about making coffee

Making coffee in a chemex gives one the chance to slowly start into the day. To boil the water, take a filter and carefully pull in the coffee, take a smell out of the box before putting it back onto the shelf, then pour over the hot water sip by sip and watch the coffee dribble into the can. Drop by drop, the smell of coffee welcomes you into a new day.

How to make coffee with a chemex.

Oh, what an inspiring morning read!

But first, coffee... 

The creativity of coffee.

A cup of jo.

about planting your own little garden

Living in a big city like Berlin, I try to surround myself with nature as often as I can. Although the traffic and the streetlights make the city feel lively, what could be more 'alive' than an own little garden on the balcony? With cars and busses driving by, I plant different herbs like arugula or parsley, accompanied by some colourful flowers. Add some vegetables and you almost can harvest food from your own garden - like this very first radish we raised by only taking a little time each day to take care of it. Here's to many more self-grown ingredients for our kitchen!

This would spice up every kitchen wall. (free printables!)

Oh, going for a walk at this place must be magical...

And I'm already more than excited for this cookbook!

Need some flower recipes?

And last but not least: one of my favorite photo series combining flowers with ice cream.

about learning something new

Making macarons. With this goal in mind, I looked for a recipe, wrote down the ingredients, went twice to the supermarket because I forgot something and then started to make something on my own. Sieving the almonds, weighing the egg yolks and then baking everything together at the right temperature were all little steps that led to the learning result: one, even two baking sheets full of macarons au chocolat. From this day on, I know that I can achieve something by only taking the first step to just do it.

about enjoying everyday

'What would you do with an extra day?' This question leads to a lot of aspiring answers: to see the people more often you love the most, to drink a glass of wine every once in a while, to fulfil a childhood dream. And what is it about the weekend? A beautiful breakfast table, the sun shining through the window, the lunch break with friends, the good book read in bed - here's to celebrate everyday! 

Celebrating everyday life. (one of the most beautiful things I have seen in a while)

It is all about the little things, isn't it?

There is always a grain of truth in everything.

Oh, mornings...
 
What would everyday life be without sweets?

(Photo shot last year on film)

about having a picnic

It is time. To enjoy the warm weather, to meet with friends in the park, to walk barefoot, to listen to guitar music, to eat too much food, to drink too many glasses of wine, to celebrate the moment. It is time for a picnic outside. 

This makes a picnic even more cozy. 

A song like a bouquet of fresh spring flowers.
 
Signs for spring in Berlin.
 
Inspiring like spring itself. 
 
Photo above taken here last summer.

about being inspired by instagram

Captures of coffee breaks, tulips on the table or magazines as a morning read:

www.instagram.com/bonandjour

about being surrounded by beautiful things

We surround ourselves with beautiful things like we do with beloved memories. Whenever I feel the urge to sit down and rest for a while, the mug on the kitchen table is more than a birthday gift - sip by sip I remember the face my sister made when she gave it to me. And when I walk over the rug, woven in black and white, I can still see friends holding carefully their glasses of red wine while sitting and laughing on the floor late at night.

Here's to embrace the the beautiful things in daily life - and to many more memories.

Objects of use 

Bodie and fou 

Line + Liv

selekkt

ting

(Some of them only ship within Europe or to Germany, but it's all about the inspiration)

about reading your favorite magazines

Reading one of your favorite magazines is like coming at home. Sometimes, you just want to close the door and leave the world outside - then there it is, filled with words so warm like a hug. On other days, somebody you love had already cooked dinner for you as a surprise - and this is when stories from other people inspire you like you never knew they would.

For me, being a freelance writer besides my studies in Literature, I like to be surrounded by beautifully written words all the time. At the opposite side of my bookshelf is this collection of magazines - always ready to sit down and flip through.

about staying in contact with old friends

At least once a year, I meet with my oldest friends. There is a special relationship only time can create. When you sit on the table together and laugh about old times like it was just yesterday - and you had the same worries and wishes for the future like you do now.

A thank you to real friends.

What about a sweet surprise for a dear friend?

Oh, hello friend! 

Friends of friends.

Photo above taken in an old photo booth which are everywhere in Berlin! But this is also fun!

about making plans

 'To live is the rarest thing in the world. Most people exist, that is all.' // Oscar Wilde.  

To make plans is nothing else than to be alive. And nothing is so encouraging and uplifting than to make plans for the future. Whether you plan to leave the country and go on a world trip or to meet with your friends more often. Even the little things can make a wish come true.  

To get inspired.

Some lists.

Why don't you build castles in the air? 

To make your own lists. 

Continue for my own 24 things I can't wait to do while I'm 24:

about enjoying the first warm days

When the sun shines, the city awakes: the streets get more crowded, the smiles get brighter and the laughs get louder. By now, at the latest, it is time to wake up and welcome the new year by celebrating every sunny day - with wine, with poetry or with food, as you please.

Oh spring...

To enjoy the little things in life.

Some color to brighten up every day.

Love is in the air.

Inspiring photos of a couple exploring the world together.

about having breakfast together

This is a hommage to my favorite time of the day: to have breakfast together with my love. Every morning, we take the time to sit down with a cup of coffee and chat. Sometimes, we even forget the time while talking to each other. Oh, I couldn't imagine any better way to start the day than to spend time together.

