Table setting and place names

Many years ago, my cousin asked me to write the place names for her wedding, I think there were about 150 guests but I could be wrong, there was a lot I know that.  I agreed of course and the next thing I knew many many stones were delivered to my door.  I still have mine and John's and they live on the front porch.


Our place name stones are hidden at the base
of the silver birch Nisse

This led me to think about Christmas place names this year and how could I put a Scandinavian spin on Emma's wedding place names and of course it was simple, I needed some Nisse*.  



Our Christmas place names

To make the Nisse I bought Fimo clay in red, white, black and pale orange. 

I created two types of Nisse with slight variations on each. One had legs and the other just a body. Some had large noses with a hat others also included a beard. And some just a hat with no face.  It was fun creating the little figures. And really rather quick.  Below is a rough guide to how I made them but I'm not the most artistic, I'm sure you could come up with much better versions than mine. Once all were made I placed them on lined baking trays and baked them in a cool oven at about 140 degrees Celsius for about half an hour. I left them a day and then super glued them onto the cleaned stones that I dug up from the garden. 

Nisse made from Fimo as
place names for the Christmas table

I also made some spare Nisse which I did not attach to stones but will dot around the house. In hindsight, I would have made a small hole through the Nisse hat and then I could have used them either as hanging ornaments or to decorate gifts with. I think that would have been superb. Next year... 

A room full of Nisse



Nisse with a body, beard, nose and hat

Frustratingly I have lost the photographs I took at each stage of the process, so apologies as my notes will have to suffice.  these Nisse are not hard...

To make the Nisse:

For the body with just legs:
Take a small ball of black Fimo and make into a sausage shape and then bend it in half, do not crack the Fimo so just give it a bend, so it will sit neatly under a hat.

For the body with no legs:
Take a small ball of black Fimo and make the body into a cylindrical shape. 


Nisse with legs and a hat



For the hats:
I took a small ball of red and began to shape it into a cone shape.  I place my thumb under the base of the cone where a head would sit and push my thumb up into the base to create a little indent, this seemed to give the hat a bit more of a better shape.  I then manipulated the hat to whatever fashion I fancied.

For the beard:
Take a tiny piece of white Fimo and make it into a flat rectangular shape, cut out a shallow V shape
Make the beard marks with the end of a toothpick

from the top of the rectangle, this would allow for the nose to be! Once you have gently placed it onto the Nisse body take a toothpick and scratch some beard marks onto it.

For the nose:
Using a small piece of the pale orange, shape into a ball and attach.

Using a combination of the above, you can create your own family of Nisse.  If I find my instructions photos I will edit and add them in, it is so annoying!

Once you have baked them for 30 minutes in a cool oven and they have cooled completely, I super glued them onto the stones and then used chalk markers to write names on.  For Emma's wedding, I used permanent white markers but for my place names, I have used washable markers, so they can be used again and again. 


Nisse both on stones and stand-alone

How will you set your table this year?




8 comments:

  1. Super cute idea, Selma! I love Nisse in all sizes and shapes (and materials). I did quite a bit with Fimo back in the day and it's lots of fun. But I never tried anything like these.

    For hanging some this year, why not superglue a loop of thread or fishing line to the back. Even better, whip out your wire cutters and snip the U shaped ends off a paper clip, then glue that on the back of a Nisse. Then you can use thread or whatever to hang them up. I like using dental floss for things like this (or for stitching anything where you don't want the thread to break (like buttons onto a coat). It's great!

    So thanks for another super project. I'm loving all your Christmas posts . . .

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    1. Great idea about hanging, especially like the tip with the paper clips, thanks Linne

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  2. They are adorable and such a great idea.

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  3. They are full of character, perhaps each person has their own appropriate Nisse.x

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    1. Now there's a good thought Karen, as I scurry off to think and check...

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  4. Oh Selma! These are adorable. I must hook or craft some - they are super cute. I have been slow to catch up with your blog this week as I am deep in nativity film editing. It’s beginning to feel a lot like Christmas!

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  5. Oh Selma! These are adorable. I must hook or craft some - they are super cute. I have been slow to catch up with your blog this week as I am deep in nativity film editing. It’s beginning to feel a lot like Christmas!

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