A weekend in the Alps

21 March 2019 by Kati

Hi guys! Yayyy how exciting is it to be writing something other than knitting patterns for a change, I should do this more often! Although I do have a few patterns on my mind as well that need to be written down so keep your eyes peeled for those (we’re talking pillows and tassels here)! I’ve found that I’m not really that into summer knits and last summer I was really in a creative rut not knowing what to do with my needles and yarn, but this spring and summer I plan on really getting into home decor elements like throw pillows and why not even blankets! Anything with tassels should work. And shawls too, and maybe crochet tops… Okay so maybe I could get excited about summer projects this year anyway (if you have any tips or favorite designs please let me know)!

But into today’s subject aka our trip to to the Alps! Benjamin had the best surprise when he told me he had booked a hotel in Annecy for our 3-year anniversary – I’ve been wanting to go back to the city ever since we visited it the first time in 2016 and ahhh was it just as wonderful as I remembered! We spent two days walking around the city, admiring the lake and the mountains, and drinking nice coffees. It was also our first holiday together in AGES so it all felt really special.

And another thing, WE GOT ENGAGED! Believe me when I say my heart might just explode. I’m so happy and thankful for being able to share my life with the most amazing human on earth.

Before leaving for the trip I went on a little google and tripadvisor hunt to find some nice places to stop by, and it turned out to be an excellent move (I actually often don’t do this). Annecy can be really tourist-y so I wanted to avoid the places that scream TOURIST TOURIST TOURIST, and as a coffee shop fan I obviously checked out what the city had to offer coffee-wise! We ended up going to this place called Brumes, which is located on a small street right next to the city center and ughhh it was simply amazing! The staff was extra friendly and helpful (they even gave us a list of nice dinner spots), the coffee was excellent and the interior design made me feel like I was back in Finland. Yes yes yes to this place!

So all in all, we had such a wonderful and unforgettable weekend and it was nice to get away from school and work, even if it was only for a few days. I’m currently working hard on writing my new throw pillow pattern and I also have another post in the making about how I take and edit my knitting flat lays – I’m super excited about it and can’t wait to share my tips and tricks with you! Happy Friday-eve to everyone!

xx, Katimaaria

Strasbourg Travel

Picture diary: Strasbourg

23 August 201818 March 2019 by Kati

Hi guys! Phew I feel like it’s been a hundred years since I last sat down and actually had the time to update anything on the blog. But here I am now! We’ve had a few busy weeks as my boyfriend was on holiday and we even got to have my little sister from Finland stay at our place for a whole week. We drank a lot of wine, ate too many pains au chocolat and watched a bunch of movies so all in all, I’d say it was a very successful week!

Before our overnight trip to Strasbourg we visited the small city of Riquewihr which is located on the wine route in Alsace. The day was a little cloudy so I didn’t get many nice pics but the main street is very picturesque and full of these little wooden houses that are really typical for Alsace and Germany. And in Riquewihr, there are A LOT of all things wine (which makes sense as the city is literally in the middle of vines…). You can find everything from wine tastings to wine shops to cheap boxes of wine, so yeah, I definitely wish we would’ve had more time to spend than just an afternoon but at least we now know that it’s a city definitely worth re-visiting!

And then, well then we went to Strasbourg! I don’t know what it is about the city but I’m absolutely obsessed with it and I already thought about taking up German classes at the uni (as if French wasn’t already enough of a challenge hahaha) and moving to Strasbourg! But we’ll see about that… Well anyway, we mostly spent our time strolling aimlessly around the city, admiring the cathedral and sitting on different patios drinking… need I say it, wine.

And I mean isn’t the cathedral just SO IMPRESSIVE? It amazes me every time how something so massive has ever been built and how it’s still standing. Also we were quite lucky as we went to Strasbourg on a Monday so the city wasn’t too crowded and even the weather wasn’t too hot so we really got all the best things out of a little city vacation.

We also found this super cute coffee place, Café Bretelles, in the Petite France block (the pic on the right), and in my opinion having a gem like this in the otherwise extremely touristy area was like a breathe of fresh air! And the picture on the left is actually from Petite France, which is a small island in the city center full of old houses like these – charming and crowd-free as can be!

I have a few posts in the making at the moment so you’ll be hearing from me again soon! I’ve also been getting my autumn-mood on with a lot of tea, John Mayer and knitting, and I have at least two beanie patterns in mind so keep your eyes pealed for them too!

xx, Kati

Alsace France Strasbourg travel

Helsinki Travel

Helsinki in early June

30 July 201818 March 2019 by Kati

Ahhhh, trust me when I tell you nothing beats a summery Helsinki! I had the chance to spend a few days in the city in the beginning of June with my best friends and my little sister, and we got to enjoy some amazingly sunny and pretty summer days. I have yet to plan & execute my ”perfect day in Helsinki” dream/idea/goal, because I can’t seem to shake off this feeling of having been to the city many times but still never really getting to know it or seeing enough of it. But what I do know is that whenever I get to make my Helsinki dreams come true I better start with an empty belly, as I already know this vacay is going to be mostly about eating, snacking and drinking lots of good lattes!

