Red, white and blue flag cakes are always fun to have for patriotic holidays, and this stars and stripes dessert – covered with bright berries – has one of the simplest recipes around!
Vintage holidays
Old-fashioned holidays and traditional celebrations
Take a step back in time and revisit these vintage articles and authentic guides to old-fashioned holidays and traditions from celebrations of the past! We have hundreds of classic holiday recipes, plus home decor, party plans, photos and much more!
You can easily browse recipes, articles and more by your favorite old-fashioned holidays — Christmas, Thanksgiving, Halloween, Valentine’s Day, Easter — by event, such as birthdays, weddings — or by season: spring, summer, winter & fall.
How was vintage July 4th celebrated in the past? It varied a lot over the decades, but early on, there was cannon fire, great communal feasts in the village green, and all kinds of noisemakers and thundering sounds.
Right from the ’50s, here are some classic tips to keep your kitchen cool when it’s hot outside, plus some easy recipes to help you beat the heat.
If you’re bringing dessert to this year’s 4th of July potluck, these easy patriotic desserts have an all-American appeal that everyone will love.
Take a look at these modest old-fashioned swimsuits for men and women, seen on real beachgoers and early movie actresses, with many high-quality and colorized vintage photos!
Teens and girls were wild about having blonde hair in the ’70s, trying at-home methods and a variety of new products to lighten and brighten their hair.
If you’ve ever been curious as to why neckties and aftershave are considered the quintessential Father’s Day gifts, wonder no more. We also found some great modern-day gift equivalents just for dad.
Take a look back at dozens of vintage gift sets for men from the ’60s, with popular aftershave, cologne, shaving sets and other grooming products.
Dig this crazy caramel popcorn – it’s positively wild, all candy-coated and crunchy with almonds, pecans or peanuts, made with corn syrup.
Here’s a look back at some sweet vintage Mother’s Day cards from the 20th century, including a few of the 240 million greeting cards for mom that were sold in just one year, back in 1959.
If you want to have a little more fun with the holiday, pick a decade and try for a Mother’s Day celebration with vintage flair! We’ve rounded up a little inspo for your effort.
Step into a world of timeless grace with 1950s wedding dresses — where lace meets luxury for peak vintage bridal elegance.
How did these Easter egg shrink wraps and egg decorating sleeves work? Find out here and see a retro collection of Disney decorations & other holiday designs!
Planters Easter Egg Cake: This pecan Easter cake is a nostalgic, nutty delight with an optional twist for a festive shape.
Want to make natural Easter egg dyes the old-fashioned way? Find out how to use roots, berries, herbs and vegetables to color eggs for a vintage-style celebration.
See our collection of vintage St Patrick’s Day postcards — these sweet little hello notes offer a nostalgic peek into early 20th-century celebrations.
Do you remember any of these 1970s Valentine’s Day cards? Here’s an assortment of the options available for the classroom Valentine’s exchange!
Here’s a sweet selection of vintage Valentine’s Day cards – little love notes people sent to each other by the millions around the early part of the 20th century.
Try a smooth green Bacardi daiquiri pie that brings a taste of the 1970s to your dessert table! Easy to make, this retro no-bake treat merges lemon pudding’s tang with the lively taste of lime jello.
Why do so many people love vintage Snoopy stickers? ‘You’d be astounded at the enthusiasm of Peanuts collectors,’ said cartoonist Charles Schulz.
The old Sears Wish Book catalog was perfectly named – it was where kids and adults alike would dream about all the things that Santa (or a special elf) might bring for Christmas. Find out its history here!
In the 1974 Rankin-Bass holiday spectacle, The Year Without a Santa Claus, the unforgettable Heat Miser & Snow Miser captured imaginations with their signature musical showdown. See it here!
Vintage Christmas TV specials were as much a part of the holiday as gifts and Christmas trees. Millions of people – especially kids – looked forward to them year after year. Look at more than 100 of these classics.
That characteristic mid-century modern flair — with an abundance of color, clean lines and geometric patterns — translated perfectly in these examples of 1950s Christmas wall decorations
There’s a reason that advertising has evolved over the decades – and these bad vintage Christmas ads from years ago show you exactly why!
Having a retro party for the holidays? Here are lots of crazy kitschy vintage Christmas appetizers you may want to serve… at your own risk.
Remember these classic 70s Christmas cookies? Here’s our collection of the best and most delicious old-fashioned treats of the decade!
Check out this fascinating collection of 1970s Christmas photos and magazine clips, showcasing the unique holiday spirit and trends of the era.
Step back and time and enjoy these charmingly vintage Christmas scenes celebrations from the 1940s through the 1970s, showing holidays that were picture perfect.
These rich and tender cherry thumbprint Christmas cookies have bright and colorful button centers, made by placing pretty halved red or green candied cherries into the middle of each one.
Get ready for the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays with the help of these old-fashioned stuffing recipe, made with simple ingredients and fresh foods.
Dive into the nostalgia of 80s toys! From Transformers to Strawberry Shortcake, explore the iconic playthings that made the 1980s a decade of fun.
