2026 Sneak Peek: HCE, What’s to Come
Fifteen sneak peeks were shared during the Sneak Peek’s seminar presented in conjunction with the KOC Day at the Hallmark Christmas Experience event.
Stunning Santas
First in the series.
Stunning Santas – This first-in-series ornament by Terri Steiger features a whimsical Santa crafted from porcelain and accented with 14K gold, inspired by the Holiday Heirlooms series. His joyful, simple face peeks out from a swirled, oversized beard, while his flared, patterned robe—with gold-highlighted belt, cuffs, and hem—adds a touch of elegance. The design is completed with a pointed hat and a hanging loop, finished with a ribbon.
Belle V. Holiday, 22nd in the Snowtop Lodge series – by Adan Chung. Features a snowman with rosy cheeks and a carrot nose, wearing a Santa hat while holding a red garland strung with gold jingle bells. The bottom features a snowy village scene with a Santa snowman and reindeer flying by.
Stocking Stuffers, 6th in the series – by Sharon Visker. A classic green stocking with red heel, toe, and trim, featuring a snowman motif on the front and filled with toys her sons would have asked for as children including a teddy bear, robot baseball, rubber ducky, and a candy cane. Design includes .
Cornflower Fairy, Crayola – by Kristina Gaughran. Features a pretty pixie sitting on a blue flower while holding her signature Cornflower Crayola crayon.
Nifty Fifties Keepsake Ornaments – by Gregor Benedetti. Features Caroling Snowmen.
Orange Cat Energy, Mischievous Kittens, Special edition – This Halloween ornament by Simone Mariano features a cute orange cat dressed as a witch, wearing a crooked black witch hat with an orange band, as it peers mischievously over the rim of a large, textured black cauldron filled with bright, translucent green, bubbling potion.
Hedwig, Harry Potter – by Emma Leturgez-Smith. Metallic appearance with gold overlay.
Double Trouble, Disney Chip & Dale – A playful Halloween ornament featuring Chip and Dale in bright orange jack-o’-lantern costumes. Each chipmunk sits with legs outstretched inside a smiling carved pumpkin, topped with a pumpkin cap and green stem. Chip poses in an adorable “surprised” moment with hands to his cheeks, while Dale throws his arms up in pure, joyful excitement.
Festival Fondue – This miniature Christmas tree ornament, designed by artist Matt Johnson, resembles a tiny tabletop communal cooker, decorated with festive red and green accents and a cheerful snowman face.
Frosty Lil’ Friend – Miniature.
A Charlie Brown Christmas – The PEANUTS gang ornament with video and sound – This ornament features Snoopy perched atop a vintage television, with the screen displaying A Charlie Brown Christmas. Using modern technology, the original show comes to life with both video and sound. Designed by Jake Angell & Tim Bishop.
Jack’s Flight, Disney Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas sound, light & motion Christmas tabletop – This Nightmare Before Christmas tabletop by Sharon Visker depicts the Pumpkin King dressed like “Sandy Claws” at the reins of his coffin sleigh, pulled by a team of skeleton reindeer, with Zero leading the way as they soar over swirling, stylized clouds.
Jack’s Flight
Disney Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas
Santa and his Sleigh
Santa and his Sleigh – This tabletop centerpiece was created as a special Artist Collaboration design, with every artist in the Keepsake studio contributing a unique personal creative touch, while the overall sculpt was done by Matt Johnson. It features Santa Claus in his iconic red suit holding a wrapped gift beside a red and gold sleigh adorned with elegant scrollwork and overflowing with colorful toys, animals, and festive figures. This piece will be available only at Hallmark signing events across the country, though locations and dates have not yet been finalized.
Disney Park Collection – Relive the fun of a visit to the Disney Parks. Future ornaments will represent past, present & future rides.
Cinderella’s Castle, Christmas Tree Topper – This ornament features Cinderella’s Castle at Walt Disney World, framed by a tall, arched backdrop with golden accents. Soft pastel tones, gray stonework, and deep blue spires highlight the castle’s intricate details. Above the castle, a miniature sculpt of Tinker Bell hangs from an eyelet, appearing to fly gracefully over the scene. Plug it into the included power adapter for constant illumination, then press the button on the included remote control to see fireworks light up the background and start a synchronized sound-and-light show. Connect one or more Disney Parks Collection ornaments (each sold separately) to unlock additional performances you can’t access with this ornament alone.
Dumbo The Flying Elephant, Interactive light. sound & motion – This playful ornament brings Disney’s classic Dumbo the Flying Elephant ride (circa 1955) to life. At the center stands a colorful, circus-style tower topped with a whimsical pink-and-cream striped canopy and an orange crown. Dumbo figures attach to the tower with striped arms and soar around it with outstretched ears, each wearing a tiny circus hat and matching circus collar that capture the joyful motion of the spinning ride. The round base features bright orange, white and blue geometric patterns, completing the nostalgic carnival look.
