InstaJune

This month's InstaPost will be a little bit different
- see, as a graduation present I got a brand new phone.
This is, of course, amazing - however, I haven't gotten around to empty the old phone of pictures and what have you yet.
But I won't cheat you for the monthly InstaPost, so here's 4 pictures Kasper took of me last week, while we were taking an evening stroll :)

You can find me on Instagram

under the name

NATMADELEINE

♡

Life: A Fantastic Gift!

Hello all!

If you read this post I wrote a couple of days ago, you'll know that I've finally graduated! Oh how life is wonderful!

This past week has truly been amazing - dare I even say the best week of my life?
It all started Monday, when I graduated - a day jam-packed with happiness and wonderful memories. Tuesday I had the day off, which was quite the lucky thing, since I was completely worn out from Monday.

Wednesday, Kasper and I had the most amazing day together - nothing spectacular happened (( except, of course, life and happiness )), but we spent the day taking a long walk, taking a lot of pictures, shooting personal videos and having the time of our lives. We made what seemed like 10 pounds of delicious gourmet pasta, ate, laughed and had fun. Oh, and Kasper is a
(( phenomenal !!! )) photographer, so in the evening he took a lot of gorgeous pictures of different things in my home - stay tuned for an upcoming post!

Thursday I attended the final graduating ceremony at my school - I met up with my other friends and graduates, we got our diplomas and had such a fun time. Later, Kasper came by and picked me up, and we went home to my place where we totally crashed! Luckily, there was a lot of delicious leftovers from the day before, so we ate like kings and watched Shrek and in general, just had fun.

And finally yesterday, Friday, I had a get-together with the old gang - if you've been following f&f for a couple of years, you might remember me mentioning them from time to time. The old gang is a group of friends I met a couple of years ago, and even though we've been separated for a year now, we've stayed in touch. And then yesterday, we met up and had a fantastic time together! First, we met at the old school (( which probably was the last time I'll ever be there - wow, that's a weird feeling )) since that was where it all started, and then went to the park for a couple of hours and then later, we ended up at a bar in town. We had such a fun time rolling the dice, laughing it up and screaming ourselves hoarse! I ended up going to bed at 3.30, and today I have almost no voice!

So yes, these past days have truly been amazing, wonderful and full of laughter - I now have the most amazing memories to last me a life time, and I'm just so utterly and completely and truly happy!

Pictures by Kasper Kay
KasperKay.dk

Finally

Hiyah all!

It finally happened - I've graduated!
Yes, after four long years of attending VUC High School for adults, I had my last ever exam (( we'll, high school exam anyway )) .
The tradition of "students//studenter" as they are called here in Denmark, is that they get a special hat - a so called "studenterhue" right after they've passed their final exam. All year I've been saying that I didn't want one, but last moment my dad convinced me - and oh how I am happy that he did!
Friends and classmates write small messages in the hat, and there are different traditions of ways of wearing it - fx, if you party till dawn, a little cut should be made in the shade. There are loads of different rules, and no way José I can remember them all ;)

Anyway, I had the BEST day!
My dad came and celebrated with me; he'd brought a lot of flowers, Danish AND Swedish flags (( I ám a Swede at heart )) and alcohol-free strawberry champagne. I had the chance to chat with some of my classmates as well, and in general just had the best day ever. My dad insisted on taking me to a portrait photographer (( that wasn't uncomfortable at all, haha )) and later we had a lovely dinner at our favourite place.
A lot of people called, wrote and texted me all day - I felt very popular (( haha )) and of course, I was very glad that I ended my final exam with a B :)

Today I was out and celebrated with some classmates, and then later, I was together with Kasper aaaall day long. We had so much fun; loving and living life, going for a long walk whilst taking a lot of pictures, drinking tea and making a delicious dinner - well okay, Kasper cooked ;)
Tomorrow there's a final ceremony for all of the graduates and Friday I'm having a party for the old gang :)

Finally I can go on summer break with a clean conscious, free as a bird and happy as can be :)

InstaMay

Why hello there, how nice it is to see you again!
Yes, I know it - I am not here very often. I know I sing the same song over and over again,
but oh how life just passes in a blur at the moment.
Already school's out for summer, and exams have officially started!
I'm already half way through; 3 down, 3 to go!
The next one is this Friday, and these past few days I've been in my Swedish Paradise,
enjoying the sun whilst studying outside.

