So being Swedish and all, Halloween is still kind of new to me. Sure, we do go tricking or treating, but not at all to the same extent as in the UK.

A great tradition I have never encountered before is pumpkin picking. To be honest I wouldn’t have been able to tell you if a pumpkin grew on a bush or a tree before I  saw it with my own eyes.

It was the hubby that suggested we head to Cammas Hall farm (about an hour north of London) to pick ourselves a pumpkin or two for Halloween.  We invited Josefina and Matthew with little Leo and also Garth’s parents to join us on our pumpkin picking experience. 

Even Olive got to come, but she spent most of her time sitting in the wheelbarrow since she wasn’t allowed to roam free.

To my surprise, it was exactly what it sounded like. (I’m not sure what I expected…)We all headed out into a field to look for that perfect pumpkin. There were all kinds of sizes, colors and shapes. The smaller ones are actually squash and those were already picked and waiting in little “pumpkin pools” in hay bales. You can guess where all the babies ended up. Photo op deluxe!

Ace touched probably at least 100 pumpkins over the course of the day. He loved all the little one and shouted “BALL” non-stop. Every pumpkin needed to be picked up, and when they were too big or too heavy he let out this massive grunt and strained until he was red in his little face.

He is for sure going to be a crossfitter just like his dad. He already got the determination, strength, and interest in lifting heavy objects.

As you can see his little face is all scratched up. On Saturday when I was at the hairdresser, he was at the park with Garth. He decided to go for a little run (even though he just learned to walk) and faceplanted in the gravel. Poor pup!

He is a funny one though, he very rarely cries when he hurts himself. He truly is Garths son through and trough.

Ok, back to our pumpkin picking adventure.

We spent the whole day turning over pumpkins, comparing them and getting the most interesting shapes and colors. In the end, Ace settled for a big white pumpkin to carve and a few smaller ones for decoration. We had maybe 15 pumpkins in our wheelbarrow and we paid about £16 for all of them. I could barely get one big pumpkin for that price in town, so a massive bargain.

The smaller ones are actually pretty yummy to cook and eat. I just cut the top off, make a few cuts in the flesh or get rid of any pips and fill up with cream, garlic, and herbs before I pop them in the oven. It’s pretty tasty and looks great on the table for Halloween.

I think pumpkin picking is such a great tradition and Ace had a super fun day with his friend Leo. We will for sure do this again next year. It’s a great little outing for the whole family. We were really lucky with the weather and I truly enjoyed walking around just inhaling nature.

Poor Josefina went for the tequila shots when I opted for water the night before, so I got a feeling she didn’t quite enjoy our day out just as much as I did. I think she said all of 3 words all day. But it was her birthday, and she had great fun the night before.

Do you guys go pumpkin picking? 

My perfect jumper is by Really Wild. 

Ok, are you ready for the first product in my beauty journey? It’s a skin renewal micro needling roller from Swiss clinic.

I’m 36 years old in December (iik!) and I have always taken pretty good care of my skin. I have mainly focused on the classic skincare products and SPF. Now when I’m closing in on 40 and have gone through a pregnancy, I feel that it’s time to get on some heavier stuff. Skincare with more active ingredients, at-home treatments and also visits to the salon.

I’m such a beauty geek and I love these things. That’s why it’s my great pleasure to present this collaboration with Swiss Clinic here on the blog.

I started off by clicking this link to do a free online skin test. In order to find out what roller best suits me and my needs. My main issue is pigmentation, so through the test, I got recommended the roller with the 0.55mm needles.

I have so far only done one cycle of treatments, but I’m already noticing a real difference. Not loads on the pigmentation yet, I have a feeling it might take slightly longer. But my skin feels a lot softer, less dry and has a great glow.

It’s really clever to have a product like this at home. So I can use it whenever I want to and feel like I need it. Swiss Clinic’s product has been clinically proven to make a difference, the roller has a CE certificate and the company is a certified “safe e-commerce” brand.

