Long summer days and berry cakes

In Sweden we celebrate Midsommar (=Midsummer) at the time of the summer solstice. It's an important festivity in Sweden, only rivalled by Christmas really. I enjoy Midsommar very much, not so much because it finally means some warmer weather but because it is the longest day of the year (on the northern hemisphere). Where I live, the sun doesn't even set, giving us a full 24 hours of daylight - I love it!

Dress: Fleet Collection

Another thing that I enjoy about Midsommar are the berries. And for the celebration of Midsommar cake is a necessity, so what better than a cake filled with juicy delicious berries!

For Midsommar this year I made a No-Bake Berry Cheesecake, and I topped it with fresh berries. Oh how I love berries!

NO-BAKE BERRY CHEESECAKE

INGREDIENTS

• 1 package of Oreos (154 grams)
• 50 grams butter, melted
• 300 grams cream cheese
• 250 grams ricotta cheese
• 4 dl heavy cream (whipping cream)
• 120 grams sugar
• 250 grams raspberries
• 250 grams bilberries (or blueberries)

DIRECTIONS

Crush the Oreos to crumbles and add the melted butter to it. Press the Oreo crumbles into a round pan (preferably a springform pan). Put into freezer while preparing the rest.

Cook the berries (can cook them together as they will be mixed) and purée it.

Whisk together the cream cheese, the ricotta cheese, the heavy cream and the sugar until it thickens. Add the berry purée and whisk until it is evenly distributed. Pour onto the Oreos in your pan and freeze for a minimum of 6 hours, preferably over night.

Remove from freezer 20 minutes before serving.

Much love!

Princess of the Highlands

I sometimes wear tartan and pretend I'm a Scottish princess with locks like Merida from Pixar's Brave (only instead of the ginger curls, I have dark curls).

My hair draws (to my misery) a lot of attention, and I think it's because there's lots of it and it's long. Don't get me wrong, I am extremely flattered at the attention it gets and I wouldn't change it for the world. What bothers me is when people try to touch it. But that's a story for another time.

Pinafore: Mod Dolly

Blouse: Old from H&M

Shoes: New Look via Asos

What I wanted to talk about today is my hair routine, or lack of a hair routine. I get this question a lot, especially from other curlies, and I understand that because curly hair is incredibly tricky. So I thought, I'd once and for all let you know what I do with my hair.

I want to start by saying that I like frizz. Many curlies want to avoid frizz and use anti-frizz products. I feel like anti-frizz products weighs down the hair, while I like my hair to be fluffy! So I embrace the frizz! The halo of frizz gives the hair a natural look, in my opinion. Second, I haven't always been this accepting of my hair. I've struggled with it for years, and have gone through my fair share of "curl controlling" products, before I decided I wasn't going to "control" it anymore, but let it roam free.

I cut my hair myself. Mostly because I haven't found a stylist that "understands" my hair. So although it is time consuming, I go curl by curl and cut a little bit off of it. I wash and condition my hair with a fragrance free mild shampoo and conditioner I get from the pharmacy here in Sweden (for the Swedes: Apolivas schampoo och balsam för normalt hår). And basically that's it. At times, especially in the winter when the air and also my hair gets drier, I use the LuxeOil from Wella in my hair when it is still wet. I try to let my hair air dry, or if I dry it I use a dryer with a diffuser attached to it. And that's all I do. What I don't do is what I think matters more. I try not to touch my hair too much, so that it doesn't get dry and tangled. I use elastics without the metal thingy, so it doesn't pull on my hair. And most importantly I don't try to make my hair something it isn't. I don't straighten it, I don't colour it, I don't bleach it. I try to keep it as healthy as I can, and that's all there is to my "routine".

So now I'm interested, what are some of your tricks or routines for your hair?

Much love,
Mona

Sunday Sunday

Sunday Sunday here again...
And what better to wear than Apricity's Sunday dress.

This dress was one of those "have-to-have-it" dresses for me. I saw it and instantly knew I wanted it. It's got so much of what I love. The peter pan collar is ridiculously cute. The pleats give it a playful and fun silhouette. It's incredibly comfortable. And as if all of that wasn't enough - pockets! It has pockets! I must say I love a dress with pockets, and these are big enough to actually put things in, but hidden in a really sneaky way in the pleats.

Apricity may be new, but the creator Eileen Chai (co-creator and co-designer of Fleet Collection) sure knows what a girl wants in a dress. The Sunday dress is perfect! I have a feeling it will become a staple in my wardrobe, even on weekdays.

Dress: Apricity

Belt: Asos (sold out, but available as Asos Curve: here)

Shoes: New Look via Asos

Woven fairy tales

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I have previously shown this lovely blouse from Book of Deer on my instagram, but I feel like it needs its own blog post. This is not a sponsored post, but Book of Deer needs to be recognised for their unique clothing.

Book of Deer is a small independent brand created by the talented Eilidh Ho. And from the first time I laid my eyes on their beautiful clothes I fell in love. Their style matches well with my own, creating feminine garments with cute details and an air of whimsy. Their clothes are like fairy tales made in fabric.

Blouse: Book of Deer

Skirt: Fleet Collection

Earrings: Made by me

I particularly love this Kitchen Blouse, because it makes me think of tea time (and what's not to love about that!) with its darling embroidered collar. It's such a warm colour and the embroidery adds so much character to it. I adore this blouse.