I believe the first ornament Hallmark made like this is the 2009 Barbie Teen Age Fashion Model. This ornament commemorated the 50th anniversary of the first Barbie which debuted in 1959 in her iconic black and white swimsuit. She looks like she is in her original box. You can hang the ornament and the box as one piece or take the Barbie out and hang her separately. Her arms are posable. That same year, Hallmark issued Barbie's Boyfriend Ken in the same fashion. He looks like he's in his original packaging but can be hung with or without the box.
In 2011, Hallmark issued the Barbie Brunette Bubble Cut ornament looking like she's in her 1962 original box. Other Barbie ornaments followed that are done in this same style. There is 2012 Student Teacher Barbie, 2018 Skipper Ltd. Qty., 2023 Barbie's Best Friend Midge, and 2024 Barbie's Little Sister Skipper.
Moving away from Barbie, there are Star Wars figures that started in 2024 that are made to look like they are in their original blister packs. Within a year of its premiere, Star Wars became the first film to launch a wildly successful line of toys based on its characters and concepts. There were 12 figures released in stores in 1978 and Hallmark is commemorating those toys with these ornaments. The first one Hallmark released was the 2024 Darth Vader Vintage Figure. Then came the Sand People/Tusken Raider that was issued at Comic-Con with only 3500 being produced. In October 2025 we will get Luke Skywalker. Hopefully Hallmark has plans to release all 12. It's a great little unofficial series that will be fun to collect with an end in sight.
The only other group of ornaments that I could think of that look like they're in packaging are the Nifty Fifties ornaments. Hallmark started these in 2014. They are made to look like vintage ornaments that are in their original packaging. These differ from the Barbie and Star Wars ornaments because those are based on actual toys. The Nifty Fifties ornaments are made up in the mind of the Hallmark artist. They are based on the look of vintage ornaments but they are not an exact replica of any specific items from the past. 2014 was the start of this unofficial series with the release of a "package" of ornaments featuring a house, santa, and snowman. 2015 was made to look like a package of bubble lights. 2016 was made to look like a package of blown glass ornaments with a rocking horse, bear, and train. 2017 was made to look like a package of nutcrackers - red, green, and blue. 2018 was made to look like a package with an angel tree topper. 2019 was made to look like classy blown glass ornaments with a puppy, kitten, and cozy critter (based on the first of those series). 2020 was a package of three clip-on birds. 2021 was made to look like a package of "porcelain" Mr. and Mrs. Claus ornaments. Hallmark skipped 2022 but brought this unofficial series back in 2023 with a special edition repaint of the 2017 nutcrackers. 2024 brought us a package of three "porcelain" vintage Santas - pink, red, and mint green. In July 2025 Hallmark will release a Nifty Fifties ornament made to look like a package of blown glass ornaments that are a Santa, tree, and ball.
These are the only ornaments that I could come up with that look like they are in packaging. I'm sure there are more. Let me know if you think of some that I missed.
