crafts from Öland for Christmas

Join Helena Elm and her family on an excursion to shop for Christmas handicrafts from Öland.

Just before the first snow fell on Öland, we went on an Öland tour to gather inspiration for Christmas gifts made from Öland crafts. Our first stop was Kalm Taste of Öland in Kastlösa, just south of Mörbylånga.

Kalm Taste is located in a classic, Öland 1800th-century farm that is really beautiful, and here we can really talk about farm gastronomy! Flavored oils, flower sprinkles, juice, marmalade and other edible products are produced here.

The flavor combinations are innovative and absolutely fantastic, and they have exciting products I haven't seen before such as gingerbread sugar and Christmas sugar that you can sprinkle over porridge and pastries. Smelling their Christmas sugar is like smelling Christmas. I myself will bake caramel slices with gingerbread spices in them and sprinkle sugar like this over with a tea strainer. I'm sure it will taste fantastic!

The first time we were here was at Öland's Harvest Festival this year, and it immediately became a favorite place!

What a hearty sage! This is how big sage can get here on Öland if it thrives. Personally, I usually throw in a few sage leaves in the butter when I brown it, so they become really crispy and add a fantastic flavor to the butter. It's easy to get inspired when you're at Kalm Taste!

Round little beds of thyme grow in the green garden and Kalm Taste can boast of having Öland's largest spice farm.

Evergreen plants such as black cabbage and kale create beautiful contrasts against the houses in Öland stone and the December sky. I can imagine that every season in this garden is an experience!

The farm shop with walls made of Öland stone will be open until the new year, then it must be completed in order to be able to open again in the summer. But then there will be a stall that you can go into standing in front of the entrance, so it will be fine to buy the products every day all winter anyway!

At Ribes Läder in Tävelsrum near Torslunda you can find fine leather products, clothing and things related to hunting. I bought an apron like this for Olof over ten years ago here at Ribes, and he uses it often.

They also make bags, dog leashes and belts, to name just a few of the products. The leather they work with is Swedish and comes from Tärnsjö Garveri. Here you can also buy clothes from, among other things, Fjällräven, as Ribes Läder actually makes a lot of Fjällräven's leather details.

From leather to ceramics – the tour continued to Glömminge for a stop at Alséns.

Here you can also take turning courses, and we got to watch when the company's founder Anders Alsén made a couple of the products. (Wearing an apron from Ribes, of course!) Since his teens, he has managed to turn over half a million products and Alséns is now a family business with two generations. Here, the opening hours are generous and when things are going on you are always welcome to come in and have a look. The girls were very fascinated!

The marshall balls are the most popular products at Alséns, and the ones standing here are waiting to be burned in the oven...

...so that when they are completely finished they will look like this.

You can put light strings in them too!

Advent may be dark and cold, but inside Eksgården in Gårdby, the fireplace is burning, illuminating the Öland stone walls with a cozy glow.

We had an early dinner at Eksgården, which is one of my favorite restaurants here on Öland. This summer, Lovisa and Gunnar, who run Eksgården, got a third partner in the form of chef Olle T Cellton, who is one of the founders of the popular Stockholm restaurant Babette, when he moved to Öland with his family.

At Eksgården there are both hotel rooms and a restaurant part, and both are open until Saturday 17/12, then they will take a little winter break. But the booking for next year is open and I myself want to come here as soon as possible again to enjoy the beautiful Öland environment and the absolutely fantastic food.

The places we have visited are all relatively close to Kalmar and Färjestaden and can be visited in one day. But there are so many more craftsmen and traders here on Öland that are worth a visit! It is impossible to mention them all in one post, but some farm shops where you can find very good food crafts are Lammbutiken in Äpplerum, Ölands Örtagård in Stora Frö and Ölands Kvalitetsprodukter which is located in both Bårby and Färjestaden.

More ceramics with Öland design that are open even in winter can be found at Kookon in Borgholm and at Paradisverkstaden in Färjestaden. Resmo Krukmakeri and Lotta o Mary also have a lot of nice things. Hand-cast candles can be found at Stickobrinn in Kastlösa, and if you are still in southern Öland, a coffee at SöderBönor in Mörbylånga, which is open all year round, is a nice touch.

When it comes to dinner, even during the winter, I really like Kalk in Löttorp. (If you're in Löttorp, you can also visit Ullcentrum for more Öland crafts.) The newly opened Epok in Färjestaden is open on weekends, and in Borgholm there are several restaurants that are open all year round. I personally really like Brasserie Tack o Bock , which has a lovely atmosphere and really good food. Kårehamns Fisk & Havskök is also a good tip, and not to forget – always kroppkakor in Arontorp!

// Helena Elm, December 14, 2022