So as I don’t have a absolutely-see-and-do-these-things-in-Helsinki -list ready I thought I could share a little about the few places that I did visit this time around! So let’s start with the pictures above. The one on the left is the Helsinki Cathedral and it’s one of the most popular tourist sights in Helsinki – and you just have to agree, it is beautiful! It’s located in the Senate Square, which makes up one of the oldest parts of Helsinki. The second picture is from a city area called Katajanokka (more specifically I believe this exact spot is called Kanavaranta) but I’d say it’s located like a 10 minute walk away from the cathedral, so really close. I love how Helsinki is by the sea, and when you combine that to the ahhhmazing architecture all around the city it’s JUST.SO.PRETTY.EVERYWHERE!

Obviously, I had a lot of lattes. We went to Paulig Kulma (left) to enjoy their beautiful interior, and get reminded of their barista courses and how I’m dying to take one! But I do have to say that after spending all this time in France I don’t think I’ll ever go back to non-French croissants (that’d basically be like cheating!). After Paulig we went to Johan & Nyström and the latte was delicious, the shop was rustic and pretty but somehow I got this vibe that I’m not cool enough for them if you know what I mean? I’m laughing at myself while writing this but sometimes some places just feel so cool, almost too cool and then you just end up feeling very self conscious about yourself and wonder if maybe I should’ve ordered something more hip and definitely not asked for that caramel syrup! But trust me, I’m pretty sure this is all in my head.

Some of the pretty old buildings that you can find all around Helsinki (seriously though, like almost every where you look).

Me and my little sister had breakfast one morning in Kahvila Blossom and we absolutely fell head over heels in love with the place! This adorable coffee shop is located in Punavuori and they offer these amazing smoothie bowls (can you believe it’s 2018 and I actually had my first ever smoothie bowl here!) and sandwiches, and the coffee comes from small roasteries. Also, the owner is such a sweet and kind woman and even though it was our first time visiting the shop it felt like we’d been there a hundred times before!

Walking back from Punavuori we passed by Bulevardi (left) which is a long, boulevard like street with lots of historical buildings and beautiful parks! The picture on the right is from the Market Square that’s located close to the Helsinki Cathedral and the Senate Square. Here you can see the cruisers that operate between Helsinki and Stockholm, have your ice cream stolen by angry seagulls if you’re not careful and enjoy the amazing Finnish archipelago!

So if you ever have a chance to visit Helsinki, do it! Seriously, just do it. If you need more convincing you should know that Helsinki is also really close to cities like Stockholm and Tallinn, so if you end up in Helsinki you can visit other amazing places and countries as well!

xx, Kati

Life Travel

First 6 months in France

23 March 201818 March 2019 by Kati

6 MONTHS IN FRANCE YOU GUYS! Bonjour after a looong long time! Lately I’ve been feeling completely overwhelmed by how quickly time goes by and I can’t keep up with it, I mean it’s soon summer (the rain and snow can’t continue forever, right?). La vie en France has started pretty well and things have nicely fallen into place, so much so actually that I finally felt like I was ready to go back to school and decided to apply to a French university! Cool AND scary but definitely mostly just cool. I also had an opportunity to get a glimpse of the working life here in France and as an experience it was absolutely incredible!

I am also going to start creating more content about knitting as I feel like I’m full of ideas and there are some exciting things ahead! I’ll make a new category for my knitting related posts so they’ll have their own spot in the blog but everything will still be under the same roof.

But today I wanted to share with you some of my travel pictures from the cities we’ve visited during these past 6 months, as going through the pics gives me hope that one day the rain (and the snow…) will stop and summer will make a glorious return! So voilà, my snaps from Strasbourg, Nancy, Paris and Bruxelles!

Strasbourg

Bruxelles

Nancy & Paris

Once again we had only like 2 hours in Paris, so in the middle of all the running from one metro to another I didn’t really have time to snap any better pics, BUT I’m determined to visit Paris better…someday!

xx, Kati

Annecy Travel

ANNECY

25 August 20176 August 2018 by Kati

Bonjour folks! Last autumn we already spent two months in France and had the time to go on a little road trip in Lyon and Annecy. I especially fell in love in Annecy and well, who wouldn’t! The city is located by a turquoise lake at the Alps not far from the Swiss border. I’ll let the pictures talk for themselves!

Annecy

annecy