I thought it would be neat to share our stories although I am sure some of you already have.

Christmas has alwasys been my favorite time of year. With the lights and decorations and all. Yes Joe, you and I need to talk I collect old ornaments and lights and yes I have a few celephane wreaths myself.

My frist vacuum was when I about 10. I do have some home movies with me getting this. It was a small rectangle box, and of course I had know idea what was in it. This was Christmas Day and we were at my grandparents home, which this was a tradition in our small family, to have Christmas Day at my moms folks. Anyway, the surprise was when I opened it and there it was a brand new Royal Handvac, red and grey. Wow! my very own vacuum. I had to try it out right away plug it in and use it on something so I went behind one of g-ma's and g-pa's chairs in their living room. I still have that vacuum as well as the grandparents bought one for themselves and to this day I still have both and one box that they came in. Sadly I do not have the owners manual. The only other vacuum so far I got for Christmas was from Tom G and David when they came to visit Clay F. his partner Dennis ( who has passed) and I. They came my frist year in Denver we had a great dinner and there under the tree was huge box. In it was a 1965 Fairfax which I did not have one with all the attachments, I cherrish this machine very much.

My grandparents were really cool people, they supported me in all my collections. I miss them very much.

David Watters

was a dirtdevil ultra handvac and I recentley found it that same year, my aunt got a POS dirtdevil featerlite which was sooo hard to put together and will not pick anything up I was about 5 at the time my parents were soooo good to me, they always spoil me with different types of vacuums.

AB

was in 1959 when I was three and three-quarters years old. I was so happy when I opened it that I stood there bawling! I would not let it out of my sight, and ran it day and night. It made a rather annoying BUZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ sound that my dad soon grew tired of and removed the batteries from it. So what did I do but supply my own sound: VRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR-VRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR imitating the roar of my aunt's scary Kirby, since this toy sweeper was an upright.

I was so enthralled with it that I would not let it out of my sight, even taking it to bed with me at night lest it disappear.

My cousin, whose mother was my Aunt Dabney with the Kirby, came over and I remember him looking at it. When he saw that it had a trap door on the bottom to empty the dirt, he said, "That's just like my mama's -- hers has a door on the bottom like that too." I clearly remember him telling me this as it was a major revelation to me. I had no idea that that was how you empty a Kirby as I had never seen it done.

The brand name of the vacuum cleaner? Okay, no snickering please ... it was "The Pretty Maid."

I was as happy as a bug in a rug when I found one identical to it on eBay! In fact I have found three of them -- one light blue, one dark blue like the one I had, and one maroon. The maroon one was brand new in the box! It was made by Marx toys who made a whole line of "Little Homemaker" appliances.

Anyway, see photos---

My mama took this photo of me -- as a boy I was teased UNMERCIFULLY about it by my brothers and sister. Naturally!

My first toy vacuum that I received for Christmas was in 1991, when I was 3, and the first REAL vacuum came in Christmas '95, when I was 7. It was a Singer 3-in-1 stick vac that I wanted for the longest time, and you could tell I was excited when I was opening it up! I scanned and posted pictures of them both in this Archived thread on AW.org, along with some other vacuum-related pictures of me. It sure brings back a lot of memories!

--Austin

My First vacuum was a Eureka superbroom! With power brush!

Got it when i was 3 it was a bribery gift when i didn't want to walk down the asle in a wedding and my parents said..."ok Kyle if you walk down the asle we will buy you a REAL vacuum this time" So later when i was like 9 i sold it for 8 dollars to these people who i think through it out!

Kyle

is my first Christmas to get a vacuum. Toby gave me an early Christmas present...a GE Roll-Easy. He even gave me some attachments and TWO bags!! I love it to DEATH!! I can fit roughly 2 vacuums in my room, as I STILL have to share a room with my twin. My Roll-Easy and my Air-Way 88 Mark II are in there. However, the extent of my collection is in my playroom. This is where most of the polishing gets done, but now that I have an electric bench polisher...*evil laugh*

I may be getting more stuff for Christmas. Several people have mentioned the idea...You know who you are!! :-) I am persuading my parents to get me a few vacuums for me for Christmas, too. YAY!!

I sat here thinking "I've never gotten a vacuum cleaner for Christmas.." But actually I did.
Thanks for bringing back a fond memory..
When I was young-young (mid-late 1960s) I received a plastic battery-operated toy vacuum-cleaner "kit". It probably was of the MARX-HASBRO variety of toy. It was easily assembled. The end-result looked like something akin to a Royal hand-vac.
Well, I spent the next week merrily whisking up tinsel - taking the vac apart, cleaning the fan and whisking up more tinsel. SO THAT is where it all started?? My life makes more sense now...

I can't remember when my "first" was. My life partner always had it easy, just buy me the latest and greatest. I remember getting the Kirby G3 for Christmas when it came out and here I am opening the Lux Rennie for Xmas. This must have been 1992-93. I still have the Rennie. It was on loan to Charlie until he tired of it and then sent it back. This one does have some sentimental value because of who gave it to me. I don't know what everyone complains about, I think it is a great vacuum.

