It's the return of the FRINGE.

My attempts at a manageable side swept fringe turned out to be futile and after weeks and weeks of constantly trying to brush it out of my eyes I just snapped and took the scissors to it. Muuuuch better.

And yes, I'm aware that I will probably regret it in a few days. As you do. But for now I'm just enjoying the short straightness of it all.

Things I like Tuesday

Source

• Shoshanna from HBO's "Girls". She's my spirit animal.
• My 10am and 3pm coffee. I'm a creature of habit, really. First thing in the morning I want black tea with milk and honey, and then once I'm dressed/made up/out in the real world I need my coffee. And those cups of strong, dark goodness can make me weep with joy.

Source

• This trench coat. Although I would also settle for the Asos-version. Or you know, any coat which doesn't make me look like a hobo the way my current worn and torn parka does.
• Jennifer Lawrence. I actually love her even more after her fall at the Oscars. Not only did she manage to look like a weeping Disney princess but she also gives me hope that in spite of being in a constant battle with gravity, stairs, chairs and walls, us clumsy people can still go on to WIN EVERYTHING. Fair enough, my chances of winning an Oscar are slim to none, but still... Let me nurse the little bit of hope I have. OH, and this point brings me on to the next like, which is...
• HUGH JACKMAN. Who, when Jennifer Lawrence fell, was the first one out of his seat to help her up. He's a GENT, folks. A sexy, singing, GENT.

Source

•  PENGUIN BABY! PENGUIN BABY! No other words needed. 
• All the parents who dress their kids up like this. Praised be you. And the rest of you, come ON, look at the adorableness of this outfit!

Source

• Happy T-rexes. 
• Spring. Almost, almost, almost.

Source

• This tent. Preferably on a rainy summers night, combined with cool wine, good music and all the friends I could squeeze into this ball of happiness. 

Little darling, it's been a long cold lonely winter

The sensation of waking up to sunshine is far better than I could ever put into words. This is the time of year when I realise just how badly I need my dosage of vitamin D. And since it's decided to stay sunny since Saturday I have taken ever single chance to soak up the rays (albeit slightly paranoid about burning my freakishly pale winter face). Saturday morning was spent having breakfast and coffee OUTDOORS for the first time this year. And yes, it was FREEZING but totally worth it.

To compensate for spending most of Sunday snoozing on the sofa, recovering from the various antics of the weekend, I have spent several hours stocking up on sunny vitamins today. GLORIUOUS, GLORIOUS SUNSHINE, it's almost good enough to take my mind of my bank balance/general life-stress.

Wednesday wishlist

This dress from Trashy Diva.

 This bracelet from Etsy.

 This top. Want, want, want.

 This vespa.

This perfume.

And you know, a job I love, a flat to call my own, a salary to keep me comfortable, a kitten, world peace and a haircut.

Tuesday Q&A, in spite of my answers being ever-changing (it's a woman's prerogative to change her mind)

1. Five favorite films: Virgin Suicides, My neighbour Totoro, Amelie, Persepolis, Fight Club.
2. Five favourite TV-series: My so called life, Freaks and Geeks, Girls (!!!), Game of Thrones (it filled some of the void the LOTR-films left in my heart, click for season 3 sneak peak!) and New Girl.

Source

3. Five favourite celebrities: Stephen Fry, Jennifer Lawrence, Caitlin Moran, Nigella Lawson and David Attenborough. I just want to sit down for a pint with all of these people. Jennifer Lawrence is quite a recent addition but I can't help but love her when I read things like this.
4: Five favourite drinks: Italian red wine, G&T, strong coffee, bloody marys and Strongbow cider.
5: Five favourite foods: Pistachio nuts (salted, in salads, ice cream, even the colour!), Grilled corn on the cob, mozzarella cheese, chorizo sausage, Chinese dumplings.

