Our Manufacturers
KWO - Kunstgewerbe Werkstätten Olbernhau GmbH
KWO traces its roots to a small Craftsman's business in the beautiful Erzgebirge-Mountains which produced turned parts from wood. The city of Olbernhau is located close to the border between and the . The little village of Seiffen near to Olbernhau is probably the most well known place for traditional wooden toy manufacturing which you can find at the foot of the eastern Erzgebirge-Mountains which its many centres of folklore-art.
Over the years KWO has grown into one of the leading manufactures of traditional hand made wooden art such as Smoking-Men, Nutcrackers, Music-Boxes, and Christmas Pyramids. They are all crafted to the rich tradition which developed over centuries in the Erzgebirge-Mountains.
A high standard of quality, exclusive design and attention to detail characterize KWO creations. Many enthusiastic collectors who are looking for beautiful and traditional designs have discovered KWO products and become faithful customers. The KWO workshop in Olbernhau has cultivated a tradition of fine craftsmanship of the Erzgebirge-Mountain arts with today more than 140 artisans. When buying any KWO product you can be sure to receive the highest quality wooden art originating from the Erzgebirge-Mountains.
KWO offers these products: Pyramids, Incense Smokers (Smokermen), Nutcrackers, Candle Arches, Angels, Angel & Miner, Music Boxes, Window Pictures and other Figurines & Ornaments.
Steinbach GmbH - Vereinigte Werkstätten Deutscher Volkskunst
For generations Steinbach has brought joy and pleasure to collectors from around the world. The Steinbach Nutcrackers are undoubtedly the most famous ones in the world. Steinbach means highest level of quality and brilliancy in design. Some of the limited editions by Steinbach have increased considerably in value through the years. Steinbach offers these products: Nutcrackers, Incense Smokers (Smokermen), Music Boxes & Tarantellas and Miniatures & Ornaments.
Find out more about Steinbach's world famous Nutcrackers
Mueller Kleinkunst GmbH
The company Mueller Kleinkunst was founded by Edmund Oswald Mueller in 1899 at Seiffen. His production was very versatile, from toys to miniatures arranged in match boxes to complete toy furniture. In 1943 his son Paul took over the company and continued running it in his spirit. His natural wood products found world- wide recognition. At the end of the fifties, Christmas pyramids were added to the collection.
From 1973-2001 Gunter Mueller has been running the company. In 2001 his son Ringo Mueller took over the company and is the current owner and manager.
Whether delightful pyramids, miniature figures, smokers, nutcracker figures or candle arches these charming items are all made of wood and represent a piece of living tradition from the Erzgebirge mountains.
Mueller Kleinkunst offers these products: Pyramids, Incense Smokers (Smokermen), Candle Arches, Angels, Angel & Miner, Music Boxes, Lighthouses and other Figurines & Ornaments.
Christian Ulbricht GmbH & Co. KG
Nutcrackers have a romantic history. Wood turning on lathes can be traced back to the small German mining town of Seiffen, in the mountains of the Erzgebirge not far from the Czechoslovakian border. At one time this area was rich in gold, silver and other minerals, but in the early 1700s the deposits ran dry. It was then that wood turning, which before had been only a hobby, became a source of income. Records document the Ulbricht family as wood turners from this period.
Christian Ulbricht was born in Seiffen on February 15, 1933. His father, Otto, a professional wood turner who started his own business in 1928, built a new factory in 1934. After World War II, when the area became the East German Zone and private industry was taken out of the hands of individuals, Otto took his family across the border to the West where they resettled in the Bavarian town of Lauingen, near Augsburg. Once settled, with his Erzgebirge wood-turning traditions transplanted to Bavaria, Otto began again.
When Otto passed away in 1968, Christian, now in charge of the family enterprise, continued those time-honored traditions. In 1978 Christian expanded his thinking, and developed a new company which he named Holzkunst Christian Ulbricht.
In the early 1990s, when East and West re-unified and once again became one nation, Christian was thrilled to be able to bring back to the family the factory in Seiffen begun by his father so many years ago. Today, the company operates out of both locations.
In part, the development of Holzkunst Christian Ulbricht has been spurred by the American collector, who has been a great influence. All of the Ulbricht family - Christian, his wife Inge and their two children, Ines and Gunther - have traveled extensively in the and have met and talked with collectors. For this reason, many of the motifs produced today include those of particular interest to Americans, such as Santa Claus; characters from beloved ballets like "The Nutcracker Suite" as well as American inventors, and even Uncle Sam.
