Happy St. Patrick's Day!

1. Chanel Limited Edition Gold Ficition Nail Color

2. Marc by Marc Jacobs classic Q Natasha bag

3. Zac Posen Nationale Pleated Dress

4. Wedge Leather Espadrilles (net-a-porter.com)

5. Jennifer Meyer Four Leaf Clover Gold Necklace

6. Yves Saint Lauren Arty Aventurine Ring

7. Jennifer Meyer Leaf Ring Yellow Gold

8. Michael Kors Camera Gold Watch

Carnaval in Barcelona....

Today is carnaval in Barcelona. Oh how much I wish I could be there..... Don't miss it!

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Valentine's Day in Barcelona

Ok, I totally didn't want to blog about Valentine's day, but i just found this awesome article on OH-Barcelona about "How to spend Valentine's day in Barcelona". It categorizes couples in 4 categories and offers programs for each category individually... and yes, it does have recommendations for Anti-Valentines :) Check it out if you're looking for something special to do with your significant other like:

• Hot air ballooning around Catalunya with Balo Tour
• Hammam steam baths and massages at Rituels D'Orient
• Dinner at Mirablau on Tibidabo, with great views across the city
• Helicopter tour with Cathelicopter
• Rent a scooter to tour around the city like a local with Cooltra
• A concert at Palau de la Musica
• Take in some Argentine tango in one of Barcelona's top hotels

I personally would love to take a long walk along the beach, just before hitting an Anti-Valentine party... :)

Happy New Year!!!

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Barcelona Gift Guide - Handmade Presents by Etsy

Two weeks left till Christmas. It's hightime we start thinking about what to put under that Xmas tree and i think this really is the last week i'd dare to order anything online (Especially from the States)! I'm just getting to know Etsy (i know i'm quite late), the web's nr 1. website to buy/sell all things handmade but it seems to be a great place to buy original gifts which are one of a kind and truly unique. Not surprisingly Barcelona seems to be a source of inspiration for many amateur and professional artists so here is my handpicked Barcelona gift guide by Etsy.



For Her

Barcelona Necklace by JustaGirl27



28.5 USD (shipped from Germany)

A large brown carved horn leaf, an aged copper ring, light blue sea glass nuggets, buri root beads, facetted black Onyx rounds, filigree copper and last but not least - wooden components - all teamed up via brass links to create this fantastic OOAK long necklace.

Hanging from antiqued brass chain, closing with a decorative antique brass toggle clasp.









 Barcelona Copper Filigree Necklace from Vintage Tooling by chinacherie

16.5 USD

This dramatic filigree pendant was made from vintage toolings. It has a spanish moorish feel to it. The brass stamping was copper plated and oxidized to highlight the rich details for the filigree pendant. It measures 2 1/4" across and it stands 2 7/8" high. It is hung from a fancy copper chain with toggle clasp











Vintage Lucite Silver Etched Beads - Barcelona by bythebead

18 USD

Beautiful intricate silver etched lucite beads are the centerpiece for these earrings. If you didn't know, you would think they old metal beads, but they are wonderfully lightweight The are accented with a rustic silver plated lucite teardrop dangle and hang from sterling silver ear wires. They will easily go from glam to casual.





 For the New Mommy

Barcelona Baby Bag by loveleestudio

119 USD

This super chic Barcelona Baby Bag is a beautiful combination creme and black foral. The exterior of this bag is a combination of creme and black floral accented with elastic side pockets in the same material for easy access of bottles, keys and wallet. The interior lining of the bag is adorned with electric royal blue dupioni silk fabric. The six interior pockets are floral cotton for easy access of contents and storage. Black grosgain ribbon completes the look of the bag. Fabric straps are floral on the exterior with electric blue on the interior for an extra pop. The bag has a magnetic snap closure to keep everything inside. This bag is truly fabulous!



For HIM

Barcelona Moleskin Pocket Cashier Ruled Notebook by Acreativesoul

10 USD

This Moleskine cahier is embellished with a lovely frame and assorted vintage button. The frame is a recycled slide frame (outer dimensions 5X5 cm i.e 2X2") covered with cork contact paper. It displays a photograph of Barcelona (Spain) taken by my boyfriend (Damien Lacroix) and computer-edited. Both the frame and button are durably glued to the front cover with archival gel medium (no stitches).