Source

6. Five favourite blogs: Niotillfem, Annaritar, TheBloggess, ANIMALS TALKING IN ALL CAPS and Thesadbox (cause, you know, we've gone through heartbreak together without even knowing each other).

7. Five favourite colours: Cornflower blue, black, emerald green, bright poppy red, and (just to mix it up a little) dust pink.

8. Five favourite musicians/bands: David Bowie (forever and ever in my heart. I cried a little when he released his comeback single), The Crookes, Smokey Robinson & The Miracles, Jeff Buckley and Florence and the Machine. But this lists changes daily. Or hourly, depinding on my mood.

Source

9: Five dream holiday locations: Kyoto (Japan), Paris (France), Kaikoura (New Zealand), New York (U.S.A) and Santiago (Chile).

10: The five best things about you: I'm good at expressing myself in words and writing, I remember tiny details about people like how they take their coffee or how they met their partner, I'm generally caring and kind, I can organize anything and a roast a mean chicken.

11. And the five worst: I overthink things, I sometimes allow my past insecuries to affect how I'm feeling, I always forget to recycle, I never go to the dentist and I hate to "bother" people. Sometimes you fucking HAVE TO bother people, no matter how well-behaved and polite you are.

12: Your five favourite things to do: Take long walks in new cities, spend hours in good coffee shops or bars with my friends, cuddle cats, drink loads of coffee then and writewritewrite and spend hungover Sundays in bed with someone worth spending time with.

Source

13: And your five least favourite things to do: Check my bank balance, go to the dentist (which is why hardly ever go), laundry, play cards, staying polite to drunk twats (which is why I stopped working as a barmaid).

14: Five pet hates: Parents who use empty threats and never ever follow through when their kids are acting up in public (Right, I don't have kids so maybe I'm not entitled to an opinion but I know how I was raised and if I had EVER dared to behave in ways I've seen some kids behave my parents would have swooped me up and taken me away in an instant), bad translations, Alicia Keys (I don't know why but she gives me irrational rage), the term "lol", people who don't allow me to get off the bus/train before they try to get on.

15: Five whishes for the future: To be happy, to be happy, to be happy, to be happy, to be happy.

A yearning from deep within

I long for spring. I long for summer.
I yearn for the smell of the sea and the feeling of sunshine on my face. The snow outside has barely started to melt and still I can't wait to put away my winter boots, banish my winter coat to the deepest darkest corner of my wardrobe and to be able to leave my house in a matter of seconds, without the angsty procedure of extra knitted socks, boots, jacket, scarf, mittens, hat...

I want to be able to walk the streets of sun drenched cities wearing a summer dress and a thin cardigan. I miss the smell of sun lotion and even the look of bare ground. Just normal gravel, asphalt, roads not covered in snow and ice.
I miss the smell of summer nights when you ride your bike through deserted streets. I miss sitting by the fire in the garden until it gets dark and the bats come swooping over the lawn. I miss skinny dipping and heading to the shop for nothing else but ice cream.

I think that I'm starved of summers after my many years in Scotland. Being a Swedish west coast-girl my summers were always dominated by salt water, sand and sunshine. Spending the summer months is Edinburgh they became synonymous with a light drizzle, the occasional day in the park, sweating in beer gardens. And still, I loved it. But I need my salt water, need the smell of it on my skin.
And above all I long for the hope that spring gives. The resurrection.

And I'm sick of having cold toes. Sick to death.

Music Monday

1. A Song for the moment.

2. A song from your childhood.

3. A song for your friends.


4. A song for an ex.

5. A song for your future.

I love you straightforwardly, without complexities or pride

Yesterday I got to meet this little biscuit for the first time. My friend's 2 week old little boy. Can you see my heart melting in the second picture? No matter how freaked out I felt when holding such a tiny, vulnerable brand new baby (my clumsiness makes me paranoid when I hold newborns) it still brings you a weird sense of calm. You just sit there, calmly and take in the idea that your friends made this little person. A little person who smells amazing. What's the deal with baby smell? My dad described it has a mixture of apples and honey and I think it's pretty much correct. It's all part of the baby's plan to sneak into your heart and snare you so that you love them forever and ever. A cunning ruse!

