A big thanks to Cost Plus World Market for partnering with me on this post. As always, all content and opinions are 100% my own.
Every year around this time, I think of my Swedish grandmother more often. Her favorite thing in the world was having family visit her, so she could play hostess and cook a massive feast.
At Thanksgiving and Christmas, her house would come to life with pies baking and her crooning at her upright piano. I miss that sound so much. So every Christmas, as my little way of remembering her and as a way of paying tribute to my cousins back in Sweden, I put a St. Lucia inspired crown of candles on our dining room table.
In Sweden, St. Lucia Day (or St. Lucy’s Day) is a big event. It is a feast day to celebrate the festival of light and the arrival of the Light of Christ within the Advent season.
In many towns throughout Sweden, a girl is chosen to dress as St. Lucia in a white dress, red sash and a wreath of candles on her head as other children carry rolls and cookies in procession while singing in the darkness of the Winter Solstice.
As my own little celebration, I put together a Swedish Christmas sweets table along with some of my best tips on the World Market Blog today. You can see the full post here.
Sometimes it’s the little traditions that keep the ones we love even closer to our hearts during the holidays.
Do you have any cultural traditions that you do this time of year? Or a way of remembering your loved ones who can no longer be here?
Brittany Wise says
November 16, 2016 at 7:34 amWhat a beautiful table! And congratulations on being on World Market’s blog. So exciting 🙂
Lauren says
December 7, 2016 at 2:45 pmThank you, Brittany!
Ardith says
November 16, 2016 at 5:23 pmOh, this is fantastic, Lauren. Kudos to you and World Market on this festive table. It reminds me of the year I went full throttle Scandinavian Christmas. From trees to ornaments and decor items, to tiny flags and flag banners from Sweden, Finland, and Norway, I really went to town.
Then I threw a BYOH (Bring Your Own Herring) Christmas party—with a buffet that included Jansson’s Temptation Potatoes, ham, Swedish meatballs, Akvavit, and an array of Scandinavian cookies that my sister baked.
Since many people invited did not know each other, my sister and I decided to mix it up by making up name tags of Viking mythology characters. As guests arrived and selected a name, they could look it up in the mythology book and find out about their relationship to other characters. It was a great ice breaker, since everyone had the chance to ask about each others’ character names and learn about the mythology in the process. The other ice breaker was the decidedly non-Scandinavian sangria that I had asked a friend to make. Poor guy ended up being very busy making up new batches of the beloved beverage throughout the evening.
Overall, a very festive time was had by all. Thank you for reminding me of one of the best Christmases I’ve ever had. Cheers, Ardith
Kristie says
November 22, 2016 at 12:53 amThat sounds lovely!!!!
Ardith says
December 2, 2016 at 9:31 amThank you, Kristie and Happy Holidays! Cheers, Ardith
Lauren says
December 7, 2016 at 2:43 pmOh my goodness, Ardith. I just love you and your infectiously positive spirit. Your comments always make me smile. That sounds like soooo much fun!
Nancy says
November 16, 2016 at 7:10 pmI love tradition and you did this beautifully. I had two very Southern grandmothers so you can imagine that most of our traditions centered around food! Ha!
Lauren says
December 7, 2016 at 2:42 pmYES! Bring on the Southern nom noms. Haha! Thanks, Nancy!
Debbi says
November 18, 2016 at 10:27 amGorgeous! Is that a rosemary wreath on the table? Where did you get it….or knowing you, you probably made it!
Lauren says
December 7, 2016 at 2:37 pmThanks, Debbi! It’s a live eucalyptus and olive wreath from World Market. I WISH I were skilled enough to make that. 😉
Mary says
November 18, 2016 at 7:56 pmLovely table. My sisters and I try to make a huge batch of Lefsa during the holidays. Really enjoy your projects. Thank You
Lauren says
December 7, 2016 at 2:33 pmThanks, Mary!
Liz says
November 21, 2016 at 8:48 pmSo pretty! I am in the middle of a series I’m posting about renovating my Swedish friend’s condo. She has some lovely Swedish items from her mother displayed.
Lauren says
December 7, 2016 at 2:07 pmOoh that would be so fun!
Kristie says
November 22, 2016 at 12:52 amI’ve always loved that Swedish tradition! Makes me wish we had some Swedish!!!
Lauren says
December 7, 2016 at 2:04 pmYou can always pretend you’re Swedish, right? 😉
Samantha says
November 29, 2016 at 11:09 amSo beautiful! I love that you do this to remember your Grandmother! So special!
Lauren says
December 7, 2016 at 1:44 pmThank you, Samantha! It’s my favorite little tradition to have her with us. 🙂