If you want to serve something different this year for Thanksgiving or Christmas, a retro cranberry souffle salad may be just the thing! Bring back some of the flair of the fifties with these unusual little side dishes.
With songs like the title tune and ‘Have a Holly Jolly Christmas,’ the holiday TV special ‘Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer’ was a delight for the ears and, thanks to the stop-motion photography, for the eyes.
A lot of 80s candy endures to the present, but you’re still going to love these retro ads & packages from back in the day! Which were your favorites?
Pumpkin pie doesn’t have to be light in color and light on flavor! Try these recipes for dark and delicious old-fashioned pumpkin pie with molasses & brown sugar – and see some other tasty variations, too!
Before individual stickers-by-the-yard became popular, sets like these Halloween stickers were the big thing with kids in the 70s and 80s! Take a look back!
Sometimes the basics are all one needs for memorable adventures. Take a look at some vintage tents that were available in the last century!
Backyard decks have become a staple of American architecture for relaxation and socializing. See dozens of different deck designs from the second half of the 20th century here.
Take a look back at the history of Knott’s Berry Farm – the fun California amusement park known as a Disneyland alternative, but one that boasted its very themes and even a ghost town.
These little vintage plastic wading pools were the perfect size to help introduce babies and children to water fun in the safety of their own shallow kiddie pools!
From awful double entendres to horrible diseases to the just plain bizarre, here are some vintage bad product names that used to appear on grocery store shelves.
Let’s consider for a moment the soap on a rope phenomenon — a peculiar fusion of the useful and the whimsical that once occupied a
This curated collection of vintage photographs invites you to explore the classic charm of screened-in porches, patios, lanais, and pool enclosures from bygone decades.
With their daring cuts and bold designs, 1970s swimwear wasn’t just about catching some sun – it was about making waves.
From neatly organized tool racks to clever storage solutions, these 1950s (and early 60s) home workshops maximize space and productivity.
The Juice is Loose! SNICKERS really satisfies. Melts in your mouth, not in your hand. First it’s a candy, then it’s a gum. These iconic
Rediscover the most tantalizing, old-fashioned sandwich fillings that once graced the humble bread slices of yesteryear.
Gain insights into the struggles and aspirations of the signers of the Declaration of Independence.
Rewind to the summer of ’77 — an era of iconic fashion trends and memorable tunes — and rediscover some of the best non-alcoholic drinks from that time.
Drafted in secret during the summer of 1787, the Constitution of the United States established the government of the United States. Here, the original US Constitution text.
Listen up: You might think our Victorian forebears did everything with grace and elegance, but have you considered that may be fake news? In reality, the dames of high society were basically just influencers.
Who had one of these ‘My Name Records’ when they were kids? We found a few vintage covers from personalized 45 RPM record singles featuring Captain Kangaroo songs!
The party favorite – more fun than throwing custard pie! Wham-O Silly String shoots a plastic stream of plastic string 1/4 mile long!
These beautiful Victorian Valentine’s cards were carefully and creatively handcrafted, and were so much better than what you usually see today.
Here’s an old-fashioned hot cross buns recipe from the 1960s, plus two more from 1912, so you can pick your favorite way to make some classic Easter buns with real vintage flavor.
This fantastic old-fashioned monkey bread recipe – essentially a cinnamon-pecan coffee cake – can be made with your favorite biscuit recipe, or you can also try using brown-and-serve rolls or refrigerated ready-to-bake biscuits.
Try this beautiful melted bead suncatcher DIY! These decorative plastic crafts can even be embedded with foil, glass nuggets, marbles, shells, and more for countless interesting designs.
The long-expected wedding day of Elvis Presley and Priscilla Presley (neé Beaulieu) was a surprise event that brought the King of Rock and Roll and his queen together at last.
Check out these photographs and illustrations that show off some of the most popular styles of 1920s lingerie – and that’s not like much you see today.
This recipe for tasty Greek Christmas cookies uses half almond flour and half all-purpose flour for the dough – which is spiced with cloves, nutmeg and cinnamon, then topped with a candied cherry.
This amazing peppermint fudge recipe from the 80s combines the flavor of peppermint with creamy white chocolate for a treat that practically tastes like Christmas.
Here’s a collection of gingerbread houses to inspire you this holiday: a fairy-tale cottage, half-timbered country house, marvelous Victorian mansion, and many more – along with details on how to make your own classic gingerbread house.
Want to have a holiday get-together with a little retro charm? Check out these creative and colorful 1960s Christmas party decor ideas!
Rocky Road fudge — with its tried-and-true combination of chocolate, marshmallows and nuts — reaches new heights when made in fudge form.
A Rice Krispies gingerbread house – or Christmas cottage – made from crispy rice cereal is easier and faster to put together than most conventional gingerbread houses! Here’s how to do it.
If you’re a fan of yummy treats you can whip up in a flash, you’ll love this collection of delicious cookie bars made famous in the last century.
