Christmas already?!?

I nearly had to breathe deeply into paper bag this morning when it  hit me that it is only 43 days left till Christmas!! 43, people!!.. Breeeeathe iiiiiin! And here I am in Sydney where the sun is hot, and Summer is on approach.. That sort of combination is sure to send a Swedish girl into ANYTHING BUT the mood for Christmas!

via White Trash

Usually my inspiration comes from the looming darkness of November, lighting candles, watching the first flakes of snow... Sigh! I am seriously contemplating moving into our freezer for a week in order to get into the spirit! And no I don't mean the frozen Vodka on the top shelf.... Though that would totally help for sure..!! :)

In there I my brain would cool down and kick into an efficient factory of fun & festive ideas, however only for an hour or so before Marshall would check me right into a clinic of some sort.. So, instead I am turning to you my friends, and I am so grateful for your wonderful Xmas posts that are already popping up around the blogosphere..!

 Cox and Cox

For example... I felt flutters of Christmas merriness when I saw this divine picture over at 'Le Creuset South Africa' (HERE). Who wouldn't feel that way at the sight of this stack of goodness..!?!

Le Creuset South Africa

And of course there is always Martha Stewart.. What would we do without her endless supply of resolve, support and great ideas..!?! When the sleigh bells sound more like alarm bells in one's sorry little head, one pulls oneself together and heads over to her website and types in 'Christmas' in the search field for an impressive 400-something hits that instantly makes for a Silent Night.. (Sorry. I can't really help myself when I am in this mood..) Not that dear Martha's spread exactly made me stop in my tracks, but at least she gave me lots to look at.. And many ideas would actually translate well to a 'Tropical Christmas'..

 My sweet friend Will over at 'Bright Bazaar' also made me feel better when he posted some gorgeous images of timeless white Christmas inspiration from 'The White Company' that whispered sweet words to my Swedish ear (HERE). Thanks Will! xx

And the lovely Cecilia of Desde mi Ventana gave me some great ideas for 'Advent Calendars' for the kids (HERE).  Actually, who am I kidding. I'd love one of these for ME!!  ..You reading this Marshall..?! :)  The ideas shown in her post were all lovely, but I am thinking the 'glass vase option' will work best for us. I also absolutely adore the hand stitched bags as a 'wrapping idea'! Gorgeous!

Tine K usually puts on a good Christmas spread of ideas & inspiration, and although this year is no exception, I must say that I am surprised at how muffled and dark the theme is (HERE)...

 via Tine K

And whilst sipping a (very strong) cup of Italian coffee, I read words of promise and hope over at my dear friend Minna's blog ('Blomsterverkstad'); "This year I'm going to Christmas inspire you to the max. Daily. From 1st of December I'll be sharing ideas for wreaths and decorations, my best Christmas recipies, personal and easy-to-realize table settings and plenty of giwe aways!". Honey for my ears Minna!! xx And for everyone else, click HERE to jump across to Blomsterverkstad to enter a give-away for her gorgeous book 'Blomstrande Idéer'.

http://blomsterverkstad.blogspot.com/

Over at Sköna Hem there wasn't much Christmas inspiration to find. Well at least not anything that would work here in Sydney, but I did browse a cute (and very traditional!) Christmas house tour (HERE), and saw some stylist interpretations of the holiday season (HERE).

via Sköna Hem

Then suddenly I felt as if dear Melissa over at 'The Inspired Room' had read my mind when she issued a fantastic list of '10 Ways to get inspired for Christmas' (HERE).

That got me thinking of a personal list of things I could do to get myself into a jolly Christmas mood... Here it is, my ten steps to making myself Merry and Bright!

1. Browse around for Christmas cards.

I had a lot of fun browsing Etsy for Christmas cards the other night and
there were plenty of inspiration. Usually I try to make my own, only the
last two years that has ended up in a frenzy that resulted in us not sending
any at all.. Have I learned? Not sure yet.. hmm..

2. Buy cute trinkets for the table.

 I bought 3 sets of these cute felt acorns from 'Green Baboon Designs' (HERE).



And am going to pick up at least one set of these gorgeous napkins from
Piper's brilliant shop 'One Sydney Road' (HERE). Aren't they fabulous!!?!

3. Listen to Christmas music & watch holiday movies.

I love old time classics for Christmas, and we often let ourselves drift away to the soothing
& comforting sound of Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra, Bing Crossby, Louis Armstrong etc.

4. Do some easy and fun Christmas crafts with the kids.

We are a 'crafty house' really hence this shouldn't be too hard..

5. Start buying and/or making presents.

This is my favourite part. Because really, is there anything more fun than to buy
gifts for those you love and care for? I think not! And call me commercial, but
I love spoiling my little trio with carefully selected gifts. It's better than receiving!!

6. Go through Christmas decorations and come up with a 'look' for the tree.

OMG are we even doing a tree? I  might opt for a 'regular tree' this year,
rather than a 'pine tree'. I could spray it a glossy red, silver or just white..
It will look a lot more stylish here at the height of Summer that's for sure! 

7. Make 'Glögg' and bake ginger biscuits with the kids!

 There is nothing like the smell of brewing *Glögg* to make us Swedes
go all Christmassy and cheery..! Glögg is a bit like 'mulled wine' only not so tangy, 
and it is always served hot, with a side of peeled (skinned) almonds and sultanas. 
I have a recipe that goes 4 generations back in our family. I'll share it later.

8. Confirm numbers and design menu for Christmas Eve (Swedish Christmas).

It will really be too hot for a proper 'roast buffet' of traditional foods.
Instead I am thinking seafood, BBQ meats served with sallads and cold
sauces. Plenty of nice cold drinks, and yummy deserts & sweets.
What are you serving for Xmas my darlings?

9. Buy wrapping paper, pretty ribbons and labels.

And there is always so much to choose from that I have to sit myself down
and really decide on a 'theme' before I head out, or I'll go over board...

10. Get a pretty dress to wear on Christmas Day.

We are usually roasting away in near 40C (ca 104F) and any attempt to do
a formal look will melt away. A new bikini for a Christmas morning swim,
and a strappy Summer dress for after will be perfect. Only mandatory is that
they are 'RED', and today the gorgeous Carolina of 'Absolutely Unique' shared
some splendid festive frocks (I would pick no. 2 or 3 in her post!). Thanks love! xx

What is YOUR lists my lovelies?

I'd love to see them, so please share via your posts!
I beg you..please ! :)

xx Charlotta


STOP PRESS STOP PRESS STOP PRESS 

This morning I woke up to the most lovely surprise any blog girl can get - a loving feature!
It was the truly kind Leigha Oaks of 'Elle Oh' who did a beyond flattering showcase
of me and Space for Inspiration! You can read the article HERE..!

Leigha.. Once more, thank you from the bottom of my heart to you for your
genuine kindness and for finding me worthy of your beautiful writings over at
Eco Salon. What an honour it is to have met someone as generous as you! xxx