Fauni Friends

These are money boxes - the creature represented is a troll, a nice one though, a Finnish troll called a Sumppi. She and her friend drawn on the small box were known as Tivvies in the UK, but the company which made them was called Fauni and based in Finland.

There is a whole forest of trolls who live happily together, singing, dancing, drinking coffee and making up poetry. I was UTTERLY charmed to find this out after having these boxes for years. I love cute and innocent, and the Fauni trolls are just that!

The first troll appeared in 1952, the creation of Helena Kuuskoski. Her daughter Minna has recently become an email-pal of mine, and she has been telling me about Fauni and its amazing heritage. Hopefully Faunis will return and be as popular as those who copied them, like the Teletubbies and Waybuloos.

We've started a Fauni Friends facebook group to that end! If you're on FB, do have a look for us.