The Me & My House Store blog
Almost time to open the first door in the Easter calendar
Spring at last! And now that the light is coming back, the snow is melting and the flowers are carefully starting to peek out, we get to gather together and celebrate Easter. If you have a look around the shops, you'll rarely find Jesus, crosses or anything else that reminds us of the amazing Easter message, but here with us we want that to be a given, of course. One really clear way to prepare your heart for the crucifixion and the resurrection and the whole Easter story that grips us so, is to open a little door every day in an Easter calendar. On Palm Sunday we open the first door - with a Bible verse in one, with illustrations in the other - and get a little daily greeting all the way to Easter Monday. The Easter calendar for children makes lovely little gifts for the kids at church, and the one with Bible verses is just right for neighbours, confirmation candidates, colleagues and anyone else who's curious about the Christian faith. You'll find the calendars here >>
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New, lovely butter knives!
An evening fika - that's pretty hard to beat, isn't it? Settling down for a moment, buttering a sandwich, pouring a cup of tea and getting to sit for a while before the day's over. Or, for that matter, buttering a sandwich and taking it out into the sun early on a summer morning? Sitting there in your pyjamas, hearing the birds sing and feeling the day wake up - that's probably just as hard to beat. For those little moments we've stocked up on new butter knives with fantastic prints, and they really are so pretty as little reminders, or wonderful little gifts for someone you're fond of. Made in Sweden from Swedish birch. Have a look!
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Sweets with meaning
Honestly, we never get tired of little things with fantastic texts on them! We've had several reports about how small pin badges, fridge magnets, lip balms and sweet tins have got to be part of giving something of eternal value, and it's so lovely to hear. Imagine a tiny, tiny thing meaning something big! Now we've stocked up with loads of lovely sweet tins in cheerful colours and tasty flavours. This one, for instance, has yummy little Skittles inside and they're almost a bit too good ... Click one home and try for yourself! The text on these is "Du gör mig glad, Du är dyrbar, Du är viktig, Wow för dig" — Swedish for "You make me happy, You are precious, You matter, Wow for you" — and that's just the sort of text you want to put into the hand of every single kid. Lovely!
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This is the day the Lord has made
Have you seen that text about "this day is a gift from God, and what you do with it is your gift to God"? And who knows, with a splash of colour this lovely in the kitchen, maybe it'll be a bit easier to remember to really make the most of the day. What a gift! Smart-looking tray and serving board, made in Sweden. And the print? Drawn at home on the sofa :)
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Bibs at last!
Funnily enough, our bibs are incredibly popular, and now we've finally got a new batch in stock. This time there's both a restock and some new designs, all in lovely colours with pretty white prints. The bibs are made from soft, food-safe silicone and roll up easily when you're off on an adventure. Will you find a new favourite?
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Smart everyday jewellery
Love the everyday! An ordinary day really is one of the loveliest things we have. An ordinary day where we get to be with the people we love, do things we're good at and nothing dramatic happens - thank goodness for everyday life! And that word, everyday, is one that's really landed with us at Me & My House Store, because things for everyday life are exactly what you'll find here. Boards to use every day, little things to encourage someone with in the middle of an ordinary day, or, like here, jewellery to wear every day. Our stainless steel jewellery copes with most of what everyday life throws at it. It can come along to the gym or into the water, it can be sweated in, cooked in and just be there. It doesn't rust and it lasts day in, day out. Perfect everyday jewellery, in other words. Our newest jewellery includes smart earrings, pretty necklaces and bracelets, and several necklaces on a chunkier chain that look especially good on men, or maybe on someone being confirmed. Come and have a look!
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For to us a child is born
It's a bit daft, really, but sometimes we file certain Bible verses away in boxes that only get opened at Christmas, Easter or weddings — when the truth is these texts are alive every single day, all year round. Like this one, for instance. God wants to be here for us in the present, every minute. Not just at Christmas, but right here and now, in the middle of everyday life with piles of laundry, to-do lists and tired feet. Today He is Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father and Prince of Peace. That's an amazing reminder to stop and take in right here and now, in the middle of life, whether it's Christmas or not. But if you're reading this at Christmas time: HAVE A BLESSED CHRISTMAS, you and yours! Lots of hugs from us
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News from Kolkata!
