Christmas 2011 and New Year 2012 Greetings!

The host of this blog asked me recently to share any photographs that I have of my Christmas. So here they are... I have nothing to sell, just some images to share... that might bring you pleasure.

I live in Lapland, Finland, although I am British. My decorations are a mix of both cultures, where wooden elves and straw decorations are more in keeping with the season and less is more.

The English side of me however, has twinkling tree lights on my indoor tree...something not on sale locally...and I purchase from the UK instead. :D

Outside we have snow of course and our outdoor Christmas tree with static green lights. Very calm.



With candle decor, created by a cone of snowballs with a candle in the middle.



A large wooden elf by our doorway



....and a metal cut out lantern hanging from the Pine tree.



A peeking elf by the front door.



Plus a wreath on the door.



We can get so much snow that the council tractor comes most days to clear it away. Today for instance we woke to a good foot of snow. These photo's of the tractor were taken on the 21st.





Indoors we have a traditional electrical candle set. This photo was taken from the outside and the reflections on the window made it look like a St.Lucia girl (a Dec 13th tradition in Finland and Sweden celebrating the return of light). She looks just like she is wearing the crown of light! You can also see an eery image of her smiling face! :D I love it! How magical!



Here it is from indoors...



These are in my kitchen. Traditional card cutouts of Tonttu's (Elves), log Tonttu's and straw Olkipukki goats. The Goats stem from distant tales of the God Thor riding across the Yule skies, his magical chariot being pulled by Goats called Tanngrisni "gap-tooth" and Tanngnost "tooth grinder". Over the centuries, it would seem that Thor became Santa... and Goats became Reindeer! However, Goats still feature strongly in Finnish and Swedish Christmas', by way of decorations and also on cards. Sometimes Santa is still seen with a Goat here!




Our Christmas table.



I have a number of decorations around the room...

A straw mobile, again with straw goats.



An old English Avon Nativity set.



An old singing Avon Snowman, again bought in England.



A reindeer fur covered Finnish Santa. Is this how he used to look, before he changed to wearing red and white?



Our Christmas tree indoors is a fake one, whereas the one outside is real. My eldest son wanted to decorate the tree this year and he loves red. I think he did a fine job!



Here are just some of the decorations on it....



A wooden elf figure.



I was given this heart as a present many years back by a Norwegian friend, one whom I have long lost contact with, (pre Facebook!) and every year, I place it at the core of the tree. :D



This year, I wrote each of our names on a bauble and the year with a gold felt pen. When Christmas is over we will all sign each others, as a reminder that we were all together for this Christmas and keep the bauble. Our sons now live away, as they are in education, so who knows what next year will bring, when they are already 19 and 21 years old? I hope we will be celebrating together again next Christmas though! :D



May I wish you all Season's Greetings.... Merry Christmas (Hyvää Joulua) and a Happy New Year (Onnellista Uutta Vuotta) from Sodankylä, Lapland in Finland.

Vintage ladies and their buttons

Looking through my collection of victorian cdv's etc i found these ladies in their victorian finery.
What a nightmare having to undo all those buttons!

Lancashire Treasure

Hi All,

thought this might be of interest to some of you.

Badge dug up in field is medieval treasure
Scrap of twisted silver found by metal detector in Lancashire will be part of British Museum's exhibition of reliquaries.

A scrap of twisted silver found a few weeks ago by a metal detector in Lancashire will take its place among masterpieces of medieval art at the British Museum, in an exhibition opening this week of the bejewelled shrines made to hold the relics of saints and martyrs.

The badge made of silver found by Paul King, a retired logistics expert, is a humble object to earn a place in an exhibition called Treasures of Heaven, but it is unique. It will sit among gold and silver reliquaries studded with gems the size of thumbnails – or the sockets from which they were wrenched by thieves – once owned by emperors, popes and princes.

The badge, the only one of its kind ever found in Britain, provides a link 500 years ago between this corner of rural Lancashire and the great pilgrimage sites of mainland Europe. It shows one of the companions of St Ursula, one of the most popular mystical legends of medieval Europe. She was said to be a British princess who sailed with 11,000 virgin companions to marry a pagan prince in Brittany, but diverted to go on a pilgrimage to Rome – and in some versions of the story, Jerusalem.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/culture/2011/jun/20/badge-dug-field-medieval-treasure

Grandma's fashion from various eras

Grandma

Recently i was looking through  some old family photos and i came across a lot of my Grandma (Dad's mum) Eleanor  who was born in Linlithgow, Scotland in 1905.

The photo below was probably taken in about 1915, Grandma is the girl on the front row nearest the window  incidently all the people in this photo are her siblings.

The next photo is of grandma (in the middle) and 2 of her sisters probably taken in the late 1920's?

This one of Grandma was taken in the late 1940's i think? with my Dad's 2 cousins.

The Pink Teapot

The Pink Teapot

Otley

Yorkshire

A couple of weeks ago i  visited a  delightful 1940's retro cafe in West Yorkshire i had a jacket potato filled with tuna and my other half had a bacon sandwich (Yorkshire bacon of course). While eating my meal i noticed the couple next to me eating an enormous homemade cream meringue topped with fresh raspberries. I thought to myself i shall have one of those after but i was good and resisted!

As its name suggests the owners like pink! pink polka dot tablecloths and aprons, pink fridge, pink teapots and lots of   posters and plaques giving the place a real 40's feel.

Leaving the shop we noticed this shop, cupcake shops seem to have sprung up all over the place don't they look yummie.

Maudi Darrell Edwardian Actress

Maudi Darrel was born in 1882 in London, her father was Hugh J Didcott an agent  remembered by Chance-Newton and Harry Randell in their books.

She married Scottish Laird Ian Bullough on the 24th March, 1909 but sadly died in 1910 after complications following an operation for an appendicitis.
The Edwardian actress starred as Victoria Siddons in The Gay Gordons, at the Aldwych Theatre, London, on 11 September 1907.  Darrell also played Victoria Siddons during the London run and again on the UK tour during 1908.  Maudi also starred in The Beauty of Bath, The things you never learn at school and The frolic of the breeze.

Under the Floorboards an interesting blog i came across

http://www.wallwork.me.uk/floorboards.html

The original floorboards of the cottages which, combined, now form our house were 8 1/2 inches wide but only 9/16" thick. The ravages of wear, woodworm and poor repairs over a century and a half left many gaps through which everyday items could be lost. Only the rich had carpets; these were certainly not houses for the rich


Later, the cottages became dilapidated. A section of the roof collapsed and dirt and rain got in. Some parts may have been used as storage for the farm. When the building was renovated as a single dwelling, the builders swept some of the accumulated debris into available gaps in the floor.

Whilst repairing floors and installing wiring, we have found many items which give a clue to the lives of past inhabitants. Here are some of the items we have found.
http://www.wallwork.me.uk/floorboards.html

What should this subject be called? "Floorboard archaeology"? "Subsolum archaeology"? ("subsolumology" doesn't sound quite right...)