to plant a g a r d e n

dear all,

my  a b s e n c e  this week after my  last post

s i l e n t l y  speaks of the  d i f f i c u l t y  I'm facing.

However, allowing myself to come here to post,

even without a schedule

a s s i s t s  my efforts of creating a bond with what I do,

and  l o v e  to do it,

while also connecting with you.

For this week's I n s p i r a t i o n   F r i d a y ,

{ hooray for it being the 3rd in the row! }

Audrey Hepburn's words were the theme around which the collage 

was built.

"to plant a  g a r d e n  is to believe in  t o m o r r o w " 

I hereby declare that I'm a firm b e l i e v e r  in tomorrow,

which begins t o d a y .

However, I must exclaim that there is a part of the equation I still haven't managed to solve.

Cause I planted with much love & much care

{ as shared  h e r e }

a potted little garden at the veranda { and winter garden and all over } of the place 

I still call  h o m e 

But for me probably not being able to enjoy and care for it,

in just a short while from now,

it means that I neglected some important parts.

Or this would not be happening.

It feels as if I planted on a borrowed ground,

rather than my own.

It feels as if I considered my own something that was never meant to be.

And it feels as I didn't cherish enough something that was given to me.

For all these, other than being sorry beyond words can say,

I wish to l e a r n  from,

cause planting my garden  { like shared h e r e } is a little tiny part of my dream coming true.

This time, making sure it grows its roots on the right ground,

a ground I can call  my own

and no one in the whole world could argue against it.

What about you?

are you  g r o w i n g   y o u r   o w n   p l a n t s ?

perhaps  i n d o o r s ? in front of your windows ?

at your v e r a n d a s ?  b a l c o n i e s ?

l i t t l e   p a t i o s ? or when lucky enough in your  o w n   g a r d e n ?

what kind of  c o n n e c t i o n  do you get from taking care of plants ?

Is this a way for you to show you believe in tomorrow ?

from me,

wishes for a  g r e a t  w e e k e n d  ahead!

tonight is the longest day of the year

in this part of the world,

got to love long days!

{ even when these days are not the easiest we' ve ever experienced }

. . . . . . . . . . .

picture credit clockwise from top left: 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 

She k n o w s . . .

I'm ever so grateful for this little blog space I created some years ago...

I would have never imagined that it would be proving so precious 

in ways it does now

It's my  v o i c e ,

my  w i n d o w  to the  w o r l d

&

my  d r e a m  c o m i n g   t r u e 

It might appear immature and weak still,

but if you can't take m y   w o r d ,

then take my  h e a r t ' s   d e s i r e :

there'll be  f i r e w o r k s  soon

h e r e

c e l e b r a t i n g   m i r a c l e s 

and

the  p o w e r   o f   L o v e 

Y o u   a r e   a l l   w e l c o m e 

&

I'm very  t h a n k f u l

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

picture & words: Iro - Ivy Nassopoulos, for Domestic Stories with Ivy 2013

3 little deer welcoming... March ~

hello there!

[via]

 I promised myself to pass by and make even a tiny post welcoming the new month...

 so here I am,

 ... among wallpapering walls

 ... organizing in detail {finally after almost 4 months!} kitchen drawers

 ... frequent trips to Ikea

 ... bringing home doors to perfect our storage system

 ... indoor & outdoor plants & flowers

 ... spending time with our neighbors,

 having their adorable 16 month old daughter over for occasional visits...

 ... finally also accepting the visit of a dear friend...

 all that after some days of emotional turmoil resulting from being concentrated on past traumas.

 not the wisest thing to have done, but so it turned out to be

 & now that days have passed, may I say

 that there is an internal clearance & newly risen peace

Life is nice, simple, calm, delightful at times & full...

sun rises early & our still untreated windows bring in the morning sun,

waking me up early...

the silence from the woods broken by tweeting birds...

who have been paying visits to the veranda & winter garden...

there is much to share 

& 

so will happen...

after all, you must know by now I always return 

&

 am ever present here even when silent or taking a break

technically speaking, difficulties seem to be reaching to an end,

 after an new Internet server has been ordered,

works in the house proceeding in a more satisfying pace,

while results start to be more & more evident...

till the next post here {sooner than it took this one to take place for sure ; )}

I thought you might want  to have a look at the 1st blog post of our Kitchen Adventures

as shared on Ikea Family Live

... nice way to wish a

Happy First of March to everyone, or?... 

last but not least at all, did I mention that while walking through the woods heading to the - then - frozen lakes about a week ago

while my mother was visiting, 

three little deer just like Bambi passed before us?

