I'll take a flat in Neptune City.
Hey, Manish Arora, you’re a pretty cool guy who isn’t afraid of bright colours, a zillion beads & sequins, and yarn hair. And I like some yarn hair.
I called it awhile ago and some are calling it now. Fashion has once again embarked upon the space age! I’m so happy about it. Now if we could just get those hotels on the moon ready to go, I’d be elated. And then of course, my next step would be to move to a highly populated city on Neptune.
Jag vill ha sommar nu-posten
This weekend was spent enjoying the outside world in all of its blinding sunshiny glory. Our initial purpose being that of shopping, we bought gifts of chocolate for my father, failed to find what we were looking for at the other stores, and happily purchased a new and shiny sketchbook. Oh, and we bought a large amount of bedding and other home items.
Speaking of weather, let’s talk about that. Has it been snowing for months? Yes, it has. And now that I have seen snow that I can tunnel in, it is time for it to stop and go away. Melt the snowmen. I am ready for some sand walls.
Summer 2009’s sand wall
Den fulaste klänningen i hela kungariket
I saw this dress at the Topshop website for around 2,000 SEK.
It’s one of the ugliest and overdone dresses I’ve ever seen. You’ve got the puff sleeves, the corset, the bodycon, a few beads, and prints. Isn’t that just a little too much, dear designer?
To save this travesty, I’d cut the sleeves off and remove every single bead on it.
What do you think? Could it be saved? Or do you like this dress as is?
And yes, ladies and gentlemen, I really did have to doodle a person in there. I just couldn’t resist. Alien makeup and all.
The search of living space continues!
As many of you know, Carl Johan and I have been on the search for a slightly bigger place to live. We currently live on Terapivägen in those super-colourful “immigrant flats” (shown below) which is sort of perfect for me except that we are sharing a tiny room that is only big enough for a bed, a table, and a chair. Our kitchen can only accommodate one person at a time and we can’t invite friends or family over for tea parties. It’s bad business.
We have looked at all variants of living spaces from houses to apartments (but not boxes next to the train) and we’re currently lingering on one in Söderby Park in Rönninge.
We’ve been looking at several flats in a recently renovated sanatorium (Söderby sjukhus) which was built in 1910 and was the largest sanatorium in Sweden. But, of course, after a cure for tuberculosis was found in the 1920s, sanatoriums weren’t really required any longer and as far as my reading Swedish goes, it seems to have been turned into a long-term care hospital which eventually shut down in the 1980s. Renovation to make the building into housing started in 2005.
What is very nice about this building is that it’s old. I’m quite a fan of old architecture, high ceilings, and large windows but not of ancient appliances and water pipes so it’s all well and good that they’ve gutted the building, turning it into a modern space but keeping the gorgeous framework.
Both Cal and I are quite fond of the several places we’ve looked at in this building; we’ll keep you updated!
A weekend in Copenhagen
Carl Johan and I decided to have a weekend away and so we chose to visit Denmark’s capital. We took the train because that’s what adventurers should do, sort of.
We chose to stay at Wakeup Copenhagen, a hotel that was built in 2009 which offers the cheapest rooms in the city, if you still want a lavatory in your room. It is modernly built and extremely minimalistic with space pod rooms measuring a mere 12-15 m² in area. Every room is exactly the same, furnished simply with a bed, television, and bathroom but most importantly there’s free wifi. Coming in the door, you have to activate the power (lights et al) in the room by putting a key card in a slot on the wall.
Paying more for your room only puts you higher up in the building - no extra beds, no extra space, just a nicer view and although located right beside the tracks of the central station, the rooms are quiet. There were absolutely no disturbances and no construction sites right outside the window like there seems to have been back in 2009 or earlier this year (I had read reviews before we booked our stay). It was in a very decent location for walking if you aren’t a fat mess. Just saying.
Beforehand, most of our stay was planned upon good shopping. After arriving, our plan was altered to just wandering around and drinking coffee because the weather was mostly clear, there was no snow at all, and there were even moments where sunshine blinded us because we haven’t seen it for months.
For the first time ever, I didn’t spend any money but I did try on some fantastic fur hats that Cal talked me out of. Wearing animals eventually makes me sad and he knows it.
