Things my boyfriend will never understand, part I

Speaking of dresses... I've never been one of those girls who dream of getting married. Never. But last weekend I went to my favourite second hand shop, and there was a rack filled with old wedding dresses. I was mysteriously drawn to this really old, hand made dress from the 50's. It was so pretty with gorgeous details and it came with a little veil and a tiara covered with fabric flowers. I started thinking of the lady who once wore this on what might or might not have been the happiest day of her life and I just couldn't leave it behind. I felt really akward fondling it and sort of glanced at the price tag, and do you know what? 10 EUR! That's barely a liter of milk and a loaf of bread in Italy. That settled it. I marched over to the sales girl and got myself my first ever wedding dress. Andrea just shook is head and I could clearly see the disbelief in his eyes. Oh well. Going home I tried to explain that me buying this dress is nothing stranger than him collecting vintage bikes. More disbelief. Chi se ne frega un cazzo!

Once at home, I tried it on. Needless to say, it wasn't exactly super comfortable and in all honesty; it was waaay too small. I couldn't even zip it up in the back. This doesn't matter to me though. It's hanging in my little craft corner right now and every time I look at it, it makes me smile. Pin It

(Another) DIY dress

This is another dress I made recently - it's a lot simpler in style than the one I posted yesterday, but it actually took me longer to finish. The fabric turned out to have a bit of stretch in it, so I had to make some adjustments for the stitches to look good. It has a zipper in the back, a bodice with bust darts (yes, necessary or your puppies will be squashed) a gathered waist and.. well, that's pretty much it! Good everyday kind of dress, I figured. I made a belt to go with it but realized I prefer wearing it without. I will be teaming this one up with some cute socks and brogues as soon as it gets warmer. I know I should be getting my iron out more often (it looks like I've slept in the dress which I actually haven't) but I absolutely hate ironing. It is the.most.boring.part of sewing. 

My next project will be refashioning one of Andrea's old shirts. I haven't quite made up my mind about what  exactly I want to make out of it, but I'm thinking skirt or dress (surprise). To be continued...

Have a lovely Friday, wherever you are!

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DIY projects

This dress cost me... close to nothing?... to make. I got the fabric at the lovely Maybach Ufer Market in Berlin for a couple of euros, and since the fabric is kind of see-through, I used some old bed linens as lining. Worked like a charm. I'm usually pretty sloppy when it comes to the insides of my garments but this time, I put some effort into making the inside neat and pretty and I'm actually really happy with the result. It feels different to wear and it has a heavy, lovely feel to it. It'll probably be a huge favourite once the snow (yes SNOW cazzo!) melts away and spring arrives. I'm thinking this and my beloved golden bike. Ah, can't wait. 

This used to be a favourite sweater of mine, bought at COS last year. Since I'm always overly optimistic when it comes to washing knitted pieces, I've shrunk quite a few and I was extremely annoyed with myself when I did the same to this one. It really was waaay to small, but I couldn't bring myself to throw it away. Good thing I didn't, cause today I turned it into a hat and a pair of mittens. It took about 5 minutes. I can highly recommend this for anyone else in the habit of shrinking stuff.  

Have a lovely Thursday!

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Licia Florio S/S 2012

I've blogged about Licia Florio before, and today, via the lovely blog Miss Moss, I found some pictures from the S/S 2012 collection. I'm in absolute awe, love it every bit as much as the previous collection. Such amazing pieces! Pin It

Aitken Jolly for b Magazine

Photo via Fashion gone rogue. 

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Lazzari

SWOON! Italian brand Lazzari really tickles my taste buds - this is absolutely gorgeous. Each and every piece from each and every collection would be more than welcome in my closet. Clearly vintage inspired, very feminine, lovely cuts. Double swoon! Found via Blackhair, all photos via Lazzari's web shop. 

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Back to business

Well hello! Im back in Italy after having spent a lovely Christmas in London with my family. The days went by way too fast, but it was so good to see them again. We celebrated both the traditional Swedish and British way, which meant Swedish food and presents for the kids on the evening of the 24th and lunch, relatives and more presents on Christmas Day. I cuddled my niece and nephew enough to last me a while, over ate at every meal and even managed to squeeze in checking out the sales on Boxing Day. It was absolutely crazy, but I couldn't resist sneaking in to Liberty to dream about their fabrics and to fondle a Marni coat that was still hugely over budget for me at £470. I guess I'll just have to way until the Marni collection for H&M comes out - I bet the prices will be a bit friendlier.