I feel that I'm living in a fairy tale...

one which is truer than any of the truths...

Love

xxx

P:S: stumbled upon {this} beautiful illustration by Madame Lolina, while on Pinterest recently... glad I did... it served wonderfully in unfolding this post  :*)

curves + triangles (aujourd' hui j' aime)

well, I'm currently really not supposed to be anywhere else other than corners of {our Cave}, or else our new  medium sized maisonette apartment, performing works of every possible kind all around,

  but

 life happens & online existence & happenings are part of it,

 at least so is the case here...

 there are nice things to share today.

 moreover, it is the first of February & coming to make a 

 "have a nice month!" post here,

 positively energizes my day, rest of the week

 and hopefully yours!

 before elaborating a little on the collage curated above,

 I'd like to ask you - unless you've already done so  ; ) -

 to pass by a few on line places I'm very happy & honored to be part of.

 Natalie - with whom we once held a {lovely give away} - 

 seems to have a very discrete & low profile on line existence,

 nevertheless her sense of aesthetics,

 color appreciation

 &

her own creations

are very compatible with mine

and I'm very fond of them.

I'm loving lots of her latest creations - which you can find {here} & {there}

&

I'm absolutely loving {the collage}- a tribute to Grey -

she recently created,

incorporating our {new kitchen corner}

Thank you Natalie!

........

and then...

{Nina Holst} is one lovely lady & talented stylist from Norway, founder of {Stylizimo},

one whose kind & soft manners

are her equipment for a strong on line existence

Since she "walked" into our shop some months ago,

I cannot help but feeling extremely honored & happy,

that fragments of myself are incorporated in her beautiful house's many rooms,

through pictures & little "sur measure" creations.

Maybe you remember {this post}?

... it's never late to check it out ; )

Today, I get to be guested at her blog

as {this print} of our shop is part of her freshly styled

{living room corner},

with a dark cabinet I pretty much adore.

Thank you Nina!

......

now let me say a few words on the collage above...

curves & triangles

it is rather {evident} that I love geometry in all its expression in interior design,

but mostly of all,

I'm interested in creating spaces that while leaving a strong impact,

they do so gently,

almost magically,

secretly inviting you to return to them again,

even when you don't exactly know why.

there is a certain amount of mystery

created by a play between lines & curves...

believing that happiness lies in finding balance,

while {gracefully passing through our extremes},

the existence of basic shapes in our living environments,

creates a sense of being grounded,

while also being free to take a walk in the clouds.

 happily pointy triangles of a banner much as this blog's logo

or the wallpaper banners {which I so joyfully create}

&

smooth, gentle & feminine curves found both in furniture and in objects

are features I love.

the collage I curated from recent images found via {pinterest},

represents well all the above.

~>  {this} delightful chair, so fabulously photographed here, 

with weathered leather adding so much to its charm,

is an odd to curves.

~> the {Eiffel tower} is a magnificent example of plasticity in architecture,

combining a powerful three dimensional triangular shape,

while every line is curved & beautifully emphasized by all the circular & semi circular iron details.

I can't get over its beautiful figure as seen through this fairy lightened {blurry image}

~> {that} hand crocheted A shaped dress is consisting of probably countless circles

(btw I spent some memorable teenage summers wearing a very similar dress, 

handmade by my crafty grandmother from my mother's side...

and I might as well try to find it when visiting my parental home in Greece this Spring)

~> last but not least

that {peaceful children's space}

combines so nicely

wooden blocks,

a fabric banner & a wooden rocking... sheep!

that's also a lovely note to gentleness..

a harmless sheep...

  I might as well be closing this post with that.

enjoy your days 

have a great start to the new month ~

&

see you here again quite soon ~

thank you for stopping by & sharing love

much love to you, too ~ xoxo

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

P.S: an important note here: I'm sorry to not be able to properly credit some pictures so wonderful like the Paris one & many others. Pinterest is one amazing platform to create "reachable" dreams but through the 

enormous amount of repining, some original sources seem rather hard to be found.

