4 Simple Ways to Refresh Your Home for Spring!

Spring is at our doorsteps and it is time to spring clean and spruce things up a little. But if you are finding that time is a luxury at the moment, don't let your home decor suffer because of that. Here is 4 quick and simple way to bring the spring right into your home in the shortest simplest way!

1) Change up your walls!

A coat of fresh new colour paint would be wonderful, but what if you just do not have the time to spend. The simplest way would be to change your wall art! May it be new paintings or wall vinyl, these are best ways to change up the way your room looks without worrying about the permanent effect. When summer comes around they could be whipped off the walls or repositioned to the new season.

Hello Pink by iSeeWonders, Wall decal quote: Enjoy the little things by MadeofSundays, Chikadees Flight by ColorfulSimone, Birth of Spring by behindmyblueeyes

2) New pillow covers

Pillow covers should be washed anyways, so what is better than to freshen up your home décor with some bright new cover while the previous ones are being washed. Choose the latest prints and colours or saying that best fits your moods in this season.

Set of two pillow covers by Tuuni, Cotton Pillow cover by MarikkaBiyana, Organic Cotton Pillow Case by LEMPIdesign, Linen Pillow Cover by BeanieonHelinaShop

3) Time to change your kitchen accessories!

A great way to refresh your décor is to get change up your kitchen accessories too. New functional designs has a great way of giving an uplifting change to your kitchen and enhancing tasks in the kitchen.

Tray Valjoliljat by NamiaDesign, Wool Felt Drink Coaster by aikafeltworks, Wooden Cutting Board by Somewherestore, Frolicking Flounder by VillaYlle

4) Add new small storage

Adding new storage in the latest season colours not only will brighten up your room, but also help you keep untidiness at bay. With the appropriate size and functionality, your room will be tidy and looking fresh, in no time!

MAJA Äimänkäki Round Basket by Äimänkäki, Linen-Cotton Tea Cozy 'Babushka' by StudioNille, Fabric Bin by Kotona, Black Crochet Bowl by Mairea

Cornetti: The Italian croissant

Here you have my ultimate recipe for an Italian croissant, also called cornetti in Italian.

What makes them special is that the pastry tastes more like a brioche, less buttery than the typical french style croissant (and also much more easy to make!)

Italian croissants

Makes 16 croissants.

Ingredients 

PASTRY

• 500 gr flour (I used refined pastry flour) 
• 50 gr butter (room temperature)
• 25 gr fresh yeast
• 150 gr milk
• 150 gr sugar
• 2 eggs + 1 egg yolk 
• 1 tsp vanilla arome
• 1/2 lemon zest (grated)
• 2 Tbsp of powdered sugar for dusting

FILLING (optional)

• 150 gr dark chocolate (or Nutella, marmalade, etc.) 

Making the dough

Warm up the 150 gr of milk a little bit (c.a. 30ºC), remove from the stove and add the yeast. Mix until it dissolves completely. Set aside.

In a large bowl mix 500gr of flour with the 150 gr of sugar. Add the lemon zest.

Cut the 50gr butter into small pieces and add it to the mixture.

Add 2 eggs and the milk, knead until it does not stick to your fingers.
You can either do it by hand or - if you are as lazy as I am - with the help of a stand mixer (I used my lovely KitchenAid with dough hook attachment at medium speed about 10 min.).

Rolling the dough

1. Separate the dough in two parts and make two balls out of it.

2. Put the balls in two airtight containers and let it set for 2 hours at about 30ºC (my home is around 20ºC so I placed the containers in the oven at minimum temperature).

Now comes the funny part, how to actually roll the dough into croissants:

3. Dust one of the balls in flour and roll it into a circle like you will be making pizza.

4. With the help of a sharp knife, cut it into 8 triangle shapes as shown in the picture below.

5. Add a piece of chocolate in the widest part of the triangle.

6. Brush the narrow part of the triangle with a bit of water.

7. Take the bottom of the triangle and tightly roll it up into a croissant shape.
Repeat steps 3 to 7 with the other ball of dough.

