flashback to Christmas

Christmas was almost a month ago but it was only this morning that I found the time to start undecorating our apartment! I guess it's never too late, right? I always feel some kind of melancholy when the festive season is over, so, I try to delay the process of removing the Christmas ornaments as long as possible, but, this year I have to admit I overdid it!

while wrapping all this delicate stuff and putting it back to its boxes and up to the attic to be ready for next year, I spent a couple of minutes looking at the Christmas deco I bought this year. we somehow turned this into our family tradition; every year we buy something new that adds up to our Christmas collection. here is this year's "discovery"...

together with the Three Kings bearing gifts, I discovered Patience Brewster! what an amazing collection! all these unique figures.... I fell in love with the "12 days of Christmas" figures! I sing along while uploading the photos below...

{two turtle doves}

{six geese a laying}

{eight maids a milking}

{ten pipers piping}

{eleven ladies dancing}

la maitresse~ by konplott

"every day has its moment, every mood its radiance" is Miranda Konstantinidou's motto; & she is one of our favorite jewelry designers for almost 20 years ! {her original jewlery brand is Konplott}

bracelet, earrings & necklace ~  Konplott collection "la maitresse" 

you can read a bit more about the Konplott story and their exclusive  handmade production in Cebu, Phillipines, here. 

are you ready to be blown away?

the question is not whether we can afford the phenomenal clothes of Colombian-based Johanna Ortiz, but where & when in our daily lives could we pull such an outfit? nonetheless, no harm in dreaming...it is january, it is cold, we definitely need some breathtaking inspiration!

sit back & enjoy

{source: johanna ortiz fall 2017 // check all collections!!}

{resort 2018}

the january get-together

many of us usually spend January at home, a bit worn out from the festivities of christmas & new year eve’s season. most of us are not in the mood to plan going out, and some actually cannot even afford it.

but we in excitemelove {who love to celebrate all the big and small every~day~moments} would suggest that maybe january is actually the best month to plan some good get-togethers, just in a different way:

january is for good, honest & cozy get-togethers, with really good friends, whom most likely you did not see during december, cause they had family and other friends’ gatherings to attend.

january is also a good time, because the buzz of the festivities is now over, so you can really reflect on the year that passed, and look ahead on the months that are coming; what better than going through such an exercise while sharing it with your best friends.

lastly, some feel that january is dark, cold (if you live in northern hemisphere) and slightly depressing. even more importantly then, to invite some friends over and warm your houses and your hearts!

and we have the perfect idea for such gathering: a soup soiree!

imagine some delicious, warm soups are served {so everyone can try different flavors} accompanied with fresh baked bread and of course your favorite wines, white, rose, red!

all the different soup flavors will awake different senses, trigger different emotions, inspired different ideas and definitely different topics of discussion will arise!

and keep in mind, soups are really easy, fast and economical to be made, and you can even follow the northern european model, where you all share and everyone brings a different soup! what about making a challenge and assigning different colors to each one of you?

recipes of the soups: rusty red, tomato red, curry yellow, sweetcorn yellow, pea green, broccoli green, champagne, baby pink, light deep pink, lilla

well, it is Friday tomorrow… just saying….

if you are looking for some soup bowls inspiration, have a look at food52:

FisheyeBrooklyn

Sarah Cihat

Farmhouse Pottery

FROM THESSALONIKI... with love

look what I discovered during my recent trip to my home city; the most amazing, trendiest souvenir shop ever... & it's even called "FROM THESSALONIKI", so appropriate!

even if you are not visiting Thessaloniki but you consider yourself to be a local, pay a visit to this tiny store at 21 Dim.Gounari Street, if you are looking for key rings, T-shirts, card games, deco objects, magnets, mugs or small gifts to offer to your friends, relatives or loved ones.

all images below are borrowed from the store's Facebook page.

stay warm!

for our beloved friends who live in the usa and are are trying to stay warm {in any possible way}, we would like to suggest a very scandinavian breakfast dish, which can be eaten warm, it will make you feel full of energy and it is absolutely delicious!

oatmeal! 

it is so simple to make, and if you get creative enough you can actually have a completely different experience every morning! our favourite version is simply prepare the oatmeal, add a small knob of butter, chopped bananas, a little bit of fresh milk to make the porridge less sticky {but not too much cause then the porridge will get cold} and a bit of ground cinnamon on top! 

