21st December 1997

Creative Christmas

By Chamintha Thilakarathna

Christmas is the season of sharing and caring, but that is not all. Today it is also the season of creativity, where creative ideas flourish and imagination takes wing. From houses to hotels, from streets to shop windows, the decorations are often eye catching. What's more they often come from people who are extraordinarily gifted.

In many of the decorations what was most prominent was that although the Christmas celebration is largely coloured with Western trappings, these people have been able to give them a touch of Sri Lankan culture and art with the use of local material.

At 'Artistique,' a small shop on the Galle road at Kollupitiya, the shop window is pretty and inviting. Mother and daughter, Kem and Maeve Martenstyn, the people behind the decorations, have been making beautiful things ever since they can remember.

"We've had several shops for some years now but even before that we have been doing various creations for our own satisfaction" they said. Making use of dry leaves and other natural items like flowers, pine cones, twigs, etc, they have made beautiful Christmas flowers to decorate their shop window.

Kem and Maeve said that they started to make the decor items as a hobby and never as a profession. "We enjoy doing it and we thought unlike a Christmas tree, or a snow man, flowers are much more beautiful and seasonal. Even when it comes to wrapping gifts we always try to move away from the accepted method and do our own thing" they said.

Charminstar Pereira, the number one tennis champion in the mid eighties, always wanted to be a veterinary surgeon, but her destiny carried her elsewhere. Now, the mother of the national tennis champion, Shalini, Charminstar enjoys making Christmas decorations.

"Living in Nuwara Eliya and in close contact with the tea estates there are a lot of materials to let your imagination run through. At the time when I was working at Windsor hotel , they asked me to do their Christmas decor and since then I have been doing Christmas decorations for people who are interested," she said.

Using twigs and creepers, Charminstar, is the creator of the decorations that one admires at Lanka Oberoi, Taj Samudra, and a few shops as well. Her creations vary from Christmas trees, to lanterns, to reindeer made out of twigs.

Starting as a pastime, today she decorates for a living. "I love doing it and all my creations are unique. The Christmas tree I did for Taj Samudra is my favourite this year" she said. The local material she has made use of has been given colour and beauty with the touch of ribbons and other accessories.

Marlene Tissera who is also from Nuwara Eliya said that in her case, she started making decorations only after she got married and came to live in the hills. The mother of three who are now living abroad this has become her main pastime.

The most interesting creation of hers which grabbed our eye were the decorations that she has done for 'Odel'. The white Christmas tree that stood out with its red, gold and green decoration and the Santa's House with Mrs.Santa Claus were not to be seen in any other shop in Colombo.

The popular clothes shop at Duplication road, 'Etam' also displayed a beautiful golden Christmas tree embellished with big red ribbons. This was a joint effort by Ms.Maryclare Dambawinne and Ms.Roshan Verlinden, who also started decorating as a hobby but later on decided to do it at a commercial level.

"We are both housewives and we like many others love to decorate our houses for Christmas. When we put our ideas together we think to our selves 'my how lovely it looks' and after sometime, we decided why not do it for others. So now we decorate other people's shops and houses" they said.

"Thimble' also at Duplication road had a shop window which was out of the ordinary. Why do I say that? Has anyone seen a cloth Christmas tree? At Thimble one would definitely be able to. Their shop window displays a tall peach coloured Christmas tree with a touch of gold. Making use of a huge pot to stand it on, they have used a structure inside to drape the material and the view at night is almost reminiscent of the angels that appeared by the side of the manger on Christmas eve.

Indira Tibblin the owner and the creator of the tree said, "My children and I got together and did it. The idea was to bring out a different kind of a tree. One must see it in the night. We have fixed a light at the bottom so that the tree glows and the peach and the gold looks simply lovely in the dark" she said. She too is a busy mother who engages herself in interior decor as a hobby.

In the case of Monica Mac, although she does not decorate shops, it is right to say that her creative side comes out with the dawning of Christmas. "Closer to Christmas I start making various decorations, bon bons, cakes, coconut and milk wines, candle stands and other decorations," Ms.Mac said. The mother of two boys and a daughter, she after getting married nine years ago, began to do it as a pastime during the festive season. She sells her products and also undertakes orders.

Dividing their time between children, household chores, and at the same time being creative and skilful is not easy but all these women seem to have accomplished it with great results. There may be several like them- hidden talents whose artistry we all enjoy.

One wish for Christmas

With all the excitement going on in the city, the joy, the shopping, the merrymaking, the orphans of the Sri Lankadhara Home at Wellawatte haven't got much to celebrate. While a few of the luckier children have gone home for the holidays with a guardian, the others remain behind the four walls of the Home.

They have no idea about the significance of Christmas. Santa has never visited them before. Letters have never been posted to him either. For them, their next meal is a blessing.

I asked these children to tell me want they would most wish for this season. The response was incredible. They kept scribbling little notes and scrambling to get my attention. One wanted her father to come for her. Another wanted to see her brother who has being separated from her and sent away to a Boy's Home.

Another wanted to go home with me.

I turned away from them to hide my tears. I took their notes instead. Seven-year-old Rusika Lakmali wants a bag to carry her school books in. Chamila Sanjeevani wants a Sinhala/English Dictionary to help her in her studies. Aruni Walpita, nine-years old wants a toy while Pathmini Rajapaksha wants a Mathematical Instrument Box for her new term.

The requests go on and on. We at the Sunday Times have pledged to help these little children have a little happiness this year.

Please donate your old school bags for the love of these children. If you want to give away any used toys, please think of these children at the Sri Lankadhara Home at 95, W.A de Silva Mawatha, Colombo 6..

- M.W

Continue to Mirror Magazine page 3 * Earmuffs and The New Musical Express * Long and Lovely * Think pink

Return to Mirror Magazine contents