When my children were very little a family of tiny elves lived in the 'elf tree' in our minuscule London garden. They wrote letters to our daughter who was 5 at the time and left them for her in their 'letterbox', a small crevice in the trunk of their tree which was at the perfect height for her. She would almost burst with excitement when she discovered a new message from them and would sit down to write back straight away. She would tuck her 'elf-sized' note back into the letterbox, then check every morning before breakfast, and every afternoon after school, to see if they had replied. The elves loved a celebration - especially birthdays - they would cover their leaves and branches in glitter and all sorts of little things from their lives would appear; tiny bunting, stars, food, drawings and even jewels. When we moved to Devon, to everyone's delight, the elves came too, taking up residence in an old gnarled tree in the alleyway that led to our first rented flat. Through their notes and letters, they provided an important and comforting link with the home and life we had left behind and they brought their unique positive enthusiasm and understanding to the prospect of new schools, new friends and our new life. Today the old gnarled elf tree is gone, magic is found elsewhere, and I had almost forgotten about our tiny friends until I made these miniature gold bowls. I think our elf family would have loved them!