U p d a t e: just  - 03.02.2012, 22:51 - came across this picture {here}...

so so happy to have found it in this very favorite blog of mine :*)

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

collage curation: Iro - Ivy Nassopoulos 

picture credit given through the post - please read carefully & click on the {...} 

~ about balance & changes

so my dears, good morning to you!

 it has been a heavily stormy night here, which followed a really warm evening,

with stars shining on the sky & us laying on our backs, on a blanket in our little balcony,

watching them...

a nice way to relax after a grilling dinner...

this is a rather emotionally charged period for us,

as we are reaching to a decision about 

a new place for us to live.

I mention "us", because my partner has actually to go through

lots of mornings where I wake up with tears in my eyes,

looking around me,

seeing how much I have come to love this place we currently live in

&

not exactly be thrilled for sooner or later eventually moving out.

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

I'm almost certain that in the process,

happiness & excitment about making a new home

will be the prevailing feeling & attitude...

still, till then, I cannot turn my back to my feelings,

neither my emotions,

by simply rationalising...

and exactly because this new transitional period in which we have enterred

is an emotionally & practically demanding one,

I have noticed that I'm temporarily falling behind

on matters that I have to and would otherwise 

be thrilled to proceed with.

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

having both graduated from Psychology,

practised it daily with children and their parents

for more that 12 years,

and gone through my personal psychoanalysis,

I know that rationalising 

{aka ignoring, locking feelings in the closet, pretending power e.t.c}

is only a slightly good solution for a short term period.

having always been interested in long term outcomes,

and a general promotion of one's mental & physical health, love, abundance,

creativity & peacefulness,

am deciding to make a little pause today, just for now,

in order to pay attention to all these feelings,

that have been preventing

a more effective every day life from my side.

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

so, why is it that the upcoming movement of ours is of such a heavy significance to me?

To start with, I obviously love the apartment we are now & since 3 1/2 years living in & renting.

 I adore so many of its characteristics, which will sadly not all be present in one of the new places we are considering.

 This little loft / Penthouse has been my first home, ever since I relocated in Germany,

in order to live together with my partner.

It therefore marks a whole new life to me...

 a life in a new country, away from my family & my friends,

a life which demands adjustment to new weather & clima conditions,

as Germany & Greece do have a lot of differences in this domain,

{a maximum of 80 sunshiny days per year, in contrast to the 300 ones in Greece}

a life away from the sea, next to which I grew up,

&

 all the daily routines it carries with,

from the fresh breeze to swimming as an exercise,

a new culture & and off course a new language,

as German was not included I the foreign languages I spoke.

a life where I suddendly had to start all over form the beginning being 33,

a life away from many things I so much loved {and perhaps had not appreciated so much}

and all that for a life next to the one person I love

and loves me back.

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

addionally, these 3 1/2 years that I' ve been living in Germany

have also been marked with a lot of loses:

my most beloved person on earth, the woman who brought me up

and led a loving and fullfilling life for 94 years,

my grand mother Iro, 

passed away in less than a month after I left.

my family's financial state changed to the worse and the beautiful 

big home by the sea I grew up in had to be sold.

I was personally involved in selling our house,

finding a new one & finally completely designing it 

from the beginning, making it appropriate for my parents,

so that the downgrade in size would not cause them too much sadness,

while instead a more effective & positive every day life could be achieved.

I was there for 8 eight weeks alltogether in order to coordinate the workers

and the renovation. 

I was there to help my mother organise every little single bit of their home & household

I was there last summer to goodbuy our family dog Bianca,

which was put to sleep at the age of 20,

so that she didn't suffer any more.

I was not there a few days ago when my little car got sold,

so as the economical situation to be slightly relieved.

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

I feel that a lot of changes have been taking place in my life that past few years.

 I just sometimes wonder whether I'm ready for a next one.

Still in this case, there is no choice.

As my partner has been delaying this movement for as long as possible,

in order for me to feel comfortable...

&

3 1/2 years is a fairly long period...

On top of that, investing into buying a place in our age range is nothing but a wise decision.

... as much as I'm emotional now,

I know that a few weeks ahead, I'll come back to this post,

read my current feelings,

&

be happy that I was strong enough to proceed,

capable enough to see opportunity amongst difficulty,

and motivated enough to build a new beautiful home for us to love, live in,

promoting our well being

all this is being shared  here in my effort to overcome being petrified by my feelings

cause this is really not right

&

if one decision is made, it's to never place myself into any corner,

for any reason,

and 

learn to be out there in life, in full force,

totally appreciative of all that there is

while

making possible all that there is not.

