Yes, it's that time of year

It's friday and I'm packing for the annual skiing trip to Sweden, a topic I have covered in great length before - but I hope you'll forgive me. It's simply that I am always so delirious with joy that we are going, and can hardly wait. I get like a five year old, when I look at the images from the other years, to me it's better than Christmas (well, almost) and New Years put together, and the best thing we do all winter.

It also gives me an excuse to post silly or nostalgic skiing outfit pictures, so today I am presenting to you (above) the lovely Lady Clementine Churchill, in two piece wool, Hermès scarf and St. Bernard dog. 1937 in St. Moritz, of course, where apparently most truly stylish skiing takes place. She gets to go first, because I just watched the very see worthy 'The Crown' on Netflix, where she is portrayed in a very sweet manner. 

I adore these ladies as well....

However, I could not see myself doing much skiing in heavy wool trousers, fur and stiff leather boots. Skiing I find complicated enough as it is, and modern, functional sportswear are one of the reasons it is doable. 

Except this polka dot number from a sixties editorial in Italian Vogue. Now, that I could go for. 

(images are from Getty Archives and Condé Nast Traveller)

So strange, so beautiful

Wonderful, dreamy and peculiar they are, jellyfish - and you never really get to look at them properly. They are quite abundant in Danish waters, but hard to study in detail. Imagine my delight, when we visited the fantastic Monterey Bay Aquarium*, where an entire section is dedicated to them. These are common types in the Pacific area near Monterey, not odd or exotic varieties. I didn't write down the names, but just stood there, hypnotized, in front of the giant, backlit tanks, in the dark rooms, that made them gleam like jewels, and every tentacle, detail and colour stand out. Stunning!

 

*Check their Live Jelly Cam! 

 

Summer is coming to an end, and I am slowly starting to digest all the impressions from our long trip in July and August (we travelled on the US West coast), not to mention roughly organizing hundreds and hundreds of photographs, something I am always very keen to get done, but sadly do in short bursts of wild energy and determination (and then I don't get much done) and at very odd intervals.

I have thousands of unsorted photos in folders and folders, and they are both my treasure and a constant source of feeling behind. I think this is a very common problem, and sometimes I consider making dogma rules for myself, such as being only allowed to take ten photos per day, or doing a daily delete-session. Because sorting images for me is a big job: it actually means getting rid of all the redundant ones, only keeping the one or two of a certain scene I actually like, and it also means doing the big or small photoshop corrections on each image that may need them. And only then do I consider a folder of images sorted and done. And I do actually enjoy looking at my old photos, I frequently spend hours getting lost in them - I'd think rather have that than Netflix, any day. 

But what a job. Sigh. 

Summer Break

This blog will be taking a very official break (after a longer period of not very frequent posts - sorry about that, readers, I do hope you have found some of the old posts useful).

My family and myself will be making an old dream come true: the classic California roadtrip - from Seattle to San Diego with an lot of interesting stops on the way (Portland, Mount Shasta, Napa Valley, San Fransisco, Los Angeles - and a lot of smaller places like Monterey, Big Sur, Solvang, Palm Springs, Joshua Tree. Wow!).

It will be a big adventure, and I know I will be back with lots of new energy, power and inspiration, after a busy and a bit too challenging spring. And - perhaps best of all - an entire month spent in the company of some of the people I love best. Not too bad, huh? 

See you in late August, and a happy and peaceful summer to you all.

Tallinn

Last week I went to Tallinn, Estonia, for the first time - actually it was my very first visit to anywhere in the Baltic countries, even though they are close to Denmark, and tickets are often cheap. I went with a group of girlfriends, simply to relax and stroll and eat nice food, and we were very happy with the visit. We stayed in a modern hotel, right next to the old town center, with its medieval walls, cobblestones, church spires and pastel color houses. It is a beautiful place, and the atmosphere is great, people are nice and there is loads to do, see, eat and drink. This is not a travel tip blog post, but there were a few places that impressed us especially, so let me just give a you couple of warm recommendations.

