A Ball of Twine

One serious problem that the people around Walther and Wilhelmina von Hallwyl had, was to find Christmas presents for them. The von Hallwyls were one of the richest families in Sweden at the time and consequently could buy what they wanted. For Christmas 1918 the paid companion Ida Uhse gave her employer a ball of twine that only had set her back 3 SEK. It found its way into the catalogue entirely because it represented the war-time shortage of proper materials. The twine is made of paper, an oddity in a house where you always bought the best.