The delightful holiday season is in full swing here in Minnesota.
Twinkling lights outline homes, there are shiny angels and festive wreaths on doors, as you pass homes you catch a glimpse of the festive atmosphere with families sitting cosy near fireplaces and the bright christmas trees.
Weekends leading to Christmas are filled with holiday markets and events.
We decided to visit Winter Wonderland: A Nordic Christmas at American Swedish Institute and the
Julmarnad last weekend.
Minnesota has a large Scandinavian population and I have always admired their design style characterised by simplicity, minimalism and functionality.
It was a bright sunny day with a thin blanket of snow.
The exterior of American Swedish Institute.
A snowflake welcome:-)
The Institute was bustling with festive fervour as people walked around trying to pick up one of a kind Swedish holiday gifts.
The aroma of Glogg permeated the high hallway. With the snowflake sticker stuck firmly to our jackets we made our way into rooms filled with wonderful handcrafted and unique gift items.
Loved the simplicity of the tree.
With Christmas music filling the building we wandered into rooms of the Turnblad Mansion with winter light filtering in through stain glass paintings and lace curtains.
You bet we were entering the Winter Wonderland!
During the holiday season the rooms of the Turnblad Mansion are decorated in the different styles of Scandinavian countries.
I was completely distracted by these massive chandeliers and had to click them before concentrating on other elements in the rooms;-)
A bright yellow and black pattern table setting from Finland.
Vibrant red and white combination with elements of nature from Denmark.
Loads of glass and black elements in Swedish table-setting.
A traditional Norwegian Christmas table-setting.
To experience the traditions of the Scandinavian countries all in one place in Minnesota was a very enriching and lovely experience. A lovely holiday tradition.
Hope you liked A Nordic Christmas in Minnesota:-)
Twinkling lights outline homes, there are shiny angels and festive wreaths on doors, as you pass homes you catch a glimpse of the festive atmosphere with families sitting cosy near fireplaces and the bright christmas trees.
Weekends leading to Christmas are filled with holiday markets and events.
We decided to visit Winter Wonderland: A Nordic Christmas at American Swedish Institute and the
Julmarnad last weekend.
Minnesota has a large Scandinavian population and I have always admired their design style characterised by simplicity, minimalism and functionality.
It was a bright sunny day with a thin blanket of snow.
The exterior of American Swedish Institute.
The Institute was bustling with festive fervour as people walked around trying to pick up one of a kind Swedish holiday gifts.
The aroma of Glogg permeated the high hallway. With the snowflake sticker stuck firmly to our jackets we made our way into rooms filled with wonderful handcrafted and unique gift items.
With Christmas music filling the building we wandered into rooms of the Turnblad Mansion with winter light filtering in through stain glass paintings and lace curtains.
You bet we were entering the Winter Wonderland!
I was completely distracted by these massive chandeliers and had to click them before concentrating on other elements in the rooms;-)
Each room had a table which displayed a holiday table setting depicting each of the Scandinavian countries and their quintessential style.
To experience the traditions of the Scandinavian countries all in one place in Minnesota was a very enriching and lovely experience. A lovely holiday tradition.
We came home with a Swedish Dala Horse and these miniature vintage mitten ornaments by Steller Handcrafted Goods.
Stay tuned another Christmas post coming up soon!
( Images by Arch and are copyrighted. Please do not use without permission)
3 comments:
Enjoyed reading this post! Thanks for sharing! Happy Holidays to you and family! Pachhai
Another interesting read! The north american holiday culture is so infectious in itself and then you start peeling the layers and uncover gems like this - nordic christmas, what fun!
~deepa
http://aalayaminspiration.blogspot.com
Nordic countries are called like this not by an accident, this region really knows how to celebrate Christmas period properly - all decorations for table serving, big christmas trees, snowflakes ornament. Wonderful nordic Christmas!
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