Last winter we visited Kolkata, and it was our first time in India. Have you been? It's infinitely far from everything we're used to in Sweden. All the sounds — the constant honking, for instance — the smells, the tastes, people everywhere, the traffic, people living on the streets ... Don't get me wrong, it's a fantastic city with wonderful people and I'd LOVE to go back, but it's so unfathomably different from our everyday life. One day, while we were standing outside our hotel waiting for a lift, there was a pickup parked out front. On the flatbed they'd built a bamboo "scaffold" with a sparse floor on top, and up there, easily 6-7 metres in the air on this swaying thing, two men were balancing with extended roller poles to paint the underside of the high bridge with the next level of roads. In Sweden we'd have stopped the traffic and used helmets, guards, a cherry picker, hi-vis vests and you name it, but here there was none of that. Cars and buses just honked and swung past at high speed. I'm absolutely certain that if one of the guys had fallen and hurt himself (or died ...), there'd still be thousands of people queuing for his job. Poverty is everywhere, and it's so present you can almost touch it. In the middle of all this bustle we had the privilege of visiting a project that makes a real difference. 150 women with a background in extreme poverty and/or prostitution have learnt to print fabric and sew here, and this is how they make their living. They also get things like a pension and healthcare, and their little ones are looked after in the buildings so the mums can work. The courses here are popular and they change lives, and they open up opportunities the women could only dream of before. We met a woman who was absolutely glowing. She's a pattern maker now, but both she and her mother had a background in trafficking. She's the one who worked out the designs for the wash bags and tote bags we sell, and she's done a really lovely job. A big load of tote bags arrived the other day, and they're so pretty! Sewn in organic cotton and printed with eco-friendly dyes — the craftsmanship is gorgeous and the seams are perfect. So lives are being transformed here, stitch by stitch, and the more of these products we sell, the more we can step up our partnership with them. Are you in? We also got to visit a school that's run by Christians, and while we sat having coffee with the head teacher she told us about the children's backgrounds and about their futures too. Many of the children's parents sit on the street corners every morning hoping someone will come and pick them up for a bit of simple work that day, so they'll earn a few coins. That's usually the children's future as well, but children who get the chance to learn to read and count can have completely different lives. She told us proudly about former pupils who are now working as nurses or teachers — really unthinkable, given their background. Despite the heat in the room I almost shivered where I sat on my plastic chair in that brightly painted room. This is how you transform a country.
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Are you baking something nice for Christmas?
I've got nothing against buying ready-made pickled herring, sliced ham and shop-bought vörtbröd (the Swedish spiced Christmas loaf), but the Christmas baking I absolutely want to do myself. Do you have any favourites? At our house it's always a big gluten-free bake: saffron muffins made with almond flour, gingerbread biscuits for the kids to decorate, maybe a gingerbread house, crisp little biscuits, shortbread ones that we sandwich in pairs with a smooth orange-chocolate cream in the middle and decorate on top, loads of fudge, toffee, Viennese nougat, a gooey saffron cake and a really good cheesecake on a gingerbread base. Love Christmas - the biscuits at least! ;) Baking a little extra and giving it away is always appreciated too, and even more so if you wrap it up in a lovely tea towel as part of the gift. This year's new Christmas tea towel is wonderfully cosy and makes such a pretty gift, with or without biscuits inside. Don't miss having a look at it!
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The Christmas story - on a candle lantern!
We've been longing for this candle lantern ever since we sent it off to print, and now it's finally here! Really lovely, and so full of atmosphere. The lantern has three pictures - one with the baby Jesus, Joseph and Mary in the stable, one with shepherds and sheep, and one with the three wise men bringing their gifts - and at our house it's already standing ready on the dining table. So much of life happens right around the dining table at ours. This is where we gather as a family, where we say grace, where friends, relatives and neighbours sit, where we eat, draw, do crafts and play games - and so this is where, right in the middle of everything, we've put the Christmas story.
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Christmas favourites!
Honestly, these turned out just TOO cute! This summer we got in a first batch of stickers with people from the Bible, and we just couldn't resist making matching ones with the Christmas message too. Joseph and Mary and - of course - the baby Jesus, three wise men, shepherds, sheep, an angel, the stable and a Christmas star. Just think how cosy it'll be to sit and craft with these while you listen to the Christmas story or tell it to the children. Perfect for Sunday school too!
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Cosy tea towels
Time for a new tea towel? They're so cosy to lay over a tray of freshly baked bread, or over the washing-up once you're done. And if you've got a loaf or some baguettes for dinner with guests - use a tea towel to hold on to while you slice (like at a hotel breakfast) and you weave a little message into the meal. Smart, isn't it? These tea towels are sewn in Latvia, printed in Sweden and made from 50% cotton, 50% linen, and we've just stocked up on both brand new tea towels and "old" ones in a fresh print. Come and have a look! >>
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Christmas with meaning
Candle lantern: The nativity scene
Candle lantern: I varje hjärta armt och mörkt
Candle lantern: Min frid ger jag er
