Meet the Newest Guy in the North Pole
How Sheyda Advabi Best created Young Santa.

We’re so excited to introduce you to Young Santa, the first ornament in a new series that will tell the childhood story of our favorite gift-giver. This adorable ornament was created by Sheyda Advabi Best, a senior artist in Hallmark’s Visual Studios, who gave us a peek into her artistic process.

To start, Sheyda looked at toys and characters from all over the world and closer to home. “In my studio is a display case full of ‘Kawaii’ toys, which inspire me with their pillowy shapes and stylized faces. They’re so cute!” she says. She was also inspired by snow-days gone by, when she and her sisters would be so excited to get out and play they’d leave a mess of coats, mittens and scarves on the floor.

Young Santa

“I thought it would be sweet to give the same feel to Young Santa—he’s so excited to get outside that he forgot to put on his other boot!”

Once inspiration struck, Sheyda began sketching out dozens of versions with all sorts of proportions and styles. “I wanted to make sure that I exhausted every option before settling on one look,” she says. After sketching, it was time to sculpt. The rough shape of our not-so-old Saint Nick was formed from clay. Then she made molds, casted melted wax into them and refined the wax shape with sculpting tools, sandpaper and an electric waxer device.

Sheyda says she had to be very mindful of how she handled the wax, because there aren’t any undo buttons if you accidentally snap o an ear!

“I can remember literally holding my breath when I was doing some of the smaller detail work. It requires a lot of concentration,” she says.

After the sculpting, Sheyda painted the prototype before adding in some delightful details: a pom-pom, leather ribbon, and we can’t forget his adorable puppy companion!

Speaking of companions, did you notice that cute cardinal on the top of the Young Santa Special Edition ornament? Sheyda says the little birdie is doing its best to help deliver Christmas joy. The limited-quantity Young Santa Special Edition will be available at Ornament Debut, but in the meantime you can pick up the first-in-series Young Santa at Ornament Premiere!

We can’t wait to see where this series goes in the future, and Sheyda assures us we have plenty to look forward to. “Expect to see lots more storytelling about Young Santa’s childhood. You might even discover how he learned to spread Christmas cheer!” she says.

“Meet the newest guy in the North Pole.” For Keeps 21 Summer 2022: 4-5.