8. Let them set for 3 more hours at room temperature, leave enough space between the cornetti because they will double its size. You can skip this step if you are planing to freeze them*.

* in that case just put your beautiful cornetti straight to the freezer. Whenever you feel like eating them, take the frozen cornetti out from the freezer the night before and let them defrost overnight at room temperature.  

Baking

Set the oven to 180ºC.

Whisk 1 egg yolk with a bit of milk.
Place the cornetti onto the baking tray and brush them all over with the egg mix.

Bake for about 15 min. (or until they are golden brown)
Let them cool and sprinkle with powdered sugar.

Yummy!

Published by Alba from Made of Sundays

Card holder

Want to create an elegant card holder for your home's entance? Maybe a gadget that can help you organize the mess of your desk? Grab an old book and start folding. Here is a very cute up-cycling project.

  In case you don't want to ruin a book from your personal collection, I advise you to visit your local library. Simply ask them if they have removed books from the collection. Many libraries are more than happy to give those books away, or sell them for ~1€.

You need to choose a thick book in order to have a great result. But it's up to you how tall the book you use will be. Remove the cover and you're ready to start.

Take the first page and fold it in half. Take the second page and fold it in half, putting the edge of the page between the first and the second page. Continue folding each page separately until you finish with the book.

The font size and type of the book you choose will determine the final result. So will the black&white or colorful pictures and the yellowish pages of an old book.

Published by Dimitra of Looney Dimitra Crafts

Renowned Finnish Designers for Home Décor and Accessories

Finland is a country of design with many world famous designers and design items. In this post we celebrate Finnish designers and their ever timeless designs.

Maija Isola

This Finnish Designer's name might not be as easily recognized as her ever popular Unikko (Poppy) flower print that the Marimekko brand is so known for. This design was created by Maija Isola in the 1964 as a defiance to the owner’s ban on floral prints. Her work for Marimekko consist of over 500 prints inspired by traditional folk art, modern visual art, nature and her countless trips around the world. It is said that Marimekko’s style was very much based on what Maila Isola was doing. In its celebration of Unikko's 50 anniversary, Marimekko pays tribute to bold personalities and people who goes against the grain and follow their instincts in the spirit of Maija Isola.
 

 Unnika Poppy & Istuva Harka

Alvar Aalto
Alvar Aalto is known as the father of Modern Scandinavian architecture and has contributed numerous timeless designs of furniture and interior fixtures, still enjoyed today. Born in the late 19^th century, he has received numerous awards and accolades from around the world for building famous till this day. However in our homes we still enjoy his simple yet functional mid-century modern home décor and furniture like the Savoy Iitala vases and Paimio chair.

Artek Chairs & Savoy Vase

Eero Saarinen
Known as the famous architect behind the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial in St. Loius, Eero Saarinen a Finnish American has contributed some of the most recognizable designs in the 20^th century. He was also on the jury panel of the Sydney Opera House, a World Heritage building today. Among his many creation is the Tulip chair and pedestal family of furniture manufactured by Knoll and still is the favourite of many design conscious collectors around the world.

Tulip Chairs and Table & Chairfor Knoll

Kaj Franck
Kaj Franck is described as the conscience of Finnish design. During the war he was incited with the possibilities of technology and mass production, especially in its ability to produce diverse practical objects at low cost. His later designs was stripped of everything excessive leaving behind only the essentials. Kaj Franck's timeless designs are still produced by Italia and cherished in many households around the world.

Mushroom Bowl & Heart Bowl

Warm and cozy winter dessert

I don't know about you, but one of my favourite things about winter is walking around in warm woolen socks and huddling on my couch with a hot cup of my ultimate favourite tea, the Masala Chai.

Because I love Chai Tea so much, I’m always for ways to incorporate this sweet spicy flavor into my recipe experiments: cupcakes, cookies, cakes, ice-cream... Today, I have taken it to the next level: rice porridge.

