Syren berså - lilac enclosure

Lovely lilacs

Mer Jul (More Christmas)

Ready for Christmas?  I am already, in Sweden the Christmas markets are starting to put out the glögg (mulled wine) and goodies, people are enjoying Christmas store displays and the Lucia is being picked for the school pageant.  Of course here we have Thanksgiving to enjoy before the craziness commences but I for one am pysched for "jul kalendar" (the annual Christmas show on tv that shows one episode a day in December), cookies, candles and "jul mys".  More on XMAS Markets here.

My friend just got me the cutest tray and napkins from IKEA with "Tomte" (the Swedish Santa) on them and it got me thinking. Luckily for me there will be lots of relatives here for Thanksgiving, some Swedes to boot, and we can start filling up on glögg and pepperkakor (Swedish gingerbread). I'm leaving you with a lovely glögg recipe here, and a song that I think you will enjoy about Christimas by Adolphson & Falk whether you understand the lyrics or not.  Called "Mer Jul" it means "More Christmas" and is more than a little tongue in cheek.  ;-)  Let me know if you like it.

Day of the Döda (Dead)

Hello, yesterday was Veterans's Day in the States, a day when we honor those in the military who serve our country and it got me started on thinking about my family and how although we don't have a lot of fighters in the family tree, we do have a lot of love.  I miss my grandparents tremendously so I decided to honor them in my own little "Day of the Dead", a week late and a dollar short perhaps, but I had the day off and I wanted my children to think of them and know more about them.

If you have seen the wild and wonderful new film "The Book of Life" produced by Guillermo del Toro, then you know about the wonderful Mexican tradition during the week around Halloween that honors ancestors whom have passed away . It's a time to celebrate their lives, and invite the dead back into our lives with food, candles, flowers and by visiting their graves.

from Soft Sea Travel

Marigolds abound this time of year in Mexico and actually still flourish in my garden, so I used them for my mini altar.  I put out photos, and a wonderful book that my aunt made to memoralize my American grandparents (thanks Aunt Joanne), as well as some clementines, a candle and flowers.  If I had them I would have put out a plate of Marianne candy which makes me think of my Swedish grandmother who loved them and used to suck on them while knitting, and some bourbon which my American grandfather enjoyed.  (But only in moderation, and never any earlier than the stroke of 5PM.)  I loved all my grandparents, two from Sweden, two from America and never considered asking them for anything although they gave me so much.  Missing them.

Avicii and Happy Father's Day Swedes!

Avicii is now on our Swedish stamps.
All over 30 be like: "Who's Avicii?"
All under 30 be like: "What's a stamp?"

(Copyright by Tore H. G. Kullgren)

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY TO ALL YOU WONDERFUL SWEDISH DADS!

Grattis på farsdag till alla underbara svenska pappor!

p.s. Avicii is a famous Swedish DJ.  He co-wrote and co-produced "A Sky Full of Stars" with Coldplay's Chris Martin among many other achievements

Sleep tight

Hello bedroom.... wow, a place for a queen.  There might be room for my king here too.  ;-)

This bedroom stolen from "Sköna Hem", a Swedish interior design magazine, is so romantic it's awesome, but unfortunately hubby doesn't have quite the same taste. For example he would nix the bed ruffle in one swoop and he hates chandeliers.  I guess having a man is worth some compromising, ;-) so here's where we landed - with the åkerkulla panels from IKEA and the kvartal system that I described in this post: back-to-ikea.

There are some elements in this picture that I think we could incorporate though into our space that maybe HH would agree such as the wooden ceiling (love that) and the soft palette throughout.  It's so restful isn't it?  But the pillows he would toss, I have dozens in the closet for that reason!  BTW, how do you handle husbands who get in the way of your decorating?

Here is a link to more French inspired bedrooms: http://www.skonahem.com/inspiration/sovrum/17-franska-sovrum-som-ar-omojliga-att-motsta  Good night, sleep tight!