The ornament connects to Hallmark’s Keepsake Power Cord for a continuous light effect and automatically rotates every 90 seconds. Press the button to hear the original song from this beloved Disney Parks attraction.
Artist Insight: In The Studio with Simone Mariano
The Keepsake Studio spoke with Hallmark Artist Simone Mariano about herself and shared a glimpse of an ornament she created for 2025.
Sweet Lil’ Sushi
Miniature
Simone: “I loved making Sweet Lil’ Sushi—it’s just so adorable! The design is actually based on a sushi ornament I designed in my previous role for the Hallmark Tree Trimmers collection. But I knew I wanted to have sushi on a tray, and I liked the contrasting look between the makimono and nigiri sushi. The wooden serving tray and chopsticks were included to add more visual interest, and they help emulate sushi you’d maybe be served in a restaurant. I’m half Japanese on my mom’s side, and sushi is one of my favorite foods, so it was really fun to work on something so culturally relevant for me. You better believe my mom is gifting one to every member of her family!”
Simone Mariano
Hallmark Artist
New Keepsake Studio Artist: Bruce Bibler
Welcome to the Keepsake Studio, Bruce Bibler!
Bruce Bibler
Hallmark Artist
Artist Insight: In The Studio with Tim Bodendistel
The Keepsake Studio spoke with Hallmark Artist Tim Bodendistel about himself and shared a glimpse of an ornament he created for 2025.
Tim: “I’d start with the Merry Christmas, Charlie Brown! Table Decoration. The thing that made it so fun was bringing part of their world to life. I love trying to tell a whole story in a single ornament, but when you get to create the whole stage and put people within that scene in the TV special, that’s magical. This piece was fun because of all the different ways they can talk to one another. As you combine them differently, they say different things to each other. Like, Charlie Brown and Linus will have one conversation, where Lucy and Linus would have a different conversation, and it’s fun to see them brought to life. It’s also in the little things we do. For example, the actual stage doesn’t have stage lights on it, but we added stage lights to give other dramatic lighting. And there are little things from the special like in the background, you see the rigging tied off and a stepstool and paint bucket. It’s those authentic pieces that we slip in there. Then the other trick—which is very similar to creating any ornament—is that you tell each character’s entire story in one pose. So, like, Charlie Brown is always a little bit dejected, Lucy’s always a bit of a curmudgeon and Linus is always optimistic. It’s fun to capture each of those personalities by creating their poses and expressions.
The North Pole’s Countdown to Christmas Ornaments and Book Set
Another one I really love is The North Pole’s Countdown to Christmas Ornaments and Book Set. We’re really trying to do things that are new and special for our Keepsake Ornament family and this set has the potential to start some meaningful Christmas traditions. I just had my first grandchild, she’s 3 1/2 months old, so I can see my son and daughter-in-law creating traditions with her with this set. It counts down the 12 days of Christmas and has a little story to go with it. I imagine hanging all the ornaments on the tree at once, with their numbers showing. Then you turn them over day by day to see a new character and read that part of the story in the book. Each character has their role, right down to the very last ornament, which is the bell, and that’s what lets Santa know where you are. These ornaments were inspired by classic Christmas tins, and one of our special secrets is that the ornaments open, so you could put little surprises in each one! And the idea of having this tradition where you put something special inside and you share this story and the tradition year after year—I really want to pass that along to my kids and grandkids.“
Merry Christmas, Charlie Brown
Table Decoration
2025 In-Store Artist Signing Events
Hallmark is hitting the road, bringing a few merry members of the Keepsake Studio to stores in October and November! Each artist will sign Baking Up Some Fun and two ornaments of your choice—or more for purchase. Ornaments purchased in store day of event will also receive one signature free.
Here is the information for all four 2025 Artist Signing events:
October 25, 2025
Norman’s Hallmark
1500 Almonesson Rd. Ste. 11
Deptford, NJ 08096
(856) 879.9002
10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.
Artists: Simone Mariano & Emma Leturgez-Smith
Trudy’s Hallmark
3501 McHenry Ave. Ste. D4
Modesto, CA 95356
(209) 529-5882
10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.
Artists: Matt Johnson & Gregor Benedetti
November 15, 2025
Little Green Apple
4324 Grape Rd.
Mishawaka, IN 46545
(574) 243-1330
10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.
Artists: Kristina Gaughran & Jake Angell
Gretchen’s Hallmark
1445 W. Sunset Rd. Ste. 5
Henderson, NV 89014
(702) 547-6363
10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.
Artists: Iman Zadrozny & Orville Wilson