A Friday list of loves and likes

This version of the already awesome tune "Thrift Shop"

People who reply to emails within minutes. Same goes for texts. I like people who are promt. It's a very attractive trait.

Source

• Shetland ponies wearing knitted jumpers.
• The Perks of Being a Wallflower. 

Source

• Anything related to Downton Abbey and especially Dame Maggie Smith.
• Sexy accents. Accents are sexy.

• Life lessons from children.

Source

Source

• Harry Potter themed accesories. Want. WANT.
• Harry Potter in general.
• Cheese.

Source

• Elie Saab dresses. One day I will own one, or ten. It's one of my goals in life.

Source

• Behind the scenes photos from Star Wars. 

It could always be worse.

Source

As far as Valentines days go this one is far better than the one 2 years ago when I had a root canal done.
Perspective, people, IT'S ALL ABOUT PERSEPCTIVE.

Oh, aren't they just...

Source

Life. It's very complicated, isn't it? So many amazing and beautiful things which can happen, and so many ways in which we can fuck them up. So many chances and decisions and dreams and plans. So many people we can love and then lose and so many ideas of what life really should be like.

Oh what I would give for a manual, a "LIFE for dummies" kind of book.

A guide of when to take a chance, when to fall in love, when to say no and when to spend far too much money on a dress you will probably wear again.

My brain feels fried, it's like all the creativity has been drained. Like my imagination has the flu or something. It's frustrating, to say the least. And there are so many things playing on my mind, some pleasant, some stressful. Like a weird crush on someone I don't even know and the fact that I don't seem to own any clothes that are fit for office work (in spite of having previously worked in an office and owning over 30 dresses).

Life. There are no right or wrongs and still I'm so terrified of making the wrong decision. In spite of knowing that the only truly wrong decision I could make would be to take up crystal meth or wear a lot of pastels (it clashes with my complexion. pastel colours, not meth. Although I don't suppose it would do wonders for my appearance either) it's still so frightening that the outcome of all of this is down to ME. No one else. Oh, mother....

Rare is true love, True friendship is rarer

Yes, I am choosing to illustrate a blog post about friendship with a video of otters holding hands. You're just gonna have to live with it. It is also a piece that I wrote on my Tumblr a few months back, just spruced up a little. (It's Tuesday, I think I have a cold and there isn't enough coffee in the world to activate my brain today).

The internet is overflowing with quotes about THAT special person. Coming up to Valentines it increases in intensity, the desire to find true, Disney-perfect love is everywhere (I can honestly blame Disney for SO MANY unrealistic expectations, mainly to do about hair).

I’ve loved. Loved, lost and grown into a better person for it. But to me these quotes don’t make me think about a boyfriend or a past or future dream prince. I think eternal, true love is more fluid than that. I think it can be applied to other relationships than the norm, and I think you can feel it for several people. 

Let's make something clear, I'm not poly-amourous. Fair enough if that's your thing, but that's not what I'm talking about here. I just want to take the concept of "the one true love" and shake it up a bit. Because true love does not neccesarily have to be a romantic love.

My friends are my greatest loves and in spite of every flaw I’ve got they still find me amazing. And I know that they are the stars in my sky and the blood in my veins. The people I can text whenever I've done something extraordinarily stupid. The ones I can have a drunken cry to at 4AM. The ones I would kill (or at least seriously damage) for.  They make me realize how goddamn LUCKY I am everyday, these people who truly love me, flaws and mistakes included. 

I can see myself growing old with them, and I suppose that, my friends, is what so much of this hunt for the ideal partner seems to be about. And if I shall ever be so lucky that I find someone who I feel even half of the connection to that I have with my friends (and also fancy the pants off) then maybe I will look at those romantic quotes with different eyes. 

