F is for Figural Finery for the Fake Fir

It is a fact, that despite appearing full every year, the artificial tree has an unerring ability to keep taking lade until, one day, presumably, it will just collapse under the weight? To that end, and despite not having the tree up again this year, I have in anticipation of a full-loading at some point in the near future, like next year, with any luck, procured a few figurals/shapes . . . in addition to the three robots, one spaceman and four hedgehogs already Blogged this festive season!

Two more bears, I'm wondering if I've already got the ceramic flat, but I don't think so, there's a similar bird I think? And I'm having second thoughts on the 'gummi bear', he was one of hundreds in baskets all over the garden centre, and was the best one for coverage of the little beads (some had hideous bald-patches, or bald-lines where the glue-boundary dried before the beads were poured), in a decent colour (the flash has made it look whiter than it is), but it's still a plastic, and they never used to be allowed . . . still it's fun, and another bear!

 

The rabbit came in a mixed lot of figures from a Charity Shop, and I was going to take him back with the next lot of donation stuff (I always make a mental note to take them back to a different shop!), when I realised I could get a hook under the scarf/string, so it stayed for the tree, probably home-made and much-loved by someone, once?

 

The gnome is a full, traditional glass-bauble, but mini, so he can go higher up the tree with the other smallies, and get to look-out further, while the soldier-dog, based on the standard nutcracker design, was grabbed in a hurry as Dunelm was closing (for the evening, not bankruptcy, just yet), and I thought he was a bear! But he can stay, he'll be the first dog on the tree though, so a Billy-no-mates!

Speaking of higher-up the tree, these are tiny, sold in threes, one shiny, one frosted and one glitter, they're only 15mm wide, a little bigger than the very small plain baubles everyone uses to 'fill the gaps', so they will be put to the same use, and fir-cones have always been another side-group, with 20-odd now including a really-big, sort of life-size sequoia one in gold!

 

I got this in a funny little independent garden-centre of the type which has almost disappeared round here, and while it's a rather boring fret-cut ply, it IS a soldier, and it's decorated on both sides, was only 99p and came home with me!