We are moving to.....Paris!

Hello everyone, I have some big news. I am moving to Paris very soon! and I am very excited. We found a pretty little house in the suburb with a little garden really close to the Gare St Lazare. That means a lot of chances in our lives, but I am really happy about it. Now it's getting so real, that we have even booked a moving company, I can't wait to be there.  I have been spending over 10 years in Germany, Berlin first and then Hamburg. I am really grateful for all the great experiences I had here, and all the great people I met and will dearly miss.  That's where I started my professional and marital life, where I started my blogging life and where my sweet little Ella was born. I will never forget that, but I am excited now about starting a new chapter of my life and living closer to my family, which will also be great for little Ella. 

I am so excited about:

* The food * The museums and the cultural life  * The concerts  * being able to work in my mother tongue * being able to see my family without having to take a plane * having a garden and be able to grow my own flowers * discovering some new flower shops  * growing a cut flowers garden in my mum's garden * being able to see my French friends a lot more

Of course, I will take madame love with me in my little suitcase and continue blogging about flowers and interior design. I will also of course share my shopping tips with you along the way and start a Paris guide after my Hamburg guide.  Talking about Paris Guide, you can check out the blogs of my friends Igor and Judith for some great Paris Tips.  PS: I stole their beautiful pictures (with their permissions of course) to illustrate this post, and now I am even more excited about our new start! Take care and have a lovely weekend! Elodie

My green Amsterdam

Hello everyone, as promised on Instagram, here comes my blogpost about the green side of lovely Amsterdam. After two pretty intensive days visiting the Keukenhof park and the flower bulb region, I had a very nice and relaxing Sunday in Amsterdam with my friend Ivona. I had my camera with as we went for a walk and I decided to take another angle for my blogpost about Amsterdam and to show you the green side of the city. So no canal houses, bikes on the bridges or boats on the water even though they are beautiful.  I am showing you the green side of the city, but not the obvious green side, with the blooming cherry trees and the lovely parks, but the plants and flowers in front of the houses and in the shop windows. When you walk around Amsterdam, you really realise, how much the flowers are loved in this city and how beautifully they are displayed. So here are a couple of photos, I took during my walk in the city centre of Amsterdam, in the restaurants and cafés and even in the lobby of the beautiful Rijksmuseum. So here are some wisteria, rosebuds, lilac and clematis for you, and of course also a couple of tulips! I wish you a great day! I will be back soon with a round to my visit to the daffodils festival on Saturday on some designers I love.  Have a great afternoon! Elodie

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Stockholm #4: Where & what to eat

BREAKFAST:

Claretti Tastesheriff and myself, we arrived very early in Stockholm on Friday morning, so the first thing we wanted to do, was to have breakfast. We went to the lovely bakery Vete-Katten (wheat-cat) and had a coffee and a lovely Swedish cake.

The bakeries were full with Semla, when we were there, a traditional Swedish pastry, made out of a wheat flour bun seasoned with cardamom, filled with almond paste and whipped cream. You can find a recipe on the gorgeous Swedish food blog Call me cupcake!

Vete-Katter Kungsgatan 55, Stockholm

Opening hours: Monday to Friday 07:30 to 19:30 Saturday 9:30 to 17:00 Sunday & Holiday 12:00 to 17:00

LUNCH:

On the last day of our trip, we visited the Nytorget Urban Deli for lunch with Ricarda 23qm still Clara Tastesheriff, Kathrin Happy home blog and Judith Joelix. Urban Deli, is a beautiful little restaurant located in an organic supermarket and beautifully decorated with bare light bulbs and yellow tolix high-chairs. The place is located in the trendy area of Södermalm and you can also go there for breakfast and dinner.

Nytorget Urban Deli Nytorget 4, Stockholm Opening hours: Sunday to Tuesday 08:00 to 23:00 Wednesday to Thursday 08-24:00 Friday - Saturday 08:00 to 01:00

DINNER:

We had three evenings in Stockholm, so three opportunities to try nice restaurants. Stockholm is not exactly cheap, but we had good food and always extraordinary bread to go with it. Here are the addresses of this three places, that I can all recommend, because of the food quality, ambiance, decoration and service. If you want to go to one of those great place, it is always wise to book in advance.

