england instax's.

holiday polaroids.....

moroccan shoes ftw! christmas elves!

about film.

After walking through this djungle that is film, some films work better with certain cameras. it's the combination of film and camera that is the most important, i've discovered. kodacolor in a holga 135 works great in the winter, kodacolor in my minolta in the summer, not so much. I'm finally at the end of this try-out period, and I've found my favorite combinations. it is all so much fun. My favorite films, so far, are portra 160NC and ektar, both by kodak.

a few random instax's old and new..

halloween 2011

i went to a little halloween party on saturday with this gang above. we listened to horror movie soundtracks and 69 eyes. stina as patsy stone, cissi as a prisoner and alf as hank von helvete from turbonegro. i wasnt in the picture because i took it. i was edina monsoon, patsys best friend, and strangely though i didnt have to dig deep in my closet to find something!! but i did have to dust off my black blazer with white polka dots on. it was perfect for the occasion. i loved being edina, she tries sooo hard to be fashionable lol. no one at the party knew who stina and i were dressed up as. that was sad. but next halloween... is it time for frank perhaps?

here is last years halloween.

octoberfest..

stina brought back a piece from münchen for me.
she tried on the dresses as well.
i want one!

midsummer instax's.

Midsummer was rain and thunder, i made waffles in my mom's yellow vintage waffle iron -and ate outside even though it could rain. stina and i stayed up late baking and watched movies in the midnight sun about skiing in the alps (what else to do in the summer?!). stina did most of the baking though (see instax above). we bought lots and lots of sweet watermelons for only 2 kr/kg. i carried a 5 kg watermelon home in my arms. i have to thank lady M above for my arm muscles! I'm embracing this summer.

beach 2011.

a little sandy beach, 15 minutes from town, is quite the luxury. but gah.. the heat.. +30 C is too much for me when i'm not used to it. in the shade under the beach parasoll i could live today though. summer sun is a little hard for a pale girl like me. it's really annoying being this white this time of year. here are two instax's we took.

it's quiet in the forest.

{A}n hour drive from the norwegian border, my sister and i went on a small trip this weekend to three little lakes. our favorite lakes. i kept my eyes open for bear but didn't see any. i love getting out in these woods. i love how food tastes much better outdoors than indoors. i didn't listen to music once. i love how tired i was in the evenings, wanting to go to sleep at 8 pm and couldn't help it. how crazy is that. the forest is healthy, it's good for you (no, a city park does not count, you have to fear a bear for it to count).

we do this every year, we love it. here is last years with my brothers. next year i hope to extend and visit more lakes to get to know the area better. my family on both sides are from here. winter is over now. this is the last party i have before summer. it's the best party of the year. i'm not telling where it is. that's my secret.

the only holiday when there is no work, is easter. so everyone here always go away on easter. i should come up with a name that suits my adventures this time of year but so far i haven't got one. easter is very late in april this year, so i'm going this week instead. after all.. the weather decides when it's time. easter is not in tune.

camera and photo go hand in hand: my instant and plastic toy cameras

{M}y plastic and instant cameras i use are the most fun thing is what format or feeling to capture a memory in. that's what i like. camera and photo go hand in hand. i'm just happy they've saved me some great memories. with film and developing film being so much more expensive these days especially in sweden, which completely sucks, it's even more important to love every shot. very easy to do. i'm currently on the hunt for a metal half-frame for storytelling.

growing up with analog photography it's like coming home. i used to shoot film before i bought my first digital camera. and my mother's thick teen photoalbum is partly responsible for my photo interest. little square format photos. photography was much cuter during the 70's. maybe it was the yellow shirts, or the curly hair. that's another reason i use these cameras, to find a little bit of those natural and positive feelings and smiles. they just don't shine through digital photos and todays stress. i wish i hadn't broken my moms instamatic as a kid and that it would still work -and shoot its film that existed. those are my favorite photos.

i have all these ones on flickr as well as here. I bought all of these for cheap $ when i just so happened to be in LA. film in the states are atleast 3 times cheaper than in Europe. i found the polaroid here in Umeå across the street in a thrift shop though, and that too was NOT 2$ let me tell ya.

Holga 135

i painted it in a razorblade romance style lol. it is not a black corner but i often get bc anyways on the photos. this camera doesn't need batteries and it uses 35 mm film, and doesnt weigh anything. win win.

Holga 120FN

it takes 120 film. i don't know yet if i like this camera. i need to shoot some more film with it. and i've broken the flash. fail. this is a camera you can climb a mountain with.

Diana F+

my favorite so far of the holga and the diana. takes 120 film. never thought i would be able to shoot with 120 film because it is not as common today but i realize i can and i love every shot. the diana camera is a little more delicate than the more robust holga. sometimes i feel like i might break it. it comes in a variety of colored clones but i wanted the original color.