I think it’s terribly exciting to see how these kinds of products and treatments actually work. As I always say “Clothes comes and goes, but our skin is with us for life. Invest in it, it’s the only one we get!”.

If you use the discount code  “TESS20” when you check out, you will get a full 20% off at Swiss Clinic. If you are a bit tempted to try at-home skin renewal micro needling!

What a great weekend! Dinner, clubbing for the first time in almost 2 years, and a little road trip out to the countryside. 

Even if my weekend was busy, I feel strangely invigorated. Like I charged a different set of batteries.

Today I’m working from my little blog office at home. I was meant to have a couple of girls over to record a podcast. But one of the girls is feeling poorly, so we moved to later in the week.

I’m quite happy to be sitting here in my little corner of the nursery. I love that I get to share Aces room with him. It got such a nice harmonic feel to it. And we all know how much I love pastels…

Can you spot the little green cloud on my desk? It’s a cute little light that I’m trying to find a good spot for in his room. Isn’t it adorable?

Have you written down your focus, goal, affirmation, and mantra this week? Here are mine;

My mantra of the week – ”If I’m too comfortable, then it’s time to do something new. If I’m nervous about the next step I’m taking, then I’m on the right path”. I need challenges in my life, or I get bored. I need to push forward one week, to rest peacefully the next, go again the 3rd and evaluate and reflect the 4rth week. Otherwise, I lose my momentum.

My affirmation this week – ”Something wonderful will happen today”. Have you ever tried telling yourself exactly this in the morning? Every time I have, indeed something wonderful has happened. Maybe I’m just allowing myself to be more open to positivity, or I’m actually manifesting something wonderful to happen. Why not give it a try!

My goal this week – I’m going to sit down and make a big “master to-do list”. Everything that we need to do before Christmas will go on the list. This is so I can make action plans for everything and also see what both Garth and I can delegate. I’m thinking I might add an hour a week for our cleaner and have her do these small things I end up doing at night. Like changing bedding and towels, clearing out old food from the fridge and watering flowers. Garth is going to get help once a month for an hour or so. To do things like clearing out the basement, washing the car, organizing the garden and bits of DIY. So that finally our big to-do list can get a bit more manageable.

The dream of the week – I would love to have a PA for our home. Someone who can take over booking doctors/vet visits/school tours etc. To keep track of our calendars, friends and families birthdays, trips and meetings. So that we can focus on work and getting quality time as a family. I’m spending way to much time dealing with all these little bits and I’m starting to realize that I have to stop trying to be a superhero and just delegate.

My vision of the week – “I step into a large run-down Victorian house here in Clapham. 5 bedrooms, 3 floors, garage, big garden and a possibility to extend if needed. I call Garth and tell him I found it. Our next big project and future family home.”

The focus of the week – To delegate. My job this week is to organize all our household chores, divide them between Garth and I and delegate the rest. I need to create some kind of routine for us-time (like movie night every Tuesday) to make sure we spend some actual quality time together. I have been doing 90% of the work here at home lately since Garth has been working lots and traveling almost every week. Now it’s time to find our balance again.

The event of the week– On Sunday I’m off to Dusseldorf to shoot a catalog. I was first meant to be gone for 3 nights. But then they decided to shoot a local girl for the un-recognizable shoe pictures and I now only have to be away for one night. IT was the best possible outcome for me since I still have the blogs and want to spend as much time as possible with Ace. I haven’t been modeling since I was 8 months pregnant. IIk!

My lesson from last week– It’s fun to go out now and then! We went to a 90s hip-hop club at Ace (!) hotel for Josefina’s birthday Saturday night. I hadn’t been out-out since Ace was born and even though I wouldn’t want to do it all the time, I really enjoyed myself.

My everyday luxury this week – To read a book on the plane. I haven’t been traveling without a baby for a while. So I’m going to take the opportunity to buy a book at the airport and just lose myself in it for a few hours when I’m traveling. Maybe you have a good book to recommend?