Now, however, I'm home again.
I've allowed myself today off, but tomorrow it's back to the books.
So I hope you'll understand that blogging is just not n the top of my list at the moment . . .
. . . BUT! In about a month or so, when I've finally graduated and all of the parties are over,
I promise you that I will be back - really! So please, hang on and enjoy life . . .

. . . and while you do that, you can enjoy last months Instagram pictures.
I know things are slow here at f&f, but if you wanna see me in action, then check out my Instagram
((I update almost daily over there and almost no selfies, haha)) - info at the bottom of this post.

Well, you take care now.
I hope you'll return in a months time - I promise, I have a lot of new posts in mind, but time ain't really on my side.
Ciao for now ♡

You can find me on Instagram

under the name

NATMADELEINE

♡

InstaApril

Hello all!

Last month, the isnta post was one day early. . . this month it's one day late.
But ah, we're all humans and we can't tend to everything, however much we'd like to.
So here's last month's instaApril post.

Hope you all are well - I'm currently working on an exam paper, so there's not much time for anything else.

Have fun and live life ♡

You can find me on Instagram

under the name

NATMADELEINE

♡

What I've been up to lately

Hiyah all!

Oh how time flies! There are a lot of balls in the air at the moment, so keeping up with the blog has been set aside a little lately. However, I refuse to go totally MIA so I thought I'd tell you a little bit about what I've been up to lately:

Well first of all, last week I had mock written exams. In Danish they're called "Terminsprøver" and basically, they are a test of a test. This year I have both English and Danish on A levels, which means that I have both an oral and a written exams. The written ones you have to "try out" (( Terminsprøver )) first, so that you'll know how they work - and also, they give you a chance to get better prepared for the real ones. Last Monday and Tuesday I had mine; Danish on Monday and English on Tuesday. I think they went well, but getting ready for them was quite a bitch - which you can see in the picture above . . .

. . . and Tuesday at around 3 PM, after the English Terminsprøve was over, I finally went on "vacation" - this year I stayed home from Sweden, since it would've been a long trip for only a few days there - mega bummer! But oh well, I've enjoyed myself at home. After the written mock exam, I went out for a coffee and a chat with my friend Sascha. We've got our own little placed called Kaffekilden - basically it's Central Perk (( from Friends )) in Roskilde and they make the best cuppa coffee money can buy!

Even though it's officially vacation time for me, I've found myself with a book in my hands every day! I'm reading up on old Danish literature on Feminism from the 70's, which is really interesting! At the start of May I have to do a paper for school, and luckily we had the opportunity to pick the subject ourselves - and since I'm really interested in Danish Feminism in the 70's, that was the subject I chose. At first I was a little bummed out over having to read and read and read, but it really turned out to quite cool . . .  

. . . and since the weather has been absolutely fantastic (( ! ! ! )) this Easter, I've been sitting outside, drinking coffee, chain-smoking and just read book after book - which resulted in actually getting through that whole pile of books in just 4 days! Awesome!

Beautiful days turns into beautiful nights

- look at that night sky! Isn't it just amazing? Even though my apartment is right above a parking lot, I still have a lovely view to the right: The little lake and just a wide open sky. I tell you, there's nothing like sitting by the window with a cuppa tea and a ciggy and just watch the night sky turn darker and darker. 

I've been good with money these past couple of months, so at the start of April I did some net-shopping. 

