Hej! If you think about it for a couple of minutes, I’m sure you’ll agree with me that when it comes to the finer things in life, Sweden often pulls it off better than most. Design, pop music, meatballs and typography for starters!
To boot, some of the best blogs published today originate from Scandinavia, especially in the realm of fashion, interiors and object design. Below are my Swedish bloggy picks – most of them are written in English (oh you multilingual dreams) but if not, the Google translator is helpful.
ANNE’S FOOD: Swedish cooking-eating-enjoying blog written by Anne from Stockholm. There are alot of recipes on the site but I really enjoy the “Traditional-ish Swedish Recipes” category – populated by exciting edibles such as Daim Cookies and Dammsugare.
CAMILLA ENGMAN: Since 2007 Engman has been sharing her witty illustrations & artwork, thoughtful photography and adventures with her little dog. Simply charming.
EMMA’S DESIGNBLOGG: A blog with an emphasis on stylists and photographers (concepts = good), rather than shopping and products (stuff = not sustainable). I can’t wait to visit Stockholm and use her comprehensive city guide.
FASHIONSQUAD: A nice blog which does what it says on the box – fashion, fun, inspiration, big time dreams.
HELLO TIGER!: Tiger shares her recent decor and design finds and posts great DIY tutorials (she also writes for Swedish ELLE Interiör). I liken her blog to a really excellent pick n’ mix lolly section – bright and sugary favourites and a few new treats to try.
KONSTBOK: I adore Emilie Björk’s blog for its captivating photography, music recommendations and the ‘everyday-moments-in-Gothenburg’ style narrative.
KARIN ERIKSSON: Erikkson is a noted designer/maker of ceramics. Here she blogs her “inspirations and my thoughts on topics such as beauty, patterns and things”. This is one of her gorgeous Signe beakers, crafted for tea, which will no doubt leave you wanting to know where she gets her ideas from:
SANDRA JUTO: Sandra is an illustrator, photographer and knitter. She shares her life through beautifully composed daily photographs: coffee, sign-writing, snow, lamps. Reading her blog makes you appreciate the simple things in life.
SWEDES PLEASE: Swedes Please is the definitive Swedish music blog! Definitely worth a browse because Swedish indie is some of the best in the world. As an aside, my favourite Swedish bands are Loney, Dear, I’m From Barcelona, The Hives, and Air France.
Are there any sneaky Swedish favourites that you think I should add to the list? I’d especially like to read some written by men. Or perhaps there is another country that seems to crop up in your RSS reader time and time again? Please share with the class.
Happy Chinese New Year everybody! Hopefully you celebrated with a load of fireworks and copious helpings of steamed buns. Celebrate some more if you’re in Auckland - the annual Lantern Festival is on in Albert Park next weekend. It’s always magical.
As you all know it’s now the year of the Tiger. Raowr!
In the case that we (hello, me), have become complacent in the last 6 weeks with our goals, the lovely Tiger has given us a fresh start, yippee! It’s a chance to reenergize and remember what you want to do this year. Whether or not le tigre is the animal of your birth year, can you please do me a favour? That is, remember it is YOUR year. Get out there and take it all on, even if it mean getting up every morning and playing Eye Of The Tiger by Survivor really really loudly to pump some energy into your system before skipping off to school or work.
Risin’ up, straight to the top
Have the guts, got the glory
Went the distance, now I’m not gonna stop
Just a man and his will to survive
It’s the eye of the tiger, it’s the cream of the fight
Risin’ up to the challenge of our rival
And the last known survivor stalks his prey in the night
And he’s watchin’ us all in the eye of the tiger.
A couple of shots from a video shoot I worked on (styling and assisting) with this gorgeous girl! Can’t wait to see everything minus the green screen of death, and share the finished product.
Way back when I was 6-years-old, I received this Babar The Elephant diary as a gift. An any year diary, it appears that I have been waiting almost 20 years to find the perfect one. There’s not even a single pen mark in the book! I guess it goes to show I have always had the fear of ‘ruining’ beautiful notebooks with silly scribbles.
The character Babar the elephant was created by French writer and painter Jean de Brunhoff in 1931. The basic premise is thus: Babar loses his mother to a hunter, wanders into the city of Paris, gets adopted by a little old lady and procures a new wardrobe, becomes the hit of high society, wanders back to the jungle and is crowned King of the Elephants.
While I want-want-wanted a pack of 12 colourful Moleskines, I can’t really justify spending that much on stationery when I have so many blank books lying around the house – plus Babar is mighty cute.
Any year? Now is good!
This sums up my aim for 2010 – more conscious consumerism, more reuse/recycling and of course, more charm. It’s important that we all think about how we can impact the world less, by reexamining discarded objects and previously loved good, but at the same time BRING THE CUTE.
Some of the nice things I've worn/bought this year. Highlights included going wild in Urban Outfitters & Uniqlo(!), the world's most expensive headband from Mimco in Melbourne, a beautiful vintage dress I bought in Manchester and THE JACKET, from Beacon's Closet in NYC.
