No type of vintage Christmas ornament is more of a retro first-rate than bubble lights, the inviting heat-activated ornaments that brought a unique sparkle to the holiday decor of the post-war period.
Bubble lights for use in eye-catching display signs were invented in the 1930s and variations were in effect patented by any population as early as 1936. But the man whose construct became the basis for the beloved holiday ornaments was Carl Otis, a hobbyist creator who worked as an accountant for retailer Montgomery Ward. His firm declined to keep or buy ownership to his invention, however, and he at last sold it to a Christmas lights manufacturer called Noma.
As early as mid-1940s the lights were being sold in both the Us and Europe, and by the 1950s they had come to be wildly popular. Though the original light sets were expensive, heavy, breakable, and temperamental, they were a holiday must-have and just about every person who can recall the fifties and sixties will remember a string or two of bubble lights in a place of honor on the Christmas tree.
There was all the time a period of prospect - often accompanied by some judicious tapping and repositioning - between plugging them in and looking the first bubbles, but once they were going the result was outstanding. Fortunately, modern reproductions are lighter, more durable, and more reliable, but they still work on the same principle.
The Science Behind The Bubbles
Bubble light ornaments are in effect a surprisingly complicated and scientific creation, consisting of two parts: an electrified base unit, which holds a small incandescent light bulb, over which a slender, pointed fluid-filled vial or tube is affixed.
In the first-rate fifties lights the base was ordinarily made of two-tone ribbed plastic, with the bowl that held the bulb in one color and the lid or cap in a distinct color. The vial was normally heavy glass, most ordinarily clear or amber colored, but also man-made in shades of blue, red, or violet. In modern sets the vial is often made of durable acrylic, which makes them lighter and more break-resistant.
The vial is filled with a fluid that has a low boiling point. The earliest lights used lightweight oil, which was later supplanted by the organic solvent methylene chloride. When the lights are plugged in, the heat of the small incandescent bulb brings the fluid a boil and the bubbles rise and float up the vial, creating a inviting movement and sparkle.
New Variations On An Old Favorite
Though the basic facility behind bubble lights remains unchanged, modern innovations have introduced changes that only increase their appeal. New versions of the beloved lights are made of rugged, lightweight materials like acrylics that resist breaking and cracking, and the light-holding bases are often shaped like characters.
The lights have also been successfully miniaturized; the originals were ordinarily four or more inches long from the tip of the vial to the lowest of the base, but "mini bubblers" as small as two inches in length are now available.
