I have to admit, Europe gets my creativity flowing more than any other continent or region. That's why I like to make these "business trips" as soon and as often as possible. A lot of my work as a jewelry designer is creating trends for my collections, and in order to do that I have to travel and see what's going on outside Miami.
Last summer I was fortunate enough to go to Scandinavia, and if you read my past post on the subject you will now that my first stop was Norway. After visiting Oslo, I was off to yet another mecca of design, Copenhagen.
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| Here I am with my mom, visiting the Royal Palace. |
Copenhagen is the capital of Denmark, and a great urban center. It is also recognized as one of the cities with the best quality of life and let me tell you I did enjoy that life, even if it was just for a few short days.
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| A lovely building that caught my attention. |
With just as vibrant streets as Oslo, Copenhagen or CPH for short, is yet another city where I checked out the trends. Summer is especially interesting because people are so happy to be out of their heavy winter clothes. The photo below courtesy of fashion blogger Marie Louise is a perfect example of the summer city-chic vibe that I got while I was walking through the city.
Even though it might seem a bit trite, of course every visit to CPH has to be capped off with a trip to the famous "Little Mermaid" statue. Like I said, its not terribly original, but it's definitely a must see.
After checking out CPH, I made my way to Visby, in Sweden, which was just divine. I love the city life, but I also appreciate the peace and rest one can get from the countryside. Visby is a medieval town in a small island so well preserved that it has garnered placement as one of the World Heritage Sites by UNESCO.
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| Visby. Check out our cruise ship on the horizon. |
After my short trip to Visby, I soldiered on to yet another Swedish destination: Stockholm. Here I visited WHAT ELSE? More fantastic palaces. Jewels have long been staples of royalty, so I love to get soaked (as much as a commoner like me is able to) in every aspect of "royal culture." I think that's why I love Europe so much. In countries where there is royalty, the ministries of culture make sure to always have collections on display, so most of the time, I make it a priority to visit all the museums that house these collections.
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| Swedish topaz pieces from the royal collection. |
It might seem a bit intense at times to do all this traveling, but the truth is, it's important. Without experiencing real and live history, plus all the research, I could not design the way I do, or have the quality craftspeople that I do all around the world. It's getting to know this world around me that inspires my tiara designs, for example.
I hope you enjoyed this post on Scandinavia and much as I did putting together for you. It was a trip of a lifetime and a real inspiration for my work.
Cheers!
Dani K
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