Five on Friday

Happy Friday! I know I say this every week but hasn’t the time just flown by? I had a midweek meeting up in town and somehow spending three days instead of four working at my desk, made the week seem much shorter. For starters, I hardly had time to take any pictures but here is a quick recap of what I managed to pull together for the weekly Friday post.

Cameron

Those of you who follow me on Instagram will have already seen this picture of my eldest son, taken on our trip to the woods last weekend, but I love it so much I wanted to share it again. I find it hard to believe that he will turn 11 this year but I’m also deeply proud of the kindhearted, sensitive yet fun loving young man he is turning into.

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This week’s clearout at my parents’ house unearthed this little gem which I wore to my high school prom at the age of 16 or 17. I remember I wanted to wear it with my Dr Martens (or DMs as we called them) but my mum persuaded me to go for more traditional black pumps (probably a good thing! Sometimes mum really does know best.). The dress then accompanied me to university where I wore it to quite a few college balls but after I graduated it was stowed away at my parents’ house and forgotten about .

I bought the dress from the now defunct Hyper Hyper, a huge retail space populated with stalls run by independent young designers, on Kensington High Street in London. At the time it was my favourite shopping haunt along with the slightly seedier Kensington Market across the road. I haven’t been to High Street Ken for ages – is it still the go-to place for teenagers who consider themselves a cut above the identikit chains?

This is definitely a piece that I want to hold onto for Clemmie although I have to admit that it has seen better days. Despite having a dry clean label pinned to it, it shows signs of having had a few drinks spilled over it and it’s slightly faded around the edges.

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Fingers crossed, we are finally booking our summer holiday this weekend. The pictures are from our holiday in Mallorca two years ago. We had such a great time and the kids still talk about it but sadly we won’t be going back there this year. I can’t imagine not going to Sweden in the summer holidays and, with building work planned for later this year, our budget doesn’t stretch to two trips abroad.

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I’m not a huge fan of self help books but I was intrigued by this one when I read an interview with the author in Red Magazine. Gabrielle Bernstein promises to help time-starved readers clear stress and find peace using practical in-the-moment tools. Definitely sounds like something I could do with!

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It’s a good thing that I didn’t succumb to the temptation to put away all the winter clothes at the first sign of spring. In the last couple of days the temperature has plummeted by several degrees and today I actually wore gloves on the school run. But yesterday was the official start of spring so I decided to celebrate by ignoring the cold snap and buying some beautiful tulips (and turning the heating up!)

Hope you all have a fantastic weekend! X

If you go down to the woods today…

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I’m a city girl at heart and although we live in a village on the outskirts of London, I love that the city centre is only a 30 minute train ride away. But despite my affection for urban living I do sometimes get a yearning for wide open spaces. Now that the weather is better, we have all (especially the children) been craving fresh air, trees to climb, trails to explore and hills to roll down. Luckily, we also have on our doorstep some of the finest countryside the south east of England has to offer. So on Sunday morning we set off early to beat the crowds and drove up to Box Hill in Surrey where we spent a good couple of hours enjoying the great outdoors. We all had a fabulous time and, best of all, come Sunday night the kids were so exhausted they were out like a light at 8pm!

Cam & Clem

Casper

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Clemmie

The boys & I

Five on Friday

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{Clear blue skies and pretty blossoms made me smile despite the runny nose and sore throat}

I sat down to write this post and suddenly realised just how tired I am. The weekend really couldn’t come at a better time and for once the diary is quite empty so hopefully we can fit in some proper family time. I’ve been battling a horrible cold all week so it will be great to get a chance to recharge the batteries and just chill out at home. On the plus side we have had some fabulous weather – isn’t it lovely to reach for the sunglasses rather than the umbrella before heading out the door?

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{I’ve been trying to stay healthy and boost my immune system with a daily dose of Spirulina. The boys have dubbed it ‘alien juice’ because of the green colour! I have to admit it does taste pretty awful and is just about bearable mixed into orange juice or a smoothie. But if it keeps the cold symptoms at bay it is definitely worth it.}

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{I promised Casper that I would include a picture of him dressed as a Viking for his class assembly this week. He did really well, remembering all his lines and the words to the all the songs, and there were quite a few. Strange to think that his next assembly will be the leavers one, before he and his classmates move onto the junior school.}

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{My ballerina pumps had their first outing this week. These are from H&M (last year) and so comfy but I need to buy some more – in black, silver and maybe pink.}

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{Despite feeling like death warmed up I made it to my rescheduled hair appointment this week. I had a good couple of inches taken off the ends – as I use hair straighteners every day without fail (I know, slap on the wrist for me..), my hair was quite damaged. I love the shorter length though and the lighter colour. I’ve only been to this hairdresser a couple of times but she’s definitely a keeper! Incidentally, while I was there I read an article which argued that taking selfies is good for your self esteem. Not sure I agree with that, it took me about 20 attempts to get one that I was vaguely happy with and I don’t think I’m exceptionally vain.}

Happy Friday everyone! Mine was made even better by the fact that my husband brought me flowers when he came home from work. That doesn’t happen every week, believe me! X

Linked In

Links I love

Happy Wednesday everyone! Hard to believe that we are already halfway through the working week. I have had one of those (very rare) productive mornings where I managed to get loads done without being distracted by the Internet (Facebook is the worst – I can easily waste half an hour on there without even realising – although I’m a lot better now that I’ve deleted the App from my phone) or the pile of glossy interior magazines currently residing on the kitchen table. So far I’ve written an article for work, put all the washing away, hoovered upstairs and ordered a pair of new football boots from Cameron (Rather scarily his feet are now just one size smaller than mine.) I still have half an hour until I have to collect Clemmie from preschool so plenty of time to share some of my best finds from around the web this week.

