New year, old memories

Hi again! A new year has begun but I'm showing you some pictures of my Christmas doings. This ice skating outfit was a gift for my sister's Unicef doll in Germany. One of my newest dolls is just acting as a model.

When I was just learning to stay upright on my hockey (!) skates, my big sister's skills were on a totally different level. She had figure skating style skates, and our mother made her a grey felt skirt with white pompom trimming and knitted her a red jumper and a matching beanie with an opening for her ponytail at the top. She (and her doll) has dark hair which looks so much better with red than this amateur model's red and orange.

I can't remember what my sister was wearing under the skirt but could imagine red damasks as they were called back then when leggings or even pantyhoses were not yet invented. I never could skate properly and never got to wear this loveliness even after she had grown out of it. I liked skiing better, and I had a beautiful yellow and white jumper.

A year ago a new crafting fashion swept over Finland, and this year I could not resist the idea of making a little door for Santa's little tonttu elf.

I thought the children would laugh at my idea, but to my big surprise our daughter was excited to see it and took a photo to show her friends that the doors and the tontut do exist. This was a kit from a hobby shop, I just painted it with my half dried out crafting paints. The wreath is crocheted on a seal ring from a juice jar.

December was a busy knitting month. Bright red stripes to cheer up basic men's socks.

I hardly ever knit patterns with one yarn going behind the stitches, but in this one the loops are only one stitch long. This lot has been knitted after Christmas, when so many films were on TV.

One of my favorite combinations, pale pink with grey.

The remaining grey was enough to make basic stripes for this pair.

I'm not one of those people who make new year's resolutions and keep them or not, but I have started a project in my so called sewing room. I'm trying to make it more organized and while doing so, trying to let go of many of the things I really don't need/like/use any more. Nothing drastic, just something I could have done years ago. Today I tried to get something organized again, and after a while I found myself at the sewing machine busily working on a project I had intended to finish for Christmas. Maybe I ought to go back and take the next step in that project. It will also help to get some order there!

Busy December

December started with Santa's arrival to Järvenpää, as usual in a sleigh on wheels, pulled by his faithfull Finnhorse Uuras. Unfortunately my photo didn't catch the whole horse.

  Here is a portrait of him from an earlier visit when we had some snow too in early December:

Santa greeted us, his little tonttu elves were not looking very happy in the cold wind.

The parade included several sport clubs and such, but they were not carrying any signs with their names so we had to guess who they were.

This group at least was obviously dog friends

or maybe sheep farmers? Or are those dogs with reindeer antlers?

I have been making little gifts

in red and white

and socks in many sizes

some so dark I could hardly see what I was knitting.

Other gifts were mailed before I remembered to take photos, and some will not be shown before Christmas for obvious reasons.

We started feeding the birds again in October after a long Summer break. Surprisingly, the bullfinches come in biggest numbers, 6 to 15 at a time, but there are great tits, blue tits, coal tits, willow tits and even long tailed tits (who are not really tits any more but have their own group name) regularly coming to enjoy their sunflower seeds. Today we saw a tree creeper again, jays (Eurasian Jay) come often just like magpies. Sometimes the blackbird (Turdus merula) visits, they may stay here fort he Winter. We have just a little snow now, enough to make the world seem less black.

Christmas Market

On Thursday we visited our dear daughter Kaija in Central Finland. This time the Craft Museum had a miniature Christmas Market in their window. Kaija took these photos as I didn't have my camera with me. Click to enlarge!

The Santa on the left is guarding the Salvation Army  collection pot, and the other one is there to meet the children and hear their wishes. The real Santa comes on Christmas Eve, preferably with his sleigh pulled by a reindeer or two along the snow. Cars and lorries are alternative means of transport when there is no snow. Santa doesn't climb to any roofs here because a) our chimneys are too tight for anyone, b) they are shut by two draught preventing shutters when there is no fire in the fireplace, and c) Santa leaves the gifts behind the door or under the tree while the family is having a meal in another room or still in the sauna or taking candles to the graves of their loved ones. He may meet families with young children, because the elves know when the family is at home and ready to meet Santa.

Guarding Elf

This little elf with a big beard found a place at the round little window. Christobel the Angel used to sit there, but she claimed it was too cold for her, and also uncomfortable for her long legs.

Welcome to Villa Cooper

Some of you have been waiting for this Christmas tour.

The big dining room. This building is on the list of the museum authorities so the lights are about as they were when this was a family home. For a Sunday treat I give you a second picture, the Tiffany glass work and the elves on the right above the fireplace:

Musical Elf

This old elf had just arrived when we came to watch the Christmas parade. Later he played his accordion and sang some traditional Christmas songs.

Marching Elves

Santa's little helpers in their red hats.

Christobel the elf girl

Christobel the elf girl has found a perfect place on the round window. Melanie sent her last year for me as a Christmas present, and her place was on top of our fireplace. The problem was that it was a bit too warm for her, and she is such a nosey little girl who wants to see and know everything. From her old place she could only see the back yard, and not even the bird feeder, so there really was not much to see. Here she sits next to our front door, and can see who is coming and who is going in the street, and she can see the sun rise and birds in the apple trees (if she turns her head just a little). Christobel can see the Finnish elves sneaking around behind windows and making notes of the behaviour of the children, and most important of all, she can see when Santa brings his gifts behind our door so we can go and take them in. Santa is so busy that he will not stop at houses where there are no small children, so we will not get a real visit from him.