10 Holiday Catalogues : A Few Free Calls Can Give You a Line on Anything From Angels to Pet Pizza

Do you dread holiday shopping--chasing specials, battling fellow shoppers, waiting in lines, scrounging for a parking space?

Well, there’s a time-honored alternative, one chosen by millions of Americans who would rather do their gift buying while lounging in their easy chairs. Of course, it’s mail order, which started out as the farmer’s friend more than a century ago.

Mail-order goods don’t have to be ho-hum. If you have the right catalogues, the merchandise may be unusual, exciting, perhaps bargain-priced, and the selection may be broader than that of retail shops you normally visit.

Perhaps the ultimate catalogues are those that feature nothing but catalogues and brochures. Names of firms publishing these often can be found in the classified ads at the backs of magazines. These companies can supply you with listings of catalogues that can be obtained either free or for a small fee. A few of the many catalogues available this way: gags and humorous gifts, grandfather clocks, low-cost house designs, Judaic stitchery, free samples, free books, cigars, collectibles.

Be advised that when you request any catalogue, your name may go onto a mailing list that may be sold or rented to other companies. To have your name removed from a mailing list, you must write to the sending company. If pornographic material is involved, there is a U.S. Postal Service form you can fill out. You can have any material returned to the sender by crossing out your address and writing “Refused” across the envelope.

Here’s a sampler of 10 interesting holiday catalogues, plucked from the thousands that are available. Many may be new to you because they are little--under 80 pages--and the issuing organizations or businesses may have relatively small mailing lists. In general, each specializes in a type of merchandise or at least emphasizes a particular kind of goods. (All hours are Pacific Standard Time.)

The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 255 Gracie Station, New York, N.Y. 10028. Credit card orders, (312) 673-6006, 24 hours a day. Order information, (718) 326-7050, 6 a.m. to 1:45 p.m., Monday through Friday.

Thumbing through this catalogue is like a stroll among the art treasures of civilization. The offerings include a torso of Aphrodite; a bronze head of a Roman youth; a pottery cup fashioned after an Etruscan vessel, circa 500 BC; a silver-plated ladle modeled after one from China’s T’ang dynasty (AD 618-906); chrysanthemum-print scarfs based on a woodblock by a 19th-Century Japanese artist; terra-cotta angels based on originals made in 18th-Century Naples; a head of the Virgin from Michelangelo’s “Pieta”; an elaborate letter opener and magnifying glass modeled on a 17th-Century German hunting knife.

Other items: Tiffany-stained glass windows with nature scenes; an elegant perfume bottle; a wide selection of cards, calendars, posters, prints, jewelry, needlework and books.

The San Francisco Music Box Co., Mail Order Department, P.O. Box 26433, San Francisco, Calif. 94126-6433. Order information, toll-free, (800) 426-1823, 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. Credit card orders, (800) 227-2190, 5 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday and 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays. “The Best Christmas Ever,” a catalogue of home and tree trimmings, is also available.

The range offered here will appeal to music box lovers of all ages. There are musical tree ornaments; a miniature cable car that plays “I Left My Heart in San Francisco”; “prairie lass” dolls that play “Thank Heaven for Little Girls”; musical picture frames, lockets and carrousels. For big plungers: a 19-Century-style metal-disc player at $2,495.

The young at heart might go for musical teddy bears, reindeer or Rocko, the cotton dinosaur.

Smith & Hawken catalogue for gardeners, 25 Corte Madera, Mill Valley, Calif. 94941. Telephone (415) 383-6292; credit card orders, (415) 383-4050; 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., weekdays; 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., weekends. Phone orders from California are sent via United Parcel Service the same day.

For the romantically inclined gardener on your list, a “courting swing” might be the right holiday gift. For the more practical-minded, there are garden tools, small equipment, seeds, bulbs, evergreens, vases, bowls, trays, dried flowers. Or perhaps Italianate terra-cotta pots or Victorian-style edging tiles.

