plans

I love the first few weeks in January. It feels like everything is clean and fresh and ready for a new start. A time to make plans.

I am itching to buy seeds and plan out our little balcony garden. This little garden will be feeding us and help us in staying healthy and I’m excited to share the process of planning and planting and growing.

This year will again feature opportunities to travel and making plans for that is always a wonderful start of the year task. Travelling always feels like a breath of fresh air blowing away the cobwebs of daily routines and sharpening the senses for the beauty around us. Oh, the photos to come!

This little blog is overdue for a change too. True to my resolutions I’m looking forward to spending more time here. A new name plus a visual overhaul will be in order and I’m so excited about it! It’s all still in the planning stages, but I hope to share the results with you very soon!
The photo blog has already gotten a new coat of paint so to speak 🙂
There’s a few photos from our new year’s walk over there too if you want to have a look.

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weekend mornings

I love getting up early in the dark, lighting a candle, making a cup of tea. Watching the light creep though our east facing living room windows, first blue, then rosy red, then bright warm yellow.





I settle down on the couch for a precious hour of blog reading before starting on some photo business tasks. The cats, having had their breakfast, joining me for a few more hours of sleep. Still early after all.

at home

Some random photos from the last few weeks.

I never did get around to blogging our balcony garden this year but it’s there (past its prime already) and we had zucchini, and turnips and herbs and tomatoes and lots of flowers.

The peppers! I had high plans for these. I got ‘pimientos de padron’ peppers because I had liked them in Spain and started lots of plants from seed. Alas, they all turned out to be the hot type instead of the mild ones I was hoping for. I ended up giving them all away. If anyone in Spain has access to the mild pimientos de padron (the ones you fry in a little oil and sprinkle with sea salt), I’d be more than thrilled if you could send me some seeds! Do email me at tidytipsy.at.yahoo.de!

A little Oleander cutting my mom gave me is thriving and produced its first flower. Love it.

And finally, some down time with the cats amid some crazy busy weeks 🙂

june days

I am SO hooked on making videos…I just can’t seem to stop.

We’ve had some lovely sunny days here which I’ve tried hard to enjoy. Between my pollen allergy and a LOT of work it hasn’t always been easy. Sneeze.
In addition to some really tough days at the office (which unfortunately will continue all month) I’ve been quite busy with my photography as well, which is great of course and I am enjoying myself immensely doing photoshoots. So far I’ve been blessed with the sweetest clients imaginable and I hope I’ll be able to share the results pretty soon!
At this point I just have to mention this speech I listened to the other day. Do yourselves a favor and sit down with a cup of tea or lemonade, depending on your weather, watch this and be inspired. Preferably after you’ve read this post to the end that is 🙂

I’m trying to soak up this time of year at the barn, when the wind is still fresh and the grass is lush and green, before the flies and the heat. Sneeze. I also gave in today and started taking pills against my allergy.
I then rode the pony bareback through the woods without a single sneeze. Heaven.
My balcony garden is coming along nicely as well. I got flowers in addition to edibles this year and they look lovely in their pots next to the herbs and mints. Which reminds me, I just bought a fourth type of mint. Ginger mint. How could I resist?

The kohlrabis are getting chubbier.

I took out the sukkulents to soak up some sun too, then had to take them inside again because they got burned and turned red! Now they’re back to green and doing great thankfully.

The sunniest corner is occupied by the tomatoes and peppers, along with a little mint and yet more flowers tucked in here and there.


I was given some soil to use from a friend and mixed it with storebought soil. I seems to have come from a garden, because these have been growing in between my plants:

Aren’t they cute? The seeds must have been dormant in the soil. Anyone know their name in english?
The wild strawberries are producing like crazy.

I love the unique taste of wild strawberries. The greatest weekend breakfast!

I also finally got some green things for our bare window sills inside. It’s amazing how a little bit of green can cheer a room up so much.

The cats love them too. Unfortunately this means they’re busy nibbling away at them. Good thing I took care only to buy plants that are non-toxic for cats and so far, the addition to their diet doesn’t seem to be doing any harm.
They do love our new rug as well…I’m predicting the plants are tougher than the rug and will last longer. Good thing too because the rug only cost me 3€ at the thrift store 🙂 Slowly but surely this new place of ours is getting cozy!

my point of view

After spending every waking hour for the last five days on our new couch I’ve decided I still like it a lot but wouldn’t mind actually setting foot out of the door again.
The cats have been splendid company though, not leaving my side for a minute and even following me around the apartment on the rare occasions I actually got up (which I didn’t have to do very often, because my awesome boyfriend brought me medicine and tea and broth right up on a tray).

They love it when we’re home during the day, but they’re not usually so clingy so I think they must have sensed how awful and cold I’ve felt.
Today’s a lot better already and after a three-hour nap I even felt well enough to pick up the camera, to share a few shots of our new place.


Two rugs we ordered from a small weaving company in Austria got delivered last week and we (both humans and felines) totally love them. This is their website (german language only), they sell made-to-order woven sheep-wool and cotton rugs.


I can’t say how much I’m looking forward to eating something other than broth tonight. I already treated myself to chocolate this afternoon. Isn’t my life riveting 🙂


Seeing me up and taking pictures the cats seem to have decided I’m well enough to be let out of their sight for a while. This is them playing a favourite game, “chase the sunny spots in the room”.

Don’t be fooled though, about two minutes after this was taken, one of them started scratching that lamp and the sideboard very slowly and deliberately, while looking straight at me, saying as plainly as could be “You’re up and better, I am going to keep scratching your precious new furniture until we all head to the kitchen and you give me some food”.
Cats are the best.

my italy

I have some dearest friends in Italy, family almost, at least that’s how I think it feels for all of us. I’ve been visiting there since I was 5 years old, sometimes every other year, sometimes with a few years in between where I didn’t make it. Being in that part of the world feels a little like coming home every time and I never realize how much I need to be there until I arrive. This last visit was only short of two days and I soaked up every minute of it.
My Italy is rolling hills

and picturesque flower pots.


Wide open spaces, century old stone houses and family vegetable patches at every corner.

My Italy is noisy family dinners, with food you never knew could taste this good, deliciously prepared by 86-year-old nonna.


My Italy is lemon trees on the terrazza and trying to keep up with an italian conversation heavily flavoured with regional dialects until I give up and just let the words buzz around me pleasantly while breathing in the air that hints at the sea some 30 minutes away.

My Italy feels like home.

hi baby

I love you.

back home

I’m back home and busy cuddling my cats, editing pictures and planning blog posts.
While I miss the sea air and the beach and the ‘thinking of nothing but what to do and photograph and eat next’, I had these awesome prints waiting for me at home:


I’d bought these and 2 more from trafalgarssquare on Etsy and they arrived while I was away. Aren’t they so cute? Can’t wait to frame them and hang them on my walls!
Have a nice weekend everyone!