Las Vegas
Retro Christmas Cards inspired by Midcentury Memories
November 2, 2024 – If you grew up in the 1950s, ‘60s or ‘70s, you’ll remember shiny tinsel trees, atomic age ornaments and tangled strings of colorful holiday lights. Back then the anticipation for Christmas was palpable. In recent years many have turned to nostalgia to re-live those festive days gone by.
One such person is artist Diane Dempsey, who turned her love of all things midcentury into a thriving seasonal business. Modtraveler asked Diane to share with us her take on the holiday nostalgia craze and how she turned her Yuletide memories into a passion to create her own line of Retro Christmas Cards, and more …
The sense of style that developed during the mid-century era was different than anything that came before. The lines were simple and clean, the spaces were open, the colors were fresh and popped in contrast to the traditional times that preceded them. These elements and other influences inspired me to create my Mid-Century Modern Retro Christmas Cards and related products.
My Mid-Century Modern house illustrations were a peek into an era that I remember fondly. The memories of these childhood days of the 1960’s, with all the heady excitement of Christmas looming in the near future, lives on with me as I sit down to sketch the next Retro Christmas Card.
“Be home before dark,” Mom would say. As we rambled home from a day playing in the snow, right at twilight, we passed the through the neighborhood of homes a-glow with holiday lights. This memory is a treasured recollection that inspires my Christmas illustrations. In each scene I imagine a family gathering in celebration of their holiday. Putting up the lights, bringing home the tree, waking on Christmas morning, throwing a memorable party… all scenes that I hope you can place yourself in as I did when I illustrated them.
A great deal of research is done to create these illustrations, and I am inspired by the great architects of the era. I take liberties with the architecture by peeling open the fronts of these homes to reveal the festivities inside. I love seeing neighborhoods at Christmas and looking at the holiday lights, it especially charms me to see the silhouettes of families inside the houses though the picture windows. That is the inspiration behind my Retro Christmas scenes.
Time passing is what inspired me to recollect these scenes from Christmas past, and time continues to fly. It has been 21 years since my husband and I started the Retro Christmas Card Company out of a whim and our love of vintage Americana. More than two decades ago we started with 10 Christmas cards and have expanded our Collections to include over 300 styles of Retro Christmas cards, Retro Tree Ornaments, Vintage Tree Skirts, The Retro Bunting, Table Top + Wall Decor, Holiday Party invitations and more!
I hope my artwork will bring back fond Christmas memories and a smile to your face. ~ Diane Dempsey
To check out Diane’s Retro Christmas Card Company, visit her website at retrochristmascardcompany.com Place your order early, she sells out every year!
Diane also licenses her illustrations for both Christmas and year round for many products including: Cobble Hill Jigsaw Puzzles, Lighted Wall Art, Gift Bags, Christmas Decor, Home Decor, Stationery products and more. Bookmark RetroChristmasCardCompany.com – to keep your Christmas in vintage style.