The inspiration of the week – Vogue’s 25 Most Inspirational Women 2018 

On another note. What is the verdict on my new moving header for the blog? I personally love it and the plan is to change a few of the clips with each season. What do you think?

How gorgeous is this set by Micha Lounge? I would even go as far as to call this the perfect outfit for autumn.

Sets like these are massively “in” at the moment and you can find loads of different versions in the shops. What makes this one special is the oversized jumper and the perfect length of the skirt.

I can wear the jumper on its own with jeans and the skirt is really cute with a little lace slip top.

It’s super versatile. I have worn it with heels to events and with white sneakers out to lunch with girlfriends. Fine, it’s not the most “playing with my toddler in the park”-friendly outfit. But who cares…? It has its specific moments and I always feel amazing wearing it.

I have had loads of people stopping me on the street asking where its from and wanting to feel the material. I’m pretty sensitive so itchy fabrics and it’s really super soft. I might actually have told a few too many people because it’s already all sold out. (adlink)

Last time we went to Paris, my lovely photographer and friend Ida joined us. It was great fun to get to shoot in another city than London for a change. This location is Place Vendôme, a gorgeous square in the middle of Paris where all the jewelers have their flagship stores.

It’s not the place to go crazy with the old credit card… but window shopping is free. And some of the shops are like beautiful mini-museums. It’s a place you can’t miss when you are in Paris.

I would love to have more sets like this one. It’s such an easy wear. Anytime you go tone in tone for an outfit, it ends up looking really put together. Whites can sometimes be hard if they aren’t the same-ish shade. But with sets like these, they will automatically match perfectly.

Comfy, stylish, warm and easy to wear = The perfect outfit for autumn.

Now I just need that dove grey Max Mara coat to throw on top and I’m ready to go anywhere. 

Photo – Ida Zander.

1. Lily and Lionel 2. Vero Moda, 3. Weekday 4. Asos Design, 5. Cami NYC 6. Cami NYC, 7. Asos, 8. Asos Design, 9. Filippa K, 10. Chloé, 11. London Rebel, 12 COS  (adlinks)

Pleated skirts has been around for a while now. But it’s only recently they are actually becoming more fun and less basic.

My favorite is when they mix colours and patterns. Even though I have to admit my pink metallic skirt is the one I by far use most often. In the summer I match it with sandals and t-shirts and now in fall, I swap for boots, jumpers, and blouses.

The pleated skirt is actually the perfect wardrobe basic to use all year around. Especially if you find a slightly longer version in “your”color. I love myself a powdery pastel. So the pink skirt in the picture above is very me. I would match it with the white top with long sleeves, the blue bag, and white booties. Such a great outfit!

Pleated skirts are also great for when you have to go from daytime to night without changing too much. Just swap flat shoes for heels, remove the jumper and wear with a cute lace top and bag. Add some lipstick et voila, you are ready for a night out.

Isn’t it interesting how red and pink used to be an absolute no-no in the olden days? And now we know they create magic together. The same with matching black with blue and brown with orange. To add little red hearts on a base of pink is genius. I would personally wear it with red boots and a big pink cozy turtleneck jumper.

Rules in fashion are always there to be broken.

Do you remember any other color combinations that you “shouldn’t” mix that actually look amazing together? 

Jumper – River Island, trousers – Asos Design, sneakers – Puma. Location – The Seine in Paris. Photographer – Ida Zander.

Hello, Monday. Hello, new week. Hello, new challenges!

I fel like a new person after our weekend  “off”. It was incredibly beneficial for my sanity to just get to be me and plan my own time for a little while. I know the other girls needed it as much as I did. It was actually the first time Josefina slept away from Leo. So a massive treat for all of us. You guys who have kids know the difference between sleeping with one ear open and to actually get to relax properly.

Garth and Ace had a great weekend together. And even though I was up with him 3 times last night, I still feel well-rested today.