... there is no need to wear a "red blouse" in order to make my presence felt...

there is no need to be loud in order to be heard.

I'm here and I know that many of you will agree that the inner power love,

hope, wisdom, experience & peace carry is incomparable...

and one cannot talk of peacefullness & act in a tensed manner, right?

from deep down of my existence,

I know that since some time I'm walking on the right path,

and however difficult it might in times become,

there's always bright light at the end

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

now if you have managed to read this, you are probably brave people

and I'm one relieved woman,

who can finally have breakfast {so untypical of me to skip this meal of the day!}

&

then allow all my pure enthusiasm about writing in this blog return

and come to proceed with sharing trully wonderful things happening as well...

little ones perhaps, but wonderful, too ; )

have the most delightful of Wednesdays!

I promise that I'll do just the same, too  ~

♥

P.S: details about the picture on the top, coming in the next post, so do pass by later ; ) xx

~ when "real life" happens ...

lovely all,

good evening  & of course good afternoon to residents of America!

 I'm sure that you are all familiar with the factor

 "real life", right?

 ...it takes place when for a day, you intend to post in the late afternoon,

 thinking that you'll be home alone, 

 as he has plans for grilling with collegues in a garden

 and then life happens,

 a storm bursts out,

 the bell rings around the usual time and it's him...

 "I' m hoOome..., plans are postponed for a rain free day..."

 "oh lovely" she thinks...great that you are here,

 also thinking that her post about an  cute as a button etsy shop

 {promised here}

 was left in the middle, 

 as well as a few mails unanswered...

 possibly some readers anticipating

 the appearance of 

 the fingers on the keyboard

  &

the person behind the screen, 

 responsible for the content of this blog here...

 "oh my!" she thinks I'd hate to let them down,

 but then she wants to rush nothing...

 so she gives in to 

  "real life", which happens again,

 with her in the kitchen,

 making an unplanned chocolate cake,

 while the washing mashine is almost ready with the laundry,

 shirt ironing has hardly started,

 the dishes are done

 &

 after the cake making they need to be done again...

 whichever the case my dears,

 real life comes first,

 and so long as it happens, 

 lines like these can be written...

 I'll see you {almost} first thing in the morning here,

 untying the lovely package that you see in the photo above

 before I go though, 

 a very dear "thank you" to amazing Holly Becker,

 who mentioned Domestic Stories with Ivy blog today

 in her open discussion on Facebook,

 as one of her prefered inspiring blogs,

 basing their original, 

 genuine content, 

 on the writers' {inspiring} every day life.

 I spent half the day so incredibly happy & honoured for that

 & 

 made me think that the best thing that I've ever done 

 in my whole life, was to actually begin listening to & following my heart.

 in the meantime, I'm confident it's taking me right where I want to be,

 and there were life has plans of taking me,

 supported of course by:

persistence, work, patience & endless love

  

 cheers!

 c u tomorrow ~

~ smily guten Morgen :)

[via]

oh dears! Good morning & wishes for a wonderful new week ahead :)

I figured out it might take me too long to write a proper post today, 

since I have been lately quite happily busy in our sunny {Home Studio}...

and then thought that it doesn't actually matter...

I can come here with just a little picture and a huge smile to share my wishes with you!

so this exactly I'm doing:

: D

Happy Monday & happy 4th of July to all American friends!

...and till I return later, how about you sharing how has your weekend been?

Here is my list of what I've been engaging into since this Friday 1st of July:

~ gardening in our little veranda

~ organising, refreshing, redecorating

~ magazine & book reading

~ paper boat garland making

~ styling & photographing

~ working on the etsy shop

 ~ preparing orders

~ welcoming new clients here in our Home studio {finally yes!}

~ planning a little short trip to a Greek island anytime soon

~ preparing a little girls' meeting over for chats & inspiration

~ and of course household chores,

 which seem much more pleasant in a welltaken care off environment ; )

pictures in the next post...

have a marvelous day! ~

Photo credit: Iro - Ivy Nassopoulos for {New Ivy Style} Home Decor Shop on Etsy

Styling materials used: white plastic frame: Ikea / glass jar: upcycled / wooden pencils: from a local shop / heart of wire: handmade by me

............................................♥........................................

~ summer call...

~ summer call & everything is going to be fabulous after all!