So, if you are looking for a warm and healthy winter dessert (or breakfast), look no further than this: 

Masala Chai rice porridge

Serves 4

For the Chai Tea

• 8 green cardamom pods
• 8 cloves
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 8 black peppercorns
• 3 cm piece of fresh ginger, peeled
• 1 vanilla pod
• 4 Tbsp black tea leaves
• 50 gr brown sugar
• 250 ml whole milk  *

For the rice porridge

• 200 gr porridge rice
• 1,5 l whole milk *
• 30 gr brown sugar
• 1 cinnamon stick
• Cinnamon powder or grated dark chocolate for garnish 

 * If you are vegan, this recipe can be easily adapted by simply replacing the milk with 1 l soya milk + 0,5 l almond or coconut milk. It will taste delicious!

Instructions

Make the Chai Tea

1. Crush the cardamom pods and cloves. 
2. Put 750 ml of water in a small saucepan and add the crushed spices, one cinnamon stick, peppercorns and ginger piece and bring it to boil. 
3. Split the vanilla pod lenghtwise into two halves and add it to the pan. 
4. Add the milk and sugar to the pan and bring it to boil one more time. 
5. Remove from heat, add the tea and let it infuse for 15 minutes with the saucepan covered.

Make the porridge

1. Strain the Chai Tea mixture into a medium size saucepan.
2. Add the rice, milk, sugar and cinnamon stick. Bring it to boil. 
3. Reduce the heat to a simmer, stir and cover. 
4. Cook at low heat for about 25 minutes or until the rice is tender, stir occasionally. 
5. Serve warm with a bit of cinnamon powder or grated dark chocolate on top

There you have it, the perfect recipe to keep you warm and happy until the spring comes. What about you guys?  What kind of comfort food gets you through winter?

Hopefully these things will help get us all on the fast-track to an early spring (screw that groundhog and his stupid predictions and his stupid shadow). How are you getting yourself through winter?  - See more at: http://avoidingatrophy.blogspot.fi/2014/02/7-things-to-get-you-through-this-never.html#sthash.1F722R7F.dpuf

Published by Alba of Made of Sundays

Recycled Crafts - Gift Containers

It's always nice to bring small presents when we're invited to a party or event. But it's not always nice trying to figure out what to bring, especially if we're not into buying something useless, such as a decorative item that will end up in the trash, or if our host already has just about everything. Something edible is always a good choice -- everybody likes to eat! But we might not feel comfortable bringing food, as it might look silly. But! If you place the gift you are bringing into a nice container it's a totally new ball game!

What will you need:

Empty and clean cylinder shaped food containers

Old gift wrap and/or newspaper

Glue, brush and small container

Scissors and craft knife (optional)

Paper ribbon or twine

First you need to cut the paper to match the container size. It doesn't have to be exactly the same size, as you'll trim it later on. But make sure the bottom line is straight and that your piece is big enough!

Then we're going to glue it on. There are two methods to do this, depending on the look you want. If you want it to be smooth (good for smooth wrapping paper) use a glue stick. Spread glue on the seam of the container, and then around the top and bottom edge. Make sure you get all the edges covered, but don't spread the glue all over, since it will make the paper wrinkle.

Starting from the seam, wrap the paper around the container. Make sure you get the bottom part straight. Let the paper overlap a bit and secure with glue.

If you're after the more rustic look, use liquid glue and an old paint brush. Spread glue all over the container.

When wrapping the paper around the container, don't pull it too smooth. It's supposed to wrinkle a bit!

After the glue has dried, you can trim the edges with a craft knife. You can use scissors too.

Tie the ribbon/twine around the container. Now it's ready to go! Fill it with candy, nuts, muesli...just about anything you can fit inside. :)

 Happy Crafting!!