This is my weekly affirmation, mantra, goal, and dreams :

The mantra of the week – ”I can do anything, but not everything”. We have to remember that we only have so much capacity. We can do anything we want as long as we don’t hurt anyone else of course. But That doesn’t mean we should be doing everything. If we do bits and bobs here and there we will never truly focus on or finish anything. It’s much better to choose a few larger goals to focus on and to do those properly.

The affirmation of the week – ” If I talk about it, it’s a dream. If I visualize it, it’s a goal, if I schedule it, it will become reality.” The trick to making those big dreams into goals and eventually a reality is to break it down in smaller pieces. Start by talking about it, visualize and let marinate for a while before you make a plan. This way you won’t feel as overwhelmed.

The goal of the week – To keep the inner calm I feel right now. Yesterday I felt so relaxed that I actually went to bed at 10. 25-years old I would have been shocked! I have always been a bit of a night owl. But now when I have to get up between 6 and 7 every morning, and most likely once or twice every night, 10 is a pretty decent time to go to bed. So my goal is to stay relaxed and go to bed in a good time.

The dream of the week – An Aston Martin DB11. I have been in love with their cars since I did a shoot for them in Mallorca 2008. It’s not really a family car and not cheap either. So, for now, it’s a dream…that could become a goal… and …

The vision of the week – Josefina, Bex and I wake up in the morning, look outside and find a light snowfall over the mountains. We make a big breakfast, dress warm, get our skis and head for the lifts. I never really fancied girls trips before, but after this weekend I understand exactly what they are all about. I now know I need at least 1 or 2 trips with the girls every year. To get to disconnect and just laugh for a while.

The focus of the week – Health and happiness. I’m refusing to get stressed and will take everything as it comes. What gets done gets done and the rest can wait. I will prioritize important and fun things and the smaller stuff can wait.

The event of the week– On Wednesday I’m a guest on a podcast and I also have a nice breakfast with a brand I like in the morning. I have slowly but surely started attending certain events again, if I feel like they fit my schedule and mood.

The lesson from last week – We all need to just be on our own now and then. It’s important to feel like we are in control of our own lives. There needs to be time to take care of both body and mind. I didn’t realize until now how much I needed a break for my sanity.

My everyday luxury this week – I’m going to the hairdresser on Saturday. I used to find it a bit boring to just sit for hours on end. Now I can’t wait to read a magazine, have my hair washed and just be on my own for a bit. And on top of all of this, I get to walk out with great hair. Win-win!

The inspiration of the week – Lady Gaga. I already love her to bits. Her passion, dedication, drive and view of life. And when I found this clip I fell even harder. She is just so damn wise.

Find last week’s affirmation, mantra, goal, and dreams here

Jumper – Neon Rose, trousers – Asos Design, heels – Pierre Hardy & bag – Chanel. (adlinks) Photographer – Ida Zander.

Now when we have been to Paris yet again, I feel like I can make a ” My Paris mini guide #4.”

We don’t really do as much eating out and touriststing when we got Ace, but we still go quite often. So it’s better than I do a few smaller guides than one big one.  Then you can just pick your favorites from all of them.

We lived – In a lovely Air BnB on Rue d’Amsterdam. you can find the ad here.  Big and old with loads of charm.

We ate – at loads of little corner restaurants for lunch. There is a street called Rue Cadet, in the 9th district. There you have little cute restaurants all the way down the road. It’s really quaint. In the evenings we ordered Deliveroo to the Air BnB, because of Ace and his bedtime.

The one night we actually went out for dinner we chose the restaurant at Grands Boulevard hotel. They make a heavenly chocolate mousse.

Vi drank – On Grands Boulevards hotel’s gorgeous little rooftop. The bar is called “The Shed” and is actually a shed. You order your drinks in the measurements “no shed” (alcohol-free), “one shed” (one shot) , “two shed” (double) or “three shed” (triple). Kind of fun and with a great atmosphere. I highly recommend a visit!

