thoughtful gift

So I arrived in Cape Town yesterday afternoon and so far it's been great. My mom brought with a belated birthday present from a friend of mine. Thanks Elz! Me and my Moomin cookbook are gonna have so much fun!

Image: Amazon

flash and bones

My yearly guilty reading pleasure is a Kathy Reichs Bones book. The latest in the series is coming out in 4 days. 4!!

"Just as 200,000 fans are pouring into town for Race Week, a body is found in a barrel of asphalt next to the Charlotte Motor Speedway. The next day, a NASCAR crew member comes to Temperance Brennan’s office at the Mecklenburg County Medical Examiner to share a devastating story. Twelve years earlier, Wayne Gamble’s sister, Cindi, then a high school senior and aspiring racer, disappeared along with her boyfriend, Cale Lovette. Lovette kept company with a group of right-wing extremists known as the Patriot Posse. Could the body be Cindi’s? Or Cale’s?

At the time of their disappearance, the FBI joined the investigation, only to terminate it weeks later. Was there a cover-up? As Tempe juggles multiple theories, the discovery of a strange, deadly substance in the barrel alongside the body throws everything into question. Then an employee of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention goes missing during Race Week. Tempe can’t overlook the coincidence. Was this man using his lab chemicals for murder? Or is the explanation even more sinister? What other secrets lurk behind the festive veneer of Race Week?"

Ooooh...how exciting!

Image: Kathy Reichs

hire me

I would flippen love to work for Chronicle Books in San Francisco. They publish the most inspiring books. These are just a few of their cookbooks I want.

Images: Chronicle Books

deco-great

I bought this book from The Space today. I'm not usually a fan of decor books since there are so many decor blogs and mags out there these days, but I couldn't resist this one.

And then I went onto Vamp Furniture's blog and spotted this chair. It wouldn't look out of place in the homes in the book. Unfortunately, Vamp is in Cape Town, so the chair and I won't have any kind of future together.

Image: Vamp

growing the brand (part 2)

I really am quite serious about this opening my own shop thing. I just need to find a space and win the lottery. I know I said I wanted it to look like Der Kleine Salon, but now I think I want it to look like Mohawk General Store. I know, they couldn't look more different. But I promise I don't have multiple personalities.

Images: Mohawk General Store 

who have you become?

This has been on quite a few blogs already but I just had to repost it because I love it. It's a campaign for the bookstore Mint Vinetu called Become someone else. The idea behind it is that when one reads a book, one lives it and starts identifying with the main character. So true. Good job Lithuanian ad agency people!

Images: Love

bennie boekwurm

Anyone who knows me knows how much I love books. Not to brag, but I think I read hundreds and hundreds of books. A few that come to mind are Molly and the Magic Umbrella to, And the Dish Ran Away With the Spoon to The Girl's Guide to Hunting and Fishing, and The Secret Diary of Anne Frank...but I have dozens of favourites. Just writing those titles makes me want to read them all again for the umpteenth time. Because, unlike some people, I love rereading books. I love finding details or discovering themes I may have missed the previous time. The husband always shakes his head when he finds me rereading a Harry Potter book. But, as I tell him each time, for me Harry Potter is like a comforting, hot meal on a cold, dreary day. It just makes me feel good inside. I treasure my collection of books and hate to think what would happen if our flat was on fire. I definitely would not be able to save them all...

Image: Amazon

like, oh my gosh!

So if you're roundabout the same age as me (26) you might have been a devoted reader of the Sweet Valley High books back in the day. Jeez Louise I loved those books. I read all the ones my school library had and then I started buying them. I think I spent all my pocket money to find out what Elizabeth and Jessica were going to do next for a good couple of years.

But guess what? They're baaaaaaaaack! Yes ladies, the Wakefield twins have been brought back to life by their creator, Francine Pascal. The new book is called Sweet Valley Confidential and in it the girls are 10 years older.

Part of me wants to read the book because of the nostalgia factor, but another part is worried it will ruin the old books for me. Hmmm...what to do?

Okay, I'll read it! Chick-lit, here I come...

P.S. I've been playing around with my header, but am not completely happy with it yet, so sorry if it looks different every day for a while. I'll get it right eventually...

Image: Daily Mail