Holly branch felt

Green is hope, red is love - both together is the holly branch. From time immemorial, this color symbolism of green and red, also synonymous with life and blood, predestined the holly for Christian traditions: originally primarily for Palm Sunday, now also for the winter and Christmas season. The ancient Celts and Germanic tribes already revered the evergreen holly as a sacred plant and decorated their homes with holly branches, especially at the winter solstice, to protect themselves from any evil - such as ghosts, lightning and magic. Author J.K. Rowling possibly emulated this ancient belief by equipping Harry Potter with a wand made from the wood of holly: "Holly and phoenix feather ... Eleven inches. Handy and supple."

Well, you certainly won't need a magic wand to perfect your winter and Christmas decorations. A decorative element like this large, lushly designed holly branch made of pure New Zealand virgin wool will have a magical effect here, too. The hand-felted and thus durable branch is not only evergreen, but equally "ever-red": the leaves in rich dark green and the berries in two shades of red will not dry and shrivel, but will add festive splashes of color to your decorative arrangements year after year.

During her backpacking tour through Nepal, the Dane Gry Staunstrup got to know the astonishing openness and warmth of the country’s inhabitants, and their craftsmanship bedazzled her. She was able to observe in detail how adeptly and skilfully Nepalese women felted wool into a wide variety of objects. Staunstrup felt it was time to make something good out of the untapped potential, and an idea was born: to combine Nepalese handicrafts with Danish design. And the idea was immediately followed by action.

The company Gry & Sif started producing a variety of products made of wool felt in Nepal in 2000. The designs created by Gry Staunstrup are as remarkable as they are understated and, characteristic of Danish design, at the same time fresh and merry. Nepalese women turn them into products employing traditional handicrafts. Fair Trade certified by now, Gry & Sif stands for fair wages and working conditions, environmentally conscious production and transparency. The company exclusively sources pure new wool from New Zealand sheep for the felting; each of the resulting products is handmade and unique.

This product is an example of genuine handicraft; therefore, minor deviations in size and colour may occur.