I´m not sure this is the best word for the Norwegian “knekkebrød”, but let me nevertheless introduce you to the low-fat no flour phenomenon!
Summer goodies
Since Monday, my strict low-carb diet is over and I´ve been trying to eat healthy and stay off the worst types of food. I even signed a monthly membership at the gym where a friend of mine goes, so I´d have to stick to our deal. I´ve already been to yoga and every single muscle of my body has been hurting ever since. 😉 I´ve made a new appointment for pilates on Monday, meanwhile, I try to stick to my abs and squats on an everyday basis.
What did change though is my desire for sugar. We went to a couple of parties and I indulged in a little bit of cake there, a pannacotta here, you know the drill. And all I think of is sugar! Grrrr! Thought I´d share a couple of pictures from Pinterest, hoping I won´t need to taste them as long as I can rest my eyes upon them, the way I sometimes do with shopping. Have you tried? Go to netaporter, fill your basket with the sassiest babies and don´t proceed to the counter. Just know that they´re a click away. 😉 Have a lovely Saturday! xxx. Alina
Valérie Belin
I was taken aback by those ethereal photo collages by Valérie Belin. The explosion of color provides a perfect layout for the woman´s portrait. Her frailty and her intangible beauty are only enhanced by the floral motive. I can´t pretend to know the first thing about art, but this touched me. You can get yours at Lumas.
Fake chocolate mousse with avocado
Trust me, it´s really yummy! For all the healthy life- enthusiasts out there, this is a really nice alternative (and much easier) than the real deal.
You only need:
two large avocados
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1/4 cup almond or nut milk
1/4 cup honey
seeds from a vanilla beanUsing the amounts above, you end up with a dark chocolate style mousse. Very yummy! Enjoy!
Marble is in again
I´ve always loved marble! Coming from Romania, where furniture and inventory was supposed to last for a lifetime, I grew up learning to appreciate natural materials as leather, wood, marble, granite, in short- the real deal. My parents bought a house when they were 37 and it took them 4 years to finish it, but they used the best materials they could afford at that time. So I walked on marble floors and I learned to love it even more.
These days it´s awfully fancy to decorate with marble, everything from the coffee table to the countertop desk and even bathroom tiles. I´ve written about it before, but I can´t help it, I love it so much! Here are some of my favorite pieces! Which one do you like best?
Source: http://www.pilotfrun.se
Laurent Chehere
I discovered Laurent Chehere via Lumas, a concept store where you can buy limited edition photography and art at affordable prices. A French photographer born in 1972, he explores poor Parisian neighborhoods and lifts them up through the themes of cinematographers as Hayao Miyazaki, Wim Wenders, Federico Fellini and Marcel Carné. I want them all!
Living room styling
We went to a party on Saturday, in fact two of them! The first one was in the lovely apartment of Melissa Hegge from Ideastosteal, damn, does she have a cool place! We were stunned! So many artifacts and so beautifully gathered, it felt like a gallery. We literally went from room to room and took pictures!
The other party was on a roof terrace just a couple of blocks´away with a view over Galgeberg. Our lovely host Mona was not pleased with us for needing to go and walk Sammy like a pair of Cinderellas before midnight. 😉
Now it´s a fact that a party every now and then is therapy for body and soul and this time was no exception. In addition to new people and subjects of conversation, good laughs and a bit of cake to sin with, Melissa´s interior was such an inspiration! What do you think?
Holiday house
I keep coming back to my initial blog theme, interior decoration. While sipping Petit Bourgeois and hiding from the heat, I stumbled upon this wonderful holiday retreat where Amsterdam-based Anne-Claire Petit and Jan Wolleswinke spend their summers in France, by the Italian border. I love the white hues, the natural elements of stone and granite, the concrete floors and the light. The simplicity of it all propels me in the Mediterranean environment where one can find peace of mind while making fig jam and chatting with the neighbor. What do you think?
Drowsy days
It´s been so hot in Oslo it´s been difficult to do anything at all, really. Whenever I´ve worked I´ve done so early, but the way back has been an ordeal! I kept feeling I´d collapse before I´ll ever get home. And I find it hard to believe it, since it´s never been this hot this long in all the years I´ve been living here. So I keep pushing myself to do all the things I´d normally do at 25 degrees, but to no avail.
Yesterday I had to tend to my accountancy and since I don´t get internet from the garden I boiled inside. Today was a bit better, I had to translate some documents and I could do it in the garden with Sam, but no beach for this cutie!:-/
Hiding from the heat
Summer at its best
This July is turning out to be the best I´ve had in years! I´m working 2-3 days a week and otherwise enjoying the sunny days. I´ve been going to the beach, with and without the dogs, taken evening strolls and stop for a glass of wine and a bite, made delicious low-carb meals or played urban discoverers in a city empty of its inhabitants. A couple of days ago I was a bit bitter that we don´t have a cabin or a boat, so I remembered I had some hotel points and ordered a complimentary weekend in Tønsberg. It´s a 1,5 h drive from Oslo (read train, since we don´t own a driving license any of us), a small sleepy town that wakes up in the summer, being the rich kids´ playground. Moules frittes, beach and latte in the sun, that´s what I envision. Until then, I´ll be off to the dock from the picture, 10 min away from home, to cool off, it´s insanely hot these days!
life in a bubble 