But you know what? I'm pretty chuffed that I have found the loves of my life. They're sweet, smart, funny, caring, insane, beautiful and open-minded. Basically, I've scored.

Where I want to be today:

Source

In a cherry blossom park in Paris.

Source

Venice in the winter.

Source

Ban Gioc Waterfalls in Vietnam.

Source

Or cloud-watching in Argentina. Especially if it involves a glass or two of Malbec.

But alas, with my finances I will have to dream rather than jet off to some fabulous location. At least I have Pinterest to keep those dreams going (along with my dreams of the perfect home and vintage Dior dresses). Do check me out.

A little bit of sunshine to make the flowers grow

February is such a cruel month. Somehow you start believing that spring isn't that far away and you allow youself to dream about putting your heavy winter coat and boots away, about sitting outside with a coffee and stealing a few minutes of sunshine, and about having to dig out your sunglasses. You start to fool yourself that it's entirely possible for it to happen any time soon and you might even start looking around for a less wintery wardrobe. And then BAM, the snow comes right back with a vengeance and you spend another few weeks freezing you butt off.
I'm not OK with this.

Maybe this is why people have become more and more keen on Valentines day. We do need something to take out minds of the grey slush, our numb fingers and our colds which just never seem to go away. Personally I can't remember ever celebrating Valentines. Might be odd, seeing as I have been the eternal serial monogamist, but I cringe at the sight of teddy bears holding fuzzy love hearts, over-priced red roses and the though of going out for dinner to a restaurant decorated with pink helium balloons. Not. Keen. But if you fancy it, please do go ahead, I'm not som kind of bitter anti-valentines protester. I'm all for love and loveliness. I just prefer my love and lovelieness under less structured circumstances.

I'm also all for more sunshine. Perhaps I can just hibernate until April (which, fair enough, has been referred to as the cruelest month) and awake to kinder temperatures, a less jaded mood and with no dark circles under my eyes. 2 months worth of sleep should see to that, right?

But true love is so hard to find

Advice me, advice me real good.

When you're in the middle of reshaping your life people tend to want to give you a lot of advice.
I welcome it, I enjoy it. But I am terrible and following it (GIVING advice, on the other hand, I'm GREAT at that).

But I was given one piece of advice a few weeks ago.
Well, not even advice, this person just stated a fact.
That fact being, that if you keep doing what you always have done, the result will always be the same.
So if you're unhappy with the result, change the way you go about things. Simple as that.

So here goes nothing.

Why I'm a feminist (prepare for a rant which knows no bounds)

I rocked a lot of pink as a child.

I don't remember ever having a defining "OMG, I'm a feminist" moment. It's pretty much always seemed the natural way of things. I am a woman, I like having the right to vote, I enjoy being able to attend school and university and I enjoy that, at the end of the day, it is down to me how I chose to live my life. All of these things would not have been possible without feminism. Without feminism there would be no right to vote, no right to education and no right to make my own choices. How on earth could I not be a feminist?

It scares me that so many people, and what scares me the most, that so many women don't seem to understand the importance of feminism. How so many seem to think that it's an outdated subject and that it should be left in the history books. To me that's like saying that we should stop discussing and objecting towards racism because slavery technically is abolished. And it scares me now more than ever because I can feel a hardening of the climate, the debate is getting nastier and I fear that we are regressing on so many levels.

I have had arguments regarding feminism with people, who as it turned out, didn't even know the meaning of the word. It is not, and I repeat NOT, a female struggle to enslave men. It is not a crusade for vengeance or the burning of bras. To be honest I do not care what you chose to do with your underwear (or body hair or shoes or any other insignificant detail you chose to attach to this debate). You can wear lace underwear, red lipstick and stilettos sharp enough to take someones eye out for all I care. And with regards to men, I fricking love them! Men are great, awesome and I have such I hopes for the sons of my friends who will become the men of the future. They will rock, as much as the daughters. And hopefully they will know the value of fighting for equality.

