Scandinavian Chic: January 2011

Monday, January 31, 2011

I´m in cupcake heaven!

Scandinavian chic has a bit of sweet tooth and cupcakes are some of our absolute favorites. I was so lucky to find this beautiful little café in the middle of very chic Palermo Soho here in Buenos Aires that served my favorite treat.

(Jum!)

(I like the interior - a cute mix!)

A tray of cupcakes on the counter at Mark´s Deli & Coffee House was the first thing I noticed – so wonderful with different color frostings. Light yellow, lavender, blue…Jummy! And the variety that really got me craving was chocolate banana. Jepp. The best combo ever?! I might be obliged to think so…

So, being a huge cupcake-fan with many tastings back in Norway from different companies (I tried the ones Dagny have tested in the series; The Cupcake Challenge, isn´t that just the coolest idea ever? I love it!). So of course I sat down and tasted with the mind of a food critic.

(Hello, beautiful:) Banana + chocolate = heaven)

The frosting melted away, light as air it was with a suave sweetness – not too much, just perfect. I really like the cute sprinkles as well. How can a pastries be so simple, but yet so beautiful? The dough was thick with a soft touch of both the banana and the chocolate (they could have left out the small bites of chocolate, but who am I to complain?). A really perfect tasty treat, way up there with the Norwegian style cupcakes. Yeah!

My very first BA-cupcake was heavenly. Can´t wait to try some more:)

XOXO,

Labels: Buenos Aires, Camilla on the Go, Cupcakes |

8 comments | Links to this post

Thursday, January 27, 2011

I'm in love...

And it's not Scandinavian! This photo is pure perfection. I would probably have added a little bit more color, but still, perfection!!

By the way - Chic or Shit is back next week, and it's a good one!! :)

Have a fabulous Thursday!!

xoxo

Room by Darren Ransdell parzinger, featured in InStyle Home

Labels: Inpirasjon / Inspiration |

5 comments | Links to this post

Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Book Review: Kunst & Karisma - THE book of 2011!

The second book in the Visit Visit series is out, and I have to admit, I'm as excited as I was the last time! The series focuses on high quality homes from Scandinavia, most from Denmark. They carefully choose the homes they share, and in Kunst & Karisma we get to peek into eight homes.

All incredibly chic in their own, personal way. More than a couple work in the fashion industry, and I love how it

The owners of this stunning home, Lars & Camilla, both work in the fashion industry. Camilla is a shop owner and Lars as an agent.

Their home is filled to the RIM with chic, one of a kind pieces from across the world.

The book has dedicated 24 pages to this glamorous grunge home, and you also get sneak peeks into their equally chic store & show room.

The home of Karina Harboe and Jørgen Laursen, (also works in the fashion industry) is ridiculously chic, and very very me :) The color palette is a mix of pastels and neons combined with lots of white, and it's done in a really refined and elegant manner. You get 16 pages with some serious eye candy from this home :)

18 pages of white elegance, with a few interesting details in black and brown. As you all know, white is so not my thing, but there's just something about this home. I love, love, love the white glossy floors, the high ceilings and of course, all of the office details. Signe Bøgelund-Jensen is another fashion industry insider :)

Oliver Gustav runs a crazy chic antiques shop in Cph, called Oliver Gustav (of course; ;)). You seriously can't miss out on this home, this sneak peek is just the beginning, the craziness continues, and evolves. He has an (almost) full sized giraffe in the living room! AND a palm tree. It's crazy, wonderful and one of a kind. LOVE IT!!

This.home.is.AMAZING!!! Every room is a new experience and adventure you don't want to miss out on this one either! The owners are Mette Rode Sundstrøm and Bengt Sundstrøm - CEO and director of the board of Lauritz.com and let me tell you - they don't disappoint.

The couple have a complicated and advanced color palette, this is not for beginners! Even though the colors appear to be completely different, they have tied them together in a way that makes perfect harmony.

The living room could have been in a completely different house, but that's one of the thing I like about it. It's like a box of chocolates, where every single chocolate has a different flavor. They're different, but complete each other, and make the other ones taste even better.

Iben and Niels - THANK you for making ANOTHER fantastic book about Scandinavian design!

Want to know where you can get a copy?

Scandinavians, you can get your copy directly from the publisher, Home Sweet Home Books. It's dkr 299,-

International buyers can get their copy at Amazon. As a bonus, you get it with a booklet with English text, so nothing will be lost in translation :) (you can also download the booklet here)

I have to say, this is probably one of my favorite design books in a long, long time (and I read a lot of them!)

Happy Tuesday!!

xoxo

All images are courtesy of visitvisit

Labels: Book Reviews |

6 comments | Links to this post

Monday, January 24, 2011

South Americas trendiest tea!

And yes, we´re getting addicted. Of course we´re talking about mate (pronounced ma-tay), the green tea people of all ages drink in Argentina and all the neighboring countries. Just as Dagny, I love tea, so I wanted to share my first mate- experience with you guys!