One of the latest treasuries I curated with finds from the world of Etsy...

hop here for the link to these beauties and then return with a cup of your favorite drink to read along with me....

...so, I' ve been spending a quiet morning today with not much talking being involved

...all of a sudden I realise how tranquil one can feel inside even when a....revolution is going on around him/her

...all of a sudden I realise the energy economy that is done when one speaks less and simply does more

...being a firm believer of the power of words, especially the power of {positive affirmations}

...silence's power & the one evoked by coming in touch with our own selves is also added to my belief system

{if I may call it so}

...am {deeply}concerned with what is happening in today's society, regardless of which my current home is.

...for me home is where the heart is, and that could be anywhere on this planet.

~ for all this wave of protests going on,

there is no need to take a stance,

still I' d like to share some thoughts I often remind myself of

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

~ when you want peace, start by being peaceful youself,

~ when you want to be rich, start by realising how much you have compared to millions of people who are starving

~ when you think you are treated unfair, start by practising fairness yourself,

 or else simply break the contact,

with whomever it might be,

family, relative, friend, work or country.

~ when you want to be respected, begin by gaining respect in yourself and then showing it to others

~ when you notice a constant need for complaining,

maybe it's time to realise that it's yourself you are looking for

and unless it's him or her you find, accept and eventually love,

mountains could move,

the sea could freeze,

still the same need for complain will prevail.

If you an adult, it's time to realise that there are choices in life.

and that with choices change may come

and through change, difficulties will come as well as blessings,

cause noboby sighed a contract with us,

 that life will be only easy and fair.

~ if you want to be different, act different.

~ think as an individual,

~ exercise your right for free thinking

be the best you can be,

in order to benefit others and society as well.

Use time efficiently,

learn to love 

{no, being madly in love and just dependent on someone are not included}

and most of all take time and invest in making use of all the wonderful potential that lies in you.

Then, the earth could stop turning, but you' d still be centered and in peace.

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

All right friends, I know that lines like these ones written above are not exactly expected,

when ones sees a bunch of pretty items grouped together...

but this online place here is about living a life of awareness,

a beautiful life which resuts from deep understanding, acceptance and most of all efforts in order to change eveything we do not like.

Off course pretty items and wisely put together interiors add alot in to beautifying our everyday lives,

still it's a heart & a mind in peace that it all begins from...

You want magic in your lives?

prepare to make some first and offer it generoulsy.

...you have high standards of living?

prepare to pay for them.

Both practically and symbolically

JUST DO IT! ; )

{it's exactly what I've been saying to myself, too}

and in the meantime enjoy this last weekend of May as well!

~ flow with life...

 ...flow with life...

what is probably the most natural thing to do...

...has become a rarity nowdays...

...we are so often caught in the middle of planning and making our dreams come true,

 that we often forget to simply enjoy life for what it is...

...what it has to offer to us, 

 but also what we have to offer to it.

These past few days there came this feeling again I had so much missed,

of simply flowing with life...

...and being in such a mood I gathered together a couple of pictures to illustrate this:

~ a radiating with sincere happiness Audrey, cycling together with her fury friend

~ pretty & fun giraffes balancing on top of one another,

ensuring to brighten up our days,

~ a written reminder which supports its saying with actions {by flowing itself}

~ happy packages ready to be given to those we want to bring a smile to.

What will you do to brighten up your day today?

How will you deal with the hard parts of life?

...just had a meeting with a beloved friend, a very important for my survival in Germany friend,

as we have been together through many phases...

I think listening to a friend and being listened by a friend is a very simple example of brightening up our days.

There is no need to scream from happiness,

neither do we need to put up any faces,

Just being heard, accepted and loved for who we are

is itself a simple action that makes our hearts smile.

Simply ~

Kindly ~

Honestly ~

Relaxed ~

...reminding that there is no tension in true happiness...

...rather it is felt soft as a cloud, which is there to carry us even through the difficult parts of our days

...cause this is a real world,

and happiness & unhappiness co-exist,

much like everyhing else.

So jump on that bike and go on a ride,

even if there is only little time,

or even if your family scene doens't resemble a fairy tale at the moment

Go out there and be the best you can be,

for your own selves

...and then tell me all about it,

cause I care to know...

Smiles & hugs {well, yes, free hugs are the best I guess ;)}

P.S: ...want to smile some more? Look at {this}!