The attic through a wide angle lens

Before we left I managed to snap a few photos of the flat with my old wide angle lens. It felt about time since you've only seen details so far. What do you think?

Last breakfast in London for a while

We're going on vacation to Sweden for almost two weeks very early tomorrow morning. First to Stockholm and then to Gothenburg. I haven't decided whether to bring the blog or not. We'll see about that, I'll be back sooner or later anyway. Now: HOLIDAY!

Bagels

Fried eggs

Cheddar cheese

Salami (for Peter)

Mayonnaise, Sriracha

Tomatos

Salt, pepper

Orange juice, coffee

Squirrel says hi!

Playlist • July 2015

My favorite songs in July so far.

Breakfast stool

The stools are finished! Served together with Earl Grey, orange juice, toast with vegan ham and cheddar and a 4 minutes boiled egg.

DIY Ikea hacks

I've got this idea to make the space just outside our door my studio since we're on the top floor and nobody uses that space anyway. Yesterday I managed to buy some spray paint, even though I spent most of the day looking for a dentist who could take a look at my wisdom tooth which hurt and still hurts like hell. I did found one and got some penicillin so hopefully the pain will fade asap. The plan was to make the Ikea basket on the picture into a kitchen lamp. Something like this.

I started with cutting a small whole for the cable using the kitchen knife from the first picture. Very handy.

I used Liquitex spray paint which is an acrylic spray paint that doesn't smell that much which makes it good to use indoors. I chose the color 'Cadmium red light hue' since I wanted something just in between orange and red. From Cass Art.

After the first layer. It's a bit darker and more red in reality.

Then I decided to paint the top of our Ikea stools as well. I started with removing the legs.

Then I spray painted them in the same color as the basket/lamp. I did the last layer just now so I wont be able to show you the result until tomorrow. Stay tuned.

Avocado thief

Yesterday when me and Peter were in the kitchen cooking, a squirrel got in and took one of our avocados. We just stood there with our jaws down, like, did that just happen? Sneaky little thief.

Two dinners

Aubergine

Minced soy, red onion, spring onion, garlic

Tomato paste, organic veggie bouillon, chipotle, barbecue sauce, salt, black pepper

Grated halloumi cheese

Salad, olive oil

Smoked mackerel

Potatoes, salad, red onion, tomatoes

Balsamic vinegar, wholegrain mustard, agave syrup, salt, pepper

Details pt 2

Our hallway is the tiniest ever so this door hook thingie is where we hang our everyday outerwear. At the moment Peters cap and my dearest Acne leather jacket.

We've made some improvements in our bathroom with a shelf, a great old storage box and this plant (does anyone know the name of it?). 

But the greatest improvement is that we teared out the nasty old kitchen carpet and found this beautiful wooden floor underneath. Now we just have to decide what to do with it (paint it white or keep it as it is?).

Here's Peter in our tiny home office/studio. I usually sit by the dinner table/in the sofa/in bed/on the floor.

Some kitchen details.

Poached eggs = Good morning

My bf has some serious skills when it comes to making poached eggs. It's like having expensive restaurant brunch at home.

Poached eggs

Mayonnaise, cheddar cheese

Brown bread fried in butter

Salad, tomato
Apple juice, coffee

Beauty routine pt 1

1. Wash, tone, moisturize

My skin is a troublemaker, one day it’s dry, the other it’s the opposite and in between its red and full of tiny, tiny bumps (my GP thinks it’s Rosacea). To keep it happy I try to keep it simple, as little products as possible with as few ingredients as possible. I wash it with Cetaphil Gentle Skin Cleanser, an extremely unsexy face wash but very kind to sensitive skin. Then I spray my face with Avene Eau Thermal which might seem like a hocus product but to me it works as a sort of toner that cools down my skin if it’s irritated. On top of that I use Avene Antirougeurs Jour in the morning, or Cetaphil Moisturizer on extra sensitive spots but nothing at all at night.

2. Make-up

Maybe it's because my skin is as it is that makes it my greatest obsession. Apart from trying to make it as flawless as possible I don’t use much makeup at all. My number one skin savior is No 7's Hypo-allerginc Mineral Perfection in 'New Ivory' which I brush all over my face with a very soft brush. Almost all my brushes are from realTechnics at the moment.

My second obsession is my eyebrows which I dye every three weeks. I don’t do much plucking but I use a small scissor to keep them trimmed and in shape. Then I use a brow brush and instead of a brow shadow I use an eye shadow (tip from eyebrow expert Emilie Roslund). I use a No 7's shadow in 'Matte mocha'. I don't always wear mascara but if I feel like it I use No 7's Exceptional Definition which hands down is the best mascara I've ever had. Guess which my favorite make up brand is? Right, it starts with No and ends with 7.

On festive occasions I use different shades of eye shadow, like these (last picture) from Make up store in 'Muffin', & Other stories in 'Raisin Vapor' and Sephora in 'Desert Dune No 69'. I seldom wear blush since my cheeks tend to be pink anyway but I like the color of this one from Sephora in 'Orange pop No 17'.

Organics

We recently signed up for a subscription on organic veggies from Growing Communities Hackney. It means every Wednesday we get a bag of organic veggies that's in season for like £7 a week. It also means we never have to buy veggies in stores like Tesco or Sainsburys anymore except for maybe an occasional avocado... Though I think we'll have to upgrade from a 'small bag' to a 'standard' after our vacation.

Halloumi Burger AW

Yesterday when I got home from work Peter had made this for me and our friend Erik who was visiting, Halloumi burgers with caramelized onions and fries. So good. Then we drank a lot of beer and made really nerdy geography quizzes (which we failed) til 1.30 at night. Great Wednesday!

Salad

Halloumi

Brown bread

Sriracha & mayonnaise

Red onion, corn, barbecue sauce

Oven roasted potatoes with thyme, salt and pepper

Flower mix

 

These are my latest bargains, a (very crinkled) kimono and a swimsuit. All these colors and patterns are making me a bit nervous, but I'm trying to start wearing things that aren't just black or grey. Both from Beyond Retro.

Noodles and nuts

Monday dinner for two.

Egg noodles

Teriyaki sauce, minced ginger, soy

Edamame beans, carrots, pak choi, spring onions, cilantro

Dry roasted peanuts

Sriracha

Into the Wild

I'm one of those hippie hipsters who dream of backpacking, hiking and living on a beach. When we're in Sweden on vacation in two weeks I plan to do at least one night of camping in the archipelago. I really miss the ocean and the forest, guess London does that to you.

Last week I saw the movie Wild with Reese Witherspoon hiking through the US which was quite good, but not as good as my favorite Into the Wild which all nature lovers and adventurists should see even though it has a very sad ending.

The pictures above are all from my Travel map on Pinterest.