especially in the clear stones, of which there are several. The Christmas trees are hand-collected in an area in northern Bohemia in the Czech Republic. That area formed the headquarters of jewellery and crystal production before the Second World War. The many workshops were run by the German minority, who were expelled after the war - because they supported Germany. The Czech Republic was subsequently occupied by the Soviets for 40 years and remained untouched throughout that period. It was not until the fall of the Wall that the large stocks of jewellery components and rhinestones began to be traded again. These stones are still used to assemble Christmas trees. This means that most of the stones are from the 30-40s and the plate they stand on is a brooch component. Each employee can make between 2-3 trees in a day, so the craft takes time.

As the Christmas trees are often unique, it is not possible to re-order in specific colours. So if there's a combination you love, go for it - it's unlikely to come back.