Victorian Christmas Child with Red Bow - Vintage Greeting Card

A fur muff, white boots with tiny gold buttons, and an enormous fur-trimmed bonnet all converge on a child positioned directly atop pine branches—a wardrobe choice that suggests someone's mother had very specific opinions about suffering for fashion. The curly-haired figure clutches that muff with the desperate energy of someone who just made a terrible life decision, her legs jutting forward at an angle implying the branches are actively winning. The red bow perched on her bonnet works overtime as the only pop of color in this snowstorm of fabric, while she smiles pleasantly despite apparently having no lap. The verse promises 'a kindly word and a cheery rhyme,' which is technically delivered, though the overall composition raises more questions than it answers.