We shopped – I got a jumper from my favorite brand Maje. You can find them all over Paris, but this time I chose their shop in Montmartre since they also have a small outlet section with lots of lovely items half price.

We also had a quick look at all the lovely jewelry at the famous “Place Vendôme”. I mean, it’s crazy expensive (a girl can dream right?), but you still have to go for the experience. My favorite is the “Alhambra” shop by Van Clee and Arpels.  Then we headed down to Rue Saint Honoré and looked in shops like Max Mara and Dior.

Don’t forget to check out the beautiful little flower shop that only sells roses that’s attached to hotel Costes. 

We touristed – At the Eiffel tower. But this time we saw it from the side (like in the photos) and we also too Ace and his little friend Leon to the playground behind the Eiffel tower. The kids have never played with such a view before. It’s stunning. Defo one for the mamas. We also saw Sacre Coeur when we had a little walk around Montmartre the last morning.

This time we took it pretty chill and more tried to “live” in Paris than visit. It was really relaxed and nice. I would have liked to go to one more dinner. Next time. I got my eye on a couple of restaurants I fancy trying out.

You can find my Paris mini guide #1 here, my Paris mini guide #2 here och my Paris mini guide #3 här.

Photo – Ida Zander

Yay! Now you can finally find both my English and my Swedish blog on Bloglovin’.

It has really taken a long time and a massive amount of emails, but finally it seems to be sorted. So please feel free to follow my English blog here;

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

As you probably have noticed, I don’t have an archive here on this blog yet. It would be impossible for me to separate the English and the Swedish text in every post I have made in the last 3 years. However, I am considering paying someone to do it for me.

Have anyone of you had any experience with virtual assistants?

It’s an easy job, but it will take quite some time. It’s basically just copying, moving over and deleting the English part of every post. I would guess it’s at least 1 000 posts, maybe even 2 000, so it might take a while. But it would be worth it don’t you think?

Earlier this week I sat on the Eurostar on my way back from Paris. Ace fast asleep in the buggy and me frenetically typing away on my phone.

In a 30-minute nap window, I managed to jot down an article on a subject very dear to me – Babies, working mothers, and influencing.

I have to admit it’s not the most well-worked piece I have ever written, but it’s straight from the heart. The lovely ladies at Prêt à Pregnant asked me to describe my experience as a mother with a baby at Fashion Week.

You can read the full article here.

I find it very surprising that there are so few babies and children at fashion week in general. Most of us in this business range from in their late twenties up to sixties and beyond. The spread is big age-wise, but the one thing we have in common is that at least 75% of the guests are women. And I bet there are quite a few children kicking about at home.

I guess some kids would be in nursery or school during the days, but what about the new mothers like me? We who have babies under 1 and possibly might even still be breastfeeding? In a business where it’s notoriously hard to take maternity leave – why not bring them along? Sure I get the point of infants mixing with noise, people and music. But when they are 6 months and up, if they would enjoy it, why not take them with?

I worry it has to do with perception. That there is no room for “human” things like kids in fashion. That kids aren’t “cool” and that moms are even more uncool.

That in fashion, no one wants to be “the mom”. 

I hope it has to do with me-time. That some of us see it as a great opportunity to have some grown-up time. Then I get it fully. And if you can afford a nanny, then hells yeah, go for it. Get your fashion on Mama.

But for those of us who have no choice. If we want to go, we have to bring them with (I traveled alone from London to attend Stockholm fashion week. It was with or not at all.).

I really hope the sight of Ace and me at the shows encourage more new moms in my industry to feel comfortable enough to bring their babies to shows, events, or meetings. Obviously only if it’s child-appropriate and you are comfortable. You know your baby and situation best.

Just know that you are allowed, no one is going to look at you weirdly (well, they might, but screw them!), you don’t have to choose one or the other. You can do both.

