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Spode Christmas Tree fine china continues to be very popular this year among Christmas shoppers. The whimsical Spode Christmas Tree design is beloved by Christmas fans the world over, but it is especially popular in America. The famous illustration got its start way back in 1938, when Harold Holdway, a young designer in Spode's England office, was asked to design a Christmas pattern for the American market. Harold was faced with a dilemma...he had never seen a decorated Christmas tree! In his first sketch the presents were suspended from the branches. "Wouldn't that cause them to droop?" he wondered. He amended his sketches when told the American tradition was to place gifts under the tree. Holdway used another Christmas icon in a most delightful way, adorning the top of the tree with jolly St. Nick. The charming Spode Christmas Tree illustration has been going strong ever since, and today the Spode Christmas Tree appears on a large number of Spode pieces, including not just fine china but also things like trivets, cheese trays, deviled egg trays, Christmas tree ornaments, cookie jars, salad sets, a gadroon bowl, pitchers, a cake stand, a wine bottle cooler, a musical centerpiece, a butter dish...and the list just goes on and on!

The Waterford Crystal Visitor Centre is the fourth most popular tourist attraction in Ireland, with more than 300,000 visitors last year, many of them from the United States. The Waterford Crystal visitor experience includes a dramatic recreation of the Millennium Eve celebrations in New York’s Times Square, a guided tour through the crystal production process, an 18th century Master Craft Room where master crystal-makers have the opportunity, the time, and the space to explain their craft, and the Waterford Crystal Gallery, a special retail store that contains the widest selection of Waterford Crystal in the world as well as a wide range of other products. Waterford Crystal was first established in 1783 in the Irish harbor town of Waterford. Its founders were two brothers, William and George Penrose, who were important developers and principal exporters in the city. Their vision was to "create the finest quality crystal for drinking vessels and objects of beauty for the home." More than 200 years later, the reputation they established for creating glass of unsurpassed beauty and quality has transcended the intervening centuries. Today, Waterford's principal manufacturing plant stands on a 40-acre site on the outskirts of the city made famous by its glittering product. There are also two other manufacturing plants in County Waterford.

More than 1,000 Russ teddy bears provided comfort for children in Massac County, Illinois, following devastating tornados that cut a mile-wide swath through the community in 2003.     Distributed by Pastor Richard Keplinger to pre-schoolers, first and second graders, each bear was accompanied by a note to reassure the children: "I am your Angel bear! Friends that you may never know sent me to be your friend." Wrote one child, who named his bear Josh, "I like the note you wrote. It was nice of you. I will always remember the tornado. The bear helps me." Dubbed Project Angel Bear, the outreach - funded by an anonymous donor - included additional information to help parents reassure their children in the aftermath of the storms.

With a combined history of over 600 years of heritage, tradition, and craftsmanship, today Waterford Wedgwood PLC is among the world's leading luxury lifestyle groups, with world-class brands that include Waterford Crystal, Wedgwood, W-C Designs, Rosenthal, and All-Clad. Waterford Wedgwood PLC was established in 1986 with the merger of Waterford Crystal and Wedgwood. In February 1998, the company acquired an 85 percent share in Rosenthal AG of Selb, Germany, a share that has since increased, in 2001, to 89.9 percent. In May 1999, All-Clad of Cannonsberg, Pennsylvania, joined the Waterford Wedgwood Group, as did W-C Designs of Anaheim, California, in 2001. The product portfolios of the Group's prestige brands complement each other perfectly. Cooperation with other luxury brands, with fashion designers such as Vera Wang, Versace, Bulgari, John Rocha, Jasper Conran, and Paul Costelloe, and with top international chefs have helped the Group differentiate itself from its competitors. With its distinguished members, the Group is uniquely positioned to meet the demands of today's consumers and to expand its position in the luxury lifestyle market. Around the world, Waterford Wedgwood, PLC, which is headquartered in Dublin, Ireland, is represented in more than 80 countries, has a workforce of approximately 9,000 employees, and offers its customers one of the world's most extensive product ranges in the market.