The prettiest yoghurt pot there is! It's called 'Bulgarian yoghurt', it's a lot like Greek yoghurt.
I bought this for J before his birthday, and then forgot about it completely... White chocolate with poppy seeds (!). J likes white chocolate, and is also an avid botanist.
This little tin is a fleamarket find; it used to contain body cream, now it contains my pins. I love the name Saba, which is how Finns write Queen of Sheba's name.
When I came back from Helsinki, nobody had washed the used coffee cups I had left behind, or picked up the clothes from the floor (both sure signs of me being busy - or lazy, someone would say [hi Mum!]). The carnations had dried in their vase.
Still, it was lovely to come home. Especially because last winter I had no place in Tampere I could actually call home. And because after being several days in a row with someone all the time, I felt like the carnations myself; dry and tired and mute. That much socializing easily leaves me exhausted. I loved every second I got to spend with my friends, I really did - but right now being home, alone, is the best thing I know.
It's been a quiet Sunday. It's raining, so I've mostly stayed indoors, doing nothing much. Dreaming of a rocking chair, muffins and hot chocolate (I'd like to have this one or this one in adult size). No rocking chair here, but I just baked muffins, and hot chocolate can be arranged... So I'm good.
I was in need of some new music, plus there was a sale in my favourite record store. I usually listen to one cd for weeks, then forget it for maybe months, and move on to another... A cd can sit in my shelf for ages without me even remembering it - and then I find it again, and suddenly time is right and it's just the album I want to listen to all the time. I seem to always end up buying mostly cds by female singers; I think that nine out of ten of the last cds I've purchased fall into that category, the only exception being the Chet Baker cd in the photo. So it is nice that miss H gave me the Thomas Dybdahl cd as a birthday gift, and it's especially nice because I had never heard of Thomas Dybdahl before. Sounds good after the first listening...
Ane Brun's gig on Flow festival in August was really really good, and I'm happy to say I like the record too. To cheer up the rainy day (or any kind of day you're having), here's The Treehouse Song, my current favourite from her album Changing of the Seasons; listening to it makes me very happy.
So, for the rest of the autumn I'll be listening to Chet Baker, Thomas Dybdahl, Jenny Lewis, Eleanoora Rosenholm and Ane Brun. I don't really buy cds that often, so I'm excited to have so many new! What music have you been loving lately?
I've shared a bottle of red wine and a lot of giggles with miss H. I've had coffee with miss A. I've gone for a hike in the woods. I've celebrated J's 30th birthday (I gave him this, among some other things. Thanks for the idea, Nina, and thank you sister for taking time to find this in London, so I didn't have to pay £9 postage.). I've bought four cd's and got one as a belated birthday present. I've met someone whose age is still measured in days and weeks. I've eaten a delicious bacon & mushroom pie.
And I've been sitting here. It is one of my favourite places to sit in Helsinki: there's good, affordable food and drink, art exhibited on walls, relaxed atmosphere, and always interesting people to look at. What more could you ask for?
1 Talo -print by Finlayson, for my kitchen curtains (not very well ironed, I know) 2 onesie for someone quite new 3 scraps from something I've been sewing
At least it seems so. Baking helped, although I managed to forget sugar when baking rolls - they still taste quite good. I think I'd be happier if I could bake every day. Also, yesterday was a busy day, and I think it's often better for me if I don't have too much time in my hands, so I'm not able to mull things over and over in my head too much.
This evening the setting sun reflected from the opposite building and created this artwork on my wall. I've been meaning to show you more patterns, but I have some problems with the photos... Coming soon, though.
Today it's a do the washing & do the dishes & tidy up your home & hoover & study & try to do some other useful things -kind of day around here. So it's a perfect day to answer some questions in lieu of doing all that. (Maikki tagged me, thanks!)
1. clothes shop - I'm not feeling very strongly about any shop I have the money to shop in... If I lived in Gothenburg, though, I would probably like this boutique a lot (found today via Camilla Engman).
