Design | anordinarywoman

19/01/2013

Design

Casual clothing

The few occasions I attempt to blog about fashion, it’s rarely about the latest within that field. No, others can do it much better than me. I just can’t keep up – neither trends nor interest. Materials, colours, details – that’s rather exciting & fun. Checking out people is really inspiring. The Street is the best place to keep track of what’s in vogue (it’s the more exciting too). I like the mixture of designs, colours AND above all, the diversity of personalities. Clothes make us interesting, at least to begin with. It is not about how trendy you are, or the price range you chose to dress in. Not for my part, anyway.

It’s about how to put together garment, how to combine things, how to dress in colours or patterns, etc. so that it enhances individual’s character. You could dress fairly bland but still bring attention … if you would like to, of course. It’s a talent to be able to dress up without going too far, or vice versa. Anyway, we need all the variations of flavours & styles to become motivated, inspired, curious or challenged. Or maybe just amused, if nothing else. I will not do either of it, with this post. I walk the broad way with that which seems a bit obvious, nothing unexpected nor surprising. What else can you expect from an ordinary woman 🙂

Everyday shoes, or shoes for all occasions / fancy

Same but different – & perfect to jeans / thepursuiteaesthetic

Red lipstick & matching hair clip can do wonders – with jeans, it becomes less sweet / witanddelight via tumblr

Informally but well-dressed, nonetheless / streetstyle

Classic bun that always works / northernlight

Timeless design / northernlight

Timeless again & stylish / annagillar

Red bag in plaid pattern – sweetens the daily life in a simple way / 464handmade

The perfect red colour / baenk.com

Red lipstick to a pale blue jeans shirt – very appealing / freeworld

Denim – with endless combinations / thesartorialist

Here a bit more preppy / pinkwallpaper.blogspot

Red dots together with Converse / outfits.com

/ prettystuff

Dressy with suit jacket – stripes & dots, nice / atlantic-pacific.blogspot

Tagged casual, clothing, denim, design, Fashion, fashion design, jeans, leisurewear, Shopping

29/12/2012

Leave a comment

Design, Food, Homes / Interiors

New year

So, here we are again – a new year with new opportunities. What do you think – will we do things differently, make better decisions, learn from the old, learn from mistakes. Sometimes it’s difficult to see the small steps we take, that actually changes & improves. Moreover, we live in the future more than the present. We are in such a hurry with everything that we miss the essential. To actually live in a slow trot & experience things up close. You may already live your life the way you want, at the pace & the lifestyle you aspire. Good on you then, congratulations & keep it up!

I for my part, want more peace & quiet around me. To be able to think & complete a thought without losing the thread. To have time for what’s important & the possibility to opt out things that takes time & energy, unnecessarily. It’s easier said than done. To continuously refine, modify & improve, is a big part of life. What is precious is up to each one, of course. It seems to me that time is that which is most sought after by many. It might be worth considering what we make of our time. Properly used, perhaps, we don’t need more time.

I hope you will achieve some of your dreams for the coming year. Above all, that you will stay healthy & strong with near & dear. I hope that you get to experience many happy moments & sees possibilities that pops up around you.

Thanks for taking the time to follow my blog during this first year. Also for all your nice comments & encouragement. Whatever you do, remember to live in the present. Here & now!

Here’s a mix of various images that might fit into the celebration of the new year.

Sparkling festivities / ulrikaekblom

Crackling & glittering activities / Flickr.com

Nice on the table / designcoholic

Festively dressed / nymag.com

Same with table accessories / inspireddesign

Simple pleasures / google.com

Suitable for two / livethemma

Suitable for some more / livethemma

New years eve in Sydney / aibob via WordPress

So true / thistooshallpass

Many thanks again for all sweet comments & support.

Take care / Marie

Tagged celebration, celebrations, festivities, happy new year, Holiday, home decor, new year

17/12/2012

Leave a comment

Design, Food, Homes / Interiors, Outdoor

WHITE

I thought I might inspire with something in white today – even though I’m fully aware of the fact that not everyone is over the moon when it comes to white. But alas, so it warms my old heart. Everyone has their favourite colours & I guess that some would not even think of white as colour, or black either, for that matter. I for one, think that white fits almost everywhere. White is the colour of pure snow or milk. It’s the color of light that contains all of the wavelengths of the visible spectrum without absorption. In Western culture, white is the color most often associated with innocence, perfection, the good, honesty, neutrality & lightness. It’s interesting how much of importance we associate to a colour.

