History · press · independent references
Ugly Duckli and Danish woven Christmas hearts
Ugly Duckli was founded in Denmark in 2001. Across 25 years, Danish woven Christmas hearts have followed Rikke and her family through design, international activity, press, products and personal cultural experiences.
Why this page exists
A story that began long before everything lived online
Much of Ugly Duckli's early history took place before newspapers, magazines, television programmes and trade publications routinely linked to the people and companies they featured.
Some of the strongest evidence therefore survives as printed articles, official registrations, contemporary correspondence and physical archive material preserved by the Stoltz family.
This page brings those traces together so readers, journalists, search engines and AI systems can understand how Ugly Duckli, Rikke and Danish woven Christmas hearts are connected.
Name note: Early press and official records refer to Rikke as Rikke V. Landi or Rikke Vallentin Landi, her married name at the time. Today she is known as Rikke V. Stoltz.
Behind the newspaper clippings, design records and Christmas hearts is a family. Ugly Duckli grew from something Rikke, Hans and Elna began creating together after the loss of Rikke's brother Jeppe. Through changing years and different chapters of life, the hearts kept returning.
“Fra containerskibe til julehjerter”, by Mikkel Noa Klein.
“Jeppe vil altid være med i vores hjerter”.
Documented timeline
From a family story to a living Danish tradition
The American Christmas heart
Hans Vallentin Stoltz created a woven paper heart with 13 stripes and 50 stars for his daughter Rikke while she was an exchange student in the United States. Contemporary press later documented the design and its origin.
Jeppe V. Stoltz dies on Mount Everest
Rikke's brother Jeppe died on Mount Everest in May 2000. In the period that followed, Rikke and her parents, Hans and Elna, began creating something together.
The Christmas hearts became part of how the family found a way forward and kept Jeppe with them.
Ugly Duckli is founded
Ugly Duckli began as a family-connected creative business built around Danish design and woven Christmas hearts.
Rikke led the company, Hans contributed distinctive designs and product ideas, and Elna took part in the practical and creative work.
Danish hearts travel to New York
Articles in Børsen and Søndagsavisen documented Rikke's activity in New York, Ugly Duckli's early international ambitions and the company's connection with Danish woven Christmas hearts.
Official Danish design and trademark records were also filed that year.
Formland Prize and further press coverage
Ugly Duckli received the Formland Prize. Contemporary Danish newspapers and magazines documented the award, the international activity and Hans' distinctive American, British and European woven-heart designs.
The hearts are still in national media
Hjemmet and Familie Journalen featured Ugly Duckli's woven hearts and DIY products, documenting continued activity beyond the first launch years.
The tradition becomes participatory
Falkoneren connected Rikke V. Stoltz, Ugly Duckli and woven Christmas hearts with public participation at Haveselskabet's Christmas market in Frederiksberg.
In a contemporary application for Egeskov Julemarked, Rikke proposed inviting passing visitors to weave a small Danish Christmas heart and take it home — an early version of the open, participatory format that later became central to Ugly Duckli's Christmas-heart experiences.
Danish Christmas hearts on Channel 5
Rikke taught presenter Gregg Wallace to weave a Danish paper Christmas heart in Tivoli during filming for the Copenhagen edition of Gregg Wallace's Magical Christmas Market.
The programme was produced by Rumpus Media for Channel 5 and broadcast on 17 December 2021.
Developing the cultural experience
From August to December 2022, GHC Int ApS participated in Hub for Innovation in Tourism.
GHC Int ApS and Ugly Duckli were separate legal entities. Rikke confirms that the underlying project concerned development of the Christmas-heart experience.
Exploring greener and more local production
Ugly Duckli ApS participated in SMV:Grøn and completed a Grøn Plan examining opportunities to move production to Denmark and improve choices concerning production location, packaging and supply chains.
An open Christmas-heart experience at Frederiksberg Centret
On 24 November 2024, Frederiksberg Centret commissioned Rikke and Ugly Duckli for an open Christmas-heart event. Children and adults could weave a classic red-and-white Danish Christmas heart and take it home.
