Things I have been eyeing and things I bought in January

This is the first January in years when I had not set up my new year resolutions. I have two reasons for this. First, I feel like the world is already going crazy enough as it is. I want to cut myself some slack for this ever present pressure to be productive and constantly come up with some tangible results. Second, I realized that I am a hopeless optimist who is really good at setting unrealistic goals. I got tired of tying myself to goals that I never get to fulfill and end up feeling bad about myself despite having a decent year.

Well, this year I am only having one keyword of the year to keep me going - heart - and I will do whatever my heart leads me to do.

Apart from one thing though. I will get my Norwegian driving license in 2026. Okay, there goes my new year resolution I guess.

Anyways, January was tough. I had to do some late night works at work, which screws up my morning routine, and my recruitment process for being a permanent employee has been ongoing for months now. My stomach has been reacting to this stressful time by making lots of sounds and aches. I also found out that both of my cats had ear mites, and had to chase two ever unwilling cats to clean their ears every. single. day.

Hafjell

On a positive note, I had a lovely time at Hafjell with friends.

We cozied up in the cabin, and went downhill skiing. The weather was great. There were some accidents along the way - for example, I fell from the top of the stairs and tumbled all the way down to the ground floor solely on my ass. But hey, I survived, and was able to go skiing afterwards. Perks of being in my 20s.

I first got introduced to red pomelo during the Hafjell trip this month by my friend/neighbor Thianna. And now I can't stop eating them! They taste like somewhere between grapefruit and orange, and although it's a bit of a hassle to peel the rind off, its pink and plump pulp is just irresistible.

Ikea DIY

I am very much in my DIY/decorate-the-apartment era these days. The first step of cleaning is always to get rid of the things not needed first, so I have been selling a lot of stuff from our storage on Finn. Old ski boots, old coffee machine, old cutlery set... the list goes on.

Afterwards, I started on my first DIY project for 2026, which is to stain Ikea Perjohan bench to dark-colored wood.

I came across Perjohan bench with storage during my last trip to Ikea, and thought this would make a great living room table/storage for us. We have a really narrow living room and a sofa with chaise longue that does not allow space for sofa table. With Perjohan, it can be tucked away to the side of the sofa and then be pulled out when we need it.

I spent about a week searching for just the right color of stain. I eventually decided on Tyrilin interiørbeis (not sure if it is a known brand in Norway) in color Bark. I am really happy with my choice.

Luckily, it only required one coat to finish staining the wood so the staining itself was done pretty quickly (also with the help of my friendly neighbor, aka Thianna). It turned out really nicely, and I am incredibly satisfied with how the color turned out.

The wood felt a bit too dry after the stain, so I applied another layer of lacquer after staining. Now it's much smoother and the cats' hair does not stick to the bench as much, so I'm loving it even more.

Living a beautiful life

I finished a book called Living a Beautiful Life by Alexandra Stoddman. I picked the book up after watching series of videos by Rajiv and one of the comments recommended this book.

Now I want the luxury of owning natural wicker baskets and an antique letter opener. And wax-dipped pine cones for my non-existing fireplace.

Haha. No, but for real, just reading about these made my heart tingle and my imaginations running high and wild. Ah, talk about everyday luxuries.

By the way, this whole rabbit hole of beautifying everyday started when I was hooked by Rajiv's video. John complained about me always watching some videos by Rajiv on candle making, soap making, spinning and antiquing for a while, but his videos were really up in my alley. I really recommend you to check out his videos if you have similar interests as me.

It also inspired me to invest in daily items that I touch and use every day. We needed to buy towel hangers for our bathroom, and after weeks of contemplation and search, I bought this bathroom hanger for our bathroom. It's not been hung yet, but I love the look of this knagg.

If you are curious about the videos of Rajiv, I find his kitchen videos fun to watch. This is where I first learned about ironstone ware. Now I will be on the lookout for ironstone when I go vintage shopping. His video on his astonishingly beautiful piece of clothing (spoiler alert: it is related to Beatrix Potter) and on investing in quality goods is also really nice.

Dream kitchen

I came across this picture in House and Garden, I think. I loved this kitchen so much that I saved this picture and thought, one day I will have a kitchen of my dreams that looks like this one.

I like the light blue color of the drawers, little reading nook to flip through cookbooks with plenty of sunlight, stone table top, the shelf with collected items, the farmhouse table in the middle of the kitchen... and of course, country house Everhot stove.

Speaking of dream kitchen, now that I am in my second year of full-time working and saving up money to (eventually) move to bigger apartment, I also feel a strong urge to beautify what I already have in current apartment.

One of the things I want to change out this year is the dining table. We currently use IKEA Ekedalen table, which is convenient and big, but it is rectangular and not very pretty to look at. I have been eyeing vintage Danish dining tables like this one.

I have been searching on Finn with the keyword 'dansk spisebord' and I love the fact that so many vintage treasures (furnitures and lights especially) from Denmark are circulating in Norway and are quite easy to find. I do find our neighbor Danish better designwise, especially when it comes to furniture.

The table above is already sold, but I am sure that I can find a similar one with a better price eventually. I just have to be on the lookout!

I realize more and more that furnishing just cannot happen in a week or two. Anyone who says their house is fully decorated within the first year of moving is lying. You need time to live in, ponder your options, experiment with different styles (since your favorite style can also change over time) and not rush into just buying stuff that looks pretty enough. We already have enough of pretty trash and garbages that get thrown after being used for a year or two. YES to buying old and used, and YES to taking time to furnish and decorate.

Lastly, I have been eyeing some embroidery classes online. I dabbled in traditional Korean embroidery during COVID, and I really enjoyed my time in embroidery classes. The possibilities are endless when it comes to choosing colors in embroidery, so even though the pattern is traditional and widely used, it gives very different vibe depending on the color of the fabric you choose, and the colors of the yarns. Very cool stuff.

Embroidery inspirations from Hawthorne and Heaney in London, and looking at courses on crewel work from London Embroidery School was interesting.

Anyways, that is my January wrapped up. Hope you enjoyed my updates and thoughts I had during the past month.

Have a lovely day (heart)

With love,
W