There are bound to be more than
a few of these rainy/snowy/sleeting/icy days this season (or for you Aussies,
high heat index days!), when you’ve had to cancel plans and are stuck indoors.
Take advantage of the unplanned day off, by decorating your home with a few
Baltic-inspired crafts; it’ll lift your spirits, keep the kids from going stir
crazy, and leave you in a festive mood instead of a grumpy funk.
Sniega
māte, sniega māte,
Purin'
savus spilveniņus,
Lai
nāk sniegi virs zemites,
Ka
bāliņi mežā brauc.
One of the simplest crafts is
cutting snowflakes to place in the windows or to hang in the Christmas tree. The
boys like cutting randomly, then unfolding to see what surprise they’ve
created. I enjoy taking a more deliberate approach – you’ll find dozens of
designs to help you create your snowy masterpiece here. Or skip the paper in
lieu of feathers, for these whimsical snowballs that won’t melt the whole month.
The auseklis symbol is found throughout Latvian culture, and symbolizes
the victory of light over darkness; it is a symbol of hope. These days you’ll find ausekļi everywhere, from
clothing to home goods – and you definitely need some to adorn your home this
Christmas. One way is to make German stars, also known as Moravian or Froebel stars;
follow this link for a tutorial. If you need something a little easier, try
this one – made from toilet paper rolls.
Mēnesitis
nakti brauca,
Zvaigžņu
deķis mugurā;
Rīta
zvaigzne, vakaraja,
Tie
Mēneša kumeliņi.
My boys like collecting sticks. We’ve made a variety of crafts with them,
including stick Christmas trees and star ornaments. There is also no shortage of paper star crafts, some requiring more in terms
of materials/preparation while others can be made spur of the moment – like these
krokotak.com paper Christmas stars.
Puzuri are another fun craft with
deep Baltic roots. Use whatever you have on hand: natural straw, plastic
straws, pasta, paper tubes… You can find our puzuris post (one of the top 24 Days of a Baltic Christmas posts!) here: PUZURIS - an enchanting little decoration.
Priede,
priede, egle, egle,
Sen
tu mani kaitināji:
Vaj
bij ziema, vaj vasara,
Zaļi
svārki mugurā.
The storybook image of Baltic
forests covered in snow... Although the pines that grow in the US are
different, we still love making pine cone crafts, such as little elves, wreaths
and birdfeeders. When the boys were younger I would set them down with pinecones and paint, and
then string their creations up as ornaments to give as presents.
We Balts have strong ties to
the natural world, and this is easily reflected in our holiday decorations. We
bring the outdoors in, with Christmas trees and Advent wreaths, garlands and
winter berries. Our ornaments are made of straw and pinecones, wood and acorns. Whether it is drying orange slices or freezing ice mandalas, we blend the old with the new, the outdoor with the
indoor.
May you find holiday cheer
wherever you may be, and please join us tomorrow as writer Ērika Veidis reflects on a Latvian Christmas...
pretty
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