Instax mini 7
creditcard sized polaroids. without the dreamyness of the polaroid camera.
but they are cute little notes that i can hide in my pocket and i love them. it took me a while to understand the light-settings.. they either turned out too bright or too dark. but i think i get it now. when there is no more polaroid 600 film, this will be my pearl.

Polaroid 600

i never thought i would ever have polaroids. i hope the film that is currently produced will get its act together and actually deliver good film. i have one pack of original film left and i'm saving it for forever! i think polaroid is the most genious camera ever. it doesnt need electricity, and you get the picture in your hand immidiately. the world of electricity and 0's and 1's can crumble but the polaroid camera will survive the digital age! i love it! best camera ever.

one of the many things i love about december..

we went to the christmas market at the museum today.
we've never been there so we thought we needed to go.
i loved last years little christmas market i was at in stockholm.
december is such a cosy month.. with all the cloudberry jams, red apples and
"aurora" and "midwinter" warm drinks. i'm very happy that the christmas holiday isn't all about shopping and plastic things. and instead about.. food! a shopping mall with thousands of lights make me very stressed and unhappy.

*i'm still trying to figure out how this instax mini camera works.
it was not that dark outside..

for halloween.

Why dress up as a pumpkin or the devil when you can dress up as your favorite character?! we took halloween very seriously this year. that made it all so much more fun. my goodness. My list of favorite characters is at least a page long!

me as maleficent.
this is what sci fi and anime conventioners must feel like? i looked so funny. couldn't stop laughing. teletubbie. i failed at putting on an evil face. i threw this costume together before and after school while being sick, the same day i wore it.

frida as edward scissorhand's.

stina as zombie vampire Lestat.

first time we had pumpkins. my favorite thing were the marzipan fingers the sunshine girls had turned into chopped off fingers with "blood" and "nails" on them. they were a little scary cuz they looked a little real. those are def going to be a tradition. stina made jello shots, a recipe she brought back from america. jello.. such a strange thing. though these shots will probably make the tradition list too.

but why did Lestat blow dry Edward's pants?

happy friday!

today is the only free day i have this september. so i did all those important things.. scanned photos. created a photo project. i took the sunshine girls with me downtown as company while running little errands. we went to the armyshop and found cute german sailor shirts, we got one each. i bought some notebooks and left a film at the developers. i think the film failed inside the camera,but i hope it turns out. we talked about and planned our halloween party.
i will be jadis, maleficent or Dr frank-N-furter. haven't decided yet.

today was my 25th birthday and we had a kalas.

mom was helga from germany and
dad was groucho marx.
i love this polaroid!

with our masks i bought for 35 kr each.
stina as charlie.. hilarious.

bro's.

the only thing i wished for was cake.

last day.

we had lunch at an italian restaurant in San Francisco.

somewhere on columbia avenue i think.

i like this city. it's nice.

i see many things here in california that reminds me of how

much i love europe. palo alto smells a little bit like crete.

but i will miss some things here.

the parts of Los Angeles that i saw and loved.
i am going to miss milkshakes.
the mtn dews.
miss the diners.
miss the palmtrees.
miss the cinemas.
the strange road signs.
all the cars parked on the roads.
not that taxes aren't included in prices though. that is confusing.

i never know how much to pay for stuff. i feel so silly asking.
and not the carpet floors.
or the way the water tastes.. swimming pool anyone?

the weather was absolutely perfect in california while i was here.
apparently people said it was a bit cold for the season.
thanks america. felt like umeå. san diego was an inch hotter though but good.

overall.. i loved it here. it has been a very positive stay.

other san fran posts are here and here

+++ i have HIM's vinyl now. stina got it for me here in america. happyness.

breakfast at stina's.

last day in america.

stina made us american pancakes with maple syrup.
yesterday i had toast with peanutbutter and jelly.
interesting food experience.
she went out before breakfast today, before i had woken up, and

got me a starbucks mocha.
how sweet is that. i love her!

palo alto.

i wanted to see death on the nile, but i missed it.

i wish sweden had cinemas like the ones here. there are old black and white movies showing and all kinds of other genres. i love it.
i also loved the vegan-restaurant we ate at here in palo alto. kind of reminded of chinese yet not. don't remember its name. i must say those pizza slize places are genius. i never tried frozen yoghurt though. there is so many different things to pick from here in america!

why are all my america posts about food?!

morro bay

from LA we drove the 101 north and the 1 north, along the coast on our way up to palo alto. morro bay was a really cute town. i found an old car for sale that i wanted and a coca cola machine for sale too. i so would have bought them if i could! oh, and thrift shops everywhere. tomorrow we're going to Monterey and the Monterey Aquarium. the seahorses will be my favorites.

in california the design of the houses come from shoe boxes.

i love the movie lettering on theaters,
don't have them in sweden.

a surf shop! cutest building.