Ninny, the Invisible Child is to appear on Arabia’s Moomin dishes for the first time ever. To top it off, a brand new Moomintroll series of dishes will be released at the same time. Also, one euro from each Ninny or Moomintroll mug sold in 2019 will be donated to local activities for Save the Children in all countries where the mugs are sold.
Arabia began to illustrate the Moomin “character mugs” in 1999. This means that we have been waiting for two whole decades for one of the most beloved and symphatized characters in the original Moomin books by Tove Jansson – and will finally in early 2019 be accompanied by lovely Ninny at our coffee and tea tables.
Ninny is a character from the short story The Invisible Child, part of the collection Tales from Moominvalley by Tove Jansson, first published in 1962. The brand new Moomintroll series features Moomintroll in a comic called Moomin and the Martians (1957).
Ninny’s story is an important reminder of the power of caring
In Tove Jansson’s story The Invisible Child, the Moomin family receives a guest – the small and mistreated Ninny, a girl who has turned invisible. She is afraid to talk, play or even laugh. The only sound she makes comes from a bell around her neck that rings to tell everybody where she is.
The Moomin family takes the girl into their home and treats her with kindness. Because of their consideration, Ninny gets her confidence back and turns visible, bit by bit. Soon, they can see a pair of small feet on the stairs, then a couple of thin legs. But as the days go by, they still can’t see a face.
Curious and thoughtful Moomintroll does everything he can to help Ninny. He encourages her and tries to teach her games. Ninny’s small face finally appears when she finds the courage to show her feelings – she gets so angry, and laughs so hard, that the jetty she is standing on shakes. “The Invisible Child” is a story that tells us about how important it is to see and to be seen.
Moomin and the Martians
The new Moomintroll dishes present a small Martian who is lost. The Moomins hear a warning on the radio about a flying object getting closer to earth. Suddenly, it lands in Moominmamma’s kitchen garden. Moomintroll hides the Martian, and even the police are looking for it. The Martian and Moomintroll speak to each other through a magic box.
Arabia will donate part of the sales to Save the Children
Ninny is one of the characters that has been most requested for reproduction on the Moomin dishes. The universal story about the mistreatment of children is still timely and influential. And there is a reason why the Ninny dishes are being released in 2019.
”We wanted to do Ninny dishes this year because the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child will be exactly 30 years old,” explains Nora Haatainen, from Fiskars licence business unit. “Our duty as adults is to respect all children and accept them as they are.”
One euro from each Ninny or Moomintroll mug sold during 2019 will be donated to local activities for Save the Children in all countries where the mugs are sold. The campaign is intended to help support children’s rights and equality.
Instructions for getting the products in time
These products are available for purchase from 11 February 2019 but you can already find them on our webshop, along with more information and photos about the products.
Please leave your email address at the product page of the desired product to be notified right away when the products are in stock!
The character series includes a mug, a bowl and a plate:
Photos: Fiskars & Moomin Characters