Carnival Series: Fastelavn with Mie Rasmussen

When I first started this series my main idea was to showcase the creativity behind creating costumes, or simply making an effort to dress up and have fun every year, but also to find out how it is done in other countries where there is carnival. As a huge fan of donuts I wanted to find out what if donuts were the thing everywhere for carnival, or if they have some other treats I should learn to love.

I know Fastelavn is big in Denmark, so I did my fair share of looking for someone to talk to me about it, but Hygge or not all my Danish connections were always too busy. Until Mie:)
Mie is a Danish mama of 3 creative kiddos. Be sure to check her IG page, but before that have a look at their carnival fun from this weekend.

What do you and your family do for carnival?

‘Fastelavn’ is the name of our carnival in February – an old tradition that goes way back in history where children dress up in costumes and gather treats around in the city for the Fastelavn feast. Any occasion to have fun, dress up and make your own things, we’re in.

Another popular custom is the “fastelavnsris”, with which children ritually flog their parents to wake them up on the morning of Fastelavns Sunday.
Fastelavnsris show up in different forms depending on which area you live in. Sometimes they are bunches of twigs from fruit trees with buds, decorated with feathers, egg-shells, storks, and little figures of babies. Sometimes bent willow-branch, shaped like an ankh and wound with crepe paper that has frizzles. Both versions can also be decorated with candy.

Celebration of Fastelavn
The Traditional Fastelavn celebration includes “hit the cat out of the barrel”. We use a wooden barrel, which is full of candy and sometimes oranges and has the image of a cat on it. (Historically there was a real black cat in the barrel, and beating the barrel was considered a safeguard against evil.) After the candy pours out, the game continues until the entire barrel is broken. The one who knocks down the bottom of the barrel and making all the candy spill out becomes “queen of cats” and the one who knocks down the last piece of the barrel becomes “king of cats”. We celebrate Sunday both also in school and kindergarten.

Do you dress up or just the kids?

I have to admit that it depends on the time and energy if my husband and I dress up too. My husband is better at dressing up than me – one year just five minutes before the party he covered himself in post-its, another year in toilet paper I normally use all my energy on the kids’ costumes and baking, so I don’t dress up, but that has to be different next year.

Any special foods?

A popular baked good associated with our carnival is Fastelavnsbolle, a round sweet roll usually covered with icing and sometimes filled with whipped cream.

Thank you so much for participating Mie! It was lovely having you here:)

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