The trendiest color of 2013: Monaco blue

http://issuu.com/werannas/docs/werannas_summer

I've beent talking about the major trends of the interior world in the blog, mainly focusing for some weeks now on the rise of the natural colors and materials, which I've named Earthy. Now I will be continuing with some color trends...guess...yes, BLUE!

When Paulina was sending me ideas how to present our summer products at the beach, I immediately loved the idea of a beach tent. No, not one of those plastic/nylon ones that fly away with the wind if you don't carry a bunch of concrete bricks with you - but a real DIY tent. (I also made one of hay poles for the kids last summer, when going mad with the rain, read about it HERE).

In my childhoold we lived many years in Vietnam. We lived on a camp on the coast, close to the port city Haiphong.  During the long summer season, every Sunday we would drive to the Do Son beach and spend the whole day there. 3 small kids from Finland, can't really even think what it COULD'VE done to our skins.

But no...we actually went camping every week! My dad would set up a tent, made of wooden poles and a white sheet, every single time. We had water grass mats under the shade, and there my little brother would take his afternoon nap, the whole family would have lunch or a snack and when it was too hot during noon time, we would all somehow fit under (except my dad, who had the darkest skin for a Finn) and read books or play cards.

After the long day at the beach, we would drive to a certain hotel in town, order lunch (stuffed crab, fried fish) and play in the yard for the next 2 hours to wait for the kitchen to prepare it from fresh ingredients (yes, one time a crab got loose...).

Only later like this, it is amazing to think what our parents did for us when we were little. Let's do the same for our kids, shall we <3?

it's raining it's pouring

Part II from yesterday...let's see if I manage to write this one, as well, before the life calls...<3

Pancakes always work for the kids. And a tent. So yesterday afternoon it became both, and we actually had a really good time despite the rain.  Kids' tent was made in a very sophisticated manner of 3 hay poles and couple of white sheets,  and the kids enjoyed a great deal (making it was another story, as my dear husband wasn't overly keen on the project after woken up from his afternoon nap and thought that I could be a little more supportive rather than asking, how come the whole thing fell apart while I ran inside to get some yarn...:D) making a mess inside with blueberries and 2 liters of juice...

Luckily our summer kitchen is covered, otherwise this summer would've been quite disasterous...will be taking some photos for you, when the weather allows...now it's just SAD...

 

The process of eating these pancakes took around, well - 2 minutes, and we even saw some fighting (seriously, it was like 17 pancakes for each kid..) over the last one - but - mission accomplished. The nothing-to-do whining stopped.

They didn't have any of their supper, but couldn't care less - it's summer time... :)

***
lettuja, kesäkeititö

Picnic for kids

Second-hand ragrugs, old milk churn and - an antique bushel as a bread basket

It has been one of those PERFECT midsummers this year. Sunny, warm (the Finnish way ;), but still) and most of all - relaxing. The kids have been running around the forest and the yard all day and fallen asleep like small potatoes in the evening (like right now...)

Summer picnic

Flowers from the yard in an old milk churn

Somehow Midsummer seems to be such an adult celebration with the staying up late and looking at the bonfires being lit up at midnight, drinking alcohol and - well.  We thought to change that a little this year, and have been enjoying ourselves - but also preparing some fun stuff for the kids, as well, like a picnic on the pier after their 1-of-the-many swims.  Preparing the picnic took perhaps 15 minutes, and we all enjoyed so much. Unfortunately I was able to post here only one photo with a kid on it, as there was someone's naked bottom in each of the pictures ;). It was somewhat hysterical taking these photos...


The ingredients: second-hand rag rugs, vintage milk churn together with flowers picked from our yard (and one flowerpot...), and an antique bushel I managed to find during the winter!! It is GORGEOUS. And in perfect shape.

Turkish cherries (love)

These Rice shopping bags - they take me and my family EVERYWHERE this year...

 Below all of it is starting to be gone...

Yeezzz - I like the chocolate stuff...