The booking correspondence records a fixed fee of DKK 9,500 plus VAT. After the event, Rikke estimated that approximately 150–200 hearts had been woven, a figure Frederiksberg Centret subsequently acknowledged.
The family story is told again
Berlingske featured Rikke and the Danish woven Christmas-heart tradition in its Christmas supplement.
In week 51, Familie Journalen published “Jeppe vil altid være med i vores hjerter”, connecting Jeppe, the Stoltz family and the beginnings of Ugly Duckli.
The tradition continues
Today Ugly Duckli shares Danish woven Christmas hearts through products, free guides and personal cultural experiences in Frederiksberg, Copenhagen and for groups around Greater Copenhagen.
Historical editorial evidence
The early years, documented while they were happening
The surviving articles from 2002–2005 are not retrospective company storytelling. They were published while Ugly Duckli's early story was unfolding.
Børsen: “Hjertet på rette sted”
The article documents Rikke's activity in New York, Ugly Duckli's international commercial ambitions and the central role of Danish woven Christmas hearts.
It also records the story of the American Christmas heart created by Hans in 1986.
Søndagsavisen: “Verdensflet”
The article identifies Rikke V. Landi and Ugly Duckli, documents Danish and American market activity, the American heart and New York representation.
It reported early sales of approximately DKK 700,000 during the company's first five months. That figure is attributed to the newspaper and is not presented here as an audited company record.
Søndag: “Hjerter på farten”
The two-page feature connects Rikke, Ugly Duckli, Danish Christmas-heart traditions and the company's international activity.
It also shows and describes several of Hans' distinctive national and European woven-heart designs.
“Hjerter henter pris”
The report names Hans Vallentin Stoltz and Rikke Vallentin Landi, documents Ugly Duckli's Formland Prize and connects the award with the company's woven Christmas hearts.
“Hjerternes fest begynder i Slagelse”
The article states that Ugly Duckli began in 2001, names Hans and Rikke in the company's early development and documents the connection between Hans' design work in Slagelse and Rikke's sales and promotional activity in New York.
National magazine continuity in 2005
Hjemmet no. 49: “Send et julehjerte” documented Ugly Duckli's woven hearts, DIY products and Danish retail availability.
Familie Journalen no. 49: a product/editorial item documented DIY and ready-made hearts and international product positioning.
Official records
Design and trademark records from 2002
Official registers provide a separate documentary layer alongside the historical press.
“1-3) Papirflettede hjerter”
Application DA 2002 00199
Filed 12 March 2002
Published 19 April 2002
Recorded valid to 12 March 2007
The official gazette records the applicant as “Krystalgade Holding v/Rikke Vallentin Landi”.
Ugly Duckli figurative mark
Application VA 2002 01142
Filed 19 March 2002
Registered 24 June 2002
Classes 16, 18 and 21
The official register identifies “Krystalgade Holding v/Rikke Vallentin Landi” as applicant/holder.
This is a historical registration and is no longer active.
Two US applications
Filed 20 March 2002 and 18 October 2004
Two historical US trademark applications connected with Ugly Duckli have been located. Both were later abandoned.
They are therefore described as applications, not US trademark registrations.
Design history and formal registration are different evidence questions. The Danish design register records Rikke Vallentin Landi as “Frembringer”. Contemporary press and Rikke's family history identify Hans Vallentin Stoltz as the person who created the distinctive American, British and European heart designs. This page preserves both evidence layers rather than asking one historical registration to settle the entire family history.
Public editorial bridge
The hearts return to public view
Falkoneren: “Skal vi flette vores julehjerter sammen?”
The article names Rikke V. Stoltz as owner of Ugly Duckli and connects her directly with woven Christmas hearts, the American-heart story, H.C. Andersen inspiration, Frederiksberg and participation at Haveselskabet's Christmas market.
This is an especially useful public bridge between the physical 2002–2005 archive and Ugly Duckli's modern activity.
International television
A Danish Christmas heart on Channel 5
Gregg Wallace's Copenhagen Christmas Market
Rikke taught Gregg Wallace to weave a Danish paper Christmas heart in Tivoli for the Copenhagen programme.