We wandered around what we think is Denmark’s version of Sweden’s NK, a shopping mall called Illum. At the very top of this shopping centre, there is a café and since we were hungry, we decided to try it out after lingering around looking at Malene Birger dresses and Acne shoes.
The café wasn’t very good. We thought we’d be Danish about it and have beef for lunch but unless Danes like their meat cold with tin foil bits left on the meat and a hair in the potatoes, we’re pretty certain the chef was having an off day or perhaps it’s just not a good place to eat. The coffee wasn’t the greatest and my orange juice tasted like beer (and now Cal assures me that everything in Denmark tastes like beer). But what can you expect for a place at the top of a shopping centre that sells fur hats on sale for 4,000 SEK?
My first visit of Denmark leaves the impression that it is a place where everyone eats beef, drinks beer, wears real fur coats and hats, and expects Swedes to understand Danish quite easily. Every corner has a shop selling pelts, leather, fur coats, hats or gloves. With KFC, Cinemax, and salting the streets, it could easily be taken for America’s best Scandinavian friend. And let’s not forget that I cannot listen to Danish without giggling a bit.
I’ll have to visit again when it’s warmer when there’s more wandering to be done. I bet it’s a superb city in the spring.
The Crafoords åker på upptäcksfärd till Köpenhamn!
Where I've been & bravo to Rodarte
I have been ill constantly for the last few weeks. This time I have the flu. And I’m coughing up phlegm. And it is not awesome.
I’ve had fevers of 39 degrees and those cause me to be sweaty and I really hate being sweaty. Last night, Carl Johan gave me Voltaren T for my fevers which failed because I have a shoddy stomach. I found that out by waking up this morning at 3:32 with what I thought was a heart attack. But it wasn’t a heart attack; it was my stomach acids fighting it up in there somehow giving me angina and what?
Anyway, a cup of gooey gel, a cup of “citrus-flavoured” medicine, and a couple of tablets that tasted and felt like I was chewing chalk made it a bit better and I have medicine for the next three weeks. And no more Voltaren ever again. No, sir.
Better news? I want to announce that Rodarte made a collection that I like*. The Fall 2010 collection was so lovely. I love that they’ve tried the unusual pastels and beige for the cold and snowy seasons instead of the usual black and grey. They’ve even incorporated floral patterns in there.
*I’ve been hiding my true feelings about Rodarte. Everyone was raving about their Spring 2010 collection which I was not keen on because I don’t like clothing that looks like I’ve been living on the streets for thirty-three years. Sorry!
Det är för många citroner!
Carl Johan recently brought about one thousand lemons home because I said I should have more fruits in my diet (as I have been ill again). I don’t know why he thought I would eat lemons. Does anyone actually eat lemons like they eat other fruits, i.e., take a big bite out of them and say “mmm, fruit!”? No big deal: he brought about one thousand of other fruits as well.
So, as I was trying to find a use for that many lemons besides lemonade, I came across several articles about making your own facial cleansers or using lemons for healthier skin.
It’s very simple: juice a lemon, soak a cotton pad with the juice, apply it to your face staying away from the eyes and you have a choice: leave it on for 20 minutes or leave it on as you sleep. It burns and itches for a moment but I have noticed a difference in my skin and so have others and it’s a lot cheaper and a lot simpler than anything else I’ve used.
Another great - yet sticky - thing to use is honey.
What are your home-made skincare regimés?
KronKron of Reykjavik
KronKron is a wonderful shop (and e-store) in Reykjavik, Iceland where you can buy gorgeous clothing by Henrik Vibskov, Vivienne Westwood, Sonia Rykiel, Mundi and others.
But the best part of KronKron is that if you’re a mixed pattern and colour lover like I am, there are some wonderful shoes to see by Kron themselves. Featuring cute prints and a bold mix of colour in a traditional Icelandic style, I’m pretty certain you’ll love them. The only bad thing is trying to decide which colours to choose from. Which are your favourites?
Major Lazer directed by Eric Wareheim
Fun fact: Even though there’s an abundance of massive women in tight, revealing clothing and a lot of crazy going on, I love these Major Lazer music videos. Eric Wareheim is obviously a fan of colour and lots of colour is okay by me.
Did I mention Diplo is wearing a very suave suit in this video? Because he is. And the people in video number two would not be invited to any party of mine. I would be afraid of their dancing.
*