voilà! enjoy immediately, as long as it is still warm! 

we also found some other heavenly variations:

caramelized banana oatmeal by pinch of yum!

blueberry chia oatmeal by lauren kelly:

coconut carrot cake oatmeal by lifemadesweeter: 

color within the lines & relax

on the second evening of this amazing new year, i found myself drawing with color pencils in one of my kids’ books. they were doing their own art, relaxing, just before bedtime, so i decided to indulge in my own page. and i found myself in such peace. yet, an exciting peace; what colors shall i chose, what if i color outside the lines, will it be very pretty when i m done? ah… all these small exquisite excitements.. and yet such a peaceful activity.

so this morning i decided to play the journalist and research what makes these coloring books, or even just one page, such a great entertainment?

i found quite a few academic (and non) researches, based on experiments that show evidence that indeed “structured coloring of a reasonably complex geometric pattern may induce a meditative state that benefits individuals suffering from anxiety (Curry et al., 2005)” and “adult coloring reduces depressive symptoms and anxiety(Flett et al., 2017)”. another research talked on how specifically women benefit from structured coloring, in comparison to both male getting more relaxed while drawing free style (Carsley et al., 2015)!

well, the only thing i can suggest is just try it! i loved it! after all this lovely buzz of the Christmas and new year’s festivities, relaxing with a good coloring book and some great color pencils, it was exactly what i needed for a january evening!

as you can see two of my books are with pictures from Greece! natasa bought them so our kids could learn a bit about the country, while coloring!  

if you are looking for buying yourself some nice coloring books, we can definitely recommend the ones that gifted Brittany (the house that lars built) made:

8 things to change in 2018

Happy New Year!

This year I decided to write down just 8 things I want to change in 2018... & I will also keep a monthly diary to track myself & make sure I stick to my resolutions!

{https://liagriffith.com/printable-new-years-resolution-cards/}

So, here they are:
1. Meditate 8 minutes per day;
2. Follow an 8-min daily beauty routine;
3. Sleep 8 hours per day;
4. Work 8 hours less per week;
5. Exercise 8 times per month;
6. Meet, call & catch up with friends 8 times per month;
7. Cook 8 new recipes or visit 8 new restaurants throughout the year;
and, last but not least,
8. Write 8 posts per month!
Let's see if I make it!!!

{https://liagriffith.com/printable-new-years-resolution-cards/}

the ”you-decide-everything” day!

last year we started a tradition here at home. one day between christmas and new year’s eve (so far has been the 27th of december), our children (at least the big ones) would get to decide E V E R Y T H I N G the whole day; everything: from what they eat to what they wear, to what they play, to what time they go to bed…

we thought that, since there are so many things that adults around them decide on their behalf the whole time, they could and they should have this day where we (the adults) just let go… and the kids just enjoy taking over!

and of course this day has been strategically chosen, since it is between the holidays, so the family’s rhythms are slowed down and we can afford the next day a bit of “too-much-candy” stomach ache and a few pairs of tired eyes from having “too-much-ipad” time ! plus it keeps the excitement going! first they have to wait for christmas day, then for the ”you-decide-everything” day and finally comes the new-year’s eve!

so, yesterday it was the day we have all been waiting for! kids were in pyjamas the whole day, and got dressed in a second (all by themselves) to go across the street for sushi ! they played a looooot of ipad, watched a looooot of tv, ate all kinds of yummy things… the whole day, and most importantly they said a lot of hilarious things like:

* “since we decide everything today, we decide that we will decide everything everyday!”
* us: “would you like dessert here (sushi restaurant) or at home?” – them: “since we decide everything today, we decide that we will have dessert … in both places!
* and late in the evening, the big one: “can i have one more glass chocolate milk?” –me: “you decide!” –the big one: “no mum, i’m done, you can decide for me again… ”

well, it is exhilarating, puzzling, entertaining and tiresome to take decisions the whole day!!!!

(you can find these amazing handmade play wear for children  at Lane's online boutique, LoveLane)

latest excitemelove obsession

~ emerald velvet

@jodyesabatiniphoto @goldybelle

#anthropologie

@christina_lundsteen