Each journal is handmade so that the journal you will receive can slightly differ from the one you see here (particularly the vintage button).





Handmade Leather Barcelona Photo Album by leathermaps



14.9 USD

HANDMADE, HAND TOOLED AND HAND PAINTED PHOTO ALBUM - This album is entirely done by hand. The front is decorated with one of my designs and my initials are burned on the back. The album becomes more beautiful the more it is touched. It is a work of art and it makes unique gift, unforgettable souvenir of your travels or handsome decoration. Enjoy it.

 For the whole Family

Barcelona painting by marmas

350 USD

(my absolute favourite!! :)

Oil on vintage, un-stretched canvas. 20x16 inches. Unframed. Will frame on request.









To be continued tomorrow with the Barcelona Gift Guide - Books!

Happy December!

this is my december
this is my time of the year
this is my december
this is all so clear

this is my december
this is my snow covered home
this is my december
this is me alone

this is my december
these are my snow covered dreams
this is me pretending
this is all i need

Linkin Park: My december lyrics

Photo credit

Christmas season in Barcelona

Where did this year go??? December already? Winter? Really? I hope you're all ready for the big holiday season with all the shopping, family visits, long travels and endless hours of eating included!

If you ask me... Christmas does not belong to Barcelona. Period. I refuse to see it and i juts can't imagine it! Nevertheless it does look like the city vamps up pretty well for the holidays...

Christmas Markets

The feria de Santa Lucia runs from early December until Christmas Eve and can be found outside the Cathedral, in Plaça de la Seu and Plaça Nova. (nearest Metro: Jaume I). Here you will find all sorts of hand made gifts, intricate nativity scenes and the Caga Tió log (something you'll struggle to find anywhere else!) and of course Caganer, a porcelain gnome figurine dressed as a peasant farmer squatting with his pants down and a stream of excrement connecting his bare buttocks to the earth.

Well, excuse me. What? Is really a shitting man (and excuse my language, caganer =pooper in English) is one of the most typical Catalan accessories of holy Christmas? Wikipedia does have several explanations:

Possible reasons for placing a man who is in the act of excreting waste in a scene which is widely considered holy include:

• Tradition.
• Perceived humor.
• Finding the Caganer is a fun game, especially for children.
• The Caganer, by creating feces, is fertilizing the Earth. However, this is probably an a posteriori explanation, and few cite this reason for including the Caganer in the Nativity scene.
• The Caganer represents the equality of all people: regardless of status, race, or gender, everyone defecates.
• Increased naturalism of an otherwise archetypal (thus idealised) story, so that it is more believable, taken literally and seriously.
• The idea that God will manifest himself when he is ready, without regard for whether we human beings are ready or not.
• The caganer reinforces that the infant Jesus is God in human form, with all that being human implies.

OK. I need to digest this....

Christmas Eve in Barcelona

Midnight mass as Christmas Eve becomes Christmas Day is very important in Spain. The biggest 'misa del gallo' is at the Benedictine monastery at Montserrat near Barcelona.

Three Kings Procession in Barcelona

On December 5, as is the case throughout Spain, the Three Kings lead their procession through the city. In Barcelona the procession starts shortly after five o'clock at Portal de la Pau and finishes around nine at Montjuïc. You can expect large crowds, so arrive early. On the night of December 5, children leave a shoe out for the Three Kings to fill (stockings clearly aren't so common in this Mediterranean climate!)

Nativity Scenes

There is one obvious nativity scene that every visitor to Barcelona should see - the permanent natvity scene at Sagrada Familia. There is also a big display at the Cathedral. The Catalan word for 'nativity' is 'pessebre' while in Spanish it is 'belén'.

To be continued....

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Have a Happy Halloween Weekend!!!

As for me i'm skipping Halloween (not that i ever really celebrated it :)) but i'll be at least cooking a yummy pumpkin soup to commemorate the event! Are you up to any spooky Halloween fun this weekend?



Halloween actions in BCN:

- Learn more about La Castanyada

- Halloween Partiesssss

- Get Spooked - more parties

- Concerts/Art/Clubbing

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