Greetings from Helsinki

We are happily settled in our new home in Helsinki (so if anyone is coming here on a trip, be sure to let me know, I want to meet you!). There's still a lot of small things to get sorted but we're getting there. I am trying hard to clear out stuff that we don't use and for every single item or garment I decide I can part from I feel a little bit lighter. Tomorrow I am going to sell at the flea market with my sister who will soon be moving as well. Hopefully I can earn a few bucks too, the kids have been promised a bunk-bed (thinking of turning this unfinished quilt into curtains for it)!

Since I am working on a hush-hush project the whole month and cannot show you what I'm sewing I will take you on a tour around our apartment the coming weeks. Our apartment is small which makes is challenging to organise, but as I said I quite like that I am forced to go through all the STUFF and only hold on to the things I am really fond of. Our kitchen is small and did not have enough cupboards so I made this simple shelf that I have always wanted to have. I don't collect many other things than fabrics and buttons, but I have a weak spot for tins, probably because they are not only cute but also practical, a great excuse to buy them! The Moomin mugs are in daily use. There is another shot of this shelf on flickr.

My brother and his fiancee gifted us with two of these Ikea shelves (photo below), they didn't have enough stuff to put in them, they said(?)! This one holds a lot of the children's things, the other one is in our bedroom. Even if we moved to a smaller flat the children's room is bigger which has reduced the amount of toys in the livingroom, which is wonderful. This is how it looked last Spring.

Big E likes her temporary sleeping place next to the "rainbow books". She reads so fast so I hope she won't get bored at school. Her first real school day will be the 18th...

Comments

[Theresia]

Good luck in your new home Syko and Helsinki is on my list next....:D

[nathalie]

lovely place you have! the picture of your daughter reading is adorable!!!!

[Aly]

Ooooo, the Moomin mugs! We are currently watching the moomin cartoon series (bought on Amazon) and the kids love it.

I hope you are happy in your new location. Nothing like a move to clear out old stuff. I find my house gets rather cluttered during summer when we are outside, swimming, gardening.... and the house gets neglected. Time to declutter here too!

cheers,
Aly

[painted fish studio]

it looks like you have settled in well. and doesn't it feel so good to get rid of "stuff"? :)

your new apartment is so colorful, and looks like a wonderful place to be.

[Lisa C.]

Everything looks beautiful. I've been a silent blog reader of yours, and have never commented. Well, here I am now letting you know that you are one of my regulars, and you are so inspiring!! I'm looking at the pics of your little one and her books and floods of memories come back to me of my daughter (who is now 21!!). You're in for such fun.

[Simone]

Hi!
Congrats for your beautiful blog!
I invite you to visit my crafty blog: http://lellilu.blogspot.com
Thank you! :D

[Karen]

Your new home looks so nice and organized. That's what I need to do here. It's nice to see you back and posting again. I am a big fan of your work.

[Miaou]

Congratulations on the new home! I went to helsinki on a visit as a child and loved it. I love the rainbow bookshelf - it's so colourful!

[Katariina Olofsson]

Många hälsningar från oss, Emma och Elsa gick i samma förskoleklass här i Åbo:)

Du gör så fina textiler! Och så härligt färggrant hemma hos er.

Emma läser också nu och jag har hört att hennes blivande klass här har delats på tre grupper beroende på hur mycket man kan läsa så att alla kan utvecklas i sin egen takt. Det tycker jag är bra.

Lycka till med allt och Emma hälsar till Elsa:)

Katariina

[Clare W]

Hi and welcome back. I was wondering what happened to you! Make sure your teacher assesses your daughter well so that she doesn't get bored. Mine did and in the end we had to go for private school as the state school was making her bored even at age 5. Now she is stretched she is so happy. xx

[*Staci *]

Looks beautiful. I love the shelves. Especially the cups hanging underneath the top one. :)

[Ruth]

Hi! Nice to see you again. I'm glad that you are settled in to your new space. Love your kitchen shelf.

[claudialotz@googlemail.com]

Hello and welcome back. Good to read from you again. I wish you lots of luck in your new home, may you feel comfortable and happy.Looking forward to seeing your new projects. Greetings!

[jacquie]

so glad you are settled in! i'm so excited to hear what you are working on!

[Deborah]

I'm so glad you're back!

[anne from finland]

Onnea uudelle kodille! Onnea myös E:lle koulutielle! Upeaa, että hän lukee jo nyt noin hienosti! Toivottavasti opettaja antaa hänelle lisää luettavaa! Minulla oli fiksu ope, joka antoi minun lukea Robinson Crusoen toisten opetellessa tavaamaan! Varmaan tapaamme syksyllä!?

[Agnes]

I'm glad to know that you're happy in your home. I really like the mugs!
The book shelf is great, I really must try sorting the books by color in my children's room, that's something I'm sure I would enjoy (and so would they!)
As for the sorting of "stuff", I understand just what you mean!

[anina]

I'm glad you're all settled into your new home. It looks lovely!

[Anna]

Åh, duktiga Annika, den läser vi flitigt här också nu!

[Ulla V.]

First of all, it's so nice to read your words again. I'm happy that you are back and have settled in at your new home.

It looks like you have made your apartement very cozy - I really like the book corner. And the kind of kitchen shelf you have, is exactly what I have been asking my husband to make me for ages...

I see why you worry about your daughter's excellent reading skills before going to school. I had the same "problem" as a child, and so did both of my children.

Hopefully your daughter will get a wonderful teacher, who knows how to give her the reading challenges at school which she requires. My children were lucky to get that.

Have a nice Friday evening. :))