Cloud nine is a strange combination of French food and Sim Sum bistro Torsgatan 1, Stockholm

Boqueria is an excellent tapas place, which was recommended by our hotel, the decoration is lovely. Galleria Mood Jacobsbergsgatan 17, Stockholm

Scandic Grand Central - Restaurand Teaterbrasseriet - The restaurant attached to the Scandic Hotel is really fantastic. You can also eat some Köttbullar, the traditional Swedish meat balls. Kungsgatan 70, Stockholm

OTHER FOOD RELATED PLACE:

if you go to Stockholm, you should definitely pay a visit to the Östermalms Saluhall - It's a beautiful covered market, where you can find all sorts of food.

I hope you got a little inspired by this post and not too hungry! Speak to you soon xxx

Elodie

Stockholm #1 - First day in the city

Hello everyone,I spent the first days of February in Stockholm this year. You might find it a strange idea, as the meteorological conditions are not the best for visiting a city but I had an excuse. I was attending the "Meet the blogger" conference - An international event for home design and lifestyle bloggers. The conference took place on Saturday and Sunday, but I will talk a little more about what I learned and who I met in Stockholm in another blogpost. I arrived to Stockholm very early on the Friday morning with Clara, and we had a few hours to discover the city before the sun came down - and believe it or not, it was a very sunny day!

It was a charming first day in Stockholm with a lot of walking around. I will be posting more Stockholm in the next few days - So stay tuned. What about you? Have a visited Stockholm? Do you like the city? Talk to you soon

xxx

Elodie

Antwerp #4 – Where to sleep

Hello everyone, I think nobody likes Mondays ... I think the best cure is to plan your next holiday and think back to your last holiday. While doing it, I realised I still wanted to give a last tip about Antwerp, where I spent a fabulous break last October. After telling you what to do in Antwerp by day and showing you the city by night, where to eat in Antwerp and where to shop, here comes my ultimate tip: where to sleep in Antwerp - and the answer is a beautiful Bed & Breakfast called Home @ FEEK. It is one of the most fantastic places I have stayed at in my life - it was the night of my birthday and it was definitely special!

It is located in the old house of the harbour master and five minutes walk from the MAS (Museum aan de Stroom).

The place is run by product designer Frederik van Heereveld. Frederik is known worldwide for his collection with FEEK and new materials, which he integrates into his interior designs. All the furniture in the rooms can be bought. Even the lift is really funky.

The changing colour lamp in the bedroom was also a highlight.

Hone @ Feek Website: www.http://home.feek.be Oude Leeuwenrui 23, Antwerpen

The Human Empire - A design studio and a shop

Hello everyone, I have another shop presentation and another spot will be soon completing my little interior design map of Hamburg. The Human Empire is originally a design studio that turned into a shop in Hamburg. The shop is very well-known for the posters with their own design and designs from other designers which can be bought online too. They also sell a selection of items from very interesting designer, such as Donna Wilson and exclusive magazines such as Kinfolk Magazine *Kinfolk is a growing community of artists with a shared interest in small gatherings* and the magazine is really great, or the beautiful books from the Japanese editor Paumes as well as casual clothes for men and women. The TIGER print from my living room, that I presented there and there also comes from Human Empire. I wish you a wonderful and stress-free day and hope that this post will inspire you bit, maybe to redecorate your home a bit with a new print or find some original x-mas presents. xxx Elodie

Japanese interior books from édition PAUMES, animal plates from Donna Wilson, tea towels from Skinny laMinx, familien Matroschka from OMM Design, postcards from Human Empire Artist Series, wooden animals from Aeraware

Human Empire Schulterblatt 132 20357 Hamburg Mo. – Fr. : 12:00 – 19:00 Sat.            : 12:00 – 18:00

Antwerp #3 - Where to eat?