Simply wonderful restaurant (see interior a couple of photos above): Vanaema Juures (meaning something like 'Granny's Place'). Traditional Estonian food with a contemporary twist, and very charming interior - old lamps, family photos and stuff - but somehow not in a kitschy way, just friendly and cosy. And great hostesses!

Best bar in town, we think (see also photo above): Self Baar - a nice little gin bar, and is a must if you like a G+T. Here they have 50 different gins and several tonics, lemonades, cordials and whatnot to mix them with. And they spice them up with hawthorn, cucumber, peppercorns and other magical ingredients - and they are heavenly. Also, of course, super nice staff. 

Great spot for lunch (see last photo): F-hoone - a big, lively restaurant in an old industrial building, situated in the middle of Telliskivi Creative City (an old industry area near the train station, now workshops, small businesses, bars, pop up shops and general lots-going-on). Best place for some very relaxed studies of the Estonian hipster - and the food was delicious.

I can only say: if you get the chance - go to Tallinn!

La Maison de la Photographie in Marrakech

I was in Marrakech in November, and will probably get back to that visit in a few blog posts, since it's a spectacularly interesting and visually overwhelming city. I only had my old iPhone with me to take pictures this time, but had a wonderful trip and fell as much in love with the pink labyrinth-like inner city, as I did on my first visit, some years ago. 

This time, my two friends and I, made sure to visit La Maison de la Photographie, a small photo museum I will most warmly recommend. It's hidden away in a narrow medina alley, in a very pretty old house, that houses a large collection of old photographs of everyday life in Morocco, from the late 1800s up to around 1960, roughly. They only have parts of the huge collection on display, but change the exhibition regularly.

Marrakech is a place where the past seem very present, and this wonderful little, tranquil house full of fantastic photographs, makes you realize how much - and how little - the place and the people have changed.

Here are a few impressions.....
(all old black/white images below are courtesy of maison de la Photographie)

The house is, as I mentioned, very pretty, and when you reach the roof, you will find a small café and a gorgeous view! They also have a shop that sell high quality prints, if you fall in love with a special image. Most of them are available as prints.

Link to the Maison de la Photographie website, with all the practical info

There is one image you see again and again, in reference to this museum - and one you will remember, because this is a most remarkable face. It is a portrait of a young man, a slave called Hamidou, taken in 1885, and his sad eyes, and strong, beautiful face are impossible to forget.

When we visited, on a rainy quiet day, there was a gnawa street musician sitting outside the open door, and his singing and the sound of his sintir - a kind of slappy guitar bass - was following me all the time, while I was studying all these pictures. It was quite magical, like a perfect soundtrack.

He was really great, and I stepped outside and made a little film - you can see it here (very un-edited), and get an idea of how beautifully the old images and the old music just blended together.....

See (but mainly listen to) my little gnawa video on flickr

Color Explosion (Marrakech part one)

I had a lovely trip to Marrakech last week.

I'm back in business, but with a nasty cold, and a lot of deadlines. While I pull myself together and try to get better, I dream of this crazy, colorful labyrinth of a city. I close my eyes and smell the thé á la menthe, the gasoline fumes, the heavy perfumes and the incense. And I think of the orange blossom crème brûlée, the yummy breakfast pancakes and the tajine de poulet aux figues.

Marrakech is sensory overload in so many ways - most of them nice!

Here is a handful of snapshots (yes, too many. I know. I found it very hard to select a small batch, and hope they might inspire you). 

I'll be back later in the week with a nice Christmas project, so see you then.

A few days in a parallel universe. Can't wait!

I will be ignoring the fact that December is just around the corner, for a little while longer. And I will be doing it in Marrakech, which should be very well suited for this kind of procrastination. Me and my two friends will hit the hammams and the souks and get back in a week or so, with soft, rosy feet and languid minds!!

I love Marrakech. The top photo (by Takashi Nakagawa / National Geographic) is from the Ben Yussuf Medersa (a sort of dorm and study hall for religous scholars), a place I will re-visit, certainly. Probably one of the most beautiful buildings I have ever seen!

Oh, and the food. And the colours, the smells, the slender palms and the really nice locals! And the shopping - an event in itself. Everyone in my family can anticipate sticky, black soap and loads of aromatic spices for Christmas, this year.

