Dala Horse Love

My husband is Swedish and when I married him, I was introduced to many Swedish things.  Yes, I've tried lutefisk (not awful if covered in cream sauce), and Bond-ost and Glogg -- both of which I plan on having at my mother-in-law's this holiday season.  But my favorite Swedish thing is the Dala horse. 

On our most recent trip to The Gift Box, Pete got me this wonderful orange Dala horse dish which I am loving, but I still don't have an actual Dala horse of my own.  We do have quite a collection though:

Yes, there are two bulls down on the far end -- I believe the different animals represent different regions of Sweden and perhaps my husband's family comes from the region represented by the bull (but he can correct me here).  The black horse is a very special gift -- an antique given to Maddie by her Farfar before he passed away.

And while we are on the subject of Swedish things...

Here's our Swedish Christmas tree.

Comments

[Carole]

We are Swedish too and I have a small collection of Dala horses. Mine are all orange but I've always loved the black ones.

[Rowena PHilbeck]

Very nice. Your Swedish horses are really cool! Hope you and your family have a Wonderful Holiday Season.

Rowena

[Carla]

I can't believe you were at the Gift Box I live about 3 blocks away!

[Pete]

My mom's family is from Dalsland (not Dalarna, where the Dala horse is from) where reportedly the regional animal is the bull. On their first visit to the Swedish relatives in Dalsland, my mom brought back a bull (one of the two we now have, I think) without realizing that my sisters and I would want ones of our own. She hurriedly contacted one of her Swedish cousins, who shipped her three more bulls in time for Christmas that year.

As for the Swedish tree, there are probably also a couple of ornaments on the floor, where Spike has been batting them around in a rare moment of playfulness.

[Dee]

I see those beautiful horses all over up here - my favorite is a red one on the side of a historic-looking home. Your collection is pretty!