Hello everyone,I have got a restaurant tip for you from our holiday in Antwerp with Mr. Love. I already gave you an overview of Antwerp by day and of Antwerp by night and now I would like to give a nice address for lunch, dinner or even breakfast. The restaurant Hangar Eenenveertig is situated on the docks and we went there by accident, while looking for a place to eat lunch and I had the most amazing grilled sandwich ever with grilled tuna and tapenade! The place is also beautifully decorated with dark walls & ceilings (chocolate colour), a very original wooden floor and some fancy lamps over the bar. Here are a couple of photos.

If you have the chance of going to Antwerp, please visit this place for me! It is situated not far away from the Klosterstraat, the street with all the beautiful antique shops.

xxx

Elodie

Website: HANGAR EENENVEERTIG Sint Michielskikaai 41 2000 Antwerp

Antwerp #2 - The city by night

So I hope you enjoyed seeing this beautiful city by day, here are a couple of night shots to complete my impressions.I am lucky Mr. Love is very patient and shares my passion for photography! We had a lot of fun walking in the streets of pretty Antwerp with the Camera and the stand. Here is the result:

I will be back soon with the best Bed & Breakfast I ever stayed at.

xxx

Elodie

Antwerp #1 - The city by day

So, Mr. Love and I came back from our fantastic trip to Antwerp and Amsterdam on Tuesday and had to get back directly to our daily lives and jobs. I was looking forward to this weekend in order to be able to sort out my 800 pictures and prepare my blogposts. I will start with the beginning of our trip and the days we spent in the beautiful city of Antwerp in Belgium.The most interesting landmark in Antwerp is the train station. I completely fell in love with it - it is just spectacular. The perspectives and the lines are really breathtaking. It is these kinds of spaces that make you regret only having a 50 mm with you and not a wide-angle - but I tried my best!

What I also loved in Antwerp is the very pretty art nouveau district called Zurenborg which is full of beautiful houses - we stayed the first days in this neighborhood in the very cool and affordable hotel Sir Plantin. If you decide to stay there, you should insist on having a quiet room, not facing the main street. Apart from that the hotel is really good and the rooms are really stylish. You sleep under huge reproductions of portraits by Flemish masters.

Zurenborg and the gold and silver buildings:

The amazing architecture, the fashion scene and the many antique shops on the famous Klosterstraat are not the only interesting things in the city. Antwerp is also a famous harbour, and you can admire the big ships just a few steps away from the old town and the cathedral. I love harbours since I have been living in Hamburg and I think it really gives cities a special flair.

The old-town of Antwerp is also definitely worth visiting, with the beautiful cathedral, the guild-houses and the cobblestoned streets.

So this is the first post about Antwerp. I hope you can't wait to visit the city now! Don't worry, I have a lot more to tell you about the city: a couple of images by night, a hot Bed & Breakfast tip, a very cool restaurant and a lovely Belgian interior design showroom. So....stay tuned and talk to you soon!

Elodie

Richard - A lovely shop indeed

As I had rented a wide-angle Canon EF-S 10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 USM last week-end and had my tripod with me, it was the perfect occasion to do something I have been wanting to so for a long time: a photo session at one of my favorite shops for interior design in Hamburg: RICHARD, in the Neustadt in Hamburg.I went there also with my Canon EF –  50 mm f/1.8. So some of the pictures are taken with the wide-angle lens and the close-ups with the 50 mm lens. It is obviously easier to do a couple of pics with the smartphone, but Mr. Love was kind enough to come with me and help me carry the material. Thank you Mr. Love!

It is the second blogpost I write about this district of Hamburg, the first one was about the lovely Japanese shop Akiko. They are both situated in the very cool Wexstrasse in this very creative part of the city. Richard is a shop with a  fantastic atmosphere and a wonderful mix of old and new. I am particularly in love with the beautiful vintage globe collection. The dark walls and the candles, give the shop an extremely cozy and inviting atmosphere and the prices are very affordable.

I have updated my LOVEly map of Hamburg, if you want to have an overview of my shop reviews in the blog so far. I am still working on a PDF version of the map.

