With more than 300 nutcrackers standing guard in Carla Tillett’s home over the holidays, everyone who visits can’t help but to get in the Christmas spirit.
“Everybody loves them,” Carla said, even all of her fellow golfers who come to visit and leave with cookies, bourbon balls and peanut butter balls that she makes.
What Carla loves about the nutcrackers is their “regal and somewhat distinctive appearance, and of course, the many outlandish outfits,” she said.
Carla started her collection about 20 years ago after her grandsons, Taylor and Hunter, who are now 20 and 21 years old, came along.
“I wanted to give them something special every year,” she said.
She started with buying them small nutcrackers, and as they grew, she bought them bigger nutcrackers. She also purchased themed nutcrackers that matched whatever sport or activity they were into that year.
“The boys were into soccer, football and baseball,” she said. “One plays the guitar and a drum.”
On the bottom of the nutcracker, Carla writes the year and their name and who it is from.
“It’s hard to keep up with the ones that I have given them over the years so I don’t duplicate them,” she said.
She has also since, gotten her daughter Bobbie in the spirit of collecting nutcrackers.
“She probably has as many as I do,” Carla said. “I hope my grandsons keep the tradition up for their families when they get married.”
Carla said her first nutcracker wasn’t anything special — it was a nutcracker holding a calendar counting down the number of days until Christmas.
“It was just a Christmas decoration then,” she said. “I didn’t know then that I would start collecting them. I still have it with the rest of my collection.”
She has a variety of nutcrackers with various themes in her collection. She has a golfer, chef, Santa nutcrackers, numerous traditional nutcrackers and more.
There are even several nutcrackers that she bought for her husband that are military themed and there’s a firefighter nutcracker because he used to be a firefighter. He also has nutcrackers that are doing yoga.
There are also Alabama, Auburn and University of Kentucky-themed nutcrackers, schools that they have ties to.
There are even nutcrackers in the bathrooms. Beautiful pink nutcrackers decorate a faux white tree in the master bath, while an about 3-foot nutcracker with a clothespin on its nose stands guard in the guest bath.
Carla’s favorite nutcrackers are her seven “Pier One Ladies,” she said. The nutcrackers are tall and slender and adorned in dresses, coats and hats.
“They stopped making them and I was heartbroken,” she said. However, she keeps an eye out and hopes to find more one day.
Her other favorite nutcrackers are ones that look like dogs she’s owned in the past. She’s looking for one that looks like her current dog.
Carla said many of the nutcrackers are gifted to her. Recently, a friend purchased one for her from Walmart that is acrylic and plays music. Many of them, she bought.
“I get them anywhere I can find them. From the Dollar Tree to Neiman Marcus.”
The nutcracker that has the most meaning to her is one her husband, Bob, gave her.
“Bob gave me one from Germany,” she said. “It is the most expensive one in my collection. I keep it out all year long.”
Carla starts putting her nutcrackers and other Christmas decorations out the day after Thanksgiving. She said many of her family members come over and help her get out the decorations, Christmas tree and nutcracker collection, which is stored in a guest bedroom closet.
The nutcrackers stay up through the holidays. All of her family that is in town goes to her house Christmas Eve for dinner and a Dirty Santa gift exchange. She prepares the majority of the food and serves it on her nutcracker dishes. On Christmas Day, everyone goes back to her house for leftovers.
After everyone who visits her house during Christmas leaves, she hopes they leave filled with the Christmas spirit.
“I hope they feel a little happier and in the Christmas spirit,” Carla said. “I know that they don’t envy me for having to take them all down and pack them up.”