A new year often triggers a desire to start new habits, try fresh looks and generally buck trends!
Because of the perceived demarcation of time, it’s a good time to set goals and resolve to do thing differently. In particular I like the New Year for reassessing my style for the year ahead – it’s mid season too, so you have a wee bit of thinking and preparation time.
It’s fair to say I met my cosmetic soul-mate this year. ChiChi’s range of lipsticks are infallible and can withstand all the making out and wineglasses you care to subject your lips to. On the colour front I favoured a bright cherry red and a shade of watermelon for the evening; and a neutral pink shade called Blonde Bombshell for the day.
- To buy a pair of Frye boots… FAIL.
I tried, I really did. Something about selling out in my size. However I did buy the boots of my dreams – those chestnut Progetto riding style boots.
- To wear my Chucks less (to work)… SEMI-SUCCESS.
Well, let’s see the first half I was away a lot, hence no work. I acutally recall wearing Chucks on the Great Wall of China! After I went freelance there was a lot more jandal/barefoot/slipper time.
- To go to the gym more often (3x a week)… FAIL.
Turns out I don’t enjoy going to the gym if it’s more than 10 minutes walk from my house. I’ve also travelled a ton this year – 2 months away. Ah! Excuses!
- To wear more hats… VICTORY.
Berets, sunhats and more… I even bought one at Urban Outfitters.
Did you keep your style resolutions or goals for 2009? Are you making any for the new decade?
Vogue’s More Dash Than Cash by Kate Hogg was first published in 1982. Despite a vintage of almost 30 years, it’s an incredibly relevant and straightforward guide to looking good on a budget.
“Making the effort to look striking costs very little – a fresh attitude and energy are more vital than money”.
After a chipper and suitably stirring introduction, the book covers the following areas:
An Individual Style
Wardrobe Tactics
The Classics
Outside Inspirations
The Alternatives
Reading Fashion Pictures
Inside Style
Characters In Fashion
Here’s some of my favourite spreads:
Intriguingly, a lot of the looks feel like they could have been shot yesterday – think bloggers in high waisted denim cut offs and Doc Martins; or the latest lStolen Girlfriends-esque Prairie girl look. And oh! Are those some moccasins I spy? (Above in the last shot). New York was going mad for those when I was there last month. Ah, isn’t it funny how the wheels of fashion turn.
Narwhals, the unicorns of the sea! I like their cute little horned faces so much I got one on my arm. Crappy picture, but this little beast is an absolute work of art. Exquisite. I am so happy to have him on my left arm.
I wasn’t planning a tattoo, but you know, it was rainy and I didn’t want to go to yet another film (three in three days). Tattoos are generally indoor activities, right? So yeah, NARWHAL!
[Super big thanks to Mike Lucena from Flyrite Tattoo in Brooklyn. What a pro.]
This is the post in which I dip my toes in the DIY waters. Naturally it’s in a cheap, cheerful and shamefully easy manner.
I took last summer’s plimsolls and gave them a wash, becasue they were showing the signs of too much adventuring in beer halls. The laces were excruiciatingly grim (ewww not showing you), so I removed them and looked around for something better.
Spying 1 metre of royal purple ribbon, I snipped it in half, sealed the ends with a lighter to prevent fraying and threaded the lengths into the sneakers. Voila!
Coveting possessions is unhealthy. Here’s how I look at it:
All of the computers on Ebay are mine. In fact, everything on Ebay is already mine. All of those things are just in long term storage that I pay nothing for. Storage is free.
When I want to take something out of storage, I just pay the for the storage costs for that particular thing up to that point, plus a nominal shipping fee, and my things are delivered to me so I can use them. When I am done with them, I return them to storage via Craigslist or Ebay, and I am given a fee as compensation for freeing up the storage facilities resources.
This is also the case with all of my stuff that Amazon and Walmart are holding for me. I have antiques, priceless art, cars, estates, and jewels beyond the dreams of avarice.
The world is my museum, displaying my collections on loan. The James Savages of the world are merely curators. As I am the curator of their things, and thus together we all share the world.
In the film Tokyo Pop bleached haired goddess Carrie Hamilton plays Wendy, a rock singer from America. She moves to Tokyo on a whime and, as the stories always go, meets a boy. Hiro and Wendy form a band; finding stardom and love. It’s also story about American customs confronting the Tokyo lifestyle.
My friend Sarah reckons when Aggy Deyn was reinventing herself, she just trotted down to her local video store and rented a copy of Tokyo Pop. Other people reckon Sofia Coppola took a good hard look at the film too, before embarking on the Lost In Translation journey.
From what I’ve seen, I’d agree! Except.. I’m incredibly grumpy because unfortunately I haven’t managed to track down a copy yet, even on VHS. If you ever come across a copy (or if you’ve seen it), pipe up, let me know!
