From Finland, With Love

I sniffled and snuffled all the way out to the mailbox today to find a wonderful surprise waiting for me! My sweet friend Anne in Finland sent me a "Happy Easter" package. It took almost a month to get here, so it didn't quite arrive by Easter, but that's okay by me. Look at all the lovely things she sent!

There are vintage buttons, a pincushion, a candle, some wonderful handmade ceramic buttons, a potholder, some chocolate candy, and a couple of adorable ornaments that deserve a close-up!



Aren't those cat face buttons the cutest thing ever??? This is a little Easter Witch:

Anne tells about the witch in her letter:

"When it is Good Friday night all the Easter witches take their brooms, coffeepans, and black cats and fly to the Blue hill to dance around the bonfire. This happens in Scandinavia, of course.

Usually in the Spring, little fairies return to Finland with migrant birds like finches, swallows and nightengales and they dance among all meadow flowers all the summer long."

Ann's English is beautiful, isn't it? Here's one of the little fairies now!

Is that charming, or what? I think if I lived in Finland, I'd like Easter and Spring a whole lot more. I like witches, black cats, coffeepans, and fairies quite a bit more than I like egg-laying rabbits, ham, and silly hats. Witches are waaaay cooler. Just sayin'.

Okay...now for one of the most wonderful things in the package:

This chicken was hand-sewn by one of Anne's students named Anna-Liisa, and she made me this pretty card, too. I love them so much. She worked hard on this (look at all those stitches!), and I am very proud to own it. Well...actually...Anne says that she made it as a cushion for my cat, Mr. Bigglesworth...so I guess I will share.

Thanks so much for this treasure Anna-Liisa. I wish I had two i's in my name like you do! Let's see how Mr. Bigglesworth likes his new cushion:

(Video here)

He loves it, Anna-Liisa! Luckily, I got it back before he loved it too much and put it in his regular sleeping spot for when he's feeling a little less frisky. I don't want him to tear any of those beautiful stitches you made.

Aloha and a belated Easter to my friends in Finland.

Stay tuned...I'm finishing up the binding on my quilt tonight! Quilt pictures are imminent...