Because here's the thing; we're not there yet.

I myself live in one of the most equal countries in the world. I have the freedom of speech, to travel, to drive and to make every decision regarding my own body without any involvement from the government, the church or a male chaperon. Women of many countries can become prime ministers, presidents, heads of state. We can technically, rule the world. So when I say that I am a feminist I often get the question why. Why possibly could a Swedish, middle class woman feel the need to label herself in such a way? 

And as it feels so natural to be it's not always easy to explain. But essentially it's because there's still an issue. Globally, very much so. In some countries women are still seen as second class citizens. In some countries they are NOT allowed to drive, become politicians or decide over their own body. In some countries young girls are threatened with violence simply for wanting to go to school. 

And here, in my own part of the world, there is still very much an imbalance of power. 

Could it just be a biological fact, you may ask? Well, I don't see how biology causes this:

Source

 I do not care if Lana want's to strut her naked stuff on the cover of a magazine, what I do care about is the context in which this is done. It disturbs me that initially I didn't even react, we are so used to naked women on the cover of magazines, it's institutionalized sexism have I ever seen it. Because most people don't even think twice about that on some level this might not be OK. This might not be the message we want sent out to young girls and boys. But still, we do. Daily, I might add.

Sexism is never, and will never be OK. It goes hand in hand with so many of the ugly sides of humanity. It goes hand in hand with violence and the notion that in some weird roundabout way, the female body is still a commodity. Something to be admired, touched, taken, bought. Grabbed, leered over. Violated.

I do not believe that the occasional naked photo of a female celebrity will cause men to go out and violate a woman. I frankly do not understand what makes ANYONE want to hurt another person in that way. I do not blame GQ for sexism, and I do not believe that half naked celebs will be the downfall of humanity. But I do believe that there is still so much room for change in how we perceive men and women and what values we install in the next generation. 

I strongly believe that there still is room for improvement. I still believe that there is a need for articles such as this, on how the male attitude to rape has been shaped, and such as this, on how young girls ideas of self is shaped by our very grown up world (in Swedish).

I don't think it's OK for a girl to automatically be frightened when she hears footsteps closing in on her as she is walking home on her own.

I don't think it's OK that the conviction rate for rape is so terrifyingly low.

I don't think it's OK for female journalists to recieve death threats or suggestions that they "just need to get laid" when they comment on male violence or just dare to divert from the norm.

I don't think it's OK that boys are being made to feel that they have to be hard in order to be real men.

I don't think it's OK that a girl who has multiple sex partners is considered a slut when no one raises an eye brow when a man sleeps around. 

I don't think it's OK that people believe that it's time to give up the fight and accept the way things are.

And that's why I'm a feminist. Because I see no other possible way of being.

Even though the rest of the world may disagree you still believe it to be a beautiful place

Things I like today:

Source

Ab Fab. Did I say today? I mean forever and always. It's just so AMAZING, sweetie darling.

Caitlin Moran. Éverything (well almost) this woman says makes sense. And if it doesn't make sense it's funny as hell. Read her books, read her articles and follow her on Twitter.

Source

This sign. I would drink there.

Source

This bike. It's gloriously clever.

Tom Hanks spoofing Toddlers and Tiaras. He's a brilliant pageant-mom. Watch it here.

Source

This Photo of David Bowie. *Swoon*

Source

This trampoline bridge in Paris. 

Will Ferrel taking on the internet trolls. Because he just seems so LOVEABLE. Watch it here.

Source

This Totoro bed. I need it.

Source

This beautiful crockery. (And, you know, a flat to keep it in would be nice too.)

Tina Fey and Amy Poehler. I can't begin to describe how happy they make me. Watch it here.

Source

This otter. Which, yes, I made bigger than the other pictures. Because it's f-ing AMAZING and it makes me HAPPY. How could it not make people happy?! It's the best otter in the world.