Getting ready for the holiday season has never been stressful for Christel Dauwe — after all, her holiday period lasts all year long in her Christmas ornament shop in the Belgian city of Antwerp. Her collecting began in her teenage years, and she now has more than 64,000 ornaments in her personal collection and another 18,000 displayed in her shop, The Christel Dauwe Collection. “My personal wish is to have a Christmas museum, where ornaments and the idea of Christmas can be on permanent display,” said Dauwe. Until that day comes, her small shop uses every corner to display its vast inventory. Its wares include birds of every feather, fruit arrangements, cars, angels, snowmen and other figurines, ranging from a few euros for a wood laser-cut Cathedral of Antwerp to more than 500 euros ($580) for a special ornament of Alexander the Great on horseback. The store began 35 years ago as an antiques shop, selling a few ornaments on the side, but Dauwe wanted to try selling more. Dauwe has been asked to provide ornaments for weddings and other events as well. As far as having Christmas all year round, Dauwe says she is never bored with it. Twice a year she goes around the shop and dusts each ornament individually. She has met people from all over the world, and entertains die-hard locals who stop into the store just for a morning chat. “There are two ways to go with Christmas. It’s either the nostalgia of the past or the hope for the future,″ she said. ″Hope is what is the most important to me. It’s what keeps you going.”