Which is why breakfast is my favorite meal of the day. 
 
The most wonderful proposal!
 
Beautiful things for a beautiful breakfast.

While sitting on the kitchen table: turn your mood into music!
 
Oh, sunday mornings...

about going running (in winter)

Here's to go running in winter - when at first you feel all cold, but then your body warms you; when you not only can feel your breath, but also see it; when the sky is only grey, but then the sun comes out and makes the snow sparkle - then I feel most alive during these dark winter months.   

A song to just keep walking.

Imagine running along the Seine in Paris...  
 
An inspiring point of view on running. 
 
To give yourself the treat to just sit down afterwards and drink a cup of coffee to start the day.

Photo above taken here, an old airport area in Berlin which is now open for running, skating and even urban gardening!

about doing nothing

about wearing your favorite sweater

 

Some days, wearing your favorite sweater is like the feeling of staying in bed all day long. The first rays of sunshine which make you smile, the smell of coffee which warms you, the nice song which makes you feel good. And the hug of your loved one which says 'good morning' and remains with you throughout the day.

A homage to the striped sweater!

People talking about their favorites in general. (only in German)

To remind yourself about the things you love.

For always feeling cozy in winter.

The sweater in the photo above.

about dreaming about spring in winter

 

Whenever these days the sun comes out, I try to enjoy it to the fullest. When being outside, to leave the subway and take a walk around the neighbourhood brightens up every day as well as being inside and to sit down at the window with something to read and change the place wherever the sunbeams are going. And with some nice music and fresh tulips on the table, spring is not far away.

An inspirational piece of art to look at every day.

They have the best hot chocolate against the winter blues in Berlin.

The perfect music to feel spring already (and the vinyl cover is just too beautiful).

It's the beginning of the year, so say yes!

Some pictures from Paris which is most beautiful in springtime, shot in the early 1900s - and not with instagram. 

about going on a road trip

'We do not take a trip; a trip takes us.' // John Steinbeck

Going on a road trip gives you the chance to reconnect with the beauty of nature - and everything it has to offer. To sit on a bonfire at night, be surrounded by unknown people who have invited you to roast marshmallows and tell each other stories. To say goodnight when the only thing you can see is the sky full of stars. To wake up with the birds in the morning. To share pancakes for breakfast together. To drive slower and slower, because you're trying to avoid the destination.

An inspirational article about traveling.  

A daily journal for your adventures.

This song is the perfect soundtrack for driving in a car.

Remember the advice of our mums: never forget to wear a sun hat!

Photo above taken here, one of the most wonderful scenic road trip routes.

about collecting things

 

Collecting things from different places is like to have the whole world at home. When I sit down on the breakfast table in the morning and sip out of my french bol, it tells a story:

The story of a beautiful spring day with beloved friends spent in Paris. Strolling down the streets, stopping here and there for a crêpes or a macaroon, doing some window shopping, when finally there were these milkbowls - but I wanted to 'think about it'. After a few days when I couldn't get it out of my head, I realized I needed to buy these bols but then the shop wasn't to open until half an hour earlier to my depart. So I locked my luggage in one of the lockers at Gare de l'est which was too small and too expensive and then I walked the way along to the shop, so that I knew how long it will take me to get back to the train station. When I looked at my watch, I was still too early, so I sat down on a bench at the Canal St Martin, enjoying the silence until I had to hurry back to my train, when I could finally buy these bols. Moments later, I made it to the train just in time with a smile on my face, because I had a piece of Paris in my bag.

Another beautiful tableware I want to surround myself with, especially those mugs.

A nice notebook to keep track. 

This shop in Berlin has all the wonderful magazines out there in stock, so you'll never miss an issue.

What about collecting letters?  

I bought my first cookbook - the beginning of a long lasting collection.

 

about going to your favorite café

After going for a walk, especially in the winter months there is nothing better than to go to your local café and give yourself the treat of just to sit down. To drink your favorite tea or coffee, ask which homemade cake is on the menu and then share a piece with a good friend while talking for hours without looking for the time. Or just to watch the other people and read in a good book when you need time for your own. And to smile every now and then when you recognize a nice tune, because this is what makes a café your favorite - good coffee, good food and good music.  

Another café to feel good while eating homemade cake.

Is there anything more cozy in cafés than a candle on every table?

If you happen to be in London, you can sit down on vintage school desks.

Best brownies in DC to go with a coffee!

Photo above taken at my favorite café here.

about writing a letter

 

The birthday present for my grandparents this year will be a 'letter subscription'. Instead of calling them many times too less, they will receive a typewritten letter from me - every month, a whole year long. To sit down with a cup of tea and reflect your thoughts before start writing, because paper is worth to be written on beautifully. Then to choose an envelope, go to the post office and imagine the face they will make when there is a letter in the box which says 'I think about you and you are worth to take the time writing to'.

For as writing down as beautiful thoughts as this.

Imagine writing a letter with these beauties.

Some inspiration.

A letter full of love.

And to just flip through a lot of notes.