Finnish folklore

In my younger and "more vulnerable" years my father used to tell me stories about gnomes and elves living in the forests. He SAW them and could well describe them too :-) So it is just logical that I now in turn want to give shape to these tiny beings in the Finnish forests :-) Our old folk tales have plenty of gnomes for different purposes: We have gnomes living with us everywhere; in our home, on the yard, in the stable with animals, in the sauna etc. We are surrounded by them.. They are nice characters most of the time, sometimes they play tricks on us, but never anything really nasty :-))
I sold plenty of elves in the Women's Christmas fair in Helsinki early December 2008 and it gave me courage to continue to make things with my hands... Not only elves, but also traditional witches for Easter, dolls for doll houses, and last but not least creepy creatures from the worst nightmares.. Just kidding.. These so called "dead dolls" are the funniest part of my creations really, some kind of black humour that I fancy to cultivate ... .-)