(The green tea is called yerba)

Here in Buenos Aires you can´t help but noticing the small, round cups with strange straws (called bombilla), yerba (tealeaves), and the hot water cans people are carrying everywhere. Everyone seem to share this green, slightly odd smelling, green tea with each other.

It´s a social drink. And this green tea is a must for all portenos alike. So, of course, we had to experience it. Tea with a straw, it´s kinda fun. I´m not kidding – the first time you smell yerba, it almost smells like goldfish-food. But, don´t get scared, it taste nothing like itJ So, the taste. Being a bit of a coffee drinker myself, it´s different. I love my coffee in the morning, the same way as argentines love their mate. But it taste heavenly. Fresh, earthy and just simply - green and healthy. It´s got caffeine in it, so it helps you to wake up. But it also contains mateina, which makes you feel sharp(they also say it´s good for digestion and as a supplement in a diet). You surely get a buzz!

The way mate is made is almost like an art form.

Here it goes step-by-step – mate 2.0.

(This is the mate - that´s what the little round cups are called).

Do not boil the water – it should only have a temperature around 75 degrees Celsius, just when it starts to bubble ever so slightly.

Fill your round cup ¾ full with yerba. Shake the cup holding your hand over, and brush away the tea-dust from your palm.

(Yes, tea actually get dusty!)

Tip the cup 45 degrees and will it with water in the deep end. Let some of the leaves on the top stay dry. Let it set for a minute.

Stick the bombilla (straw) into the deep end of your cup. Even more important – after you put the bombilla in, don´t touch the tip at all.

There are a lot of rules to follow when you drink mate with friends - here´s what to keep in mind:

Whoever makes it drinks the first cup (or throws the water out – a cultural thing I guess), then fills it up again and passes it around starting at the side of where the bombilla points.

When or if the person drinking says: thank you (or gracias here;)) - it means that he or she doesn't want any more tea.

Have fun!

XOXO,

Labels: Camilla on the Go, Mate, Tea |

5 comments | Links to this post

Sunday, January 23, 2011

Thank You BoligDrøm!

There's a new kid in town, and she's called BoligDrøm. My first thought was "not another white magazine!" and felt we had enough already. After browsing through the first two issues, I realized that although they do show white, they also show, much much more.

And you know it has to be good when they name Scandinavian Chic as one of their favorite blogs! One of the things they have to say about us, is to expect bling! I can definitely relate to that ;)

This home is my absolute favorite from the second issue, the colors are absolutely amazing! Can you spot the Saarinen coffee table? And that gallery wall is perfection!

We continue to the dining toom area, which is equally chic. It has a white base, and Saarinen chairs, but the table is actually vintage from the 70s and not Saarinen. The styling and colors are impeccable.

Let there be light! The yellow and fuchsia candle stick holders are so incredibly cool, AND reasonably priced.

BoligDrøm is kind of like making up it's own rules and I like that part. They show a lot of interiors, but also a LOT of food recipes (more than I would have expected). I think this part of the magazine is really high quality, and I'll be serving the soup above sometime next week :)

Have a fabulous Sunday!!

xoxo

PS - they're also bloggers, check it out BoligDrøm's blog here.

Labels: Press, Scandinavian Magazine Profiles |

10 comments | Links to this post

Friday, January 21, 2011

Trends SS 2012 according to NellyRodi at Formex

One of Scandinavia's most important furniture & gift fairs, Formex is curently taking place in Stockholm, Sweden. I'm completely bummed that I'm not there, enjoying all the fantastic eye candy. One of my favorite Swedish blogs, Hemmariket by stylist Charlotte Bladh, provides excellent coverage.

The most devastating thing about not being there, is missing out on NellyRodi's trend forecast for SS12.

Image Courtesy of Hemmariket.se

To catch a little sneak peek, watch the video below. All the amazeball colors are wonderfully maximalistic and vibrant, and I can't WAIT to see how Scandinavia will interpret the trends.

Are you as excited as I am about the forecast?

I can seriously NOT wait for SS12!! Colors, here we come!

Have a more than fabulous weekend with loads of fun!

xoxo

Labels: Scandinavian Design, Trends |

6 comments | Links to this post

Thursday, January 20, 2011

Living Room Update!

We used to have a beautiful beige Howard couch. While it's a classical, beautiful couch, it's not very family friendly. I spent forever finding that coffee table, the shape is very Art Nouveau-ish, and I loved it. BUT, it wasn't particularly family friendly either. So we felt the need for change. My husband ordered a family friendly living room, and of course, I obliged :)

After:

The room has a completely different feel to it (before shot below). We have a large sectional cornered sofa, where we have enough room to fit not only our family, but guests too! (yay!)

We have two new pillows, the yellow chinoiserie-ish, and the hot pink right next to the end table. They're both by my good friend, Mariska Meijers, one of the hottest exports from the Netherlands. (available at hviit.no!) I'm going to be adding a LOT more pillows, mostly from Indiska, but also some that I'm going to make myself, with fabric from Fargerike.