I bought 10 dresses, some hair clips and these little lovelies. Now I'm ready for Spring and Summer, and as a plus I can wear something new every day for a long time! 

And the last picture is just a happy one! It's been so hot lately, so all of my plants (( I have around 35 in my studio apartment ! )) are just growing like crazy. I can't imagine not having a little green in the house; plants and flowers are just a fantastic source for a happiness! 

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

So that's a little of what I've been doing lately - basically just living life. 

I hope all of you had a great week and a lovely Easter. 

See you when I see you 

- hugsies ♡

Exactly one year ago today...

Well well well, as I live and breathe - it sure has been a while since I've said hi.
So hi there, how are y'all doing?

I'll tell you how I'm doing:
Exactly one year ago today I wrote this post on my annual Sound of Music evening.
True to form, I've lit a bunch of candles, I'm eating cheesy toasties and - of course - I'm watching Sound of Music.

Yes, already a year has passed since last I saw this wonderful movie - oh how time flies!
If you've followed f&f over the last couple of years, you'll probably know that watching
Sound of Music is an annual ritual for me (( as proved by the pictures below )) .
If you're curious what I wrote in the previous years' posts, you can find them here (( 2012 )) and here (( 2013 )) .

But yes, it sure has been a crazy and wonderful year - and now, here we are again.
A lot of things have changed, a lot of things have stayed the same
- for one thing, I personally think I'm way better at taking and editing photos now . . .
. . . wonder how it'll be in a year from now (( haha )) ?

Well, I'm off again - it's time to smile and  time to sing . . .
. . . Cheers!

Mix it up in the kitchen

Hello on such a wonderful day!

Loads of kitchen stores provide the actual kitchen, but the personal touches and coziness... well, those you have to come up with yourself.
So why not get inspired by this lovely white kitchen, witch has a wonderful mix of black, green, gold, brass and wood.

Have a lovely day - remember to smile ♡

InstaMarch

Hello all, and happy sunny Sunday!

Since I have school from 11 AM to 10 PM tomorrow (( phew! )), I won't be home to post the monthly InstaMonth post. So here it is instead, just one day early.

Hope you all are having a lovely day ♡

You can find me on Instagram

under the name

NATMADELEINE

♡

Klunserlife

Hi all, how are you doing on such a rainy day?

A week ago, I told you through the Facebook page, that I was planning a post about a mirror
I found down by my buildings dumpsters. Well, now it's time for that post!

There's a Danish term called "Klunse" or  (( to be a )) "Klunser" - there's no direct translation, but basically what it means is that you find other peoples thrown-out items in thrift stores or even down by the dumpsters. Actually, if you're a good "klunser" and have your eyes open, you can find little treasures everywhere.
I'm lucky to live in an apartment complex where a lot of the older people living here throw out their stuff - quite often actually.
Don't get me wrong; it's not like I'm crawling into the trashcans (( haha )). But once in a while, when I'm down by the dumpsters, there are these little treasures that someone didn't want, but can be of use to me.

Such a thing happened to me last week, when I found this awesome mirror. Someone had just left it so the garbagemen could take it with them, but I was quick and snatched it up before they - or someone else - could.
I didn't know where to put it right away, so I just placed it up against my living room window.
But actually, I've come to really appreciate it there, so now I've "accessorised" it with a couple of candles and herbs (( which needed sun anyway, so it was a win win )).

Just in case I didn't explain it too well, here's the definition (( and a rare selfie )) on the concept of "klunseri" :

Have a lovely and wonderful day
- are you participation in the 100 HAPPY DAYS challenge? If not, get to it then ♡

100 HAPPY DAYS!

Hiya, interwebs friends!
My favourite blog is "A Beautiful Mess" hosted by Elsie and Emma.
I read it many times a week, and actually more often than I read (( or look at pictures at )) any other blog.
Just a minute ago, I scrolled through the latest posts on ABM, and I stumbled upon this fantastically amazing concept...