RICHARD Wexstr.32a 20355 Hamburg

Monday   : closed Tu. – Fr.  : 11:00 – 19:00 Sat.            : 11:00 – 16:00

Manoir & Palazzo

On the front door of this shop in Hamburg Eppendorf on Lehmweg 29, you will see the sign Manoir, but in reality, this shop is also called Palazz0.Palazzo is an antique shop which was founded in Hamburg in 1985 and specialises in wonderful vintage luggage. Palazzo was situated in the city centre of Hamburg and recently moved to the Lehmweg and joined the shop Manoir. Manoir is specialised in trompe l'oeil painting and restoration of antique furnitures. At Palazzo & Manoir , you will find some delightfully restored French and English antiques, some great swedish gustavian chairs and beautiful suitcases. This shop gives a fresh look at antiques as it is completely painted in a green neon colour that really lets the vintage Louis Vuitton suitcases and the old leather cricket balls shine. Have a  look for yourself and go treasure hunting:

Website: Manoir / Palazzo Lehmweg 29 20251 Hamburg Mo. – Fr. : 11:00 – 19:00 Sat.            : 11:00 – 16:00

My perfect Sunday

Last weekend I made a discovery that I want to share with you. I met Wiebke and discovered her lovely shop in the Isestrasse 86 in Hamburg, Eppendorf: My perfect Sunday. She asked herself: what makes a perfect Sunday? It can be a trip to the countryside, time with your family or time for yourself. Sunday is a day that tells stories about yourself. Sunday is all about taking a break.

My perfect Sunday in Hamburg has understood this concept and offers a range of objects from all over Europe and overseas that help you tell your story of your perfect Sunday and make your home more homely and cosy.

Wiebke also sells her own home and nightwear collection “crisp” in her shop, with dresses, trousers, shirts, coats and boleros. The soft colours: white, powder or light grey are beautiful and they are made of a very soft organic cotton.

As I am French, I was attracted first by products from French brands such as “La cerise sur le gâteau” from the French designer Anne Hubert. She knows how to combine lovely toile de jouy print or Liberty fabric with neon screenprinting.

You can also find products from British designer Abigael Ahern, such as her famous bulldog lamp that I also saw for the first time in Germany.

So if you are looking for selective and exclusive design and homewear fashion, My perfect Sunday is definitely a place you should visit while in Hamburg.  In the coming weeks there will be some very cool give-aways from “My perfect Sunday” to win on my blog, so stay tuned!

My Perfect Sunday Isestrasse 86 20149 Hamburg

My favourite room

Lieblingszimmer (favourite room) is a fantastic furniture shop in Hamburg Eppendorf. It is a bit hidden from the main road on the Ludolfstrasse 60. The shop sells antic furnitures and accessoires in pastel colours. From gustavian grey to pale green in the provencal style. You almost have the impression to be in the middle of a french vintage patisserie surrounded by beautiful macarons.The antic furnitures either have kept their original patina or have been renovated in the workshop. The total surface of the shop is 170 m2 and you can find almost every kind of furnitures - from bedside tables to cupboards or vintage vases. I especially like the vintage kitchen table. It is the perfect place to go if you want some furnitures with a soul but still at an affordable price.

Nordlys - scandinavian design in Hamburg

You know I like Hamburg because it is so design orientated. I also like it because it has a lot of Scandinavian influences. In some small shops like Nordlys, I have got the impression to be in the city centre of Copenhagen! This very pretty shop is situated in the Görnerstrasse 4, in Hamburg, Eppdendorf.They sell some  pretty brands such as Bloomingville, Green Gate , Liv or Rice. You can also find a large selection of ribbans - that are really gorgeous as well aa a selection of pretty clothes. You can also drink a a nice Milchkaffee in the shop. The good thing is that the shop is also open on the Sunday. You can't miss the danish flag at the entrance

When you go - you have to have a look at the back of the shop to see the two beautiful cats of the shop owner having a nap in their wooden basket through the window

Görnerstrasse 4

Unterhaltung - Lieblingsstücke

We have a new shop in Eppendorf (since April 2012) - a concept store called Unterhaltung - Lieblingsstücke (it could be translated Entertainment - Favourite Things) and I really like it. They  sell a little bit of everything (yeah - like a concept store usually does...) -  jewellery, decoration items, food, postcards, books, magazines, clothes ... It is also a good place to find a nice present for a male friend or your husband and for children.