In this modern society, where we know we deserve to both have a career and a family. Isn’t it’s a bit crazy that our female-dominated industry doesn’t cater to us?

The code”TESS25” will give you 25% discount at Desenio between October 9-11* Follow @Desenio for more inspiration. *The code is not valid on frames or handpicked-/collaboration posters.

The flat above is really starting to take shape now.

As you probably know by now, we bought the flat above ours here in Clapham. We first did a fairly large renovation and now I’m decorating it. The idea is to rent it out in the future. We prefer to rent it out furnished since it gives us the option to Air BnB it in-between tenants.

At the moment our friends Bex and Luke live there with their little 1-year old boy Milo. They are renovating and extending their own flat, and is staying at ours until it’s all done. It has worked out really well, I didn’t have to rush the decorations and got all the furniture in place as they arrived.

The other weekend when Ace was sleeping, Garth and I snuck upstairs and added the finishing touches – the artwork. 

It’s meant to be a rental, so it has been important for us to keep the furniture clean, classic, tasteful and with items most people hopefully would like. We didn’t want to spend any huge sums, but still find the absolute best within our budget.

How suitable isn’t a collaboration with my beloved Desenio?  I already have lots of posters from them downstairs in our flat and I love them. They have a massive selection, and you don’t have to empty out your wallet either. Since they are fairly inexpensive I just switch them out if I get tired of them. Perfect!

Ready for loads of pictures of the flat upstairs and what I chose to put on the walls? It’s really easy to decorate with posters.

In the living room, I chose a palette of grey, petroleum, and brass. Little details like plants, tiles inside the fireplace, a big round mirror and two matching posters over the dining table make it look decorated. But also leaves room for personal touches by whoever will live here later.

The posters I chose for the living room are called “Into the blue” and “Blue tide”. 

In the UK it’s common to have hallways in our homes. In Sweden, you usually have to walk through rooms to get to other rooms. The nice things with hallways are that they are really easy to decorate. We just added a cabinet on the wall and all of a sudden we have both extra storage and a lovely surface to decorate. 

Here I chose to work with petroleum, grey, and white. I also added a few little details in a dusty pink color.

I love these little areas in a home. It’s where your personality can afford to show through in your decorations. Depending on what you choose to put in the frames and display, this space can change completely. You can also move stuff around for different seasons. 

In these frames, you find  “Dancer one”, “Pink oyster pattern one” and “Aquarelle shape” from Desenio. 

In the master bedroom, I kept the same palette, but I added navy blue and more dusty pink details. Instead of placing my artwork over the bed, I chose to hang them beside it instead. It’s a bit less expected and a lot more intersting. I love how they reflect in the mirrored wardrobe. It makes the whole room look bigger.

Flowers as a motif in a bedroom gives a nice calming effect. I love that these pictures aren’t cute but have more depth. It really works with the rest of the decor in the room.

The posters in this room are called “Spaceflower” and “Gardenflower”. 

Last but not least I added 3 posters in a row in the hallway at the entrance. It’s quite a sterile and hard space. So to add some colorful artwork here really makes a big difference to the feel of the room.

I chose more of a vintage feeling this time.

The hallway is all white and has a grey carpet, so I felt like it needed a bit of a color pop. The pictures make me want to go on holiday and I hope that the person who lives here later will love them as much as I do. Otherwise, I will steal them for the downstairs instead.

These posters are “French riviera”, “American Vintage car”, and “Pool edge”. 

…I couldn’t keep myself from getting a little something for our own flat. My little blog office really needed something inspirational on the wall. My unofficial motto is “Be water” and I really think this photo embodies this. Very inspiring!

I even ordered a few of the frames from Desenio. It was totally practical, all I had to do was to put them on the walls. Simples!

How gorgeous isn’t “Beach aerial one”?

So what do you think of the flat upstairs so far? Do you want me to show you more? It’s a bit different to decorate to rent than when you live in it yourself. 

This post is sponsored by Desenio.