Kissing Ball

Location: Boston

A long time ago, my Irish grandmother made this craft project for Christmas in addition to the ornaments she makes. It's a hexagon shape with a bell in the middle and you're supposed to hang it from a light fixture or over a doorway. She never had a name for it, but someone saw it in my mother's house years ago and said it was an Irish Kissing Ball, and, like mistletoe, you're owed a kiss should you find yourself standing beneath it with your sweetheart.

This year, my nephew heard my mother call it a Kissing Ball, and he was totally enthralled with it and insisted on a kiss every time he was standing under it (which is all well and good except that he and I sat under it baking Christmas cookies on Saturday, and I had to give him a kiss every five minutes!). When I picked my grandmother up on Christmas Day, I asked her about it, and she said she doesn't remember anyone ever calling it a Kissing Ball before.

Have any of you ever heard of this? I left the wire to upload photos to my laptop from my digital camera at my parents' house so I can't show you a photo right now, but I will as soon as I get back down there to pick it up. I have a Kissing Ball of my own hanging in my kitchen and people always ask me about it. It'd be nice to know the story behind them if there is one!!

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Irish Forums Message Discussion :: Kissing Ball

Kissing Ball