Friday, December 17, 2010

Ultimate Christmas

This "Ultimate Christmas" is indeed the one holiday CD to have if you can only have one. The definitive versions of "White Christmas," "Blue Christmas," and of course "The Christmas Song" are here. Ella Fitzgerald, Eartha Kitt (!!), and Aretha add sass and soul to the mix. Boyz to Men and Sarah McLachlan's contributions are pleasant surprises. Judy Garland's "Have yourself a merry little Christmas" is heart-breaking. The mix is excellent and the sound quality is first-rate.

Here at the University I'm surrounded by world-wise ultra-hip cynics, but even they soften up after listening to this CD. A wonderful way to get into the holiday spirit!

Thursday, December 16, 2010

The 99 Most Essential Christmas Masterpieces

I have a fairly extensive collection of classical music, and Christmas music as well. This compilation, featuring mostly little known groups, is charming. Yes, one can find better performances of many of these works, but that quest is only for the obsessive audiophile. The choral works are recorded clearly. One problem I've often had with recording by excellent groups such as the King's College Choir is that they sound like they were recorded in a cathedral (and perhaps they were) so there is a lot of music and enunciation lost in the reverberation. There are a few instances where I wish the tempos were faster, but on the other hand this is a set to listen to while relaxing around the fire. A nice bonus -- the music from the Nutcracker features lots of the lesser known (but still beautiful) tunes, not just the ones one normally hears in a suite. And the inclusion of the more serious classical pieces by Bach, Corelli, etc., is fitting and a great addition.

Monday, December 13, 2010

The Complete Christmas Collection (Digitally Remastered)

I have mixed music tastes - so I like this mix which has classics, country and choral mixed together. I have in my own collection already some of the artist's cds already, but at this price, getting a couple of dupes was not an issues - especially since the sound of these songs, were, well, not the best, but as background music as holiday music often is, and to find a decent mix where you can actually hum or sing along, hear the words, and that some of the songs are not found everywhere, I really liked this mix for the value, song mix and overall list.

Note: there is at least one error - the first song attributed to Doris Day (Let It Snow), I think is Dean Martin as it is a male singer!

100 LED Mini Holiday Christmas Lights Clear

Replaceable, cool to touch & break-resistant LEDs. 8 watt total set wattage. 4 inches between lights. These lights are very beautiful. I am using them in a fake tree for year round decorations. They are much brighter than I expected them to be. The color is not quite as warm as what you get with the traditional lights, but it is definitely not that harsh blue light that you see on some LED lights. They also seem a little bit bigger than the traditional mini lights. Anyway, I am very pleased with the lights and hope that they last as long as advertised.

Christmas Holiday Time Reusable Wall Decoration Stickers - 14 Variations

Get ready for the holiday season with this instant wall sticker! These removable, repositionable, and reusable stickers are the perfect and convenient way to adorn and decorate any space. Easy to peel off and to stick on walls, doors, windows, tables, refrigerators, and more! When you want to reposition your friends peel them off with ease without peeling off paint/wallpaper and without leaving behind any residue. Store for next year! Perfect for nurseries, homes, stores, dorms, and anywhere else! It'll liven up any room and give it a new vibrant life!

Friday, December 10, 2010

4' Artificial Christmas Tree

The famous "Charlie Pine Tree" is back. This is our most popular selling tree because of the remarkable value
200 tips
Unlit
Natural 2-tone medium green color
Hinged branch construction
Medium profile tree
2-piece easy assembly
For indoor use only
Comes with a FREE green tree stand

Dimensions: 4 feet high (from the base of stand to the top of the tree)
21" base diameter (widest point)
Material(s): PVC/metal/plastic

Living in NYC, you find space needs to be conserved. While everyone loves real Christmas trees, they are just not practical for the city apartment with limited space.

I found this 4ft Christmas tree just what to be just what I needed to get into the holiday spirit. Sure it is a little sparse, but what do you expect for $9 (see the other review discussing how the tree looks cheap).

As a person traveling for the holidays anyways, I won't be home to enjoy this tree on Christmas Day anyways, and just wanted something to remind me of the Holiday season.

This tree is exactly what I expected it would be, and hey at the end of season you can just get rid of it and you are at no major loss, of money nor space to store it.

It came as 5 pieces, three piece are the base which slide into the bottom portion of the tree very easily. The other two pieces are the bottom and top half of the tree.

Overall I would recommend this tree to anyone with: not a lot of space, not a lot of money, or a combination of the two. It will certainly let you enjoy the holiday's a little more, and you may even get some laughs out of it when you set it up!

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