Miss Moussetache aka Mimimou

Urban Green A plant takes up space. Which is fine if you have space but more complicated if you live in a Harry Potter-style broom closet. But plants are even being used as purifiers by Nasa so it might be worth throwing a few pair of shoes away in favour of a green friend. Unless you are as lucky as I am to live near the just opened (and AMAZING) shop Urban Green . If they would serve coffee, I would move there. In this shop I have discovered something which they call string gardens . Small planets with grass growing all around except at the top where you have a different plant sprouting, like a cherry blossom or an olive tree. Apparently they are all over the web but I am thankful Urban Green showed them to me. Sometimes it's nicer to discover something yourself than have a blogger pointing it to you. The inspiration for these string gardens can be found in the kokedama , an ancient form of bonsai, and is fairly easy to reproduce: 1. Roll clay-heavy soil into balls; 2. Cover th...

I was born on an island shaped like a three-legged monster and rugged like an old fisherman's forehead. The sea has always been renowned for its abundance in marine life, especially sword fish and tuna. But the land was poor of animals, except from the usual fauna you can see anywhere: mice, swallows, pigeons, sparrows, lizards and many insects. When I hit the magical age of eight, a zoo opened its gates on our island. I loved animals and could spend hours reading my Animal Kingdom encyclopedia, so my parents took me there on a lovely Sunday morning. We were the first people entering. Trembling with excitement I walked around its cages. Unfortunately the zoo hadn't managed the funding to get enough animals to fill them so most of the structures were empty. Outside the cages mice, swallows, pigeons, sparrows and lizards seemed to prosper, just like on the rest of the island. The largest cage of all was situated next to the play area (one slider and two see-saws). At first glance...

I am restless. The walls of my house are so pristine looking, every time I am drawing or cooking tomato sauce I am drawn to accidentally drop some color on them. Am I the only one who can't resist a white wall? No, not all. And you don't need to get yourself dirty with paint or buy expensive wallpaper to achieve the coolest interior in the world. There are tons of ideas how to DIY walls.

Each of us can do something the usual way or his own way. Arent't we different beings after all? Maybe we all have one name for the thing we do best, which could be kissing, fixing cars, drawing just as well as dancing, taking pictures or animating. But it's up to ourselves to look at what we do from a different angle and do it from that same different angle. Just like...

I once read a very sad story: in Germany, some nursing homes build imitation bus stops for patients who are suffering from dementia. The patients will sit at the bus stop waiting for a bus to take them to their imagined destination. After some time the nursing staff comes to escort them back into the nursing home. Every time I think of this story, the Hollies' Bus stop starts singing in my head. It's a slightly gloomy melody just as waiting for a bus usually is. Surprisingly something as ordinary as a bus stop has inspired many creative minds - just as those tiny plants sprouting from the arid sidewalk.

Today feels slightly boring, although I know the world is packed full with amazing things to do and see. If only I knew how to bake a take-me-anywhere-I-want cookie, all I would have to do is take a small bite each time I want to go somewhere. Today would then have looked something like this: 1} mmm, wake up after a long and lovely sleep in my soft bed of the cooler than cool Story Hotel in Stockholm. I have already taken a million pictures of its amazing interior before having... 2}... a 'kaffi' in Kaffismiðja Íslands, a small and cozy coffeeshop in the city center of Reykjavík. The Giesen coffee roaster they have in the shop (yes, inside!) is bright, Barbie pink. And the coffee is supposed to be really really good. To make... 3}... sure I won't get lost during my travel day, I have taken along my crumpled city map from designer Emanuele Pizzalorusso. How could I have ever lived without? It's printed on tyvek and designed to fit into the smallest of my bags. No more ...

Lace is an openwork fabric, patterned with open holes. It's an ancient craft which probably originated in Belgium, just around the corner from Holland. The materials used for lace-making are usually just as fragile as its patterns: linen, silk, gold. Think of lace and you immediately think of underwear, napkins, curtains and religious ceremonies such as in weddings, christenings and funerals. What would happen if you could combine its feminine, domestic element with something masculine and industrial? Just look at Cal Lane 's work and you will see how this marriage would look. This gifted artist uses her torch to cut baroque, lace-like patterns into ordinary things such as shovels, old oil drums, wheelbarrows, car doors, and other pieces of scrap metal.

One of my best friends is pregnant. We were supposed to meet for a lovely lunch so I had bought her and her love two small gifts: a vintage pinnard horn to listen to the baby's heart and a huge set of old-fashioned baby clothes hangers (like the one featured in Heather Bailey's blog ) with deer shapes. After wrapping everything carefully in some kraft paper I realized I was still missing something. A card to wish the future mum and dad all the smiles in the world! As I happen to be an Etsy card seller , this wasn't such a big thing to miss BUT I wanted to give them a bit more than just a card. So I wrapped one of my Ballerina designs around a matchbox cover, draw smiley faces on a bunch of matches, wrapped these smiling matches together with some japanese paper tape and addes a little note inside... et voilà! So easy and such a sweet result! Have a lovely weekend, MM

A zillion things happened today in the world. Out of this zillion, there were a few I happened to stumble upon: {1} A striking image about prejudice, by French studio La Souris sur le Gateau (Didier Rossigneux and Knapik Bridenne). It screams at you without words. {2} A fox got into the Helsinki zoo and killed 16 flamingos. Would this have been a news item if the flamingos had been roaming in the wild? I am still unsure about zoo's. Are they the good guy or the bad guy? {3} This love filled latte made by my boyfriend in one my greatgrandmother's tea cups. With home roasted beans ! {4} The Porteur , A mostly handmade gentleman's bike, designed by Nicolas Yvars. The blue-gray color scheme, the leather details, the vintage liquor flask under the saddle... Nicolas found many components thanks to the help he got from the French bike community . I love craftmanship, people who want to deliver perfection by putting their soul in it, AND everyone who encourages that. {5} Apparentl...

The sun is shining, the weather is nice and you are feeling happy, right? Great, then it's time to say I love you 100 times to the love of your life. It's Love Day! But there are at least six other ways to celebrate Love Day... {1} A personalized love letter on a pillow, by Olive {2} Good Time Ring for your cutest kissing picture, by Yellowgoat {3} Mr and Mrs Scatter Pillows, by Idotakeu {4} Not a paper cup + a black marker for porcelain and just diy that love note yourself, by ThinkGeek {5} Custom silhouette prints of both of you (and your pet), by Ellothere {6} My favourite: a personalized and handmade lunch bag for your sweetheart, tutorial by DesignSponge Or you could cook his or her favourite meal tonight... put up a love note under his or her pillow... buy a bright yellow balloon and attach it to his or her bike/car... or... or... ...Happy love Day! PS: Each of these gifts would make a lovely wedding present as well.

Don't you find it extremely annoying to get cold arms when you are reading (or browsing) in bed? I HATE IT. Every time I end up with blue arms full of goose bumps. Not a nice sight. A few seconds ago I was looking for a solution online and there it was. The Solution. A blanket with sleeves . They named this slightly weird invention 'Happiness in bed'. I haven't tried it yet as it will be on sale soon but I think the name is totally appropriate. Sleep tight and don't let the bed bugs bite...