Fairy Tales

When I was a little girl my mum used to read a fairy tale to me when she put me to bed. And I believe many of you can tell the same story. I assume thus fairy tales play an important role in our lives as they certainly form a part of our belief prism, it is not only our parents who teach us right from wrong but also the stories we hear. Tales always have a moral and present an opportunity to discern good from evil. The good usually prevails, but the wicked always has to learn a lesson. And even after growing up we believe that – we call it justice, we call it good and appropriate behaviour, we call it happy life. We grew up with such a conviction. And I believe it was for the best though it might be a bit tricky with the part where real life tales don't always have a happy ending, where the good doesn't conquer the evil and we all are princesses or Cinderellas, Sleeping Beauties or Little Mermaids still, waiting for our princes and 'Happily Ever After' while they are Supermen and pirates busy saving the world and sailing boats :) Thing is that our lives consist of tales, it is us who chose which to believe in.
My grandmother always kept a fairy tale book on the nightstand by her bed as she said that when she could not sleep sometimes the fairy tales were the best calming literature in such occasions. This literary genre is probably one of the oldest in the world. Probably there is no one who has grown up without fairy tales. Initially, they travelled around orally, then they were written down and read. And contemporary tales are mostly created as audiovisual products called movies. Though people are still fond of books and tales told in books most of the best ones become movies as well. The great success of such fantasy novels as Harry Potter or Twilight Saga is an evidence that we all miss that part of mystery and 'beyond the real' part in our lives. 

Every time I feel like this world is a bit too real for me I like to treat myself with one of the movies from my favourite fairy tale movies' list :)

STARDUST 

 

 

THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA: THE LION, THE WITCH AND THE WARDROBE 

THE GOLDEN COMPASS

 

EVER AFTER

PRACTICAL MAGIC

 

LADY IN THE WATER

PRINCESS BRIDE

PENELOPE

  

LEMONY SNICKET'S A SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS

My Room - part I

I was lucky to discover an organisation called CIGS Archipelago which manages a very interesting project. One colleague of mine recommended me this site called Okassions buttik, so if you live in Luxembourg and possess a knowledge of French or German you can read more about it. The CIGS Archipelago is the supporting structure and the framework for the establishment and promotion of cultural projects of the CFS network. They collect items from people who no longer need them, ship them to workshops in Differdange, refurbish (by specially trained employees) and make them available on the site http://www.okkasiounsbuttik.lu/ for public and social offices. The objectives of this organisation include developing activities to further guidance around common values and common issues saying that human consumption patterns generate a large volume of items whose ultimate destination feeds incineration plants. Many of these used products could have the joy of new owners, if they had been recovered before they are destroyed, repaired if necessary, and finally made available to the public. So it very much complies with my perception. Besides if the money goes for a good cause...

This is what I purchased there and now I am waiting impatiently for it to be delivered :)

Yet another nice thing I got from Mambo in Trier this Saturday:

So I can't wait! Looks like this is gonna be a very busy month! :)

All We R: Frame in a frame

All We R: Frame in a frame
I found these articles: http://blogs.mirror.co.uk/the-ticket/2009/06/art-banksy-artjacks-bristols-c.html and http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1192595/Banksy-pulls-audacious-stunt--secret-exhibition-Bristol-museum.html.

Here it is in a "real" life:

It says: A cut above: Banksy's innovative work sits between what appear to be two exhibits by more traditional artists (Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1192595/Banksy-pulls-audacious-stunt--secret-exhibition-Bristol-museum.html#ixzz1C8l7jtkm)

Thank you, L, once again! And Sir Banksy of course! :)

Frame in a frame

I brought this beautiful picture from London (Camden) and put it in a frame bought in an antique shop in Luxembourg. Goes well together in my opinion. Pity I have no clue who the artist is... Do you?

Decoupage - key and letter/postcard holder

My latest decoupage adventure resulted in this nice key and letter/postcard holder which initially had a paper decoration glued on it that I didn't like in the end and this is how it looks after I washed it off.

This will travel to my friends' home as a house-warming gift :)

My Room

I've always been hooked on furniture and interior design. And since last week I am head over heels as I decided to refurnish my living room. It is not so easy though cause I am a tenant in this lovely apartment and that means I can not change too much - color of my walls has to stay the same, no holes in the walls, there is some built in furniture as well and the floor is flagged with dark grey marble which I really DON'T LIKE - this all means that I have to play by some rules already set and of course I am not ready to throw away all of my existing furniture which means I have to adopt the existing to the desired.

It all started with the dining table which I bought in a second hand shop a week or so ago and as it was damaged I decided that I will paint it white. As the color pallet of my living room was black, beige, purple and fuchsia pink, it was clear that everything else will have to change as well and I got excited :) (never mind that financially wise it was a dumb decision adapting my whole interior to one 30 EUR worth dining table :D). Ordered several books on Amazon, so far got only this one but I found it quite inspiring:

browsed through several interior design blogs (got hooked on a few as well - check out WE LIKE section in our blog) and decided to go for beige, grey/baby blue and white pallet. The dark period of my life is OVER :D SO that also means that some of my existing furniture will have to be repainted and that style wise I will go a bit eclectic as the new table is traditional style and most of my existing furniture is rather modern and with ascetic lines. So far I've decided that my vibrant carpet, all lamps, table for TV set, coffee table and several small items like cushions and chair pads have to go :( (ok, not too far, just few floors lower - to my garage :))

Yesterday I hit a few interior shops and got this beautiful lamp and cushions:

My table is going to be delivered only in the beginning of February. Until then I have to start looking for ceiling lamps, carpet, chairs (plan to by second hand again and reupholster them myself) - I will need five or six, and nice, old chest of drawers (going to redo it as well). Hope my wallet will not get cramps :)

You will hear from me soon.