2. furniture shop - I guess in my daydreams world it would be something like Tomorrow's Antique; in reality, my home is furnished with hand-me-downs, Ikea, and a desk bought from a film set...
3. sweet - chocolate
4. city - Helsinki
5. drink - water (or, if it has to be alcoholic, gin & tonic; I also love a glass of good port)
6. music - many kinds of music, all the time; at the moment, the cd in my stereo is Tori Amos' Beekeeper, and the song stuck in my head Regina Spektor's Ne me quitte pas.
7. tv series - my 'new' (borrowed) telly doesn't work yet; but lately I've been watching 'Allo 'allo! on dvd; I like Project Runway too
8. film - Pedro Almodovar's Todo sobre mi madre, an all time favourite
9. workout - pilates, if I had money to go to classes...
10. pastries - chocolate cake and cinnamon bun
11. coffee - cappucino
Sister took the photo of me with the Rabbitsquirrel. Who in the photo is busy putting a plaster on my finger (just for fun).
Took a train to Helsinki on Saturday evening, after work. The weekend was a flurry of fun things, like miss H turning 30 and the celebratory brunch in our favourite café on Sunday morning, complete with a candle on top of a piece of tart; and meeting my favourite (and only) sister and the rabbitsquirrel who lives in her home at the moment. It always takes a while for me to go back to normal after spending a couple of days in almost constant company, though - I'm more used to solitude.
ps. This was in the mystery package from California: a limited edition ceramic figurine, 'Fox Gets a Bright Idea' by Etsy seller PearsonMaron. An inspiration gift to my sister; she's partial to foxes, and I thought she might need this on her desk, as bright ideas seem rare for all of us from time to time. The fox looked really good on my desk too - for myself, I'd love this Tree Ghost mini sculpture. (Image from the PearsonMaron Etsy shop.)
1 A charity shop find; the leaf pattern reminds me of this pattern I like. All Swedes seem to have those dishes :) - is it vintage Rörstrand? Can't remember.
2 Karpalo (cranberry) -mug by Heini Riitahuhta for Arabia. It's my favourite coffee mug right now.
3 Another charity shop find, a pyrex bowl I bought last week.
In the first photo you can also see part of the gocco print I ordered as a birthday gift to myself from Etsy seller sugarloop. I like it a lot - it was a tough decision to choose just one her bird prints - and it currently stays on my desk until I can decide where to hang it.
It's a grey and rainy day today, and I really should be doing something useful (like working on Swedish grammar, or a translation about lemmings, or even doing some washing). But let me first show you some good mail I've been getting recently!
A while ago I saw this button brooch on Mielitty's blog (in Finnish only - but check out her 'products' page!). I fell in love with it the moment I saw it; I love how the brooch seems so regal, it kind of reminds me of rosettes worn by important people like presidents or royals. On the other hand, it reminds me also of the ribbons won in horse shows or dog shows. The dog button makes the brooch a bit silly - I think the dog was what made me want this one. Plus purple has been somehow sneaking into my wardrobe lately, little by little.
Another fun thing is this postcard I got today. Miss H was a darling and bought and sent me a skein of yarn I desperately needed to complete a cardigan. She included this absolutely great postcard. It made me smile, I will find a good place for it on my wall!
Last but not least, a few days ago I got a special package all the way from California. I'm always so amazed when I order something from another continent, and it pops into my letterbox less than a week later! Inside was a little inspiration present ('cause I can't wait until Christmas) for a certain someone who reads this blog; that's why you get only a sneak peak for now ...more later! Let me just say that Etsy rules!
I will show you more after next weekend...
Now I must get going; I have a guest coming over for fika (fika is more appropriate a word today than ever, as we're planning to speak Swedish - I'm such a good student!) and I have some muffins to bake. Autumn always makes me want to bake; maybe it's some sort of legacy of the foremothers - winter is coming, one should prepare. Anyway, looking at a batch of fresh muffins makes me feel comfortable and satisfied. And they taste good, too!
