My favorite tea cup

After browsing some German blogs for a little while I stumbled upon this sweet one: Mira from belle blanc has started an action give-away and now I post my favorite cup for coffee or tea...




Why don't you go and have a look? She writes in English and German, so do not fear!
Until March 2nd you can post about it, you might just have the winning cup in your cupboard...
And there I have to smile, since the German saying not to have all cups in ones cupboard means simply to be a bit cuckoo...

;)

Victoria

Time and again

I have been rummaging through my files , looking for inspiration for my upcoming renovations in my own house, master bedroom and living room and wall paper has been on my mind.


We had begun to use wallpaper, when we moved in to our house about ten years ago.
I had used Designers Guild paper in lime green at the time and apart from little hands patting in chair rail height a layer of fatty little prints it's in pretty good shape...
In other words the expense of the paper has been well worth it.

For my bedroom I found a lovely paper and will give you a little preview:

I found it here.

A few day ago I came across these pictures and was in such awe:






This last image via House of Turquoise, features a similar patterned wallpaper in beige, but alone the combination with those gorgeous lamps makes my heart skip a beat!!!

Wallpaper has been around for so long and it's wonderful that it has become so popular again. It simply is such a fabulous design element. I love how it is used on the screen in the painting above , surely in those days it was very expensive and to introduce such a pattern on a screen was economic and effective at the same time. And check out the hide the young lady is having underfoot...it all comes 'round again!

The wallpaper has given me the starting point and now it's off to the details around it...


XX
Victoria



Pictures via designersguild.com, misscavendish.blogspot.com, carpet via Marimekko and as shown above.

Winter storm

Last night brought huge amounts of snow and ice and the sight this morning in truly amazing. Of course there is no school and we all dig ourselves out of the white...



This was last night around 5PM.

And now...






This morning around 10 AM...and it's still snowing!



Hope it's manageable where you are!

XX
Victoria, who dreams a bit of a sunny island...



Pictures by V.Zlotkowski

Sitting pretty

Do you happen to fall in love ones in a while with a beautiful piece of furniture?
It has just happen to me and I can't get this lovely small settee out of my mind:



If I would be a true princess I would say: I have to have it!!! And stamp my little foot firmly on the ground! And it would appear soon thereafter!
Well, no magic will bring it, but perhaps a lot of saving and some moving and pushing to make space... so one day I make this dream come true!
It is the POETEN sofa - the name alone - from Finn Juhl, the Danish designer and I love the lines, the petite feel and the colours. He has designed a lot of beautiful pieces in his day, but this one stole my heart!




Or I could move into this lovely room, sit next to the fireplace with a cup of tea and listen to some music! And the painting above me would protect my solitude!

Did you ever fall in love with a something like that?
Are you reclining, sitting or sleeping (or looking) on your dream piece?
Or maybe still wait for the moment to arrive?

I often muse about the way we find all the pieces we surround ourselves by, part necessity, part practicality (White sofa/black dog???), part inherited, bigger part budget, part compromise (in taste)...and when it's time to change and move to a new stage.


XX
Victoria



Pictures via Finn Juhl site.

One year of writing

Today marks the first anniversary of my blog. It has been since then an incredible journey and I can hardly put into words, what this year means to me. One thing definitely: I am most thankful for all of you, readers and followers, supporters and commenter, friends and clients from near and far! Your loyalty means so much to me!


From my first post, a project I had then completed...there was no text!

You all out there have given me so much more then I can ever give back to you: endless inspirations, knowledge, joy, wisdom, friendship, and the patience
to keep writing. It has been a year in which I began to find my way and voice in the world of blogs, found so many bloggers to follow - that list is growing - found hours of entertainment, where I had to force myself to stop and go to bed...or stop and start cooking!


I have not run out of ideas of what to tell you, or show you, something I thought could possibly happen, but my original idea for this blog has slightly shifted. I had planned to write eloquently about design and art, an elegant blog full of glamour and fancy reflections...



as it turns out I am writing about art and design reflected through the lenses of my patch work life. I am simply talking about things that truly touch me, things I see and want to share. And I have learned to write and to express myself better. This is not so easy for me, for English not being my mother tongue. But I adore this language! I have learned from all of you to find my own honest voice!



