Handmade Nativity

The other day I was reading through Karen's blog, Little Acorns, and I have to say how much I ADORE it!  It's so natural and I'm starting to realize that I want to replace my favorite Monte teacher blogger that I could so stalk with Karen.  (Yes...she feels very safe :) )

**I just went to double check the addy link was correct and dude...you HAVE to check out her felted dragon.  I call DIBS! :) ** (This was written up a few days ago but my laptops broke and I'm using Ben's so look through for the dragon and the felted leaf girl.  They're TOOOO cute!...)

Well, anyways, the other night she'd made a nativity set outta the wooden people.  I have tons of the wooden people 'cause the warehouse that sells them is just a 20 minute drive away and boy do I get in trouble over there.  I loved what she had did and decided that Sunshine needed a colorful set too.  We have a set hand carved out of olive wood from Israel and it's beautiful but a bit limiting as it has a few animals and Mary, Joseph and Jesus but no one else.  So, I grabbed my paints and my little wooden figures and started painting. 

**Inserting Ranting and Raving aka personal opinion**

One thing that drives me up a wall is how so many (nearly all) nativity sets portray a white Holy family....not even a 'just got back from Cabo' white family but the 'get yourself to the Mystic tanning booth and get some color on those legs you're blinding people' white family.  Folks....Jesus was Jewish....and he was probably the Jewish that is more deep Brazilian tan than a touch of color of my Jewish American friends.  Bluntly...Jesus WASN'T white!  Stop making him WHITE!  Seriously white Jesus is a pet peeve of mine.  It's like saying Martin Luther King Jr. was white and Abraham Lincoln was black.  I just find it disrespectful to ignore a persons ethnicity.  Anyways, I think I'm the only white girl in Ohio that doesn't have a nativity of white Jesus.  (Although I'd do a white Jesus if there was an Asian, Latin, Indian, etc. Jesus to go along with it.). 

And, I'm back from my rant. 

So, Karen made her nativity to look realistic.  And, she did a beautiful job.  It got me to thinking...I should make my own too so Sunshine can play and we could really reenact the Christmas Story. 

With paints in hand I created this;

An Angel all in silver and gold.  She's some white highlights in her curls and a halo of gold...

Mary with her purple scarf to keep her hair covered as she's more than a fist full...

Joseph with his thick curls (I blobbed the paint, inspired by Sunshine's painting of some tables, on him and the shepards to give them some curls.  I did it to the angel too although the black and silver haired folk didn't show too well unless pics were taken at an angle.)...

Baby Jesus in his little muslin wraps

He and Mary and baby Jesus all three shared the same skin tone as I thought they all came from the same village.  I think I might be wrong about that now...but they're painted now.

The three shepards all have different skin tones, hair colors and clothes as I envision the angel appearing to the 'corners' of the area to share the good news rather than just one family/tribe/group of men. 

I also added a little drummer boy.  I know he's not a part of the nativity but I think he's a beautiful example of giving with what we have and it being perfect.  I think that is something that applies to all of us no matter our beliefs giving with our hearts is much more important than a big expensive gift.  And so the little drummer boy is there too.  He has a wee little drum that sits in front of him but I didn't get a pic of it.

Then there are the wise men.  At Karen's blog she wrote about an Asian fellow she'd made and it kinda shocked me at my limited thinking.  I had NEVER considered anyone coming past the Mediterranean area.  I always envisioned someone from Africa, someone from maybe Greece and someone from Persia but...I'd never thought as far east as the Orient.  My wise men are from Africa, India and China.  I made each to look as identifiable by his country of origin as I could and still be able to paint a simple wooden figure. 

African King, Indian Maharajah, and Chinese Emperor

My Indian Maharajah wears an 'embroidered' in gold kurta of deep blue and a turban with gold and black.  He also shows he is not to looked upon sexually with his bindi of deep red.  He also wears a goatee.  I don't know what a goatee is called in India but I've seen lots of our married Indian men friends with goatees...so he has a goatee.

My African King wears a purple dashiki with gold embroidery, a purple robe with edging in orange and gold on a cream background and an orange with gold 'embroidery' kufi hat.  He has no facial hair because I've never seen any image of African royalty with facial hair and I know no one who is African royalty so he's clean shaven.

My Chinese Emperor wears a red zhaoshan with a golden dragon edged in black to represent vigor and wisdom.  Under his long robe is his Yi or top and his Ku or pants.  I did not research anything to make it true to the time as I wanted the kids and especially Sunshine to recognize the different peoples.  ( And if I remember right...the outfit I've chosen is basically the equivalent of a coat with tails over jeans and tshirt...oops :)~ ...so don't quote me! )  He is also sporting a fu manchu moustache.  I just know that all the 'emperor' pics I've ever seen is of a guy with a little hat and a fu manchu.  I actually was also going to put a wee hat on him but I worried about Sunshine popping it off as it was so tiny and I didn't think the wood glue would really hold on for her play.

I also made a stable and manger from wood glue and sticks I sent the kids out to get for me.  (Hey...it's cold and they have snow suits!)  I think it looks really neat and we'll be able to use it the rest of the year either on the nature table or in their play.  Not bad for the cost of a few glue sticks!  I don't have a pic of it though...sorry!

I love the nativity set I painted.  I feel it represents our beliefs and I actually saw Ben moving them around on the nature table so they appeal to the young and young at heart. :)  

Sitting on the window sill above the nature table.


I'm TRYING to put an album link so you can see pics of the backs/more detail.  Hopefully, you'll see it on the sides.  If not...anyone have a tut?

UPDATE:  I figured out how to upload to both flickr and photobucket! Click here to see the back details.

Honey