Weekly Winners – Going Green

My quest for green always reaches a peak late winter. So this week I’m going Hulk in every way.

1.Conservatory Archives, my favourite London florist is growing. The tiny shop on Hackney Road now has spun off at Lower Clapton Road.

Here you can linger in an abundance of greenery. There’s also a little café cum deli that serves up delicious Matcha and Chocolate mousse-like cheesecakes.

Quirky details, vintage furniture and lighting adds to the charm.

A must for every greenery and plant lover.

Conservatory Archives, 3-5 Lower Clapton Road, London.

Photo: Bottega Veneta.

2.Italian fashion deluxe brand Bottega Veneta is making waves with new Artistic Director Daniel Lee. He previously held the position of director of ready-to-wear design at Celine, a protégé of Phoebe Philo. So he knows a thing or two about timeless, sophisticated elegance.

In the autumn of 2017, I visited a Bottega Veneta event at Chiswick House, London, where craftsmen and women where showcasing the brands high level of craftsmanship. It’s one of the few fashion houses that has stayed true to the artisanal heritage, when many other ones these days goes for a quick fashion fix. It will be interesting to follow Lee’s approach in this matter.

The new collection of oversized bags with their classic Intrecciato leather pattern now blown-up to XXL proportions and the are close to this years hottest bags so far in MHO. Some of the styles sold out straight away in their webbshop. So seems I’m not alone here…

Photo: Bottega Veneta.

The first AD-campaign has also created a lot of buzz with it’s modern, cool attitude and perhaps foremost for the fusion of fashion and some desirable furniture. (The armchair with leather armrests, yesss please!)

These green sporty, oversized leather shorts is the perfect mix of cool and elegance. A timeless dream ticket that never goes out of style.


Shorts in green nappa, £ 2095, Bottega Veneta.

3. Every morning I’m waking up on the green side with a wheatgrass super green shot. It comes packed with vitamin A and C, which help to maintain healthy vision and contribute to normal brain function.

It also helps the immune system, antioxidant protection and skin rejuvenation. The wheatgrass is produced with minimal processing.

Cheers and Good Morning to that!

Organic Wheat grass powder, Green Origins, £5.99, Ocado.

4.On my wishlist for some years now, LA-based ceramist Eric Roinestad’s work has it’s own, unique expression.

He mixes the spirit of California folk modernism with the designer’s own Scandinavian heritage. I think I could decorate a whole room with one of his pieces as the starting point.

Ceramics, Eric Roinestad.

5.Normally I’m quite beige and boring when it’s comes to eye make-up.

But this dark, moody green shadow from Danish, organic beauty brand Kjaer Weis had me thinking outside my usual greige box.

The refill system is brilliant and part of the brands sustainable philosophy.  The range is free of parabens, silicones, petrochemical emulsifiers and synthetic fragrances.

Made in Italy, almost all of the products have been Certified Natural or Certified Organic by Italian standards.

Cream Eye Shadow Sublime, €43, Kjaer Weis. 

Terracotta Pot Power

This incredible tropical summer I have moved almost all our plants outdoors. Since I’m working and living all most all the time in the garden so why shouldn’t the plants get the same treat? Plus I love having them there of course.

This transit made me realize just how much I like these terracotta pots from Arket. The minimalist, no-fuzz shape makes them perfect for both in- and outdoors. And you can mix and match them with almost any other style. Both the pot and the saucer has a glaced inside to prevent dampness on the surface where it’s placed.

And the price point is as always at Arket wallet-friendly.

Terracotta pots available in two sizes, from £15 at Arket.

The Heatwave Haven

At our townhouse we have what our neighbour describe as a “mature garden”. If you want to be positive that means a lush plethora of trees and shrubs that creates a lovely frame and backdrop for our north facing plot.

And the overall wonky feeling with all it’s imperfections is both charming and forgiving. Perfect for me, the lazy gardener. IMG_0577Adding some reality facts, it’s also a garden that no one has done as much as cutting a dead branch in for quite some time. So when we moved in it was an unpruned, over-grown green beast.

Now 18 months later we have at least done the most urgent trimming and cutting. But since we’re renting and not planning to stay here for more than a couple of years, we are following the strict pot plan. Meaning, just adding potted plants to strategic places.

Oh, there’s one exception! The small patio at the the back end of the garden. I will return to that one in an upcoming garden post.IMG_0426The part closest to the house is in shadow almost 24/7, so that’s not the spot for basking in the summer sun. For us it was just the transit on our way out to the sun.

But that was before the Brittish scorcher summer of 2018.

From being a constant sun-seeker (spf, check!) and trying to work as much as possible outdoors in the summer,  I have found myself facing a quite new problem. Where to sit when it’s too hot to handle the sun?

So now finally, that leads us to this post’s real content – the transformation of that “useless”all day shaded spot.

It’s framed by one of the house’s brick walls on one side and a really old fence on the other. This creates an inviting room like feeling to it. Also it’s blurring the lines between in and outdoors. A feature that I always favoured in architecture.

Luckily it happens to have neutral, big sand coloured tiles adding to that indoor feeling. So with that “conservatory canvas” to work with it was not that such a big task to do the decorating.

Being into rattan for some years now and wanting to be able to mix and match all garden furniture for different settings, I decided to stick to the same furniture as on the other patio, the Mastholmen from IKEA.

IMG_0533After moving some pots from other parts of the garden and using our Röshult Urban fire basket as a big plant box our new green room was sorted.

By the way, the terracotta pot from Arket (below) is a new favourite. With it’s minimalistic design it let’s the plants do the talking. IMG_0554Still need to fix the lighting tough. Lanterns and candles always does the trick to amp up the cosy factor. And also will add an old lighting chain.

The Santa Cole new battery version of the now classic Cestita lamp designed in 1962 by Miguel Milá  will add a little Japanese touch. Will show you how that turns out soon.

Outdoor rattan furniture, Mastholmen, IKEA. Terracotta pot, Arket. Watering can, Haws. Green carafe, Pinheiro Bordallo, Arket. Fire basket, Röshult. Terracotta linen cushion covers, H&M Home. Nina wears: Trousers and sun hut, H&M SS15. White tunic, Other Stories, SS15. White bra tank top, Uniqlo. Sandals, Hawaiianas.