People weaving hearts together
A warm, hands-on encounter with Danish culture for companies, international teams, universities, embassies, organisations and communities in Copenhagen.
The woven paper heart is rooted in a cherished Danish Christmas tradition. When I share it with international guests, it is also a symbol of love, respect and good wishes throughout the year.
Planning an international event in Copenhagen at another time of year? Explore a paper heart experience for your group.
You do not have to be Danish to make a Danish Christmas heart
Some people grew up weaving Christmas hearts every December. Some vaguely remember how. Others have never seen one before.
That is part of what makes the experience so lovely.
No experience is needed for the Christmas formats below. We begin together. Beginners can make the small heart and enjoy the feeling of succeeding. Those who are ready for more can continue with the larger heart.
A little Danish tradition to share, wherever you come from
For international employees, families and communities, Christmas in Denmark can be full of traditions that everyone else seems to know already. The woven paper heart is one of those traditions — and its meaning travels beyond the Christmas season.
My busiest season with international visitors is actually summer. Some guests put a small personal note inside a heart and leave it on a pillow or around the home as a loving greeting.
I share the story behind the Danish Christmas heart and its connection with H.C. Andersen. Japanese guests have sometimes described the weaving to me as a kind of “Scandinavian origami” — a lovely personal comparison, rooted in their experience of the craft.
Small teams, large gatherings and everything in between
A paper heart experience for your group, beyond Christmas
Planning an international corporate event, a cultural gathering or a visit to Copenhagen with an international group? If you are organising for your own group or working as a DMC or event agency, I would be happy to explore your ideas with you.
Tell me your proposed date, venue or setting, approximate group size and what you hope your guests will take away from the experience. Together, we can explore whether a bespoke paper heart experience could fit your event.
Year-round enquiries are considered individually. Format, price, staffing, materials and availability would be discussed and agreed for your event. The Christmas formats and indicative prices below apply to those Christmas experiences only.
Explore a paper heart experience for your groupChoose the Christmas format that fits your gathering
From a personal shared Christmas experience for an agreed group to open heart weaving at a large Christmas event. The following formats, materials and indicative prices describe these Christmas experiences. For a bespoke enquiry at another time of year, explore the year-round enquiry above.
The personal Christmas Heart Experience
A structured experience for an agreed number of participants, with time for personal guidance.
We begin together with the small heart. I demonstrate the weaving, tell a little of the story and help everyone get started.
Participants then continue at their own pace. Some may make the small heart and stop there. Others may continue with the larger version.
For larger groups, I can bring additional helpers so everyone can still receive personal assistance when needed.
Minimum booking DKK 10,000. Final pricing depends on group size and the agreed experience.
The experience can continue at home
Each participant can receive a small brown recycled-paper bag containing:
Hearts that are not completed during the event can simply come home in the bag.
Beautiful materials. No scissors. No liquid glue.
We weave with pre-cut pieces in Ugly Duckli's special glossy paper produced in Denmark.
Everything is prepared in advance, so participants can spend their time weaving rather than measuring and cutting.
The finished paper hearts can be kept and brought out again Christmas after Christmas.
When the first heart is finished
In the personal Christmas participant format, I can give each guest a small Ugly Duckli brass heart when they have successfully woven their first paper heart.
It is not simply placed in the participant bag. I give it personally in that little moment of:
“You did it.”
The brass heart can be kept for years, hung on a branch, used as a bookmark, placed on a Christmas table or even slipped around the neck of a bottle.
From an Ugly Duckli open Christmas-heart event at Frederiksberg Centret in Copenhagen.
Open Christmas Heart Weaving
A visible and welcoming activity where many guests can join during a larger Christmas event.
Everything is prepared in advance. Guests can sit down, receive help and weave a classic red and white heart, even if they only have a short time.
This format can work beautifully for company Christmas parties, family days, university gatherings, international communities, cultural events and larger celebrations.
Duration, materials, participant flow and staffing are agreed with the organiser beforehand.
Final pricing depends on expected attendance, materials, staffing and practical setup.
Everyone should leave having succeeded
The small heart is intentionally approachable for beginners.
Those who want another challenge can continue with the larger heart.
The point is not that everyone makes exactly the same thing at exactly the same speed. The point is that everyone experiences the pleasure of making a heart themselves.
People talk differently when their hands are busy
There is something wonderfully simple about sitting around a table and making something together.
People talk. They compare hearts. Someone helps the person beside them. Someone laughs because the weaving has gone completely wrong, and then discovers it can be fixed.
Different ages, nationalities and backgrounds can share the same little Danish tradition without needing to have anything else in common first.
A Danish tradition remembered long after the hearts are finished
Guest feedback from TripAdvisor and Airbnb Experiences
A real booking for a very short season
Christmas dates are limited, and each confirmed event reserves preparation time and a date that can no longer be offered to another group.
Minimum booking DKK 10,000.
For a two-hour open Christmas Heart Experience.
Christmas booking and payment
Your date is reserved upon written confirmation and payment of 50% of the agreed fee.
The remaining 50% is due 14 days before the event.
For public institutions and larger organisations using formal procurement procedures, an accepted purchase order may replace the advance payment by agreement.
Because the Christmas season is short and a confirmed event reserves time that can no longer be offered to another group, bookings are binding. Full payment and cancellation terms are included in the quotation.
You provide the place.
I bring the experience.
Ugly Duckli brings
Hosting, the weaving activity, agreed materials and the visual details around the heart-weaving area.
You provide
Venue, suitable tables and chairs, normal room setup, invitations or registration if needed, and local hospitality.
Larger groups
Additional facilitators can be brought in when the number of participants requires more individual help.
Coffee and Christmas treats
Coffee, tea and perhaps Danish Christmas biscuits fit beautifully around the table. The organiser handles hospitality and serving.
Location
The mobile experience is primarily offered in Greater Copenhagen. Other locations can be considered depending on the event.
Timing
Weekdays, evenings and weekends can all be considered. We find a time that works with your programme and my calendar.
I do not arrive with webshop products to sell or turn the event into a product pitch. Ugly Duckli naturally appears on the materials, but the time around the table is about the people, the hearts and the shared experience.
I bring the tradition with me
Ugly Duckli is my personal creative universe in Frederiksberg, Copenhagen.
Danish woven Christmas hearts have been part of Ugly Duckli for many years. I love sharing the tradition with people who already know it, and perhaps even more with people discovering it for the first time.
For larger events in the Christmas formats described above, additional facilitators can help around the tables while I continue to host, tell the story, demonstrate the weaving and lead the overall experience.
Tell me about your group gathering
Whether you are planning a Christmas gathering or an international event at another time of year, tell me your proposed date, where you are, who will be joining and roughly how many people you expect.
Then we can explore what might fit your group.
Contact me about your event
Try weaving a Danish Christmas heart yourself
Read more about the tradition and download Ugly Duckli's free illustrated step-by-step weaving instructions in both English and Danish.
Explore Danish Christmas heartsWould you rather gather around your own Christmas table?
I am also creating The Danish Christmas Heart Experience, a filmed online experience in English that you can enjoy from anywhere in the world.
Come on your own, gather family or friends around the table, and let me guide you gently through the story and the weaving, one little heart at a time.
Discover the online experienceFrom my Christmas table in Copenhagen to yours.
Visiting Copenhagen with just a few people?