It’s said that white colour affects us physically, such as aid in mental care. It encourages us to clear clutter or other obstacles. Even that the colour evokes purification of thoughts & actions. The ancient greeks wore white to bed to ensure pleasant dreams. According to Pantone inc., white is the best selling colour for the classic american t-shirt. I find it hard to find stuff in white, such as garment, bedding or furniture, to give a few examples. By that I mean in Australia or rather here in Sydney. Recent months, it has started to appear white pants in the stores, which have been almost impossible to find previously. I had to take the opportunity to shop several pair of white pants at home, when we were on a visit. Things are changing slowly.

Here’s, to those who don’t consider white being a colour:

“The first of all single colors is white … We shall set down white as the representative of light, without which no color can be seen; yellow for the earth; green for water; blue for air; red for fire; and black for total darkness.” — Leonardo Da Vinci

Snow white landscape / witanddelight

Whipped cream / thatkindofwoman vi tumblr

Old & new in white nice combination / kotinvinkki.fi

Simple & welcoming work place / pinterest.com

Tiles, bench top, utensils, milk, flour – in white / cervera.se

Glossy white cabinet doors / expressen.se

Fluffy white chandelier / dainty&floral

A perfect small kitchen with lots of storage / skandinaviandeko

Soft, nice & white / homeandgarden

Tablecloths in white to white porcelain / oldbasics

While appealing, I wonder whether it would work with a bath directly on wooden floor / bathroom-review

A dream bedroom in white / kimtimmerman.com

Stillness & beauty combined / jukkarapo

Stylish in white, all year around / coronado via fancy

White walls & imageless frames / kotivinkki.fi

Enjoy your holiday & take care / Marie

Tagged dining, food, furniture, holiday season, home, home decor, Interiors, light, white, whiteness

13/11/2012

Leave a comment

Design, Homes / Interiors

Words / 212

Words – they seem to be in vogue right now, more than ever … maybe not so much for the sake of reading but more like a visual experience or as (un)spoken graphic aesthetics. If that make any sense to you. Letters in themselves are very appealing. Whether they are handwritten or as shop / vintage signs or mirrored letters kids do when they learn to write. There’s something about the shape that appeals…at least for me. Now I’m not particularly focused on letters today. It’s more about proverb. Proverbs arise for some reason & I guess they have different meanings depending on cultures. There’s a lot of knowledge & insight behind most so they are a source of wealth, if one is willing to learn.

Proverbs are something I rather recently discovered that I’m very fond of. I wasn’t aware of that nor that I wore a great deal of proverbs within me, unconsciously. At least not until I changed the language from Swedish to English. Suddenly they showed up & still today, I don’t know how it happened. I think it was because I lacked a lot of words & they became a support, as a transition. They often have the same meaning regardless of language & it became a common denominator in a foreign country. It’s funny how it can be sometimes. Now, I see them everywhere just because I’m aware & interested. But not all appeals to me – I choose those that feel right or fit my way of thinking. You have to be picky so they don’t loose their appeal 🙂

PS. Some aren’t proverbs but I like them because of the graphical expression.

Perhaps it’s some truth in this / Etc

Right, for sure / Frenchbydesign

Words & meaning / Curioos

A clear need to be over-explicit / Fancy

So through / Fancy.com

My favourite – even if I don’t fancy the word kill / Unknown

So refreshing nowadays / Google.com

You are your own obstacle /Google.com

Hhmmm / Wisuella

Wise advice / Flawedperfection

Requires a great deal of determination / Frenchbydesign

Awareness / Pinterest

Positive thinking / Justbesplendid

Say no more / Lylablu

Sometimes it is hard to overcome a habit / tumblr

Love & friendship / FB

Take care / Marie

Tagged home decor, letters, Proverbs and Sayings, quotes, truths, wisdom, Words

16/08/2012

Leave a comment

Design, Food, Homes / Interiors

Something in red / 183

Hej there friends,

I’m going with something red today, just like that, with no specific reason. Not that I’m a bearer of red, but on the other hand, things can change. I went for a stroll during lunch & happened to fall in love in a red thin knitted sweater in soft material. Last time it happened was about a year ago & that love is somewhere in a drawer now. It will surely be different this time 🙂

Everything in moderation is a very common phrase in Sweden. I think this phrase fits into red, because it’s a strong & energizing color … which can dominate depending on where & how it’s used. The taste is of course different, but I for one, prefers red accents, whether it comes to fashion or interior design. It’s very much as shown below, actually. Moreover, I appreciate red with basic colours as white or black. I’m fully aware of how boring & predictable I am, but I’m an ordinary woman, you know! I leave with a warm hand, the extraordinary & exciting to someone else.

Red is a color that must have the correct red tone to appeal to me. Not too yellow so it slopes towards orange, not too blue either, so it becomes pink purple etc. It can look too watery in the expression together with white – it’s nicer whit contrast. Fresher in some way – take a look, what do you think?

The icing on the cake, with the red wall mounted lamp in bright red / Annixen