Spring favorite # 1: Modulor in Berlin

Hope you're all enjoying spring, which is turning into summer her in Cph!

I've been very busy, but have collected a few thoughts and loose ends, so even though I have a bit of a blog break at the time, let me welcome you to my little series of Spring Favorites!

We took a small Spring break in Berlin some weeks ago, and I love love love Berlin. I could write a lot about that place, and we had some sunny and lovely days on our visit, so I have lots of blogging material, so to speak, loads of photos and such. But I actually only want to share this one tip with you!

I've been to Berlin quite a few times before, and it's a city full of change, energy and exiting things, and every time you come, there is a whole new neighborhood or scene to check out. And the shopping, oooh! In my view the very best shopping spot in Europe - as far as I'm concerned, anyway. I have it pretty well mapped out, and have lots of must-visit-shops.

Which is why it is a bit odd - with my almost lifelong passion for paper and art supply shops - that I have never visited this utterly and completely fantastic shop before. But this time I finally went!

If you, as I do, love that kind of shops - look no further. This is seriously the best there is, and I would travel to Berlin for this shop alone. 

Niftily situated right next to Moritzplatz U-Bahn Station, and near the Design College - and opposite a small park, where they have nice street food vendors in the Summer - it is an absolutely must from now on, for my future visits. As driving there is fairly easy and quick from Copenhagen, I contemplate going there on a shopping expedition with an empty trunk! Oh, man, did they have some nice stuff I would like to own.

Because, not only do they have EVERYTHING you can possibly imagine in the way of papers, modelling materials, glues, paints, colors, pencils, markers, stickers, tools, metal bits and bobs, decorating materials and aaaaaaaaall that. No, no - they also have probably the most interesting selection of affordable storage and office/workplace furnishings and accessories I saw in a long time. 

So, I am having a real retail love thing going on here.

See for yourself.
Here is their web shop, with a fraction of the range you see in the actual shop...!!

We drove in a car stuffed to the brim with four adults and two kids and all the luggage relevant to such a setup, so my friend and I had to stick to fun (small) paper products. I filled a bag, and here is a little bit of it...

(- and the wooden thingy? Well, that is a carrying handle, of course. A small, but significant, freebie from their packaging table, after the checkout. They obviously have this huge table, with free wrapping paper, bubble wrap, different kinds of tape, string, scissors, cutting knives etc. so that you can wrap your purchase properly. And anyone who have carried a heavy, big or oddly shaped parcel, knows just how big a difference such a handle can make! God is in the detail and Modulor is one cool shop.)

Happy Easter - and see you in a while!

Easter and spring is here, and it is simply wonderful.

In a little while I'll be taking off to Berlin with my family for some restful days, and I just can't wait!

I have an awful lot on my hands at the moment, and will be putting the sort-of-weekly blog posts on hold for the summer. I might do the occasional recap, but otherwise I'll be back sometime in Autumn - because I do have lots and lots of ideas for paper designs, for wonderful things I feel like writing about and stuff to get curious about.

Have a fabulous Spring and Summer, and if you stopped by this blog for DIY's and inspiration, be sure to use the special page that links to all my posts with origami projects, free printables and so on - you will find it right here - or get inspired by my Pinterest boards.
 

Lunch on top of the world (sort of)

I have covered the fantastic place I go skiing with my family every year in blog posts before, here and here, but there is this special spot we've become very enthusiastic about, and it's definitely worth it's very own post. So here's where we had lunch a couple of weeks ago.

Restaurant Tusen is situated on a quite steep mountain slope, and you can only get to it on skis or by snow scooter. But there it is, quite impossible to imagine how they built it - and you can have a very tasty lunch indeed (for instance a gourmet reindeer hot dog with creamy mushrooms, yum. See last image!), or a hot chocolate and a kanelbulle. And stretch those tired legs. 

Clad in birch logs, and inspired by a sami tent - or a kåta - it looks like no other skiing facility I've ever seen! It was designed by Murman Architects from Stockholm, and built in 2009. If you happen to swing by Ramundberget in Härjedalen, do visit this place!