sneak peak....

view of our bed and headboard made by my husband..

new knobs on our old dresser

Feeling Blue?

I did it. The week went by and Friday came along and I was still feeling the light light blue for our bedroom. So I bought it. And I painted it. And then I painted again. And it is finally done. I just finished framing a embroidered wall hanging that I believe my mom (?) has made. It may be my great grandmother Elin as well, I'm not sure. I framed it an old IKEA frame I had lying around and I think it turned out really cute. The color of the embroidery goes well with the wall color. I'm not going to show you the whole room yet when I'm not quite ready for that, but soon.

not the best photos but I like it. It's Swedish and roughly means "learn life's largest riddle; love, forget and forgive"

Also, today is not just any day. Today is exactly 6 years ago since me and my hubby had our first date while we were still in NJ. Wow! Time flies when you're having fun! We went out for dinner at Chili's that night 6 years ago so tonight we recreated that dish at home. I shouldn't say "we", my hubby did all the work. I'm occupied with the room makeover. It's about 11pm here and I'm still up feeling so energized and awake. I love the makeover so much I'm wired! The same thing last night! I'm usually the one sleeping on the couch by 9pm, but not tonight, instead I'm looking over toward the couch and me hubby is the one snoozing away.

I heart you.

basil and snail mail is fun!

I'm one of those people who still LOVES to get a letter in the mail. I think e-mails are great and don't think I would be able to live all the way over here while everyone that I love is all the way over there (Sweden) without the internet. But there is something so fantastic about a hand written letter in the mail. It does not happen very often but when I go to pick up the mail and there is a letter from someone special, it makes me so so happy! Today was one of those days! My dear mother had sent me a little note and also two May-flowers. It is something that you can buy every spring in Sweden and I believe you can chose from different things like pins, stickers, magnets etc and the money goes to underprivileged children.  My mother sent me two pins that I stuck to a felt heart (another gift from my mother) that I have in my car. It's nice to always see it when I get into my car when it makes me think of her.

the mayflowers are different every year

The basil I planted a while ago is liking this hot weather we have got and is growing fast. I also put down some lavender a few weeks ago and it is also liking it on our front porch. I'm thinking I'm going to dry it and then make little fabric pouches to put it in that will smell of sweet lavender. Relaxing....

 

I hope you are well today and hope to hear from you soon. 

Oh my!

Yeah, the storms yesterday were really bad across the south. We luckily escaped without much craziness. It was really windy and we had some lightning and thunder but that was about it. But parts of Georgia were not so lucky and for our neighbors to the west, Alabama, the day that past was devastating. It is crazy to see the videos of the tornadoes that ripped through their state and I believe across all the states in the south that were affected over 200 people are dead. It is so so scary and so so sad thinking about all the people who lost their life or who lost a loved one. Here are some pictures that I took from weather.com:

It literally looks like a war zone. So sad. So scary. And so unbelievable.
I hope that YOU are okay, wherever you are. Hug somebody and be thankful for your life.

No no no no no no not again!

This is what we're dealing with later tonight.. I'll be working and I'm already preparing myself for where I have to go with the baby to keep safe. We're watching TV right now and there was just one system that came through north of us and all the weather lady keeps saying is: "Now remember folks, this storm system is only the warm-up. The storm that we have been talking about for the last few days and that is coming later this evening is the dangerous one, with chances of producing long track tornadoes. Remember, this is just a warm-up. Be prepared." 

Thanks a lot. Now I'll be scared for the rest of the day. Hopefully it'll only be severe thunderstorms.. 

I hope your day is looking better than mine.

blue bedroom?

I'm thinking about it.. I have been to the paint store so many times looking at paint swatches but I think I have finally made up my mind. It is called Sweet Slumber and it's a light light blue color. I'm thinking I'm going to paint the hallway that is leading up to our bedroom in the same color so that when you stand in the beginning of the hallway and can see our bedroom at the end it will be the same color which I'm hoping will make it all look bigger and cohesive. I actually went out to go get the paint today after work but some how I just kept going past the store.. Does that mean I'm not quite ready to take the step from green bedroom to blue? I'm thinking so. Or maybe I just don't like the idea of painting.. If I'm still feeling the light light blue by Friday, I'm taking a chance and buying the blue.

I've been surfing the web for inspiration and I thought I'd share some pictures with you all on what I'd like our bedroom to look like:

 

all pictures taken from google images

I would like to have orange and beige accent colors. A long long time ago we bought a duvet cover at IKEA that has an orange pattern. I'm thinking I may make some decorative pillows out of them.

this is the duvet cover we have in a drawer somewhere.. 

 

 

I would not say no to a quilt looking like this for the end of our bed as a blanket for cold nights...

On our bedside tables right now we have the standard IKEA lamps with white bland lampshades, but I saw this online and I thought "I can do that!" so this is my vision:

from bland to super cute -------> 










We have a wood/veneer dresser that I would like to paint white, which may be hard, but I'm going to try it. I would like it to look something like this IKEA dresser and I would love to change out the knobs as well:

picture: IKEA.com

 

knobs from anthropologie.com

I guess I have to tell my hubby to go read my blog now to see if he's liking my vision.. It has to be a cheap makeover which just makes it more fun..

Have a wonderful night!

a taste of Midsummer?

Yes, on Saturday I made the most delicious potato salad that tastes just like Midsummer in Sweden. I got the recipe from my aunt, but I know my mom made it as well on some Midsummer's. It is so fresh and yummy. It is served cold and I made it on Saturday evening for our Easter dinner on Sunday with the family and it is almost better tasting the day after. I am not too crazy about the creamy or mayo-based potato salads that you buy at the store so this one is a hit in my belly!

I just small or fresh potatoes and then cut them in half

I boiled eggs and cut them in small pieces as well as red onion

then I cut radishes in small pieces and added to the salad

Finally some fresh dill to make it very Swedish... 

I did not take a picture of the whole thing when it was all mixed up, but you get the idea. After I mixed it all up I made the dressing which was 2 Tablespoons of white wine vinegar, 4 Tablespoons of olive oil, 1 Tablespoon of water and 2 Tablespoons of mustard. Just add some salt and pepper as well.