Chive glass London double-decker bus ornament in red with Union Jack flag detail.
Chive glass London double-decker bus ornament in red with Union Jack flag detail.

Travel & Landmark Ornaments

London Double Decker Bus Ornament

Buy 3 Get 1 Free
$26.95
Great Holiday Gift
Re-strung Ready-to-hang
30-day return policy

There's No Such Thing as Just One Ornament

Pick a favorite. Then accept that "just one" was never really an option.

If your tree needs a london ornament, the London Double Decker Bus delivers: a red double-decker in blown glass, shaped at the torch and brush-painted with windows and route signage, a loop and cord for the branch. The bus is the building that moves — the best description and the one that captures what it feels like at the front of the top deck when the city passes below at exactly the right height for seeing everything. People who have claimed that forward seat on a clear afternoon understand this completely and have been trying to describe it since. My colleague Nathan visited for a long weekend and rode three consecutive routes from the upper deck because the view justified the fare, which was not expensive, which was entirely beside the point. Hang this for whoever stays on past their stop because they were not finished looking. TIFF curates stories about cities that define themselves through motion; this ornament captures London's most recognizable moving landmark.

Product Detail
  • Material: Glass
  • Composition: Hand-blown borosilicate glass
  • Finish: Hand painted
  • Hardware: pre-strung with a minimalist cord
  • Year Designed: 2024
Dimensions
  • 3.27 inches long, 1.34 inches wide, 2.44 inches tall
Ornament Care Instruction

Remember, treat these ornaments like you would a friendship with someone who brings good wine: gently. Keep them in a safe spot when not in use, avoid introducing them to toddlers or cats, and they'll be around for many holidays to come.
Shipping & returns

Shipping

  • Free shipping: Orders $200+ within the US
  • Standard: 5–8 business days, Express 2–3 business days (at checkout)
  • International Ships: to 40 countries — rates at checkout
  • Packaging Ships: in outer box to protect gift box

View full shipping policy →

Returns

We accept returns within 30 days of delivery on unused items in original packaging. If your piece arrives damaged, contact us within 7 days with a photo and we will replace it at no charge.

View full return policy →
Wholesale Inquires

Have a cool shop? Know someone that does?

Find Chive on Faire →
View details

What people are saying our 0rnaments

4.89 ★ (4395)
Verified

Gift to someone with actual taste

Give the gift of good taste (finally). These vintage-inspired glass ornaments say “I know style” without screaming it. Perfect for friends who hate basic.

Upgrade your tree with vintage vibes

Your tree deserves better than plastic sparkle. These handcrafted glass ornaments bring retro charm and serious glow-up energy to every branch.

Get your tree looking insta-worthy

Ready for your tree’s close-up? These ornaments deliver vintage glam and photo-ready sparkle. Just add twinkle lights and watch the likes roll in.

The Story Behind This Ornament

The London double decker bus is the building that moves, which is the only description of it that feels completely accurate and captures what it is like to sit at the front of the top deck when the city passes beneath you at exactly the right height for seeing everything without being part of it. I rode one on a Tuesday afternoon in October when the light was doing the thing London light does in autumn, which is turning gold at an angle that makes old buildings look new and new buildings look like they are trying. My colleague Nathan flew over for a long weekend specifically to ride the buses and he did, three consecutive routes, sitting in the same front seat each time, watching the same city from slightly different approaches. He said the fare was insignificant and the view was the point and when he got home he could not explain it to anyone who had not done it. That is the difficulty with the bus. The experience resists language. You cannot describe why the top deck at the front on a clear day feels like flight to someone who has only ever taken the tube. You have to ride it. This ornament is what you bring home instead of an explanation.

Care Tips

Storage Do’s and Don’ts:

(Because Yes, They’re Fragile)

  • Do wrap each ornament individually in soft tissue paper, bubble wrap, or a gentle cloth. (No, shoving them in a shoebox with tinsel does not count.)
  • Don’t let them clink around in a box together. That’s a recipe for heartbreak and glittery shards.
  • Do store them in a sturdy container (plastic bins with dividers = chef’s kiss) and keep it in a cool, dry place — no attics or sketchy basements, please.

Pro Tip: Label the box like your life depends on it.

Write it on every side, not just the top, since nobody unloading a truck reads the top first. If you're storing these for next year, do future you a favor and note what's inside beyond just "ornaments." A little specificity now saves a lot of bubble wrap archaeology in eleven months.

Ornaments Are a Great Gift. We Have Opinions About the Rest.

More Travel Christmas Ornaments

Our Travel collection maps the places people carry with them — lighthouses, landmarks, and coastlines — in hand-painted glass. The VW Green Van Ornament carries a quieter journey in the same painted glass.

Hand-Blown Glass Christmas Ornaments

Hand-painted glass rewards the close look, and every Chive ornament is made to be inspected at arm's length — the distance where trees are actually enjoyed. The London Bus holds up at that distance with route signage and windows painted at a scale that invites squinting. Our Travel Christmas Ornaments collection has more routes worth taking.