In my family little boys did not get vacuums for Christmas. Charlie and Austin, you were very lucky! I started to give myself Birthday/Christmas presents to myself a few years ago! One year i bought a AirWay Centurion from a man on ebay. He had the AirWay and his new wife had a Miele. She wanted to keep the Miele so he sold the AirWay. He later emailed me and said the he sure missed the AirWay as it was the better vacuum in his opinion but that he was happy that it was in a good home.

Since then, i gave myself an Electrolux Oxygen canister, Dyson DC07 Animal, and a Wal Mart GE canister/PN vacuum. This year I gave myself a whopping three vacuums!! A Eureka Commercial Canister, a Electrolux Harmony and one that hasn't arrived yet but I will post pix of!

A company called Wells Kelso used to make fantastic toy Hoover Juniors & Seniors. They were friction driven, and could actually pick dirt up and had a working brushroll - perhaps not a very hygenic toy, but great fun. The versions with headlights even had a battery powered torch bulb in them. I had several when I was a kid, and I remember my mum being really embarassed when we were on the bus home as I kept fickering with the one I'd just gotten. My mum was very reluctant to buy them for me, but my grandma was more than happy (possibly because it would annoy my mother!).

The picture is off Ebay - mine were thrown out many years ago, sadly, when my mum was trying to persuede me that little boys shouldn't like Hoovers (boy did she fail there!)

Si

I vaguely remember a toy vacuum when I was quite little, and it seems to me to have been a toy size Hoover model 63 that ran on batteries with a headlight and blow up bag. Can anyone confirm that there was such a thing? I don't have any pics of it, and with my decreasing memory bank, I can't be sure, but I'm sure I remember one. I also remember a little red metallic tank that ran on batteries and actually had suction, had kind of a rubber tube for a hose, and a little metal upholstery shaped attachment, I do remember that one for sure, it came from my aunt and uncle who always indulged me. They also had an old black Rexair that they got for a wedding present, but I wasn't allowed to play with that because my aunt said it shocked her a few times, but for some reason they kept it forever, replacing it with the pink/white GE canister, which I managed to push and pull all around their house!

Your memory is right on Robert. I too remember that toy Hoover, ran on batteries, had a head light, for some reason I remember it being in blue. Always wanted one but never got it. Thought too how neat if would have been if they had made it electric. Terry

Thank you gentlemen for responding this has been neat to read all of your comments and stories I hope they keep coming.

In my collection of vacuums I do have a childs vacuum. I bought it at a junk dealer in Omaha but it is a little electric upright. Although now it does not work any longer but I am sure it had some good times when it was. It even had a head light that lit up when it was running. Sadly there is no name on it at all not even on the bag.

David

I got one of those for Christmas when I was 2 and a half. It actually had a motor and fan and when you turned it on it would light up, blow up the bag, and actually pick up a little dirt!! Unfortunately, if I remember right, the batteries leaked and it got thrown out. Wish I still had it now.
Jeff

I remember that the Sears-Roebuck catalogs in the mid 1960s had an electric (110v) toy vacuum -- a miniature version of the upright that actually did plug into a wall socket. The ad went something like, "Plug in and clean house just like Mother!" or some-such. I wanted one so badly, but by then was so ashamed of my sweeper fascination that I would not dare ask for one.

I remember getting a toy Hoover Model 63 and I think I was probably 4 years old which would have put it at Christmas 1955. I remember that it did not hold my interest very long like the real vacuum cleaners did. I was bemused that it did not have attachments. I have no idea what happend to it.

I do remember we almost got an Electrolux AE a few months later in the spring of 1956. I remember the demo and I was just fascinated by the whole show. My mother had a Hoover Model 62 at the time. She was not going for the Lux AE. Back then, if you didn't buy the vacuum right away but showed some interest, the salesmen would leave the vacuum at the house for a while to see if you would warm up to it. I remember he even left the garment bag. But eventually the AE was gone. Mom was not letting go of her Hoover 62. While we had it though, the Lux AE was far more fascinaing than my toy 63. I thought the combination attachments were the coolest things. Needless to say I was very disappointed when the Electrolux Man came to pick up his machine. What was Mom thinking here??? And why couldn't I have one of THOSE for Christmas?

But...little did Mom know that 16 years later, her son would sell her a brand new Lux 1205 complete with Rug Washer!

