It’s not warm is it?! It was a cool 2 degrees when I dragged myself kicking and screaming out of bed at 7am, and it was pretty when I was loitering at the bus stop after work too. It’s been a pretty mild winter, but that doesn’t mean I’m anywhere near ready to ditch the…
Merry Christmas from Hello Hygge!
It’s Christmas Eve! Hooray! As we know, Scandinavia celebrates Christmas today (along with much of the rest of the world), so if you’re one of my Scandi followers, I hope you’re having a fantastic day. I just thought I’d give you a quick glimpse of my Nordic-inspired Christmas tree, which becomes less and less exclusively…
Baby it’s cold outside
The weather’s taken a little dip hasn’t it? I mean, don’t get me wrong, the drowned rat look really suits me, but sometimes it’s nice to mix things up a bit. It’s hard to believe, but we’re just 10 days away from Christmas, so I’m preparing for the imminent cold snap with an extra dose…
Sweet dreams: the Hello Hygge guide to sleep
Sleeping is harder than it looks. If you’re another ‘bad sleeper’ like me, you’ll be only too aware of this. ‘I won’t look at the time, I won’t look at the time… OK just one look… HOW IS IT 4AM, that means if I fall asleep RIGHT NOW I will get a MAXIMUM of three…
Cosy books for Christmas reading
I’m 99% sure I was born with a book in my hand. I was one of those kids who read 24/7. We had to write about our weekends on Mondays at infant school, and on every single page of my book I’ve written about the Enid Blyton book I read or bought. I wrote my…
Hello Hygge on BBC radio
Another super quick one tonight – I was on BBC Radio Coventry and Warwickshire on Sunday morning talking about hygge and hellohygge.com! If you want to give it a listen, it’s available here. The hygge segment comes in at 1:15.25. Let me know what you think (please be kind)!
How to create a hyggeligt home for winter
I don’t know about you, but where I am today it’s pretty bleak. It’s grey and drizzly and sort of ‘stickily chilly’, where it’s too cold to not wear a coat but not cold enough for it to be entirely comfortable. I’m spending my day sheltering from the gloom outside on the sofa, in a woolly…
Competition time: ‘Tis the season to be Jolly
How is it already November? I swear we only hit September about 13 seconds ago. Now Halloween (and my birthday) are out of the way, festive fever is in full force, and it’s all systems go at Hello Hygge HQ. For some people (Scrooges, pure Scrooges), 1st November is too early to be thinking about…
Bringing hygge into the workplace
I’ve just finished my first week in a new job, so I’m very tired and filled with information, but also very excited about the challenges coming up. That said, many of us spend 40+ hours a week in the office, so we may as well make it as comfortable and pleasant for ourselves as possible….
An autumn walk in Preston Park, Brighton
Living in a seaside town has lots of benefits; especially one as well positioned as Brighton. We get a beach to play on in summer (pebbles and all), a refreshing coastal breeze, the drama of violent storms over the sea and a constant flurry of new people to look at. But I think that Brighton…
Hygge x Overdiluted: AW15 menswear
Everyone knows how much I love hygge – and how much I love my boi (ya boi) Jake Story. This is an extra special post from everyone’s favourite menswear blogger Jake from Overdiluted.net, who has something to say about super-cosy menswear for AW15. Hyggeligt attire is usually one of two things. It’s either cosy, warm…
A face for radio
Just a quick one tonight – I was too scared to tell too many people before the event, but this morning I was on the radio! I spoke to Sally Pepper at BBC Radio Derby about all things Denmark, hygge and this very blog. Why not give me a little listen? I have to admit…
Claus M. Lohman: ‘Everybody can hygge’
I need to start this post with another thank you to all the new followers I’ve collected since my last post. I’ve been absolutely overwhelmed by the enthusiasm you guys have expressed for hygge. I always knew it was something special, but the excitement people have expressed to me over the last few days has totally…
Skandinavisk: Danish DNA
It’s not long now until the clocks go back, and I for one can’t wait. I love the dark evenings, and having an excuse to stay indoors and watch Netflix and drink Winter Pimm’s (not that I need one). And of course, as with many delightfully hyggeligt evenings, the ideal way to set it off…
Getting hygge with pumpkin recipes
Firstly, welcome to all my new followers! The vast majority of you have probably come from this excellent BBC Magazine article, which mentioned my little old blog… except now it doesn’t feel quite so little. I’m very excited to have so many new people in the Hello Hygge family, and I can’t wait to share…
A basic bitch guide to autumn
It’s finally here! It’s autumn! It’s my season! I don’t trust anyone who says they don’t like autumn. I love the volatility, I love the russet leaves, I love coats and boots and spice and pumpkins (god I love pumpkins) and spooky things and drizzle (yes) and having an excuse to stay in and be…
7 Lush ways for 7 hygge days
I love Lush. I LOVE Lush. It’s glittery, it smells amazing, it’s fun and it strikes the perfect balance between frivolous (sometimes you just need to leave the house covered in gold glitter, and that’s fine) and practical (there’s a cleanser called Ultrabland – the ultimate in SENSIBLE CHIC). I also don’t think anyone can…
How to make jam – the hygge way
Domestic goddesses aren’t just born; they are the sum of their actions (except for Nigella Lawson, obviously). It was, in part, for this reason that I decided to make jam for the first time ever tonight. And I don’t do things by halves, so I went all out and used berries I had picked myself….