1. Now that the children are a bit older I would love to start travelling a bit more. I found this list of 100 places to visit before you die and there are plenty of places on there that I have yet to visit.

2. We all have different food tastes in our household but one thing that we all love is a good bowl of pasta. Here are 25 best pasta recipes to try.

3. Tips on how to write the perfect thank you note – and even better if it is written on this gorgeous Smythson stationery

4. The secret of a happy marriage is apparently to tell your partner you love them ten times a week and go on at least three dates a month. Does dinner a deux at home count? Otherwise the babysitting bill could start piling up…

5. This is one that I really need at the moment as I’m trying to sort through all the stuff from my parents’ house as well as old and outgrown clothes, toys etc. I don’t consider myself to be a hoarder but sometimes I have a hard time deciding what to keep and what to throw out or sell. How to edit your wardrobe and avoid stuffocation 

6. Finally, here is a collection of Fashion Quotes to inspire and amuse.

Still 15 minutes to go so I’m off to sit in the garden with my coffee and one of those tempting magazines. Have a great Wednesday. X

The Weekend in Pictures

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{I went for a walk on Saturday morning and snapped these lovely daffodils}

Isn’t it amazing what a difference a bit of sunshine can make? We have had glorious weather this weekend and somehow everything seems so much easier when the sun is out, everyone is happier (including the normally grumpy drivers in London!) and even food seems to taste better when it is eaten outside, underneath bright blue skies. I wonder if it’s just because nice weather is such a rarity on these shores. I’d love to know – if you’re lucky enough to live in sunnier climes, does it still boost your mood or do you just get used to it?

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{The outdoor furniture could do with a good clean but it was blissful to sit outside with a cup of coffee and a magazine, listening to the birds chirping in the trees and the children arguing over the football (oh well you can’t have it all!)}

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{Lady in blue: Me up in town this morning wearing my blue pumps from New Look (bought five years ago), a white and blue scarf (bought in Sweden), knitted jacket by Odd Molly, jeans by Paige Denim and sunglasses from Oliver Peoples}

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{We try to go up to the Swedish Church in Marylebone twice a month so the children can go to Sunday school and practice their language skills. Afterwards, there is always coffee and plenty of cakes – during Lent they serve traditional Swedish semla (cakes flavoured with cardamom and filled with almond paste and cream) – sooo yummy!}

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{It looks like it will be the perfect week to fit in a few power walks and trips to the park. No doubt the rain will return at some point so I intend to make the most of it!}

Now the kids are all in bed, the washing up is done, my blog post is written and I think we have time to squeeze in a couple of episodes of House of Cards. We’ve almost watched all of the second series so have to find another one soon…

Hope you’ve all had a great weekend. X

Five on Friday

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{Some of you may remember that I was lusting after the Narsissist eye palette by Nars a few weeks ago. Alas it was not to be – I had planned to buy it with my Space NK vouchers but as the eye palette was exclusive to Selfridges here in the UK, I didn’t feel I could justify the £55. So instead I bought the Narsissist cheek palette which was stocked by Space NK and comes with a blusher, highlighter and bronzer.}

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{I’m loving my coffee table books at the moment. They make great home accents and I like to flick through them for inspiration. My most recent additions are the Alexa Chung book ‘It’ and a beautiful Chanel book filled with images to drool over.}

The best laid plans as they say…

This week hasn’t turned out quite how I wanted. On Monday Casper came home with a sore ear and he hasn’t been back at school all week. We went to the doctor who diagnosed a viral ear infection so antibiotics wouldn’t help, all we can do is try and reduce the pain with Nurofen and Calpol. It’s not too bad during the day but at night it is very painful as the fluid in ear builds up and he has trouble sleeping. So pretty much everything has been cancelled this week – from playdates and after school activities to my hair appointment and lunch date. While I hate to see him suffer, it has been really nice having him at home. With three children it’s not always easy to find one-to-one time, especially with the boys as they are at school all day. He has had to amuse himself with Lego and the iPad while I’ve been working but we have also had time for nice chats, board games and baking.

Hopefully his ear will improve as we head into weekend. The weather is set to be lovely – with temperatures of 17 degrees forecast for Sunday! – so I’m looking forward to sitting out in the garden with a cup of coffee to soak up some rays.