The green-thumb reader will enjoy the books, and bird lovers will like the thatched birdhouse and shell birdbath.

Denise Silver of Smith & Hawken adds, “We are the largest supplier of (outdoor) teak furniture in the country.”

Another reason to like the Smith & Hawken catalogue is its beautiful photos of plant life.

U.S. Committee for UNICEF catalogue of cards, 1 Children’s Blvd., Ridgely, Md. 21685. Credit card orders and information, toll-free, (800) 553-1200, 24 hours a day. Customer service, (301) 634-1004, 5:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Here we have an impressive array of holiday and note cards to convey your greetings or perhaps to serve as gifts themselves.

International is the only word to describe this line of merchandise: Creators of the cards’ artworks represent many of the member countries of the United Nations.

Flavor ranges from the whimsical to the spiritual. Some cards bear reproductions of well-known paintings.

In addition to cards: illustrated ceramic mugs; storybooks; “We Are the Children,” a book documenting UNICEF’s 40-year effort to aid the world’s children; a book of lullabies; pop-up books; calendars; gift wraps; a wall chart to measure a child’s growth; puzzles.

Part of the profits to go UNICEF-assisted projects.

Nature’s Jewelry, 639 Massachusetts Ave., P. O. Box 9132, Cambridge, Mass. 02139-9132. Customer service, (617) 547-9443, 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday-Saturday; credit card orders, toll-free, (800) 358-7900, 6 a.m to 6 p.m. Monday-Friday; 6 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Saturday.

Nature dominates both this company’s name and its product line. Pendants and earrings are fashioned from many kinds of leaves.

The company says plant life and sea shells are made into jewelry by applying delicate layers of cooper and nickel, which are then topped with silver or 24-karat gold.

Among the materials used in the jewelry are mother-of-pearl and shells of the trochus, scallop, starfish, sea horse and New Zealand paua. Charms are made of pine cones, leaves or shells.

Diversions catalogue of books, video and audio, Dept. 189, One Hart St., P. O. Box 1834, Newark, N.J. 07101-1834; toll-free holiday line for credit card orders, (800) 772-9200, Ext. 189; inquiries and service, (201) 382-7960, 6 a.m to 2 p.m. Monday through Friday.

In addition to its extensive selection of contemporary books, recordings and videos, Diversions serves up a feast of radio nostalgia: the Shadow, Fibber McGee and Molly, the Lone Ranger, a broadcast of the Pearl Harbor attack, a Bing Crosby Christmas show, the Marx Brothers, Lum and Abner, Jack Benny, Will Rogers, the Great Gildersleeve and, for Christmas, a bit of Red and Green--Red Skelton and the Green Hornet.

The Radiobook Cassettes series includes “Treasure Island,” with Orson Welles; “The Wizard of Oz,” with Judy Garland; “Babbit” with Walter Huston and Mercedes McCambridge; “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty,” with Danny Kaye.

Among the vintage music are performances by the Andrew Sisters, Al Johnson, Fats Waller, Mae West and Ezio Pinza.

Videotapes feature movie musicals, documentaries, the Superman TV series, W. C. Fields, Abbott and Costello, “The Saint” TV shows and many movies of the ‘30s and ‘40s. Television shows of more recent vintage include “National Geographic” specials and Benny Hill comedies. There are also movie posters and language courses.

Austad’s golf catalogue, 4500 East 10th St., P.O. Box 1428; Sioux Falls, S. D. 57196. Phone (605) 336-3135; credit card orders, toll-free, 24 hours a day, (800) 843-6828; customer service, (800) 444-1234; 6 a.m.-3 p.m. Monday-Friday.

If you are a golfer, or if there’s one in your life, here’s a bonanza. Get in the swing with a couple of golfing teddy bears--chic Betty Player and dapper Beary Player; or a sweater of mink and lamb’s wool that’s just right for the links.

There’s a full range of clubs--for both children and adults--including one billed as “the most forgiving club you can buy.”

