When  I was 14, I was fortunate enough to spend my summer in Russia with my parents. While there, we visited a factory that made Russian nesting dolls and I fell in love with them. I loved the fact that you got a whole "family" of dolls in one package, and enjoyed the anticipation of opening the largest doll to see how many were nestled inside. I also loved the artistry that went into making nesting dolls. These weren't just plastic dolls with dimpled cheeks and fluttery eyes; they had intricate designs painted on them in a whirwind of colors and patterns.

I still have the nesting dolls that I purchased in Russia, and proudly display them in our living room hutch (even though our cat, Maya, is always trying to bat at them). Though I prefer collecting traditional Russian dolls, as opposed to novelty nesting dolls, I've received some interesting ones as gifts. My parents even have a past Russian leaders set of nesting dolls in their home!

While Russian dolls are something that can be collected all year round, they're perfect for Christmas. Because nesting dolls open into so many different parts, you can easily display a line of Santas across your mantle or add a row of snowmen to your dinner table.

In addition to making great decorations, Christmas Nesting Dolls are perfect for putting in a stocking. Because they're so compact, they'll easily fit inside -- and then your gift ends up being several presents in one!

I don't personally own any Christmas-themed nesting dolls, but the ones I do have out (over 100 at this point) are definite conversation starters. People always want to know where I got them and love to fit them back into each other ... and then take them apart again. They almost always grab my guests' attention, I guess because there are so many of them and so beautiful. That said, putting out some Russian dolls is a surefire way to make your holiday decor stand out from the other homes.

Like I said, I'm a bit of a traditionalist when it comes to my nesting doll collection, but I do have to admire the creativity that went into crafting these novelty Russian dolls. Out of all of them, I think I like The Beatles set the best; the paintings are of the highest quality and they actually look classy.

The Michael Jackson ones are decent, but it's a little creepy in that you can basically see the progression of his plastic surgeries as you open each doll. Still, the Michael on the main doll is a really good likeness and a nice homage to the late performer.

What I love about the BeeGees dolls is the last doll isn't even based on a person; it simply says "disco." It's as if disco were an entity unto itself ... which I suppose in their case, it kind of was. Still, that made me laugh.

The idea of Star Trek Russian dolls just amuses me. But my mother-in-law is a huge Trekkie, so I think I might purchase her a set as a gift.