Here are some crafty fabric Christmas ornaments you can make yourself. There are five different designs using an inexpensive patchwork design.
This shaped butterscotch yule log is like a roll of butterscotch fudge that you cut into slices – and is super easy to create. Here’s how to make one for Christmas!
We’ve collected some of the most well-known, classic versions of this vintage chocolate chip cookies. Which one will you bake today?
These big chocolate crinkle cookies are covered in powdered sugar before they’re baked, and come out of the oven with little cracks in the snowy sugar. This classic recipe comes from the 1980s, and uses unsweetened cocoa.
Take a look at these beautiful sequined ornaments and beaded fruit crafts from the 1960s & 1970s for a little DIY inspiration!
Raisins and walnuts, delicately flavored with the flavors of cinnamon and orange, are wonderful surprises awaiting you with your first spoonful of these delicious old-fashioned baked apples!
If you are looking for a treat so Christmas-y that you can actually taste the festivity, it’s hard to beat the old-fashioned charm of gingerbread recipes.
If you’re having a party, consider these 12 cheese ball recipes! These tidbits provide a good color, taste and texture contrast to other foods, and can be made ahead of time, too — even several days ahead to suit your convenience.
By using baking mix and sweetened condensed milk, you don’t need sugar, egg, butter or flour… in fact, everything you need to make easy peanut blossoms cookies might be in your cupboard right now.
Serving canned cranberry sauce this year? Don’t be shy about getting out the jellied stuff, because it turns out you can do lots of cute and creative things with it, from making little turkey cutouts to eye-catching Christmas trees.
How long do you need to cook your turkey? While making a roasted turkey for Thanksgiving is about as vintage American as it gets, our turkey cooking times and tips offered here are based on the most up-to-date standards.
Some hardware stores in the 70s used to stock tons of great toys and Christmas gifts for kids – like dolls and trucks, bikes and ride-on horses, car sets and craft kits. Take a look!
Toast the season’s riches with this snappy pinecone-shaped cheeseball! Formed in a nutshell of crisp, crunchy almonds, its flavor is so scrumptious, your guests will go simply nutty.
This retro cranberry pumpkin bread recipe makes for a breakfast or dessert filled with warm flavor from just the right blend of fall spices, plus a little bit of a tart kick from the popular autumn fruit, cranberries.
Want to know how to make the perfect turkey gravy? Here’s a great classic recipe, plus four delicious gravy variations – easy ways to increase your gravy’s wow factor!
Here’s a tasty holiday menu you probably haven’t seen before: Truman Capote’s favorite Thanksgiving recipes! Find a collection of delicious vintage dishes here.
Once you have made your perfect pumpkin pie – using the classic Libby’s pie recipe or another version – you might want to accent your delicious dessert with one of these tasty pumpkin pie toppings!
What could be better to get a holiday party rolling than a creamy, festive olive cheese ball? This recipe comes from the 70s, which was pretty much the golden age of cheese spreads.
Thousands of kids loved these custom-made Vintage Me Books from the 70s, including titles like My Friendly Giraffe, My Birthday Land Adventure, My Special Christmas & My Jungle Holiday.
As you prepare to dive into the busiest cookie-baking season of the year, make sure you’re prepared with the best quality cookie-baking supplies!
Use up your extra turkey in a new way – make this tasty turkey cheese ball! It’s a great appetizer for Thanksgiving, or you can use holiday leftovers to make a retro snack with this rich spread.
If you think your quest for the best pumpkin pie recipe has only just begun, we have news for you: you’ve just found the vintage recipe motherlode. Which is the best pie? Try some and decide!
Get ready to remember some of the biggest thrills and chills from yesteryear, through these top vintage horror movies – great for Halloween or any time you want a little scare!
While chocolate milk will always be the rock star of milky mixed drinks, strawberry drink mix has a charm all its own. Here’s a look back at the debut of Nestle’s Strawberry Quik back in the sixties!
What is a pumpkin roll? It’s a lightly-spiced pumpkin cake, jelly roll-style — filled with sweet, fluffy cream cheese. Try this retro version from the 70s!
This retro holiday spinach rice recipe makes 12 servings of a delicious and festive-looking side dish, which includes spinach, cheese and green onions – plus sliced almonds for crunch.
Whether you need 50s costumes for a themed party, Halloween party, or a cosplay event, here are some ideas that are perfect for the era.
Whether you’re looking for basic sweet potato recipes or need some ideas for Thanksgiving side dishes, these 41 classic sweet potato recipes cover the gamut, from main dishes to desserts!
When it comes to ready-to-wear 70s costumes, you basically have two style choices: Hippie or Disco Styles. We’ve picked some of our favorites modern-day takes on the era so you can dress up and get on down!
Pecan pumpkin pie adds the rich flavor of pecans in a crunchy top layer. Corn syrup is combined with canned pumpkin and eggs for a fast, smooth custard filling.
These classic spiced crackle cookies from the 80s – rolled in powdered sugar before baking – deliver a sweet dessert with rich flavor and a little warm and spicy tang.
