St. Lucia Bringer of Light Paper Doll

St. Lucia Day and a Paper Doll

Do you celebrate St. Lucia? I have always loved all things Scandinavian (and all things paper dolls too!). Probably because I have Scandinavian (specifically Swedish and Danish) blood flowing through my veins!  Jeff does too.
So this year I decided to honor our heritage and join with most of Scandinavia (and a lot of other places too) in celebration of St. Lucia Day!  This, the 13th day of December is when Christmas begins.  There is singing, worship, candlelight processions, and feasts.
Carl Larsson’s painting of Lucia, 1908
Young women sing the traditional St. Lucia song which describes how Lucia overcame darkness and found light. One girl is chosen each year to represent Lucia.

The Story of St. Lucia 

The story of St. Lucia has many variations.  My favorite is the version that tells of a young Christian girl who brought food and clothing to families in hiding for their beliefs.  This version tells that Lucy wore the crown of candles on her head to light her way so that her hands could be free to serve and help those in need.  Her light is a preparation for the light that came from the Star of Bethlehem and the birth of “The Light of the World”.

How We Celebrate St. Lucia Day

I wish you could smell our house right now.  I used this recipe and added a bit more sugar and juice from some oranges I had and some ground cloves and cinnamon (sorry just did everything to taste) to make my own version of St. Lucia’s crown.   Then topped them with Craisins and holly leaves…we happen to have a holly bush which is so fun!  If you want a more detailed recipe, this looks like a good one.  

My version of St. Lucia bread.  This symbolizes the headpiece St. Lucy wore.

 

 

Here are our mini-Lucia’s.  They wanted candles on their heads but we opted for candles on the bread. 🙂  I did look for some electric headpieces but they are not easy to find!  Update: I found some on Amazon!

 

 

Such a fun, dramatic gift to give!  Our friends and neighbors seemed to really enjoy our new tradition. 🙂

UPDATE – We found some great candle headbands (see below) HERE

St. Lucia Doll – Free Download

 I also thought it would be fun to celebrate with a St. Lucia doll.  So I thought I’d share her with all of you!  You can access your doll in our Resource Library.  If you don’t have a password yet, you can sign up below. You’ll also have instant access to a bunch of other great resources I have for you there!

If you’d like to see all the dolls I have available in my shop, click HERE.

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Do you celebrate St. Lucia’s Day?  Have you adopted traditions from other parts of the world?  What traditions have you kept from your ancestors?

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9 Comments

  1. I love this tradition! I think we’ll have to start this one next year. Your girls seemed to enjoy themselves and they looked adorable in their outfits.
    I’ll have to keep an eye out for crowns and candles through out the year! Thanks!

    Reply

  3. Thank you so much for the beautiful paper doll. I just printed her, and my little girl cannot wait to play with her. I am part Swedish and this is a lovely way to begin teaching my girl about Lucia. Merry Christmas!

    Reply

  4. If you are still looking for an electric St. Lucia headpiece, check out the American Dolls site. We bought one there 15-20 years ago, & it is still working well. It just needs new batteries every couple of years. – Marivene

    Reply

  5. I went to the American Girls Doll site to look for the St Lucia headpiece. It was part of the Kristen collection, but that doll has been archived & is no longer available. You might be able to find the crown on eBay or etsy. -Marivene

    Reply

  6. Thanks Marivene! I looked on Amazon but didn’t want to pay that price. They also had them online but shipping from Sweden and I didn’t see them in time. I’m thinking I may just make some for next year…we’ll see! 🙂

    Reply

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