... It's called 100 Happy Days! The question behind the concept is:

Ever since I stopped drinking (( almost )) 3 years ago, I've been tremendously happy with myself and my life.
However, lately life has been stressful; my grandfather is in hospital, I have final exams in just a few months and the constant stressful situation of "will I//won't I get in to University?"
So yes, life has been a little rough lately, but I mostly manage to keep my spirits up
- I have amazing friends who carry me through when I need it, and for that I am very grateful.

What I'm trying to say is, that even though life is a mix of up's and down's,
I (( thankfully and luckily )) still have a very happy life.
HOWEVER I - like so many others - I forget to be thankful for what I have, and I forget that I actually AM happy!
That's why I think 100 Happy Days is an amazing concept.
Everything you need to know about the "challenge" is right here,
but basically the concept is you documenting your happiness for a hundred days.

You might ask yourself:

Well, if that doesn't win you over, I don't know what will (( haha )).
If you think about it, it's a very simple challenge. I plan on starting this Friday - the 28th - where I can celebrate 3 years sober.
I thought that would be a good starting point.
I must say I'm looking forward to it, although I think it's going to be quite the challenge to snap an Instagram pic every day.
BUT: You'll never know if you never try.

So here's to happiness!
Remember to tag your status update, picture or tweet with the hashtag:

STAY HAPPY // STAY POSITIVE // STAY PEACEFUL 

Wonderful white bedroom with touches of Spring

Hello, how are you today?

A very quick post from me today. I just wanted to bring you all a wonderful white bedroom with touches of Spring
- come on, aren't we all longing for it by now? Although it is a beautiful sunny day here in Denmark today, our signs of Spring are very slight. Oh well, we'll have to wait a little bit longer I guess!

Have a wonderful sunny Saturday ♡

Coffee Break

Hiya all, how are you doing on such a grey - but warm - Tuesday?

Well, it's my day off today, and I'm planning on having a very relaxing a chill day.
Right now I'm enjoying a little coffee break - what's better than a big cuppa joe and some home baked cookies?
Anyway, I'm gearing up for tomorrow: I have most of the day off, but tomorrow night I'm going to Copenhagen with some of my classmates from English. We're going to grab a bite and then visit the theatre to see an english play. It's going to be really great; lately I've felt like I've been in a little bit of a rut.
Same thing day in and day out; school, homework, coffee, dinner and then bed. Now, however, the days are slowly getting a little longer, we have more sunlight and people are a bit more cheery because of it. I know exams and stress about getting into University are just around the corner, so for now I'll just enjoy these fun and relaxing days.

I hope all of you are hanging ten - I know blogging is a little scarce these days, but believe me, I'm trying. I get the sense that most of you are more interested in personal posts, either with a little DIY project or some Life Lately. stuff, but I don't always have time for those. Sometimes it's easier to let you know that I'm alive and haven't forgotten you by posting some interior pictures from other homes.
However, know that I still really enjoy blogging, but I'm a bit pressed for time lately.

Otherwise I hope all of you are enjoying life and are looking forward to Spring
- we have very subtle signs of it here in DK, but it sure is coming!

Have a lovely Tuesday
Bye bye birdies ♡

Table for three (and a half)

Hi all - long time, no see!
Sorry I've been gone a while; I've been busy living life and experiencing all it's little ups and downs.
However now I'm back, and I thought I'd show you some new snaps from Apartment 107.

Last weekend I bought a new chair for my dining table.
Before I used it as my working space, but I got a little tired of that. In stead I "switched it back" to a dining area,
and therefore I wanted a new chair for it. Luckily it was on sale, so I got it cheap - the bitch was getting it home on my bike, haha.
However, now it's here and it's lovely - by the way, it's the white one.

Anyway, this was a quick post, but I hope the pictures makes up for it.
I'll try to do better with the whole blogging thing, but there's just so much to do these days.
However, hope I'll see you again soon.

Ciao for now ♡