Hot hygge summer
It’s hot, it’s humid, it’s summer and I’m still on the hunt for hygge. Take a look at where I’ve found it so far.
British Summertime: Birchbox June 2015 review
Anyone who knows me knows I’m not the biggest fan of summer. I am the colour of a ghost and just as translucent, and as someone who naturally runs much hotter than the average person, it’s generally a bit of a sticky, moody mess for me. So when faced with this time of year, it’s…
Mew at Camden Roundhouse 20/05/15
I love Mew. I do. I’ve loved them for ten years. They were my third musical love, and being a Danish band, it feels right for me to write about them, given this blog’s semi-Danish title. Plus, Mew really are a fountain of hygge – I included them in my Hello Hygge playlist a few…
The Great Escape 2015
May is far and away the best month to be in Brighton. It’s festival season, and the town centre is buried for four sweet weeks in performances, crowds and NOISE. And this weekend was the noisiest yet, as The Great Escape 2015 bowled into town to join Brighton Festival and the Fringe Festival, bringing with…
Candles for a happy hygge home
Looking to introduce a hint of hygge into your home? Take a look at the best scented candles for the job.
Hygge places: Toronto, Canada
I’d wanted to go to Canada for a very long time before I actually made the trip last month, and it. was. delightful. In Toronto, the hygge mostly comes in the form of the wonderful, wonderful people everywhere. It’s so comforting being in a city where everyone is nice and wants to help you (and…
Finding hygge at Brighton Festival 2015
Oh, May. One of my favourite months, because with May comes Brighton Festival – an entire month of art, theatre, dance, music, acrobatics and everything else you can imagine. The schedule for Brighton Festival 2015 has recently been released, and I’ve done the hard work to find the most hygge-filled performances and installations so you…
Hygge places: Reykjavik, Iceland
Before I went to Reykjavik this week for the second time, I had plans for writing a post on my return about all the hygge spaces in the city. But I can’t really do that, because Reykjavik is the total and utter epitome of hygge, everywhere, in every way. I first visited in 2011, and I fell in…
What does hygge sound like? A Hello Hygge playlist
Today I’ve been thinking about what hygge sounds like. Inspired by my pal Jake (whom you can find writing cool things about music and menswear over at Overdiluted.net), I have decided to introduce a more tuneful element to this blog. After all, I did say that I wanted to make my blog a more interactive,…
Hygge spaces: Northern Lights, Brighton
One of my favourite places in Brighton for the feeling of hygge is Northern Lights, a Nordic pub tucked away on Little East Street.
Starting small with hygge
In case it had escaped your attention, it’s pretty cold outside right now in the UK. We had a little smattering of snow today, and there are no signs of shaking off the winter chill anytime soon. These long dark winter nights make me want to hibernate in a cosy little nest, and it reminded me…
Goodbye Soup du Journalism… Hello Hygge!
Friends and readers, The time has come for me to do what I have been hinting I’ll do for a while now. It’s time to say a fond farewell to Soup du Journalism. But it’s absolutely not all over. I started Soup du Journalism when I started training to become a journalist in 2012, full…
Five New Year’s resolutions for a writer
I don’t know how it happened, but it’s 30th December, and that means it’s New Year’s Eve tomorrow, and that means it’s time to start thinking about New Year’s resolutions. I don’t want to think about sorting my life out, so here are my writer’s resolutions. 1. Read more This year I feel as though…
Let’s play CHRISTMAS NEWS BINGO
To ease myself back into the blogosphere (what a hideous word), I’m going to make some predictions for some of the season’s classic news stories. Let’s play CHRISTMAS NEWS BINGO!
Your secret dating experiments are OK, Cupid
It was revealed this week in a very chirpy blog post that the naughty sods at OkCupid have been ‘doing a Facebook’ and have been experimenting on their users. I for one am shocked and appalled and will NOT be using the site again! Oh wait, no, sorry, I don’t care in the slightest.
Artichokes (in a jar)
Good evening and welcome to my screaming breakdown.