I've been playing with the idea of having a gallery wall for quite some time now, and while it's still a work in progress, I think we're headed in the right direction. I'm head over heels with my new CHIC sign, which was a custom job by the fabulous Ieva from Optmistic Living (which I'll talk more about in a another post, they make some pretty chic stuff! ;))

The black chair is another custom job by US blogger Annechovie (she had a similar print in the fabulous "It's Complicated" movie).

We're still waiting for our new coffee table, which is a chinoiserie inspired drift wood table (does sound like a bad combo, but it looks surprisingly good :))

Before:

What do you think of the transformation?

Which one did you prefer? The old or the new?

Have a fabulous Thursday!

xoxo

Labels: Dagny's Home, Our Homes |

13 comments | Links to this post

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Your Patio is Craving Pastels!

I'm SO over winter, and the latest Lonny was such a refreshing break! I definitely appreciated all the candy colored furniture and fun spreads. Summer just felt a little bit closer, even if just for a short while.

This mint green mini peacock chair paired with a Svenskt Tenn inspired pillow and the black bamboo table is perfect eclecticism in my opinion. It's super inviting, and I definitely want to sit down and enjoy a cup of tea and some chick lit... (or a classic for that sake)

If you want to go for a grander statement, go for finn, blocket or craigslist, and get yourself an original peacock and paint it:

Yes, I said paint it! It's all about colors this summer, and the peacock deserves to be updated to 2011 standard :) (although this one already is a beauty, I'm loving it as is!)

Here, it's all about the accessories. If you don't think you can stomach pastel furniture, then add some fun details like the coral pillows and the green elephant side table.

My wet dream is the Thonet rocking chair. It makes such a statement, and the Art Nouveau inspired shape is just so incredibly organic and feminine. It's almost like a sculpture.

If you EVER find a Thonet in or close to Norway, let me know! :)

What are your plans for the patio this summer??

xoxo

Image 1,2,3,4

Labels: Inspiration |

5 comments | Links to this post

Monday, January 17, 2011

From roughing it in Africa to a cosmopolitan life in Buenos Aires

Hi everyone!

My hubby Thomas and I decided to take a year of work and just travel, work along the way and just live differently for little while.

We started our trip around the world a bit rougher than we anticipated. Because of heavy snow in Europe at the beginning of December, Heathrow were closed. But determined not to let our travels get postponed on the very first day, we got a flight to Frankfurt and spent a night there visiting Christmas market in our summer-casual-clothes ment for Cape Town, South Africa. Cold and excited we got on the plane and our journey could finally begin! In Cape Town we tasted wine, we saw the penguins and the cape, and after two days with smooth sightseeing we were on our way – on the road to be exact. With a South African-base

d company called Drifters we travelled trough Namibia for 12 days, Botswana for five and then Zimbabwe with Vic Falls before heading to Johannesburg – a total of 26 days on the road.

(Thomas at Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe)

(Drifters Desert Camp, Namib desert, Namibia)

Travelling in a truck with a group has it´s challenges in every way, but it´s by far the best way to experience Africa. It´s rough, edgy and you experience wild life right outside your tent. We had elephants and leopards in our camp, we lived in the desert for three days with basically 45 degrees Celsius every day and no shadow to be found. We walked with rhinos, we went into a Delta that was so remote, saw sunsets and sunrises we´ll never forget.

(Maun, Botswana)

(Namib desert, Namibia)

But from the rough and edgy we were ready for some civilization. And Buenos Aires is the coolest city on this continent. It´s fresh, highly influenced by Italy and with the proud traditions of tango, wine and meat that you wont find anywhere else.

(Dune 45, Namibia)

(Salute to the sun@Orange River, Namibia)

We spent New Years in Buenos Aires. Our tiny flat is in a very chic neighborhood, Palmero. Coffee shops, boutiques and fabulous meat restaurants is just around the corner. I´ll find the absolute best ones, and report back to you in case you wanna visit!

We´re staying in Argentina for three months, then we´ll travel to Uruguay, Chile, Bolivia and Peru before heading to New York in May. We have our own travel blog, so if you wanna see more pics check out: vireiser.net. (It´s in Norwegian though…)

I´m so excited to be a part of the Scandinavian Chic-universe, and I hope I can contribute with stories from my travels – fun, hot and of course very chic!

(Etosha nationalpark, Namibia)

xoxo
Camilla :)

Labels: Buenos Aires, Camilla on the Go |

6 comments | Links to this post

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I´m in cupcake heaven!

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Book Review: Kunst & Karisma - THE book of 2011!

South Americas trendiest tea!

Thank You BoligDrøm!

Trends SS 2012 according to NellyRodi at Formex

Living Room Update!

Your Patio is Craving Pastels!

From roughing it in Africa to a cosmopolitan life in Buenos Aires

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