Step inside the West Des Moines home of Donna and Bob Martin and take a holiday journey back in time. The Colonial-style home reflects their love of the past and an appreciation for all it has to offer.

There are vintage dolls with enduring smiles and samplers with love in every stitch, even two from the Civil War era. Christmas stockings hung on the fireplace mantel were fashioned from old quilts, and a variety of kids’ toys from long ago don’t have computer chips or batteries to make them move and play. Children took care of that on their own.

Collections of sleds and rocking horses evoke a simpler time, a simpler place.

“I grew up in the Detroit, Michigan, area, but we always spent Christmas with my grandmother in Cincinnati, Ohio,” says Donna. “It was a very special time for me.” She even has her grandmother’s nativity set made in occupied Japan. And there’s her grandmother’s doll—complete with her great-grandmother’s hair made into the doll’s wig.

It’s not surprising that she says, “I have loved antiques since I was a little girl.” Colorful vignettes throughout their home reflect the Martins’ love and respect of all things old.  

Longtime collectors
Bob, who retired from the insurance industry, might be called Mr. Patience, but he knew what he was getting into. “We started collecting and going to shops, sales, and shows while we were in college, even before we got married,” he explains. “Back then collecting was a much more inexpensive hobby than it is today. We stuck to the better woods, and they have endured over time.”

He is particularly proud of an 1815 Philadelphia grandfather clock. “Did you know that old clocks often are set at 8:17, the time that Lincoln was shot?”

The Martins, married for over 45 years, designed their home, where they have lived since 1988. It has a split stairway; one leg comes into the entryway and the other to the kitchen and garage area. The wide-plank pine-floored family room is sunken, down two steps from the living room on one side and the kitchen on the other.

Variety of vignettes
Your eyes go from one vignette to another. There’s a grouping of Conrad Pottery pieces, made in Geneva, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia. The name is significant because it’s Donna’s maiden name.
There are several feather trees decorated with antique and/or reproduction ornaments here, and teddy bears and dolls displayed in miniature Windsor chairs there. Tables are decked with groupings of dolls displayed in glass globes, along with greens and holly in various holiday sleighs. There are paintings made by Donna’s mother of family members, lending a profoundly personal touch. There are stacked toy drums, an old toy cookstove, metal trucks, and a child’s kitchen cupboard.

Well-loved Christmas books in baskets and wooden toys become holiday decorations. The pièce-de-résistance in the family room full of plaid, leather, and checks is a magnificent Christmas tree that brushes the ceiling. Glowing and glistening, it showcases Donna’s huge collection of Christopher Radko blown-glass ornaments in every size and shape. She displays them with glass icicles and calls the ornaments her everlasting perk from running the popular Donna’s Country Collection shop in Valley Junction for 25 years. “When the holiday merchandise was delivered, it was special to see the new ornaments each year,” she says.

From Laurel and Hardy to Mickey Mouse to spacemen, each piece is a treasure. “My favorite pastime in the middle of November is to put on some holiday music and decorate the tree,” Donna explains. “I have to touch and savor each one. As you might imagine, it takes me six to eight hours just to decorate the tree.” Once she is done decorating the house, Christmas is her favorite time to entertain friends. 

Love of dolls
Even though she no longer runs a shop and teaches classes, her creative juices continue to flow. “I love making gifts for people. And, of course, I still love dolls and making clothes.” Three of the Martins’ four grandchildren are girls, so that gives Donna an excuse. Closet after closet and room after room showcase her extensive doll collection.

“My favorite gift at Christmas was a new doll. I always looked for a rectangular box under the tree because that for sure meant a new doll. Why, I have even been known to buy myself a new doll or two. Shhhhh!” she says with a chuckle.

Donna and Bob’s big country kitchen welcomes guests to a large old work table, now a dining spot, flanked by Windsor chairs. Nearby in the red-walled dining room, the table is set with Christmas dishes and gold chargers. For holiday touches, there are music boxes, vintage candy containers, and bottlebrush trees.

With grown children away from home, the couple’s in-home focus is Molly, a Cavalier King Charles spaniel.

These days the Martins enjoy trips to visit their son Rob’s family in Plymouth, Michigan, and daughter Amy Barickman’s family in Kansas City. They still are on the prowl for vintage items, such as old sewing items and trims for Amy’s business, Indygo Junction, a national pattern and book company. Donna often designs and sews model pieces for Amy.  

At a time when some of their friends are looking to move to condos and townhouses, Donna nixes that idea. “Where would we possibly display and store all of our collections?”