Balls come in various colors, including pink. For those players who are no strangers to driving into the water, there are floating golf balls. For night owls: a light stick that makes your ball glow.

Golfers can keep their club heads protected with covers resembling sheep dogs, poodles, even Garfield and Odie. Stay-at-home players will appreciate the 18-hole patio golf course game. After a sweaty round you can dry off with “towels for the slightly eccentric golfer,” complete with naughty sayings.

Toys to Grow On, P. O. Box 17; Long Beach, Calif. 90801; credit card orders, (213) 603-8890, 6 a.m. to midnight during the holiday season, seven days a week; customer service, (213) 603-8895, 7 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday-Friday.

Toys to Grow On specializes in well-built and safe toys designed to entertain and educate children ranging from infants to pre-adolescents. The firm’s toys were among those featured in Diane Keaton’s latest movie, “Baby Boom.”

Grandma’s Dress-up Trunk is filled with 13 costume pieces, including hat, eight separate pieces and accessories.

Among the many toys are movie monsters, trains, a collection of dinosaurs and “prehistoric puppet pals.” There’s also a T-shirt decorating kit, hair ornaments, hats, holiday stickers, kid-sized furniture and gum-ball machines.On the “Toy Times” page, there are tips on safety and no-cost play.

Pedigrees pet catalogue, Box 110, 15 Turner Drive, Spencerport, N.Y. 14559; credit card orders, (716) 352-1232, 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Friday.

For the four-legged friends and their owners on your list, Pedigrees supplies feline and canine fashions, clever little holiday hang-ups and toys for the most discriminating dogs and cats.

Personalized collars and leads, travel totes, tasty treats and grooming devices are among the items in this catalogue.

Other goods include an “umbrella lead,” that will keep Spot happy on those rainy-day walks; an electric warming pad for those nippy nights; a Hawaiian-print beach shirt for Rover’s romps at seaside; a roller ink stamp that puts paw prints on your holiday gift wrappings; a ruffled and beribboned jacket to protect Muffin from the amorous intentions of male dogs; a gourmet pet pizza for Fido’s feast, and a blinking Christmas collar studded with red bulbs (battery not included).

Also you’ll find some of the best books on dog and cat breeds.

The Craft Basket, Colchester, Conn. 06415. Credit card orders, (800) 243-9232, 5 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday and 5 a.m. to 9 a.m. Saturday. Orders shipped within 24 hours. Customer service, (203) 537-3451, 5 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Friday. Other catalogues to ask for are S & S Arts & Crafts and Worldwide Games.

The Craft Basket contains an unusual collection of creative stitchery projects for the whole family. Among them: stockings, Christmas tree skirts, a cross-stitched Christmas village, tree ornaments, holiday reindeer, Christmas pillows, a “ ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas” decorative screen, wall hangings, calendars, framed pictures and quilts.

In addition, there’s a selection of stitch-and-paint kits. Non-stitchery items include a doll-house kit, a good family project. For beginners, there are plenty of how-to books.

Pot.pour.ri, Dept. 140, 204 Worchester St., Wellesley, Mass. 02181. Credit card orders, toll-free, (800) 225-9848, 4 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Friday; 6 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday and Sunday; other customer calls, (617) 359-5440, 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. Overnight and second-day Federal Express Air Service available. Other Pot.pour.ri catalogues are Expressions, which features new lines of clothing and other items, and Stitchery, which includes embroidery, latchwork and other crafts.

Sue and Bill Knowles’s catalogue is filled with ideas for decorating and entertaining, and it is literally a potpourri of presents. You can buy sleigh-bell swags (wall decorations), wooden rocking horses, country kettles, Oriental-style rugs, even dresser sets. And that’s just for starters.

How about a newspaper published on the day you were born or on any other date from 1808 to 1987? (You can even choose from among a number of major papers.) Or a jukebox-shaped cookie jar? A hand-cast Great Dane sculpture? Or, if you’re no dog lover, a bigger-than-life bullfrog jar?