Christian himself takes great pride when he has designed a new nutcracker and it has taken shape for him on the lathe. This sample then becomes the reference for the workers who handcraft the finished pieces, using only the finest wood and materials.
Now well into its third generation, the Ulbricht family continues to produce highly sought-after products of the finest quality. In addition to an extensive line of various nutcrackers of many sizes, there are incense burners, music boxes, figurines, pyramids and ornaments geared for Christmas and Easter.
Traditions are very important to Holzkunst Christian Ulbricht. Not only those that strengthen ties to the land and to family, but also those that continue the traditions of excellence in production that date back 300 years.
Ulbricht offers these products: Pyramids, Incense Smokers (Smokermen), Nutcrackers, Candle Arches, Angels, Angel & Miner, Music Boxes, Lighthouses and other Figurines & Ornaments.
Seiffener Volkskunst eG
The Seiffener Volkskunst eG was founded by local craftsmen in 1958. Since that time they have been dealing with the manufacturing of wooden items in traditional style of the Erzgebirge. Nutcrackers, 
smokers, angels and miners made as copies of classical models, little shaping trees of excellent quality, a wide range of ring turned animals and a lot of carved figurines belong to their main assortment. Further products complete the production range. Because of their craftsmen's love and dedication all of the products are of high and steady quality.
The Seiffener Volkskunst eG runs a workshop that is open to public. The visitors can watch the craftsmen while working and gain valuable insight on the techniques used.
Seiffener Volkskunst offers these products: Pyramids, Incense Smokers (Smokermen), Nutcrackers, Candle Arches, Angels, Angel & Miner and other Figurines & Ornaments.
Richard Glaesser GmbH
In 1932, Mr. Richard Glaesser decided to become an independent distributor in Seiffen. His early assortment consisted of semi-luxury items such as coffee, tea, cocoa, tobacco and alcohol and then in 1934, wooden figures made in Seiffen were added. At the end of the 1940's, the company added items from its own production and quickly found its own identity. In the first years after World War II, items such as chests, quill boxes, and buttons were very popular. Thereafter traditional Christmas decorations from Seiffen gained in importance.
Mr. Glaesser paid particular attention that his figures have a friendly appearance, be of the highest quality but remain affordable. Naturally, everything was based on typical Seiffen wood-turned figures. Figures from the Christmas story, fairy tales, as well as miners and angels from our mining traditions were used on Christmas pyramids and candle holders.
The Glaesser company developed into the most significant of pyramid producers. The blue pyramids with gates of heaven, the advent houses, or the six- or eight sided terraced pyramids are world famous. The Glaesser company expanded its line of Seiffen Christmas decorations by adding music boxes. The natural wood music box with the nativity scenes with the two palm-trees is among the oldest and most appealing. The music box is outfitted with a large Swiss musical movement that allows the figure-laden platform to turn to the melody of "Silent Night".
Endearing and expressive turned-wood figures have made the Erzgebirge workshop Richard Glaesser GmbH world famous. Experienced artisans produce Mary, Joseph and the Christ-child, sometimes painted and sometimes left in natural wood. In most cases these delicate figures are placed on a valuable pyramid. Collectors appreciate the figures as a Glaesser signature.
You will find a wide variety of products available from Richard Glaesser GmbH. Smoking figures, music boxes, nutcrackers, arched candle holders and much more is available to you in discriminating design and excellent quality.
Experience with wood working, influenced by the customs of miners and centuries-old knowledge about toy production are expressed in the work of the artisans. Continuing traditional techniques and protecting existing designs, coupled with passion and creativity, bring unique products and Erzgebirge holiday customs to your home.
The company logo with the musical angel and the RG initials is meant to help you with your purchase and insure that your purchase is an original piece from the Erzgebirge.
Glaesser offers these products: Pyramids, Incense Smokers (Smokermen), Nutcrackers, Candle Arches, Angels, Angel & Miner, Music Boxes, Lighthouses and other Figurines & Ornaments.
Kunstgewerbe Frieder & Andre Uhlig
The families Frieder & Andre Uhlig have been cultivatng craftwork for four generations - original, varied in form and deeply rooted in the history of Seiffen and the German Erzgebirge.
