{it's nice when someone 'gets' you}

emma you just made my day.

a tassel on the door just like mine, only i like mine more. :)

my friend in stockholm, miss emma, sent me a link to a slideshow on the website of swedish newspaper called gp borstad. she knows me so well and has obviously been reading haus maus because she nailed the look i'm going for -- at least the overall look. it's extremely satisfying when someone out there 'gets' you, you know? that feeling alone is like a big warm hug on a cold rainy day like today. of course i'm incorporating more than just moorish design into my decor, i have to add french and swedish, a little turkish... and mix in my american influences... but these photos excite me still.

love how clean this looks, and the lighting is splendid.

i can't stop tossing around the idea in my head... b/w bold graphic walls in my hallway or not? it keeps calling to me but i'm not sure if it's because i'm seeing it all over the place or if i genuinely like it. i've decided to wait until i live in the space a few weeks to understand how it feels and such... then i will make more absolute decisions on this. but it is tempting me still... this looks nothing like the exterior of my new home (i'll show you once i am there) but the overall feel is so very northern europe. i love how people bike so constantly. bikes fill the streets. it's beautiful - we americans are so trained to use a car and it's the absolute opposite in european cities and even small villages. this is pretty much the perfect evening meal for me, although in the cold months i'd add homemade soup, in the warm months some fresh mozzarella cheese and pesto to spread on this delightful bread. there isn't much about this room i actually like to be very honest. nothing here is anything i'd like to do to my new apartment (though the owl photography is gorgeous). but i must say that there is a certain mood that captures my attention, the mood of a peaceful lingering sunday shared entertaining someone you care for deeply. wait, there is something i plan to do in my own home... that lovely tea tray. i really would love something like it. i'd never again paint my living room blue, my current accent wall is blue in the states so i may go with pale lilac, pale green, soft gray, or the current snow white in the living room. still under discussion. these trays are so popular in hannover amongst my circle of friends there, i think every home i enter has one. but i want one too! they are practical as you can carry them off to the kitchen, arrange the beautiful foods you've prepared on them, and then present them to your guests as they 'oooo' and 'ahhhh' over your creations so carefully arranged. there is this huge part of me that hates following the crowd but another part that often gravitates towards a certain piece only to find out that my friends already have it or in this case, i'm gravitating towards it because i see such beauty in it but it also happens to be a very popular item. i don't want to have what everyone else has though... but. but. but. i do like it very much. perhaps i can be different with it by painting the wood base, which is usually kept natural, a glossy black or white. ah yes, white sounds superb. when i leave on thursday for germany and fly all night, i know i will land a bit tired but i've learned how to handle jet lag so i do not experience it any longer. at one time years ago i would step off of long haul flights and vomit then sleep for 2 days straight. it was horrible. so i studied my body and habits pre-flight and in-flight and realized what i was doing wrong and changed everything. now when i land i experience 5% jet lag. i'm serious! i usually hop off of the plane the next morning feeling ready to start my vacation. and this leads me to the first thing i will do when i arrive on friday morning. i'll not only shower and give my mother-in-law a huge hug, but i'll run a few blocks down the street to buy a few plants and a bouquet of flowers. i want a rosemary topiary so badly. it's the perfect way to welcome my husband and i and celebrate our first apartment in hannover as a couple. i'm also going to purchase a bottle of champagne and celebrate all weekend long with friends and family. even if we all are sitting on the floor beneath a dangling lightbulb. :) we'll have food, spirits, good music, friends... oh and flowers! i'm leaving for germany in 4 days. i cannot believe it. it's all coming so fast now. i wish i could take you all with me. so many have emailed asking for a corner of my suitcase and if i could pack you i would. i've waited to live in abroad for 12 years and actively have been working towards the goal for 7 years so breathe in, breathe out -- i'm going to live in an actual apartment in europe! is it okay to pee my pants!? thanks again, emma for the photos! xo, (images from gp borstad in sweden)