***
kesäpicnic, picnic lapsille, leipävakka, maitokannu, räsymatto

Formex spring 2012 Part II

Formex the second day - we were overly excited to go through the handicraft and kids sections to see what's new for the coming Spring/Fall 2012 season!! The color circus especially at the kids section was fantastic!! Rice won, of course :), but we also admired Teddy Kompaniet (the cuddlies are a MUST to our kids), Jabadabadoo and many many more. What was disappointing? Well - after the 3rd kid in the toddler age, I find it hard to get greatly enthusiastic about the wonderful things offered to the little ones the way I did before! That made me kind of sad - but then again, perhaps our little boy doesn't suffer too much even if mommy isn't getting to his room the newest cute little shelves and tents and all that...But these lovely colourful toys from Rice, which work perfectly as kids room decoration, got a smile on our faces:

Horseez...

And some dogs...

And mouse friends...

What really really made me happy was that many brands were introducing hand-made toys, fair trade products, as well as textiles made of organic cotton. I am not a very big fan of organic cotton - if I remember right, I told the reason already some time ago? Organic cotton needs to be hand-picked. It is not the nicest work, and in my mind it is just fine the cotton to be picked by machines. Fair-trade cotton? YES!!

***
Lastenhuoneen sisustus, käsintehdyt lelut, sisustuksen trendit, sisustusmessut

Enja Vironmäki 2002



60s style by Enja Vironmäki - Avotakka 05/2002

 Here is some true customer service - I contacted the oldest Finnish interior design magazine Avotakka to ask, whether I could get the articles by Enja Vironmäki. It turned out that she has worked on so many stories that it would be impossible for them to send them to me. But they kindly sent me a list of all the magazines she has had articles in during the past 2 decades!

Talk about great customer experience - even though I've felt for some years that Avotakka hasn't really been on the edge (perhaps because I'm following a number of international editions, or because I've lived outside of Finland for 9 years, I don't know) Avotakka is again on my monthly reading list.

So - I get all magazines 1998-2010 from my Mom, and they are downstairs W-A-I-T-I-N-G for me to dig in. You know what? Perhaps this is no news to some of you, but I was a bit surprised - it really hasn't changed that much in 13 years. There was a number of items I could've purchased even today - especially textiles. Okay - the walls at the summerhouse are not natural pine anymore (of course they are, but just not in the magazines), the walls at home aren't yellow (according to trends autumn/winter 2012 they again will be...), and foremost: the quality of the photos in the magazines is excellent compared to these 10 years ago, and THE PRICES OF THE PRODUCTS HAVE SKY-ROCKETED!! Imagine - the Le Klint pendant (pictured below) sold for 167 € in 2002 - currently we are talking over 700 €!! Inflation my a***.

70s by Enja Vironmäki - Avotakka 05/2002

And - the mystery of Enja Vironmäki, why I like her style so much, that is, is slowly starting to unravel. First of all - SHE is on the edge. She wrote these articles 9 years ago, but could've published them today! Second of all - I've been reading Avotakka all my life, and she's been writing in the magazine as long. So I guess she is one of the people who have more or less defined what I learned to appreciate. And third - I just happen to like the same things she does. It is as simple as that. For example - those Tsaikka-glasses in the above picture are on my must-have vintage items -list (provided to my mother-in-law who enjoys auctions) since 2 years.

An article by Enja Vironmäki I found in Avotakka 03/2002...The Vaavi-babygrid produced by Sokeva (association for visually disabled producing a number of products in Finland), still available from ROKA-TUOTE (the base is still made by Sokeva) in the picture below is one where me and my siblings have spent our first months. The same babygrid goes around in my husbands larger family from cousin to cousin as new babies are being born. My husband has slept in it, and so has his siblings. To those planning to have a baby, and living in Finland - get this bed! It is light, you can move it around in the house, and it is just...right.

Sokeva VAAVI -babygrid - Avotakka 03/2002

Another article in Avotakka 04/2002 - here is a nice idea for bathroom! Buy some cheap, tall flower vases, and stick your bathroom necessities, like cotton balls and hair-rollers, in them!

Avotakka 04/2002