Happy New Times

MAKE
ONE
PROMISE
ONLY

HAVE A
HAPPY FAB
YEAR

Alicia is One

I’m so excited to share this birthday with you, it’s the first birthday party of my niece Alicia. I’m so happy to have this sweet baby girl in my life, and you couldn’t imagine how important it is for me to be here in Sweden with my family on this special occasion.. I’m wishing a very happy birthday to my favourite little girl in the whole world. I promise to look after you when you come and stay with us in Australia when you are a teenager, but don’t mention it to your mum and dad. They wouldn’t let you go, they have seen how it can go.. It will be our secret! The party was captured by me, between munching on delicious cakes & sweets and cuddles from Alicia. I hope you enjoy the photos.

Point + Shoot: Xmas in Spjutstorp

Our little Santa!

Playing along with Sunny+Scout

Merry Christmas

Here are a few photos from our Christmas celebration. I'm having a great time here in Sweden with my gorgeous family. We are enjoying every day we have together.

Christmas Lace

Image from Livet Hemma, IKEA

Put a romantic touch to this seasons festivities. Combine the Christmas sparkle with some glamour on a lace tablecloth. Vintage inspired porcelain and glassware sets the style.

Christmas Inspiration

These white cardboard ornaments are just beautiful, so simple but really cute

Modern ornaments made of white painted wooden blocks and letter stencils

Paper nest-bowls creates a pretty look on the Christmas table

Door decorations made of rice paper and red twine – so simple so elegant so beautiful

I collected all the inspiration photos from ScandinavianDeko

Santa came early!

all I really
need is love…

… but a big
christmas
present just
made me
smile from ear to ear

♥

West End

Images: WestEndDeli

Adam and I had a lunch date at West End Deli together with another couple today. I love Christmas time because everyone makes just that little more effort to catch up. The company was great and the food was really good too!

Chanel

I just got home from dinner with my friends. We wished Claire Happy Birthday for Thursday and we all wanted to catch up for a quick dinner before everyone goes away to celebrate Christmas with their families. When I got home and checked the letterbox I saw that Chanel had sent me a cute book with stickers. Very cute!

Point + Shoot: Sailing

We’ve had the last days of sailing and functions this weekend. It’s been great, but I’m kind of glad it’s over because I will have my fiancé back. He has been tied up for weeks making sure all the IT requirements have been taken care of. He has done a great job. Well done to all the Sailors and good luck for the Olympics 2012.

Playing along with Sunny+Scout

A Swedish Christmas

I took this photo in Fremantle, love how the bird was captured at the very right moment.

There is something very special about the Swedish Christmas.. The cold temperature, snow fall and lots of candle light in the dark.

In the weeks leading up to Christmas everyone gets busy with their Julbak, which is the Swedish tradition of Christmas baking. It involves getting the whole family together and making all the traditional buns and treats from recipes handed down from generations. While we are busy baking and cooking we make sure to enjoy it all with a large mug of hot Glögg, which is like hot spiced red wine.

The same as many other cultures a lot of our Christmas traditions revolves around food, so I can tell you that I am counting down the days until I’m home with my family to celebrate. We will all share a smörgåsbord of ham, pickled herring, vörtbröd (spiced bread), prinskorvar (small sausages), meatballs and gubbröra (anchovy with egg) amongst many other specialties.

God Jul everyone!

Memories of Magical Stories

Images: Sofi Sykfont, Lantliv

This beautiful old home has plenty of white walls and floors, I’m in paradise! The country style Swedish home bring back fond memories of Astrid Lindgren’s books I grew up with. I’m flying home for Christmas next week and I’m going to dig out those old books and read them from cover to cover. I know we have a few video tapes of the movies somewhere too, if only I had a video player! I will make sure that I have the movies and books in my possession when we have kids one day, I wouldn’t want them to grow up without Astrid’s magical stories.

Colour Inspiration

Images: Magnus Anesund, Elle Interiör

I’m very fond of any shade of white, but sometimes we need to add a fun colour in our home. I have to say that my favourite is an aqua turquoise blue colour. I like this mix of sand, stone and ocean colours on both hard surfaces and soft pillows and rugs. You can do so much with accessories if your foundation have white and natural colours.

Lucia

Today Sweden celebrate Lucia, it’s a very old mythical figure who spread light in the dark Swedish winter. She has a parade of maidens, santas and star boys who are singing and helping to spread the light. They are all dressed in white gowns and carry stars and candles. I have been in countless parades and I think it’s a nice tradition. The Lucia parade has a special atmosphere when the lights are dimmed and the sound of the singing parade grows as they enter from an nearby room. The celebration also (obviously) include something sweet! We have ginger bread and saffron buns with a hot cup of glögg. Happy Lucia Day everyone!

Point + Shoot: Kings Park

We enjoyed a lovely picnic with our dear friends on Sunday. The combination of great friends, good food and lots of play always put a smile on my face. I introduced a Swedish game called Kubb, I think they all enjoyed it even though the boys looked hesitant when I told them there weren’t going to be a ball involved. How could you play a game without a ball they asked?! They soon realised.

Playing along with Sunny + Scout

Royal Freshwater Bay Yacht Club

I’m getting ready for the World Sailing Championship Party that is held at our yacht club tonight. We will be mingling with some of the athletes and enjoy French champagne & seafood. One of my friends who has been in training for months will be there and it will be a great opportunity for us to catch up. Bring on the party!!

Chocolate Chip

After 6km run on the treadmill I had a big craving for chocolate, so to undo all my hard work I made these little chocolate babies. If you ask anyone who knows me they would tell you that I LOVE anything chocolate. Even the people at work know exactly how to cheer me up or how to get me on their side if needed! I think I’ll bring some cookies to tomorrows picnic, if there are any leftover that is. Adam just called and announced that he is on the way home. Lets hide the cookies!

Sweet Leila

Image: Wolfgang Kleinschmidt, Metro

Last night I watched the first episode of Leila’s Sweet Christmas, every year she has a Christmas show where she cooks delicious food and sweets. She is Sweden’s favourite sweets chef and most people I know own one of her baking books. A lot of the desserts I make for my friends come from one of her books called A Piece of Cake. It’s a colourful collection with new delicious recipes, but it also contains a lot of her own family’s old recipes. I like how she shares them with all of us.
Leila is busy preparing for a Glögg Party with her son Walter in the picture above. Apparently every year she has a Glögg Party for all their family and friends, one year I want to do just that, invite all my Australian friends over for some Glögg & Pepparkaks mingle. I think they will enjoy learning a little more about my Swedish Christmas traditions.