Antiquing

Walterboro, South Carolina

One of the best things about traveling is unexpectedly finding new great places that you fall in love with. On our recent road trip we stopped for lunch at a South Carolina town full of antique and vintage shops, Walterboro. The cutest, quiet and tranquil little town with one main street, and all the antique shops in a row... We treasure hunted for an hour or so, and I found an amazing Indian hand woven and printed fabric that I will use as a table cover. And the best part, it only cost $12 - that would have never happened in New York - in fact, I saw some similar fabrics at the ABC Home store for about $400!

Jet lag and freezing temperatures + the Christmas present

For some reason, even though I have made the journey a hundred times, the jet lag always comes as a shock when I travel to my native Finland from New York. This time there is also the weather to give you a little jolt - it is -20 Celsius outside!! I am not a stylish traveler, I always admire those who can travel looking beautifully put together and looking fresh. I look harried, nervous and tired...and want to be comfortable over style. I am always afraid that my flights will be late, canceled or that I have to spend a lot of time waiting at the airport. I wore my Uggs (and boy was I glad I did when I stepped out in Helsinki), my full length Michael Kors down coat (perfect pick that too), skinny jeans and a cashmere cardigan.

When traveling my biggest joy is watching people, studying their styles, comparing styles between countries.. I usually also spot someone famous, this time it was a Finnish ex president and international peace negotiator Martti Ahtisaari.

I am also finding my early Christmas gift is absolutely fabulous when traveling and it has garnered surprisingly much interest - the iPad, on which I am typing this blog entry. The iPad is so much more stylish than a laptop and so light to carry. I am turning out to be a big big fan!