My Kenmore KenCart, courtesy of Uncle Gus and Goodwill. I didn't find out until much later that I was an unwitting pawn in a twisted game of "oneupmanship" played between Uncle Gus and my grandfather. Granfather gave me a Lionel train. (YAWN) Anyway, I shorted out the KenCart when I used a steak knife to pull the plug out. A year later I got a Lux Model R from Goodwill. It lasted until I left it in the rain. (but hey, I was only 4!)

vacuum cleaner that I got for Christmas, if you can consider it a vacuum was a Dustbuster, one of the originals that my grandmother gave to me when I was 4 or 5 years old. This year is the first year that I got a REAL vacuum cleaner for Christmas and it was my Hoover Windtunnel 2 that was given to me by my very close friend and club member, Tom Gasko. I'll never forget it, as it will always be a very special machine to me. I asked my mom to look for a picture of me that was taken when i was a kid of me sleeping with a Hoover Pixie stickbroom.. it is the funniest picture and it reminds me of the pictures earlier in this thread of other kids sleeping with vacuums. Geez.. I'm glad to see I wasn't the only one.. lol

Derreck

I remember seeing on "you've been framed" (kinda like..a show about funny home movies for you american members lol) and it had this kid (was american footage i think) asleep, or at least lieing/clinging to this vacuum whilst it was being used...clearly soft bags are as comfortable as they look =p

The first (and only vac) I ever got for Christmas was in 1990, when I got a Dirt Devil hand vac. At the time, Sears sold a two-speed model, with a slightly different outer bag. I got the attachments as well. I should have asked for the Royal Prince instead. I still have it, along with the first vintage vac I ever got, a Hoover model 28.

When I was about...6 or so (?), I got a rechargeable Black & Decker hand-vac for Christmas - I think from my parents. Suction wasn't up to much, especially as I already had a Junior 1346A with tools by that point, which I used all the time! However, the fun thing about the hand-vac was that it could pick up water was well as dry dirt, and I remember my mum's dismay at finding me pouring a bucket-load of water over the bathroom floor so I could vacuum it up again!

I also got a maroon-coloured Hoover Turbopower toy one year, but it only lasted a few weeks, the handle snapped off and I was made to throw it away because of the 'sharp edges' the breakage had left!

The best gift I ever got was for my 13th birthday, my wonderful grandparents got me a Hoover Constellation! Still unbeaten for the category of 'best birthday present ever'!!

I think my first vacuum was my dirt devil classic with attachments, box, cord thing, and manual

Charles-Richard, funny you should mention those Sears toy 110v machines. I actually got one of those for Christmas, when I was 4 or 5 years old. I can even remember asking Santa for it. This would have been 1964 or '65, so the memory's kinda vague, but if I recall correctly, it looked and operated just like a regular upright, only in child scale. I do recall it had a working headlight. A fun start to a lifelong obsession!

I have that sears kenmore toy electric vacuum! I got it on ebay for a winning bid of 60.00!! I wanted it so badly that i would pay ANY price!! Pic:

My first was a bissel three in one but it burnt up after a month a of use

So ... how well does it clean?! Does it actually have a revolving brush? Let's see a photo of it in action!!

no.. it doesn't have a brushroll! But it does suck some crums off a little bathroom rug! I like it and it works great and is in almost *MINT* condition!! I love it!

Kyle

Wow very cute Kenmore, Kyle! Thanks for posting a picture of it. I never knew that they made these. I wish that Hoover had made one. Is it loud? Sounds like it does have some suction. I am guessing that it has a cloth shake out bag. Congrats on this find. It has a good home now.

--Tom

Hey Tom!

Yes the Kenmore toy does have a shake out bag and it makes a weird noise! I think they were trying to copy the sound of vibration on the carpet! HAHA But look more pics:! SEE HOW MUCH IT LOOKS LIKE MY SINGER TWIN FAN!!!

Another pic of the bottem

THE SWITCH!

I have that same singer tiwn fan.

IN ACTION!!!-THE **GLAM** SHOT!

Kyle I have one of those toy kenmores also this one day I took the bag off and cleaned it. Talking about old toy vacuums or sweepers I have a 1966 suzy homemaker, 1974 tuff stuff vacuum (by mattle), an old bissle little queen, and a small 1950s tin electrolux. And who has the old rare dirt devil broom vac besides me?

...and those toy kenmores were made in 1976 I believe.

What vac did you get for christmas?

-a-

I din't get any vacuums for Christmas....well yes i did but you will have to wait and see when it comes because it is COOL!!!

a note to Dirt-devil... the kenmore toy vacs the one in my pics are from 1964! I met the original owner of that machine and she showed me pics of Christmas 1964 when she got it..very interesting!!

I have:

* Dirt Devil "Junior" upright vacuum brand new in the box - also the matching red hand vac brand new in box.

* Three ~1960 "Pretty Maid" uprights by Marx, one maroon, one light blue and one dark blue.

* Meile yellow canister

* a tiny little pink and white upright, about 8" tall, hard-body with clear plastic dirt chamber with little white pellets that jiggle up and down when you wind the machine up.

Others have come and gone over the years, including a couple of the Hoover World's Fair giveaways.

Tom Anderson, do you have the electric miniature 63?! [I *think* that's the right model -- the dark blue and gray one] I have seen a really cool print ad of mother and daughter in matching "cleaning outfits" using their respective Hoovers -- the byline says something like "Same mother, same daughter, same Hoover" or some-such. I have never seen one of these toy 63s and wonder if they really were fully functional - motor, "BAISAIC" agitator etc??