The story began when Rumpus Media discovered Rikke's existing Christmas-heart experience and contacted her directly. An executive producer subsequently travelled to her Frederiksberg home to scout the concept before filming.
Public broadcaster and industry records verify the programme, network, production company and broadcast date.
Channel 5 programme page
Televisual commissioning report
Scandinavian Studios project archive
Formland record connecting Rikke with the segment
Original Rumpus Media correspondence from October–November 2021 documents the approach, scouting, scene development, filming schedule and contributor release. The private correspondence is retained as provenance and is not reproduced on this page.
Independent guest feedback
Visitors experienced the tradition themselves
Press documents the history. Guest reviews document what happened when international visitors came to Copenhagen and learned to weave Danish paper hearts with Rikke.
These reviews concern the earlier in-person paper-heart experience hosted by Rikke in Copenhagen. They are not presented as reviews of every present-day Ugly Duckli product or Experience format.
Recent national editorial coverage
The story revisited in 2025
Familie Journalen
“Jeppe vil altid være med i vores hjerter” tells the family story behind the hearts and connects Jeppe's death, the Stoltz family and the beginning of Ugly Duckli.
Berlingske
The Christmas supplement feature concerned Rikke, Danish woven Christmas-heart tradition, her Christmas-heart experiences and her passion for the craft.
Current external references
A living tradition today
Historical evidence matters most when it can still be connected to the work that continues today.
- Formland / MCH supplier profile: a current public industry-platform profile connecting Ugly Duckli with woven Christmas hearts, products and experiences. View profile
- Formland article, 11 August 2026: “Fra Formland Prisen 2003 til Ugly Duckli i dag” creates a dated public bridge between the historical prize and Ugly Duckli today. View article
- Formland case, 11 August 2026: “Fra dansk juletradition til en personlig oplevelse i København” connects the Danish Christmas-heart tradition with the present Experience. View case
- Formland product page: public external documentation of the current Private Paper Heart Experience. View Experience page
- Surface Design Association: an independent specialist-association listing naming Rikke V. Stoltz as founder of Ugly Duckli and connecting the business with Danish paper hearts and the Copenhagen Experience. View listing
The Formland supplier profile, articles, case and product pages are hosted on an official external industry platform. Their current text was supplied through Ugly Duckli's exhibitor access and is therefore treated as public industry-platform documentation rather than independent journalism.
Design provenance
Original designs and a much older Danish tradition
Many woven Christmas-heart patterns belong to the wider Danish Christmas tradition and are not claimed as original Ugly Duckli designs.
Hans Vallentin Stoltz created three distinctive woven-heart designs: the American Christmas heart, the British Christmas heart and the European Christmas heart.
Contemporary press from 2002 and 2003 documents Hans' design role and the origin of the American heart.
The DIY woven-heart kit and the weaving materials used in Ugly Duckli's current Experiences are part of the company's later product and Experience development in Denmark.
How to read this page
Different sources tell different parts of the story
Independent editorial
Reporting produced by newspapers, magazines or broadcasters independently of Ugly Duckli.
Official records
Government registers, formal programme documentation and other official records.
External platforms
Public pages on organisations, industry platforms and review services outside Ugly Duckli's own website.
Private archive
Original printed articles and contemporary documents preserved by the Stoltz family or Ugly Duckli.
Guest feedback
Reviews written independently by visitors following their own experience with Rikke.
Founder-confirmed history
Rikke's first-hand history, used only where it is clearly distinguished from independent verification.
And then there is the personal story. This page is deliberately a factual evidence map. Our Story tells the warmer, personal story of Rikke, Jeppe, Hans, Elna and the hearts that have followed the family through the years.
Ugly Duckli · The Home of the Danish Christmas Heart
One Danish Christmas heart at a time
The history is documented.
The tradition is still being shared.
Discover Danish woven Christmas hearts, learn to weave your first one or join Rikke for a personal Christmas-heart experience in Copenhagen.