nativity collection

See, folks-if you leave a comment I'll respond! Go ahead, leave a comment and test me! This post is for my sister-in-law, who asked to see the nativity collection. It's small so far, but they (who are "they", anyway?!) say that anything more than three counts as a collection. Anne gave me this mini creche at Thanksgiving this year (thanks again!), bringing the total to four...okay. it's officially a collection now. I only have four because I am surprisingly picky about nativity sets. I see a lot of them when I am out on junkin' expeditions, but pass on most. It bugs me to no end when Mary, Joseph and baby have white European complexions and fancy, gilded clothes. These were real people. From the Middle East. Who were young and quite poor. If a nativity scene is to help us remember, shouldn't we be careful to remember the situation somewhat correctly? Oh, and unless it is for pre-school children to play with, I really detest those cartoony, precious moments type figurines, also. Well, you just never know when I am going to go off on a tangent, huh?!

In order to come home with me permanently, they need to meet certain criteria. I like them old and vintage, above all. Wooden is preferred, and hand-carved will send me over the top. The more rustic, the better!
This miniature beauty is from Poland and I had to shell out a whole .75 cents for it, and keep myself from jumping up and down while I paid it. Don't you just love the simple lines, and the tiny birds who've come to worship, too?

I especially like it when the faces are plain and uncarved. It leaves their expressions to the imagination. I used to have a little cardboard and glitter creche that was so ugly! But it had the vintage Woolworth's 15 cent sticker still on the back, and that made me fall in love with it. I imagined some sweet 1940's child, buying it for her Mama. I could just picture all the years it had been wrapped lovingly in tissue, tucked away with the decorations each January, until it ended up in that Goodwill store. I rescued it and we enjoyed it for about 10 years until it finally got wet and crushed in a move. Still miss it, obviously!

Thanks to a slow but steady accumulation from loved ones, my favorite Willow Tree nativity is now complete. It's my only "new" one, but so treasured! The way the artist carved emotion with just the lean of the head, the bend of the shoulders. Ah, perfect.

(and to answer your other question Anne, yes. Red is coming back to my kitchen. You were right, Mom-I couldn't stand it. I am planning a kitchen re-do right after Christmas. New paint, new curtains, and hopefully some beadboard will get involved. I'll post the progress on here as I go!)