When we got back on Tuesday afternoon, we simply re-packed and took off again to see Andrea's parents and to pick up Charlie who spent Christmas with them and their dogs. She's exhausted from five days of playing, gained 4 kilos while we were gone and is now refusing to eat her normal dog food. We made a few stops on our way there to check out some local thrift stores.

This photo really doesn't do this amazing colour justice. It's a deep, rich blue and from what I can tell, the cardigan is hand knitted and in great condition.  

This pale yellow wool knit is already a huge favourite. It's super warm and perfect for the current Bergamo weather (chilly and a bit windy).

This dotted dress looked like absolute shit on the hanger, but once I tried it on, I knew I couldn't leave it behind. It's longer than most of my dresses but I think I'll leave it that way. 

I also got two pairs of flats that I will be using when it gets a little bit warmer here. I especially love the first pair, made in Florence. I always get so curious about the previous owner whenever I pick up vintage stuff. Who wore these before me? I'm picturing a tiny, Italian lady with shaky knees and an equally tiny husband. 

I don't know about you, but I always feel a bit uneasy between Christmas and New Year's Eve. I guess it might be the food, the lack of exercise, the constant sleepiness or the fact that you've been spending time with your loved ones and then, if your situation is like mine, leave to go back to wherever your home is. I'm comforting myself with the fact that one of my dearest friends will be visiting us next week. I haven't seen her since June, and so much has happened since so I'm really looking forward to long talks and catching up.

How was your Christmas? Have a lovely Thursday!

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Katie Ermilio

New York designer Katie Ermilio's Spring 2012 collection is an absolute dream. Elegant and deadly chic but never, never boring. On her web page, it says that she is the granddaughter of Grace Kelly's personal clothier, so it's not very surprising that she's got what Germans would call Fingerspitzengefühl for timeless pieces. I can't think of more beautiful spring colours than the ones chosen for this collection: pastels mixed up with strong pink and blue. Gorgeous. It makes me want sunshine and bare legs so, so badly (already tired of winter, cold and dry skin) so I'm pretty lucky to be living somewhere where spring and summer are such long seasons. Pin It

Jaeger

British brand Jaeger has some goodies on sale in their online shop right now. I won't be buying anything at the moment, but looking doesn't cost a thing, right? Pin It

Twenty-seven names

The brand Twenty-seven names from New Zealand has a really lovely S/S 2012 collection but I kind of wish they had styled the model a bit differently in these pictures. I can't stand those sandals. I really can't. Everything down to the feet is absolutely beautiful. Enter: the sandals. They make the model look like my dad on a holiday. I'm picturing these clothes paired with a pair of brogues or some gorgeous heels, but maybe that would've been a too obvious choice? Who knows. Apart from that: everything looks so breezy and fresh - perfect pieces for a hot summer day. I don't know if it's the clothes or the model but something about this makes me think of Chloë Sevigny, which can never be a bad thing, right? Pin It

Counting down the days

This weekend was great. New star patterned (my first! I'm a stripe girl every day of the year) shirt dress. Love shirt dresses. Walking around town in sunshine. Watching Drive. Finding veggie sausages!! Panattone and bubbly to the tones of blue grass at a clothing shop here in town. Listening to S.B.T.R.K.T while cooking. And the best of all: driving up to the mountains close by to check if there was any snow (ski season is drawing nearer) and if so: to see how Charlie reacted to it. It was instant success. It sounds kind of cheesy and this might be hard to understand for dogless people, but there is something squeezing my heart very tightly whenever I see my dog pal so happy.

I'm so so much looking forward to this week. Today, Andrea is selling his old camera (that I'm using more than he is) and getting a new one, and I am so excited to try the new one out! We're also gonna get some small Italian stuff for the Christmas dinner table (Chili jam and Tarelli anyone?). Wednesday, we're going to Andrea's parents to spend the night and to drop Charlie off. She'll be spending a couple of days at the country house and even though I know she'll be fine, I kind of miss her already.
Then finally, it's Thursday evening and we're off to London. When I wake up on Friday, I'll be with my family and with my favourite people in the world: my niece and nephew. Can't wait!

Oh, and the old run-down hotel... how beautiful? I might just buy in and transform it into a Swedish cheese shop/sewing studio/workshop for A/flats for everyone I love. Have a lovely Monday! Pin It

Alexandra Grecco

Brooklyn based designer Alexandra Grecco's is probably no stranger to anyone who reads indie fashion blogs. I'm not surprised to read that she's a former dancer - there is something about her clothes that makes you think of ballerinas. Oh, and the model in the first and last picture, how gorgeous?

Her creations are truly divine, but she also has a lovely blog here with some really beautiful photos. Go check it out! Pin It