Seasons in Småland Sweden

One of the strange things (for Dutch people living) in Sweden is spring (and autumn) time. In The Netherlands we know four seasons. You will have a real springtime, it takes from February/March to May or June, before the real summertime starts. After that you will have sometimes a little after Summer but mostly a real autumn. With a lot of rain, dark skys and slowly getting colder and colder. In Sweden you have more just Winter and Summertime. It is very cold or warm. Not that much in between. When you are lucky you have 2 or 3 weeks Spring or Autumn. So you can slowly get used to coldness or warmth. Like last year, we had still snow in the beginning of April. After that, in only 2 weeks, really hot summer weather (around 30 degrees) from May till August.

Flowering  Birch trees (Björk)

Forsythia in Springtime Småland Sweden

Fritellaria Meleagris

Cherry flowers

After a very long and warm summer last autumn was like an Indian Summer (called Brittsommar in Sweden) I'm very curious what we will have this year.... 

DIY Easter in Småland Sweden

This time I created some Eastern decorations you can you outside of house, mostly based on organic materials and birchtranches and totally handmade. Like a lovely Eastern hare, some very big (around 45 cm) sustainable contemporary wreaths, a trendy witch broom and a Easter witch herself... Take a look? You like them?

a lovely Eastern hare

a big sustainanble contemporary wreath

Green is new energy

It is already proved, green makes you happy, more balanced, less stressed and quicker to recover. It is refreshing for every one. It is like a battery re-loader for human beings. There have been trails in hospital, they recover more quick in a green room. In this digital world we need it more and more.
Why waiting? Do it now!

• So put plants in your office, they will clean the air.
• Try some plants in your living room (they will supply some extra O2 for you).
• Take care of them once a week, take it as a mindful moment.
• Have not only flowers but also some green plants in your garden (you can find easy ones as well).
• Think about having more green and less stones in your garden (against over floating after heavy rain when at least 60% is not covered with stone).
• Take a bath with a green essence to calm down.
• Have a walk in the forest and just listen to your breath.
• Look at green pictures.

For recharging your batteries, connect to nature's vital forces and color your world green. Just give it a try for a moment, you will feel better immediately, you will never regret....

Mariedals Lanthandel Onsala

This weekend i visited Mariedals Lanthandel in Onsala (near Göteborg). It is out in the countryside. It is very nice to just have a look around. They have a lot of old days cleaning stuff, like linoljesåp (linseedoil soap), marmelades and old days sweets.Very good to clean and maintain your woorden floors, even eco friendly. You can see and buy repainted old furniture. So it can have a new trendy live. Of course they also sell Annie Sloans paint.  I liked it very much. It was worth visiting, I will be back 😄

Blue Zone in Småland Sweden?

Been away to the Netherlands for family circumstances... but now I'm back in Sweden. Starting up my own life again...

Recently I read an article in a Dutch magasin, it made me very happy. I'm a lucky one: I'm very living in a blue zone in the south east of Sweden in Småland 😃.

What is a blue zone? They say it is a area where people on the average get older as in the rest of the world. Most important reasons for this are:

1. Eating a lot of healthy foods such as fruits and vegetables and not that much meat
2. There is a good social control, as it was in the old days
3. Every one is daily active (even older people)
4. Because the location (a little isolated) the habits doesn't change that quick

Some newspapers in Sweden and de Swedish broadcast on TV and radio already some made articles and programs about it some time ago. It is because in this area are relatively living more people above 100 years as in the rest of Sweden, it can even compete with some areas in the world (as you can read above).

Maybe Sweden can be a popular area to travel to for a digital detox. They have lots of nature where you can meet yourself again without any disturbances. You can find detoxing travel experiences on internet to Northern Lapland. Recently they made a film in the Netherlands. "Go to Sweden and have a digital detox....."

Impressions Christmas Market Älmhult

Good times on the Christmas Market in Älmhult this year. Nice handmade products, good music, very good organisation. About 50 stands and 3500 visitors on Sunday and 1750 on Sunday.

We made a lot of Christmas decorations for in and outside. A big assortiment of wreaths and other designs in a colorfull or in a natural way!

Julmarknad Älmhult 8 och 9 december 2018

Välkommen på en riktig Smålandsk julmarknad. Vi ska bli med...Saskia BloemArt and Antz Creations. Kommer du också?

Welcome on a real Smålands Christmas Market. And we will be there...Saskia BloemArt and Arntz Creations. Do you come and visit us?

Sneak preview Christmas decorations for Julmarknad Älmhult 2018

Looking for inspiration? For Christmas Decorations?

Last weeks we have been preparing for the Christmas Market in Älmhult on 8 and 9 december 2018. At first we looked for inspiration, later for good ideas and materials and at last the making off starts.... I'm very satisfied with the results, we made big modern things, and some small. On the market you can find some classic with a twist too. But after all it's all very natural. Like me. I hope you like it too :)

Maybe this is the first step to my dream, to create and sell creative handmade naturel products...

Vi ses på Julmarknad i Älmhult 2018!

vecklat krans or Wreath

Modern krans / Contemporarely wreath

Väggdekoration / walldecoration

What is Julskyttning?

Finally, it is the First Advents Day in Sweden. Every one has been longing for this day. But why?

It's a sort of starting upp Christmas time...Time to put on the lights in the Christmas tree on the Market place of every town in Sweden. It is very nice to have some light in this dark period, I can assure you...

All the people come together and drink some glögg (warm red wine with herbs) and nuts.You can have warm black current drinks too...
Of course there is Christmas music playing and a lot of market stalls where you can buy sweeties (warm sugared mandel) or Christmas presents and Santa Claus wil appear as well. Sometimes even Lucia will show up...It is  very cosy atmosphere, they call it Adventsmys.

DIY Förjulhygge? Sort of before Christmas Cosiness?

Do you need some inspiration for DIY natural Christmas decorations? I'm preparing for a Christmas Market in the beginning of december. You can already take a sneak preview of the making off...

In Norway and Sweden they call it førjulhygge or förjulhygge. Let's say a sort of before Christmas cosiness. Do you want to feel it yourself? Even the making of is fun. Just give it a try....

Big contemporary natural wreath

Contemporary natural heart

Natural Christmas Deco on table or door

Jultomte or Christmas Troll

Table deco