In the Uhlig workshops the popular Christmas Angels are born combining craftsmanship with lots of love and heart. They have blue and red wings, are multicolour or natural coloured and stand, sit or float while playing their musical instrument. A large variety for collectors and enthusiast of those little treasures.
Uhlig offers these products: Pyramids, Candle Arches, Angels, Music Boxes, Smoking Figures and other Figurines & Ornaments.
SAICO Seiffen GmbH
SAICO GmbH Seiffen specializes in marketing and distribution of original Erzgebirgie woodcrafts. Together with local workshops they design and produce products. Saico has a relatively small and exclusive product range and wants to share the fine treasures and the tradition of the Erzgebirge with the rest of the world. Lara Clarin is a susidiary of Saico Seiffen.
Saico Seiffen offers these products: Pyramids, Candle Arches, Angels, Lighthouses, Window Pictures and Candles (Lara Clarin).
Seiffener Kunsthandwerk Theo Lorenz
Seiffener Kunsthandwerk Theo Lorenz is a small family owned workshop with a tradition of over 100 years. Especially the nativity figurines, which are always made from local lumber, are a masterpiece. They are of great detail and quality and one finds them on most of the Christmas pyramids, candle arches and Music Boxes.
All items have great power of expression and are only made in small quantities what gives them a great amount of exclusiveness. The love of detail and combining traditional motifs with modern designs are characteristics of all handcrafts that leave the workshop of Theo Lorenz.
Lorenz offers these products: Christmas Pyramids, Nativity Figurines, Candle Arches and Music Boxes
Holzkunst Gahlenz
The town of Gahlenz has one of the longest traditions in woodworking from the Erzgebirge. The first woodworking workshop in Gahlenz goes back to 1652.
The company Holzkunst Gahlenz was founded in 1928. At first the workshop made items for every day life but already in the 1930s the Gahlenz smokermen have been famous in Germany. Today Holzkunst Gahlenz offers a large variety of items from nutcrackers to candle arches and music boxes. Gahlenz also has a large variety of Easter ornaments and bunnies. Gahlenz has modern and very traditional Erzgebirge figures but pays greatest attention that the typical Erzgebirge look is preserved in every item they craft.
Gahlenz is one of the few Erzgebirge workshops that have the knowledge and ability to craft nutcrackers and incense smokers in extra large sizes up to 220 cm (over 7 feet). They also offer large individually made Christmas pyramids larger with sizes up to 600 cm (over 19 feet). The world’s largest Christmas pyramid stands on the famous Dresden Christmas fair (Dresden Striezelmarkt) and measures 14.62 meters (48 feet). It was made by Holzkunst Gahlenz and is included in the Guiness Book of Records.
Holzkunst Gahlenz offers these products: Smokers, Nutcrackers, Nativity Figurines, Candle Arches and Music Boxes
Drechselwerkstatt Uhlig
The Drechselwerkstatt Uhlig (Drechselwerkstatt => „Turnery Workshop“) is a small family owned company from the Erzgebirge. The family looks back on a long tradition in woodturning and woodcarving. Right after the fall of the wall in 1990 the Uhlig family built their new workshop in the city of Aue. Uhlig is dedicated to incense smokers and offers a large variety of beautiful items. The wood used is always from the local Erzgebirge area and all smokermen even if coloured still have the natural structure of the wood. Most of the Uhlig smokers have the famous “Uhlig beard” which is made from natural fur.
With an Uhlig incense smoker you experience the century long tradition if craftsmanship in the Erzgebirge.
Click this link to see all Uhlig incense smokers.
Baumann GbR
The small family owned workshop Baumann has specialized in fretsaw works. Dieter Baumann and his son Andreas head the company that has many very exquisite items to offer. Baumann concentrates on candle arches (Schwibbogen) and Christmas Pyramids.
The Baumann Christmas Pyramids belong to the most special pyramids from the Erzgebirge. Customers can choose from different figurine sets to individually design their Christmas pyramids. All wooden figurines are handmade and give a very exclusive and precious touch to the Baumann Christmas pyramids.
Click here for all Baumann Christmas Pyramids, Candle Arches and Window Pictures.
Nutcrackers - Christmas Pyramids - Erzgebirge Smokers