Ashikaga - 6 Piece Set - Chive Ceramics Studio - Ceramic Flower Sets - Chive Ceramics Studio

Ceramic Flowers That Never Wilt

The London Double Decker Bus ornament serves the tree in December. The walls get the other eleven months, and Chive's Ceramic Flowers fill them with porcelain blooms shaped by hand, mounted flat, requiring no water and holding color with the stubbornness of something that was built to last and has kept its word. Ornaments and flowers share a single origin: raw material shaped at the bench by artisans and shipped directly from the studio.

About Chive Studio

Chive has operated from the same studio since 2004, designing objects that people put in their homes on purpose and look at daily without tiring of them. The ceramic flowers came first and the ornaments followed naturally. Each ornament is blown from glass at the torch, painted by artisans whose brushwork improves with every piece, and capped for hanging. The bus, the airplane, the van — each requires different paint decisions and a different understanding of what makes the subject recognizable at three inches tall. We are not fast. Nathan rode three bus routes to see London properly and we take roughly the same approach with our production: see it from every angle, paint what matters.

About Our Studio

Inside the Chive Design Studio

Where a lump of glass becomes the thing everyone fights over during the divorce.

German Glass Ornaments: How They're Made, and How to Keep Them Alive

— Todd Newgren
German glass ornaments are defined by a method — blow, silver, lacquer, paint, cap — not a country of origin, and that method hasn't changed in two hundred years. Mouth-blown me...
Read the full story

Vintage Christmas Decorations: A Journey Through Time

— Todd Newgren
Vintage Christmas ornaments are mouth-blown glass pieces at least twenty years old — hand-silvered, hand-painted, and made the same way since the 1800s. Here's how to spot the r...
Read the full story

Frequently asked questions

Do you have a london ornament for the christmas tree?

We do, and it is a London Double Decker Bus blown from glass at the torch and brush-painted with windows and route signage at a scale that invites the kind of squinting Nathan perfected on the upper deck. It hangs from a loop and cord and brings one of the most recognizable vehicles in transit history to the branch. The fare is the price of the ornament.

Would the London Double Decker Bus ornament win a white elephant exchange?

A London Double Decker Bus Ornament at a white elephant exchange is the steal that ends the game because nobody wants to give it back. Blown glass, painted by hand, shaped like the most photographed bus on earth. The person who takes it home wins not because of the glass but because of what it represents. It's a city ride that felt like flying at six miles an hour.

Is the London Double Decker Bus ornament a good hostess gift idea?

A London Double Decker Bus Ornament tells a hostess that you brought something she will keep, which puts it ahead of wine that will be consumed and flowers that will wilt by Thursday. It is blown glass with painted detail, and it adds a miniature landmark to her tree. The gesture says you noticed her home and thought about what belonged in it.

Is the London Double Decker Bus ornament hand painted glass or plastic?

The London Double Decker Bus Ornament is hand-painted glass. An artisan shapes the bus from molten glass at the torch and a painter applies the red body, windows, and route signage with brushes once cooled. Plastic would be lighter and cheaper and would last a similar amount of time, but it would never catch tree lights the way glass does. The difference is visible immediately.

Is the London Double Decker Bus ornament too heavy for tree branches?

The ornament measures 3.27 inches long, 1.34 inches wide, and 2.44 inches tall and hangs comfortably from any standard branch. Blown glass weighs more than plastic but less than solid ceramic, placing it in the range where branches hold without strain. Nathan rode the actual bus for hours without the structure complaining. Your branch will manage a few ounces of painted glass.

How should I store the London Double Decker Bus ornament?

Wrap it in tissue and place it in a rigid ornament compartment. Store the box in a dry, temperature-stable location away from direct sunlight, which can fade painted surfaces over decades. The route signage and windows are the finest detail on the piece, so extra padding around the sides protects the brushwork during off-season storage. Nathan archives his transit maps the same way.

Where can I see your full travel and landmark ornament collection?

The full roster is in the Travel Christmas Ornaments collection, where every piece represents a landmark or vehicle that people carry with them long after the trip ends. The London Double Decker Bus fits the collection because it has always been both transit and destination. Buses, vans, airplanes, lighthouses — all blown from glass and painted by hand.

Does the London Double Decker Bus ornament arrive gift boxed?

The London Double Decker Bus Ornament does not arrive in a gift box. It ships in protective packaging designed to deliver blown glass safely, which it does by absorbing the shocks that transit involves. If you are giving it as a gift, the wrapping is your responsibility and your creative decision. Nathan says the best arrivals are the ones you control from start to finish.
Powder Blue Aphrodite Dahlia ceramic wall flower styled with succulent and decor — France Collection — Chive Studio Toronto

A Promise Fresh Flowers Can't Keep

Fresh flowers make a promise they cannot keep. A Chive ceramic flower skips the wilting and arrives with the kind of presence that suggests someone spent real time choosing it, whether or not that is true. No water. No sunlight. No expiration date to plan around.

Explore All Ceramic Flowers