Studded ballet flats

 Studs and spikes are an absolute must have this season (next to burgundy (and) leather). In case you still haven't procured yourself this fall's trends, I made a simple DIY to be on trend easily and on the budget.

You'll need:
- a pair of simple plain ballet flats (I got mine at H&M)
- 40 10mm triangle studs (I found them on the Ebay quite cheap, but waited for a month to have them delivered from Hong Kong)
- scissors (I used them to press the studs into the shoe and to close the studs)
- 10 minutes of your precious time

 Place a stud on the front part of the shoe to your liking. Press it well onto the shoe, and close the stud on the inner side of the shoe. Continue placing the studs leaving about 10mm of space in between the two (the size of a stud) until you have the whole line covered.

Go out and show them to the world!
P.S. I love my new shoes!

Flea market Milan

 

 Flea markets or second hand shops aren't such a big thing in Milan, people go more for brand new. I guess it feels more posh, and that's such a big deal in here. When you go to the flea markets in London or Paris, it's such a nice feeling, even if you're just "window" shopping and don't plan on buying anything. They're packed with positive energy and it feels like everything they sell is valuable, only for the fact that it is there.
 In Milan, the situation is a bit different, here it seems that the value of the items is already lowered just for the fact that there are there. You don't go to the flea market in Milan unless you really need anything and can't get it anywhere else.
 I think it's such a pity because I love a good market's vibe.
 I made some pics even though the weather was so bad, very cloudy and dark.

A lot of moka pots

This is Porta Genova flea market, you can visit every Sunday morning from 7-14. It has been here since April 2012, the old location was Bonola, so not that many people know about it yet.

Fast apple croissants

 Milan turned grey again so I needed something to cheer me up a bit, especially since I just got back from sunny Madrid. I had some apples stashed away in the fridge that had to be used for a sweet treat and I came up with this simple recipe. Hope you like it!

What you'l need:
- 2 small apples (or 1 "regular")
- half a lemon juice
- a teaspoon of cinnamon
- brown sugar (approx 1 tablespoon)
- 1 round puff pastry sheet

Peel and grate the apples (or you can jut cut them into small chunks), squeeze lemon juice over them and add cinnamon and sugar.
Take the pastry sheet and cut it in half until you get 8 slices.
Place a spoon of the apple mix on the bottom of each slice end roll it up towards  the peak.
Poke holes with a fork to let the steam out.
Oven it for 15 min on 180° or until golden brown.
Sprinkle with vanilla sugar and serve warm.

Madrid

 Last week I went to visit a dear friend of mine and to see the beauty of the third biggest city in Europe. Despite my high expectations, because everyone spoke so well of the city, I was positively surprised.
 Madrid is huge but neat and surprisingly, well-organized. There are quite a few things to visit, monuments, museums and important historical buildings but if you are not into sightseeing, people watching from a coffee shop will do as well (tip: please make sure you don't have coffee, in Madrid they don't know what that is).
 Such a vivid and colorful city, full of green as well (it has the highest number of trees and green surfaces per inhabitant in Europe).
 Here are some snaps

A bear and a madrone tree, the symbol of Madrid

The Royal Palace, only used for state ceremonies

The park behind the Royal Palace

Buen Retiro Park, an oasis in the middle of the city, you can even rent a boat

Almost perfect public transport, always on time, clean, spacious

Believe it or not, the best coffee I had in Madrid