Helsinki, pt. II

I'm just racing through these Helsinki pictures, huh? I have no excuse for it really, since life is just always busy and crazy it seems. But anyway, let's get back to it. I want to show you guys the apartment we stayed at. Have I mentioned it had a sauna?! It was probably one of the best parts of the trip, which sounds a bit sad if you just think of us sitting around being sweaty. But it was so relaxing, and cozy having a sauna all to ourselves. It quickly became our routine to shop at the market on the way home, make a simple dinner, then spend the rest of the evening alternating between being inside the sauna and cooling off on our balcony sipping some cold drinks. We got a 'sauna mix' of essential oils (pine, mint, rosemary) to put in our little ladle of water to pour over the hot rocks. I loved the ritual of the sauna, how it's such an ingrained part of Finnish culture (and how it's totally normal to have one in a tiny apartment) and all the traditional accessories that go along with it. Some of my favourite memories of the trip are of sitting in the dark sauna, with the smell of wood and the sound of water hissing on the rocks. And of watching the black ocean outside our balcony while steam rose off our shoulders. I think the Finns are on to something. 

Helsinki, pt. I

Despite both of us having projects due last week, we managed to make it over to Helsinki for a few days to celebrate our ten year anniversary (!). Everyone thought we were crazy for going there in April, and during a cold spell at that. But we'd been wanting to go for Helsinki for a long time and luckily had booked our tickets back in the fall, otherwise I'm not sure we would have made it happen. I'd always had this idea of Helsinki being very 'exotic', the blend of Nordic and Russian is so appealing to me. I love their design traditions, and the connection Finns have to nature. It's always different being somewhere you have high expectations of, but we both really liked it there. It felt so much further away from Copenhagen than a one hour flight, which was a treat after my usual 24 hour long marathons home. The Finnish culture is very different from Danish culture, and it was really interesting to learn more about it. The weather wasn't amazing, but it wasn't nearly as cold as it looks and the mist made everything look a bit magical. It also gave us a good excuse to hang out in our cozy apartment, with a view to the sea and a sauna inside (more on that later), which is what we did for our first day there after arriving in the afternoon. We ventured out Saturday though, stopping for the requisite carrot cake and seeing some of the highlights of downtown. We attempted to go to a couple of different food markets, but without much luck, so we consoled ourself with chai lattes from this lovely cafe Susk had recommended before heading back to our sauna. Although we weren't nearly brave enough, we did see an older woman go into the semi-frozen sea on our walk home, before calmly sauntering to the public sauna nearby. Finns! 

Iceland Poster

One of the things that I did during my spring cleaning this year was this project, something I've been meaning to do for a long time. I'd been wanting a large-ish photo/poster/art piece for this wall and had thought about one of Debbie Carlos' prints but wanted something more personal, and a bit brighter for the space. I looked into printing here, but large posters cost a fortune so I got one of our photos from our honeymoon to Iceland printed as an engineering print when I was back home in Canada. It was the largest size (24 x 36, although I would have liked even bigger) and cost $4. Hung up with some washi tape, it's a pretty cheap and easy way to cover our walls. It's so nice to have something different up, instead of the temporary small pictures that stayed up for two years. I have a few more small projects (my favourite kind these days) too, but I have started on my next school application project, so things might still be kind of quiet around here.

Dragør

We were car sitting this weekend, so we decided to take advantage of the rare luxury of having a warm mode of transit to take a couple of little trips. Saturday morning we went out to Dragør, what used to be a fishing village on our island of Amager. It has still has a little harbour and a tiny town of old yellow houses with thatched roofs. It's also home to a couple of cute museums - an open air folk museum and a nautical museum. It was a clear but freezing day, so we ducked into a bakery for fresh treats and tea after a quick wander around the town but I bet it's lovely in the summertime. You can see us bundled in our winter finest here, including my *protective eyewear* that I wear to avoid watery eyes. Pretty silly, but look at that frozen sea!

