Handmade ornaments making seasons brighter for others for 34 years

Alice Tharp of Sikeston and her granddaughter, Christy Hutcheson, look at some of their favorite ornaments Tharp has made for family and friends over the past 34 years. Hutcheson estimated her grandmother has made nearly 4,000 ornaments during that time.(Leonna Heuring, Staff)

SIKESTON -- From a miniature Santa secured in a hot air balloon and a Victorian boot adorned with tiny beads and flowers to the birdhouse filled with a crocheted nest, Alice Tharp puts her personal touch on every Christmas ornament she makes.

For nearly 35 years, the 79-year-old Sikeston woman has handmade an estimated 4,000 Christmas ornaments for her family and friends.

"It doesn't matter what time of year, you'll always find Christmas ornaments in here somewhere," said Christy Hutcheson of Sikeston as she looked around her grandmother's home.

That's because Tharp makes the ornaments year-round in order to complete and give them away at Christmas time.

Handmade ornaments by Alice Tharp of Sikeston are pictured. Tharp has been making the ornaments for family and friends for the past 34 years. (Leonna Heuring, Staff)

"I love working on the ornaments," Tharp said. "I get a lot of enjoyment out of making them."

For several years now, Tharp has made ornaments for not only her family members but neighbors, workers at the Sikeston nutrition center and employees and board members at the Sikeston Housing Authority.

She's also mailed them to relatives and friends in Idaho, Texas, Oklahoma and South Carolina.

Tharp estimated she makes 60 of each ornament pattern she makes each year. She noted generally she makes three or four different ornament patterns a year.

"You don't just get one ornament," Hutcheson said. "You get multiple ornaments every year."

The ornaments Tharp makes consist of plastic canvas, yarn and beads. Most recently, she started making ornaments using glass beads and wire.

This year's ornaments include a three-dimensional bell, beaded icicles, an elf that can hold a candy cane and a gift box with a miniature deer inside.

"I look forward to it (receiving ornaments)," Hutcheson said. "They're something I can pass down to my kids, and they keep them."

For the complete story, see the weekend edition of the Standard Democrat.