It looks amazing; a cheesey pop love story with candy coloured cinematography, set against a retro Tokyo backdrop. Here’s the trailer:
So, you spend a lot of money (or in my case, cry and get your housemate to claim it on his insurance) on a nice shiny new camera. It’s awesome, it might just be love. It’s the perfect accessory.
But you stick with the giant branded strap – the one loudly proclaiming your membership to the NIKON or CANON tribe. How bland. Why not something a little bit more individual? Something that makes it personal. Oh, cute camera straps – where art thou? I investigated:
1. Photojojo sells bright seat belt camera straps – saving lives and cameras, which are your life. Win.
3. Rather than reinventing the wheel, Sugar Pop Designs (also on Etsy) create covers for your existing strap. For an extra couple of dollars you can even get a pouch for that pesky lens cap. I love this idea, you could one day have an entire collection of complementary straps!
4.Souldier up-cycles seat belts too, combining them with retro fabrics to make some sweet straps – there’s quite a few masculine choices:
5. “I think these straps are elegant and rugged all at once. Bob H.” Bob’s talking about Gordy’s camera straps and he’s right on the money. These are the camera straps Monocle fans would snap up; think naturally tough leather, waxed thread and solid construction. They’re beautiful too.
Don’t want to buy a new strap? My other ideas include: pillaging a retro camera for its superior strap, making your own and re-purposing a guitar strap!
Have I convinced you yet? Want another upside? As well as looking cute and fabulously individual, when the day comes that you misplace your camera – and the party host/bartender/bus driver asks – “Well what did it look like?”
Instead of saying “silver” (yeah helpful), you can describe the luminosity of the polka dots, the gentle embossing on the damask. Then you’re saying it is my camera, and it is special to me! Really helpful, non?
I think these straps are elegant and rugged all at once. Bob H.
I had a very thrifty weekend, but I did a hell of a lot! It was inspiration to write about 10 more cheap thrills. See this post for 30 other fun things to do for less.
The focus is on things you can do that don’t involve spending a lot of money – to relax, entertain or simply change tack away from the couch:
1. Visit your localgourmet food market. My favourite Auckland spot is the Parnell Farmers Market – places like these often have samples galore. Learn a little bit, taste a little bit and have a chat with vendors! I usually head straight to the fromagerie.
2. Meet a friend for coffee. Or don’t. Develop a love of herbal tea – it saves you money and buys you time! At most cafes (for the price of a latte) you’ll get you get an entire pot of tea, giving you longer to loiter, chat, work on your screenplay. My little red pot of raspberry and peach tea cost $3.00!
3. Cook something laborious from scratch. It doesn’t have to be expensive – just time consuming! Think vegetable risotto with homemade bread. Invite friends around and add a bottle of wine for an instant dinner party.
4. Find a cheap nail salon and get an outrageous manicure. Orange and aqua with diamantes. Leopard print. Cute fruits? I particularly love the elaborate drying process and reading trashy mags while my nails harden. Another option is to grab one of your girlfriends and do it yourself.
5. Find an addictive computer game and clock that mother. I favour Roller Coaster Tycoon and other old school games I wanted to dominate as a kid.
6. Go for a run. It’s free, you get fit and some fresh air. Win win.
7. Host a couchsurfer. Do a weary traveller a favour by offering them a couch, and in exchange you’ll enjoy scintillating conversation, a taste of a new culture and perhaps make a new friend! Do give it a go, you weren’t sitting on that couch anyway.
9. Structured photo missions - shoot yellow hues only, snap pictures of things starting with A, circles, whatever. Choose something and stick to it. This is one of my favourite time wasting activities – it’ll make you look at the world with fresh eyes!
10. Play pool. Hanging out at a pool hall for a few hours won’t cost much at all… improve your skills, drink, talk a load of crap with your friends or just soak up the atmosphere. The mustier the hall, the better!
What do you do to entertain yourself that’s affordable, and rad? I’d love to know!
Advice I received recently from a very smart cookie:
Stick at it, hunker down. Finish writing one great novel rather than starting 50 mediocre opening chapters. It’s about balance too – don’t spread yourself too thin… build the castle, then work on all the other bits of empire.
If wishes were fishes… well I would have accidentally killed a lot of them as a kid. Sorry Goldie! Let’s move onwards and upwards with an eclectic wishlist for June.
Clockwise from top:
Gucci Mermaid Laceups, for men, but I do not care. I want to dance the night away on the wooden boards of a smoky dance hall. (Lovingly snagged from the Sunday Star Times’ shoe of the week section.)
From NOM*D’s Bedlam collection, A/W 09, the Old Mother Hubbard tee. Skellybones!
The drolly-named “Horse On Clock” necklace. Wild horses…
A maze garden to get lost in.
White Fungus, an art magazine from Wellington NZ – that design is enchanting, very Ernst Haeckel-esque.
Fred Flare’s “Two Scoops” sweater. Hello, will you be the hokey-pokey to my goody gumdrops!
Grizzly Bear’s new album, Veckatimest. Two Weeks – a creepy video, but a breathtakingly beautiful song.
What’s floating your boat? What belongs in your tote? ❤