For the love of books and reading
I’m delighted to say that I am now officially going to be participating in World Book Night! I have collected my allocated 18 copies of 59 Seconds by Professor Richard Wiseman, and will be giving them out on 23rd April. The aim of World Book Night is to get people reading, especially those who don’t often…
Rufus Wainwright at Theatre Royal Drury Lane, London 06/04/14
“Any questions or comments?” Yes, as it happens, Lucy Wainwright Roche, I do have some questions or comments. How on earth does your half-brother Rufus Wainwright hold those notes? Why have relatively few people heard of Rufus? How did he get into those trousers? Why did nobody mention that Jean Paul Gaultier was here until…
Why Hanif Kureishi might have a point about creative writing courses
So the media – OK, maybe just The Guardian’s Comment is Free – has been losing its mind over the comments of Hanif Kureishi. What exactly did Mr Kureishi say that is just so damn outrageous? Kureishi teaches a creative writing course at uni, and he has sent shockwaves through the Guardian-reading community (which, let’s…
Brighton Festival 2014: initial thoughts
An extraordinary new play! Works of minimalist power! A lively choreography of manifold and intricate avoidance strategies! I want to experience it ALL! I always look forward to Brighton Festival, and 2014’s line-up, announced today, certainly hasn’t disappointed me at first glance. In this post, I’m going to whittle them down to my top five…
Jo Malone London Rain collection: a review
Anyone who knows me knows that there is one thing I covet and collect: perfume. My collection is beyond a joke, and that just isn’t going to change – many apologies to my poor, bruised bank balance. When I heard about the Jo Malone London Rain collection at the end of last year, it sounded…
The big event
Hello! This week has been unbelievably busy. The company I work for was exhibiting at a big event in London, and as part of the marketing team I was there both days. It was tiring, my legs were aching like hell and everyone started to lose their voices but it was also SUPER FUN. I…
Responsible reporting about diabetes
Any of my regular readers will know that I am a relatively recently diagnosed type 1 diabetic. If you are a new reader, hi, I’m Kayleigh and I’m a relatively recently diagnosed type 1 diabetic. Potted history: diagnosed in October 2012 following seven months of very obvious symptoms, was hospitalised with severe diabetic ketoacidosis, have…
How Autographer could revolutionise photojournalism
I have a very love-hate relationship with technology, and as such I am very rarely excited by new gadgets and gizmos, but I have finally found something that really gets my pulse racing. Meet Autographer, the wearable camera which automatically takes up to 2,000 photographs a day without the wearer having to do a thing….
2013 in review
The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2013 annual report for this blog. Here’s an excerpt: The concert hall at the Sydney Opera House holds 2,700 people. This blog was viewed about 19,000 times in 2013. If it were a concert at Sydney Opera House, it would take about 7 sold-out performances for that many…
Going out with a fizzle
Hello! How is it nearly 2014? Where has this year gone? An awful lot has happened this year, and it feels like it’s roared by in the way that time seems to these days. Even the weeks go quickly. It’ll hit Friday afternoon at work and I’ll think about all the things I did during…
So this is Christmas
Hello! Just a very quick one today to say MERRY CHRISTMAS to all my beloved followers. Funnily enough I have more festive things to do than update my blog tomorrow (and I hope you do too) and I hope you all have a wonderful few days. We have a festive giant Yankee Candle burning, the…
Vote for Soup du Journalism in the UK Blog Awards
Hello beautiful followers! Just a quick one today – my blog is up for a UK Blog Award and I would really appreciate it if you could vote for Soup du Journalism! It’s super quick to vote and I’d be so grateful to anyone who takes the time to do it. If you’re a new…
The long-lasting impact of a short story
Short stories are irresistible. While the novel is sprawling and unfurls over hundreds of pages and weaves together dozens of storylines and twists and characters, there is little I love more than the brutal, screaming impact of a short story. When I talk about short stories in this post, I will be referring to short…
Back in the game
Hello! I’ve been crazy busy recently and nothing is showing any sign of slowing down at all. In fact, it’s all about to explode with the BIG WORK CHRISTMAS PARTY (my first ever office Christmas party! It’s finally happening!) which looks amazing and various other festive events to look forward to. This weekend I’m chilling…
My language love affair
I only speak English. I feel that I should get that over and done with from the outset in case you’re hoping this will be some gorgeous long love letter about my relationship with all the languages of the world. I speak a little French (GCSE level, so essentially none at all) but it’s hardly…
Awesome autumn
Hello! So, as you may or may not know, autumn is far and away my favourite season. ‘Autumn people’ are also my favourite people. If you prefer the bright, brisk mornings and moody, mumbling evenings, welcome on board. You’re one of me. As such, I’ve been having a great few weeks, not least because I…
Hello Hygge 