They represent some very cool brands like the danish brand House Doctor or sell some lovely DIY magazines, like the brilliant British magazine Mollie Makes. But just have a look for yourselves when you are in Eppendorf. You can even stay a little longer and have a cup of coffee in the shop.

Johanna Schultz - Poetry with letters

Hello,
Today has been an exciting day blogwise. I published the new self-hosted version of my blog (no more .wordpress.com) as well as my madame love Facebook fanpage.
So now I would like to share another very cool shop in my lovely Eppendorf (the beautiful area of Hamburg I live in).
The shopkeeper is pretty young and called Johanna Schultz  - and so is the shop: Johanna Schultz - Wohnen 1700-1980 (Living 1700-1980).
Johanna sells a lot of beautiful objects in her antic shop. but my favorit ones are the letters. I am a big fan of the use of typography in the decoration: you can see examples on my pinterest board LOVEly letters.

Even if I love the letters, I must say that you can find a lot of other treasures in the shop, such as beautiful lamps, like an original artichocke lamp by Poul Henningsen or a lonely fawn coming strait out of a fairy tale.

Palais XIII

Today I will post about a shop I love love love in Hamburg. This completely unique and magical shop is situated in the Henriettenweg, in the Eimsbüttel district at the number 13, and that's why it is called Palais XIII. ★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★

Aujourd'hui j'ai décidé d'écrire à propos d'une boutique de Hambourg que j'adore. Cet endroit complètement magique est situé au numéro 13 du Henriettenweg (le chemin d'Henriette) dans le quartier de Eimsbüttel et s'appelle tout simplement le Palais XIII.

Hamburg is the city in Germany where can find almost all the big publishing houses. That is really one of the reasons why Hamburg is so interesting regarding design and decoration. Palais XIII is working a lot with magazines such as Living at Home or Schöner Wohnen. You will find there some objects, you don't find everywhere in Germany: beautiful lamps from French designers Tse & Tse Associées or black and white china from the Swedish artist Lisa Ottebring. A lot of things are also available in the online shop, but it would be a shame not to visit this very unique place.

Palais 13

Henriettenweg 13 20259 Hamburg

Tu.-Fr 11:00-18:00 Sat. 11:00-16:00

Küchenblume and flowers in my kitchen

So it is time for me to write a bit about my neighbourhood (Kiez in German).I live in a very beautiful part of Hamburg called Eppendorf. It is very green, full of little decoration shops and pretty cafés. In the Isestrasse, where the splendid Isemarkt (a very cool market) takes place twice a week, you will find my favorite flower shop in Hamburg: Küchenblume.

but you know me, I couldn't just have gone there, just to take some pictures...so now, I have some very pretty peonies in my kitchen. I love this season.

Küchenblume Isestrasse 76 20149 hamburg

Mo-Fr. 11:00 – 19:00 Sat.: 10:00 – 16:00

Akiko - Ein Stück Japan

So, I think I talked or showed enough of my handmade stuff in the last posts. So let's talk about Hamburg. The first shop I would like to talk about is the beautiful Japanese shop called Akiko - "Ein Stück Japan" in the Hamburg Neustadt. Hamburg has so many design and decoration treasures to offer and so the Neustadt - it is not going to be the last post about this part of the city. Akiko opened her shop in the Wexstraße 39 about eight years ago.

She sells fabric with traditional japanese pattern

 japanese Yusen-paper

as well as decoration items such as boxes, or tableware

She also offers some handcrafted accessories and clothes produced with japanese fabric in her workshop.

Akiko has arranged her shop in a very tasteful and poetic way - with origami cranes dancing on branches but still respecting the traditional japanese sense of simplicity and harmony.

If you are a crafter and want to learn the art of origami (the traditional Japanese art of paper folding) you can join a workshop. The workshops take place in the shop, and Akiko teaches herself. Of course the fabric and the papers can be bought online, but it would be such a shame to miss a visit to this fabulous shop.

AKIKO  Ein Stück Japan Wexstraße 39 20355 Hamburg

Monday   : closed Tu. – Fr.  : 11:00 – 19:00 Sat.            : 11:00 – 15:00