Can't Wake Up?

I've never been an early bird so regular office hours is a real challenge for me. And especially when it is dark and rainy outside it's rather difficult to drag myself out of the bed. So I tried to find out the best practices to wake up more easily.

Of course one of the conditions for waking up easily in the morning is a healthy and sound sleep during the night.  So one of the things recommended is not to eat and drink too much before going to bed. Then you should also keep your  bedroom  window open during the night so that exhaled carbon dioxide can float away and the fresh air come in. Nevertheless you should take care with having a normal body temperature during your sleep, not to be hot or cold , therefore  you should choose the appropriate clothing and blanket otherwise it will disturb your sleep. It is advised to try to cut out the possible noises around you because the stress your body is experiencing while being woken up by disturbing noises when asleep is actually very harmful for your health  (especially heart), therefore probably you should also choose some softer alarm tune to wake yourself up with.

Apparently it is important to have consistent sleeping hours - to go to bed and to wake up more or less at the same time every day (yes, even on the week-ends :S).

Getting up straight after your alarm has went off is advised, not to snooze it over and over again (maybe this carpet alarm clock would be the answer :)). But  you shouldn't get out of bed without stretching your body. My cat always does it with pure thoroughness after sleeping and it  is something I should  make a habit myself, too.

As Matilde already mentioned in her earlier posts about her morning routine it is recommended to drink a glass of water on an empty stomach because it wakes up the metabolism of your body and makes yourself alert. Some exercises and few deep breaths while listening to the music you like would do good. After that you should eat a proper breakfast.
And of course having something exciting to look forward to during the course of the day is a very stimulating thing as well. If you can not think of anything then just remember what The Buddha had said that every time you go to bed you should consider that you won’t wake up. That way, when you wake up you will be especially grateful for the day you have ahead of you. Instead of seeing the day as a burden that you have to “get through” you will see it as an opportunity to do something meaningful and beneficial.
Yes, in deed, there are too many things we take for granted, starting with  the waking up in the morning.

So good night and sweet dreams! And enjoy waking up in the mornings! :)

References: 17 ways to wake up feeling fresh in the morning

Flea markets

There are people who adore flea markets, second-hand shops, antique-shops, considering these places real treasuries, and there are people who sneer at these things, some believe it is bad for your bio energy to wear or keep other people's things which over the years have soaked up all the energy surrounding them. Me personally I am a fan and I do share an opinion that it is possible to find amazing things there. Besides I start to be concerned with the fact that human race has become a race of consumers and waste producers therefore this is a way to "recycle" things - something which one person finds outdated and to be thrown away another one wants to buy. Perfect concept in my mind :) Besides in the context of energy flow I believe that I wouldn't be drawn to an object which would contain some bad energy or energy which would be adverse to mine. The only exception is a mirror. I would never buy an antique mirror. I guess it is just a superstition of mine.

Every once in a while there are very nice flea markets organised in the municipalities of Luxembourg city and sometime last autumn I went to see one. 

As the area where it took place can be considered as one where rich people reside it determined as well the assortment of things which could be found there. It was possible to buy many nice things for rather small amount of money - for example Christian Dior china dinnerware 10 EUR a plate, vintage fashion items, pieces of furniture, paintings etc.

This was a part of my catch :) All these things you see below costed me exactly 27 EUR (with bargaining of course, which is a must in the flea markets :)). 

Two beautiful vases found their home at my friends' places as they really liked each other :)

In the beginning of last year's September I went to Berlin to visit my friend and we went to Mauerpark Flea Market which takes place every Sunday and is amazingly huge. 

It is a place to meet people, to hang out, to get rid of unneeded stuff or to sell your own creations, and to purchase nice things. The ambiance is great and if you happen to go to Berlin I definitely recommend it. When it's getting warmer I plan to participate there myself (it is possible to register here) - should be fun :)

Brooches

Accessories make a huge part of one's fashion and style. They give a nice touch to the complete picture. Accessories can add colour, style and class to an outfit, and create a certain look. For some time already brooches are back in fashion so here is a possibility to buy these beautiful handmade brooches for yourself or your friends as a present by contacting Linda or All We R. Prices range from 5 to 10 EUR + shipping costs.

Decoupage - box for tea bags

Here is another Christmas present. Very much appreciated by the people who like to drink tea and have people visiting.

Same old decoupage technique with same old napkins from Switzerland :)

(For things alike check out the posts on decoupage under the label THINGS.)



New Year's Resolutions

A joke:
- What exactly is a "New Year's resolution"?
- It's a "to do" list for the first week of January.

Yeah, apparently it is very common for human beings always to wish for better and for more. This must be the reason why every year when the New Year comes we draw up a list of our New Year's resolutions which we almost never fulfill. Feeling of a new beginning, of a clean start, some kind of instant burst of energy which runs out soon after waking up after the New Year's party. Therefore last year my New Year's resolution was not to make any. But this year I decided to make a few without having pretensions to be unique, and funny as it is after doing a little research on the Internet I found out that my list complies with the majority of the top 12 New Year's resolutions :P

• Spend more time with family & friends
• Stay fit
• Loose weight
• Quit smoking
• Enjoy life more
• Quit drinking
• Get out of debt/Save more
• Learn something new
• Help others/Do charity work
• Get better organized
• Find a soul mate (hmmm, I wonder how much it depends on one's resolution :))
• Travel more

Fingers crossed for me and for those who also have a list!