Here is to my family who has endured hours of motherly/wifely absence, due to blogging, writing or taking endless pictures...




And particularly to my older sons for getting me started and being so incredibly supportive at all times! Many cries for help where answered! I hope you keep being patient with me!



I am writing mostly about all things I feel and know best: my experiences, memories and travels, my work as an interior designer, about being a wife and mother of four completely different children, being a friend, an immigrant - homesick on occasion - about being an artist, a reader, a musician (not good enough), an addict of all things beautiful, lover of nature and creatures.
I am so grateful for all which has come to me during this year: especially a wonderful new friendship!



AND IT'S SUCH FUN!



Thank you all for being who you are!
With love!

XX
Victoria



Pictures via aspiring-homemaker.blogspot.com, workitmom.com, gonewiththevoile.blogspot.com, http://obviousmag.org/en/archives/2007/08/men_and_women_at_the_wheel.html and a few of my own. Picture of Mrs.Delafield sitting at a window I do not recall the source!

Another Taschen book - BERLIN

Berlin has fascinated me as long as I can remember. Since my girlhood visits to East Berlin to the re-united Berlin of now - 20 years after the WALL - the city has been a beloved destination, the city in Germany and now Taschen comes out with a desirable book, which will hopefully inspire many visits.
If you want to follow me through "my" Berlin and my visits there, you can find it here, here and here. And here...Wow, really a lot actually, as you can see, I must be addicted!



Not that I need prompting to visit, two of my sons live and study there and I am in love with that big, rumbling place and them! Nothing more exciting then to have two enthusiastic Berliner by choice and their friends to show me around...
Berlin is a city after my own heart, colorful, lively, eclectic, a bit crazy and full of charm! Modern yet full of history, green and a city with definite cult status!

From the Taschen website:

TASCHEN's Berlin
Hardcover, 23.8 x 30.2 cm (9.4 x 11.9 in.), 400 pages
$ 39.99

"A compilation of Angelika Taschen's recommended shops, hotels, restaurants, cafes, and bars in Berlin—an insider's guide to the German capital."

It will be available in March 2010!


Wunderbar!
XX
Victoria


Image via Taschen website.

Sunday morning

A Sunday morning with sun streaming through the window makes the world a whole new place for me. Baked pancakes with Northern Comfort (maple syrup), whipped cream and blueberries, freshly brewed coffee pull even the most sleepy teenager out of bed and to the breakfast table...And making plans for nice long walk with the dog just adds to our Sunday pleasures!









What are your Sunday plans?

XX
Victoria

Spring?

The gentle Spring Fairy landed on the swing in the garden, still quite a bit apprehensive as to put her pretty feet on the barren soil, testing the first balmy air, waiting to put her kiss on winters cheek.



Hope, she soon decides to stay! Wishing you a delightful weekend!

XX
Victoria

In case you would want to ask the fairy for her dress...

High Road House Hotel in London

Looking for more bedroom inspiration a stumbled upon this little treasure in London, which I wanted to share with you. A bit off the beaten path, located in the West End it's delightfully modern, with a nod to Amish plainness, at least in the actual rooms. Love the pegs on the walls, the colors and the retro touches. I would love to stretch out there after a day on London's streets.





And check this cozy bar and lounge...

Any one in travel mode?

XX
Victoria

Pictures via news-e.hoosta.com

Wild life

I love to watch animals around us, in the garden, on walks or in nature. I love all creatures and sometimes I get a small glimpse into their life...




A few days ago my husband managed to film a second or two with Mr. Fox wandering early in the morning through our garden...he is actually a regular visitor. The fox that is...






I love this little female Cardinal, she comes often to my window behind my desk and sometimes I get to see her beau as well, I try to capture him, he is so gorgeous against the snow...but shy. His girlfriend on the other hand knocks on the glass! I put some wild bird food out, so they feel welcome!


And this hawk came very close, he must have been hungry! He sat for a while in our huge hemlock hedge, but was too afraid to be fotographed. He zoomed right by me...
I took this picture with my phone, no zoom on my end.


XX
Victoria


Pictures and video by V.& M.Zlotkowski.