Top 3 Home décor trends for 2014

2014 is well on its way as we move into month 2 of the year! After weeks of reading up on what will be the top home décor trends in 2014, here is a concise, condensed version of the top 3 trends gathered from different sites and blogs around the web. We’ve picked out only those which are echoed by over and over by the many content sources out there!

     Hues of Blue

Yes I know Pantone colour of the year is Radiant Orchid, but strangely I found that blue is more spoke about as an overall colour trend for home décor. Even some online home décor retailers has offered something blue or uses blue as an overall theme colour of their what’s new section. In this article – Ask a Designer: 2014 decor trends (link: http://www.philly.com/philly/home/Ask_a_Designer_2014_decor_trends_.html)  the designer Brian Patrick Flynn, has subtlety repeated the recommendation to use blue.

     Agate

Agate is mentioned in Elle Décor, Better Homes and Gardens and several other blogs around. Used as coasters or even as an entire kitchen top, agates were chosen as the top mineral trend for 2014. For more inspiration on using this beautiful semiprecious stone as a home décor, have a look at this – #trending: 10 must-have decor items using agate

(http://carlaaston.com/designed/decor-trends-using-agate)

     Brass or mixed metals

      Metals are making it back this year. May it be brass, silver or gold it is making its way into retailers’ cataloques and blog pictures in forms of lighting, side tables and frames. Even metallic printed fabrics are becoming a hit!

In picture

1.  Vintage Brass Table Arc Lamp by VintagethatsMintage 

2.   Chenille Teal Cushion Cover by CoupleHome 

3.   Glam Brass Gold Cantilever Side Tables by GallivantingGirls

4.   Agate Slab Coasters by SaraReynoldsJewelry

Christmas Card Swap

Cards created by Jenn, Simone and Kaisa. Plus a detail from Jenn's envelope.

This Christmas we decided to arrange a card swap. We had nine creative participants and all addressees were randomly picked. Everybody sent and received a handmade holiday card.

Cards made by Niina, Carey and Raisa.

With all these handcrafted greetings, Finland Handcrafters Team wishes happy holidays to all of you as well! Hyvää Joulua ja Onnellista Uutta Vuotta!

Cards sent by Ruusu, Nelli and Branko.

Get a look behind the curtains of mooncake and win a product!

Selling on a christmasmarket can be very exciting, especially when a lot of people like and buy the offered products. So the other day a very nice lady came to the market and fell in love with the mooncake pillows. Her name was Sari, and she was really interested in getting a closer look behind the scenes.

Sari came visiting me one day, took a lot of great pictures, posted them on her blog and also created a raffle! Now it is open to everyone, so click HERE to participate until thursday, 19th of december, 7 pm and win an owl of your own! :)

DIY Christmas Silk Painted Card

Here is an idea how to create an unique Christmas Card!

You are going to need: 

✓Silk wire frame pannel or just some silk material

       ✓ Pencil,paper,Silver Gutta for silk, silk paints

       ✓ Cardboard, scissors, glue

First sketch your idea on a paper. It is important to have a clear image of the thing you are going to paint on the silk pannel.

After you have cleared your idea you can transfer it on the silk pannel using the Silver Gutta. After you put the Gutta- leave it todry.

Once the Gutta has dried you can start painting the image.In my case: this is a Happy Deer! Free your imagination- mix different colors! I am sure your card will turn out colorful and beautiful too!

After your painting has dried you can glue it on a cardboard. It is always good idea to use recycled paper!

Apart from a beautiful hand painted Silk Card- this unique gift can be an original painting as well!  

╰⊰⊹✿ ✿⊹⊱╮╰⊰⊹✿ ✿⊹⊱╮╰⊰⊹✿ ✿⊹⊱╮╰⊰⊹✿ ✿⊹⊱╮╰⊰⊹✿ ✿⊹⊱╮

This is a great DIY gift idea, not only for the Christmas Holidays but for all kind of Celebrations!
If you like this card but you prefer to buy it rather than to make it yourself, you can click here.

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