Christmas

SCANDINAVIAN CHRISTMAS :: The Making of the Swedish Dala Horse

Carved wooden horses have been a part of Swedish culture since the 1600s. The distinct shape as we know it today was introduced in the 1700s, and the iconic paint pattern came along in the 1800s. Dala horses were even sometimes used as payment! But it wasn’t until 1939, when a Swedish architect created a huge Dala horse for the World’s Fair in New York, that the popularity of the dalahäst really took off.

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Oh, I know they aren’t a traditional Christmas decoration. But they’re traditionally Swedish, and just happen to be come in very Christmasy colors. So why not? There are no rules about how you can decorate for Christmas — make the season your own, and let the decor reflect your own personality, style and heritage.

Want to contribute to the 3rd Annual Scandinavian/Nordic Christmas Series? Click here to find out how!

Christmas

CHRISTMAS :: Interior Stockholm’s Fireside Christmas

Scandinavian Christmas as photographed by Interior Stockholm for Oaxacaborn
Sophie from the Swedish interior design and trends blog Interior Stockholm sent over these festive photographs she took (Homemade Stockholm did all the baking – saffron cake recipe here!). Sophie tells us, “This is how I spend my evening by the fire the day before Christmas Eve.”

Isn’t it cozy?

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Christmas

CHRISTMAS :: A Fun New Blog Discovered in the Blogosphere – Scandinavian Christmas

I just stumbled across a delightful gem of a blog called (no big surprises here) Scandinavian Christmas. According to the bio, it’s written by “A Swedish-Norwegian family who lives in the very north above the polar circle, and blogs about our favourite season.” It’s brand-new this year, so be sure to go back to the first post (October in the archives). I’m honestly surprised this blog isn’t more popular!

Scandinavian Christmas - new Christmas blog

(Click on each of the photos below to see the original post).

First Snow - Sweden - Scandinavian Christmas

Indiska Christmas items on Scandinavian Christmas blog

Swedish coffee and bread - Scandinavian Christmas

It’s still 14 days until Christmas, so there are sure to be more great posts from this blog over the next couple weeks. You can visit the site directly, grab the Scandinavian Christmas RSS feed to add to your readers, follow Scandinavian Christmas on Bloglovin, or follow AnnaLinda’s Pinterest boards!

[Update: I’m planning a special Scandinavian Christmas series in 2012.]