Hope you have a fab weekend! X

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{The clear-out at my parents’ house continues and this week I saved a silk clutch, that my dad bought in Japan for my mum in the late 70s, from going off to the charity shop. It’s not my usual style but I think it will look good with a cream summer dress or just jeans and a simple tee, with gold heels and jewellery.}

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{Cameron looked great in his Sherlock Holmes costume for World Book Day yesterday and I’m happy to report that my Burberry returned home unscathed.}

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{It’s been a busy week but I managed to take a few minutes out to read the interview with SJP in this month’s Harper’s Bazaar. And of course, you can’t have a proper break without coffee and chocolate biscuits!}

Five on Friday

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I went on a spending spree at Space NK and used up the vouchers I got for Christmas and my birthday last autumn. Love that shop! I will do a separate post on the things I bought next week.

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I started putting together a kitchen inspiration folder ahead of our planned renovation later this year. Between that and my Pinterest board I don’t think I’ll be stuck for ideas.

Jewellery

This jewellery tree was on sale for only £10 in a local boutique. Having some of my favourite pieces on display on top of my dresser will hopefully encourage me to accessorize more.

Unisa boots

Honestly, I am not a shopaholic but I had forgotten about these Unisa boots that I bought just before Christmas. Now that I’ve found them, I can’t stop wearing them as they are so comfortable. They remind me of my favourite pair of boots that I had at school.

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I’m also somewhat obsessed with my Star sweater from Hunky Dory (another Sale buy) – accessorized here with my ten-year-old son’s beanie, which I keep stealing – much to his embarrassment I should add (I just tell him it’s pay back for all those toddler tantrums he used to throw in the middle of the supermarket to embarrass me!)

Happy Friday everyone! I hope the weekend is all you want it to be – and more! X

A Trip Down Memory Lane

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My parents have put their house on the market and, as they’re downsizing, kindly invited me over this week to go through some boxes they had found lurking in the deepest, darkest corners of their loft. I spent quite a few hours wading through more than two decades of memories, from the newspapers published on the day I was born to my university dissertation. I won’t keep all of it of course, for one we haven’t got the storage space and also I don’t think it’s that interesting to anyone apart from me. But it was fun to relive old memories.

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What made me laugh the most were the little books that my friend and I wrote (and illustrated) ourselves back in Sweden when we decided to start our own library – we can’t have been older than eight or nine. For someone who had a very harmonious and well-adjusted childhood, I sure managed to come up with some dark, disturbing plot lines…

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I found some old photos of me as a toddler and as a teenager with my beloved grandmother.

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We bought Clemmie a dolls house for Christmas without knowing that, tucked away in my parents’ loft, was a box of all my old dolls house furniture (the house itself has been disposed of along the way). We brought it all back home and she loves playing with it so we could have saved ourselves a bit of money!  There is tons more, including bedroom, bathroom and three (??) kitchen sets – I only photographed a few pieces as I wanted to show you the sauna – so very Swedish!

Teddies

Clemmie also took a shine to my old teddies which are now propped up on her bed next to the Maileg bunnies. Considering they have been in storage for such a long time they are rather well preserved although I have warned her to be gentle with them as, in Teddy years ,they are old age pensioners.

The Face

I also found some copies of The Face, dating back to 1996. It must be the same year (or maybe the year after..) I saw both The Prodigy and Oasis live at Glastonbury. I wonder if my children will be impressed?

There are still many more boxes to go through (having had the luxury of lots of storage space, my parents haven’t cleared anything out since we left Sweden!) but I hope to whittle down what I keep to two box files at the most. Wish me luck!

 

Linked In

Linked in

1.In the end, happiness is what we all strive for. Here are ten habits that will make us happier

2. Save up to 30% on Shopbop with the code BIGEVENT14 (Valid until tomorrow). I love this Juicy Couture necklace

3. Make your own original headboard with this DIY guide

4. Put a spring in your step and drool over the latest styles just in at Selfridges from Isabel Marant, Nicholas Kirkwood, Acne and Tods

5. A new book with helpful strategies to help kids cope with sensory overload in today’s hectic world

6. Pancake Day is just around the corner: here is a foolproof recipe for perfect pancakes

Five on Friday

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I cleared out my old nail polishes and stocked up on a new colour (Smokin’ Hot by Essie – in a gorgeous deep grey with purple undertones) as well as a fast dry top coat by Morgan Taylor called Need for Speed

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It’s half term this week so on a rainy afternoon the children and I made these yummy Daim biscuits (as well as an almighty mess in the kitchen but these babies were well worth it)

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I finally booked tickets to go and see the Isabella Blow exhibition Fashion Galore! at Somerset House. I’m going with a friend next Saturday – the day before it ends, talk about cutting it fine!

Tulips

My tulips from Valentine’s Day are still with us (just about). I saw a tip on the Internet which said that putting them in ice cold water made the flowers last longer. It seems to have worked.

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I’ve also been decanting my kitchen staples like flour, sugar, pasta etc into glass jars (mostly from Ikea) and labeling them with these cute chalkboard labels from Not on the High Street. Looks so much better than lots of half full bags and packets spilling stuff everywhere.

Happy weekend everyone! X