Going Raw

I know, I promise to take it easy with the cat stuff soon (maybe?) but I'm so pleased with this change that I wanted to share in case there are other curious pet owners out there. Before we got Tolmie, I did a lot of research on cat health and nutrition since I still couldn't shake the feeling that there might have been something I could have done to help Tiggy live longer. He lived a good, long life but I wanted to be a more informed cat owner this time. I had no idea that everything cat related seems to be full of controversy and almost impossible to figure out what the best food/litter/toys/etc. are. I can only imagine what parents go through trying to make decisions about how to raise their kids, ugh! I kept reading about all the benefits of raw food, but the vegetarian in me was pretty grossed out about the idea of grinding whole chickens up. Luckily, I found this premix via Celine's blog that contains all the essential nutrients cats need which can then just be added to fresh meat. I use organic ground chicken or beef, and also add egg yolks and a bit of shredded veggies. I like that the food can be made up in batches and frozen in meal sizes, since freezing can kill a lot of bacteria and you don't have to worry about the raw meat just hanging in your fridge. I thought the whole thing would be too much for me, but it's honestly easier than biking to the pet store to lug home a bunch of heavy food and is way less gross than canned pet food. I love knowing that I feed her food that I would eat (if I ate meat) and she goes crazy for the stuff. It's also nice to know that it's a much "greener" and ethical choice, although I guess there is something to be said for using all the extra animal parts they put in cat food. It just seemed so hypocritical of me to be opening cans daily full of factory farmed meat. Yuck. Plus, at the risk of TMI, I'll just say that our tiny apartment smells way better. So, if there is anyone out there considering going raw, I would definitely recommend it! If you want to learn more, I found this book really informative and there are lot of good links at Tiggy's breeder's site too, where I first read about natural feeding. 

Also, how much bigger is Tolmie already?! 

Spring Cleaning

Now that I've got my application for architecture school all packed up and handed it, I have a couple of weeks off before the next round of application projects and exams. I've been really looking forward to having this time so I can, um, do some spring cleaning. I know, I live a wild and glamorous life! But the last couple of weeks were hectic to say the least, and I know that they will continue to be so. And I'd rather not be digging through piles of clothes only to have to run to the closest H&M because I am out of clean underwear. Which may or may not have happened last week, sigh. It seems to happen around this time every year while I am impatiently awaiting the arrival of spring here that I want to get rid of almost everything I own and scrub down the entire apartment until it's nice and shiny. It's probably a symptom of cabin fever, but I usually embrace it. And since we are expecting a big snow storm overnight, I'm happy to have a project to keep me busy while I stay cozy inside. Spring cleaning for me doesn't just mean going through everything, I also like to do a little bit of redecorating to freshen things up and just generally make our home life prettier and better organized. I thought I would share some of the things on my wish list that I'm planning to make room for (counterclockwise from top):

HAY  plissé - The most aesthetically pleasing way to organize piles of papers. I think these would look so nice on our shelves, and would add some much needed colour. 

HAY feather duster - I somehow have never owned a duster. I'm not sure if you really need one, but I would feel much fancier cleaning with this one. 

Martha Stewart food storage containers - I've been meaning to switch to glass containers instead of plastic for ages, and just haven't. It's on the list for this year though. 

Hurom slow juicer - I've been really wanting to start juicing, and although I'll probably have to go for a cheaper model, this one looks amazing. 

Turkish towel - I've also had these Turkish towels on my wish list for the bathroom for forever.  I like the idea of a thinner towel that would dry quickly and could be taken along to the beach without taking up much space in a bag. 

Urban garden bag - Until we get a place with a balcony/enough light, these seem like a good solution for growing herbs. I like that they can make a hanging garden by attaching to the ceiling, instead of having to be attached to the wall (a commodity in an attic apartment). 

Shanna Murray welcome decal - Yet another thing that has long been on the list, as a greeting for our front door.  The laurel looks appropriately spring-y as well. 

Tolmie

Last weekend Mark and I took the train to over to Malmö, Sweden to pick up the newest addition to our family. Named after the mountain in Victoria, Tolmie has quickly made our tiny apartment feel like a home again. I still miss Tiggy every day, and I was a bit worried how I would feel with a new grey Devon Rex kitten around. She is her own sweet little soul though, and we are seeing her personality more everyday. Devon Rexes have been said to be like monkeys in a cat suit, which is a perfect description for Tolmie. After a couple quiet and shy days when we first brought her home, she has been jumping onto and into everything. Her favourite thing to do is to sit on our shoulders pirate style and stay there for as long as possible. And since she only has a layer of short, downy fur, she also loves the heat - curling up in the radiator, in sweaters, and blankets. We are still working on her not attacking us in the middle of the night, but we've fallen for her pretty hard already all the same.