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    More Than Just Candles
    More Than Just Candles
    More Than Just Candles
    Ebook108 pages1 hour

    More Than Just Candles

    By Emma Janson

    5/5

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    About this ebook

    HYGGE: change your perspective

    Can you remember moments from your life that were pure bliss? Moments that convinced you that this right here, this is why we’re on this earth? 

    Did you think of big moments like your engagement, or seeing a landscape in an exotic country? What if you could feel like this more often? What if your morning coffee became a ritual of peace? 

    Things that remind us about life’s joy don’t have to come in the big moments. Through practicing hygge, you can see the beauty in life every day. The best part is it’s not complicated at all – quite the opposite in fact! 

    Hygge is a focus on the beauty in simplicity. It’s setting aside the hectic business we so often experience in the modern world, and finding joy in small moments. It’s savoring a glass of your favorite wine with an old friend. It’s stepping into your garden in a still moment and listening to the snow melt into tiny streams, signaling the beginning of spring. 

    Hygge is stopping to take in the small, simple moments and appreciating them for the bursts of calm, peace and joy they bring to us every day.  You don’t need to change your life to practice hygge, you just need to change your perspective. 


    CONTENTS

    INTRODUCTION

    What is Hygge? 

    Bridging the cultural gap

    Hygge may call to you for lots of reasons

    Get started

    The Commercialization of hygge

    Not just a lifestyle trend

    HYGGE YOUR MIND

    Mindfulness

    Consciously Slow down

    Practice being positive

    Practice being grateful

    Meditation

    HYGGE YOUR SPACE

    Your town

    Home

    Office

    Shopping

    Fire

    Food

    Update your lounge wear

    MAKING NOT SO HYGGE MOMENTS HYGGE

    Outside

    Hygge by the Ocean: 

    Rainy Days

    Off-season

    HYGGE IN ALL SEASONS

    Winter

    The Christmas season

    Spring: new beginnings, hope, wonder

    Summer: warmth in the air, lush greenery, relaxed atmosphere

    Fall: hot cider, pumpkins, plaid and your favorite socks

    HYGGE YOUR LIFE (TIME) 

    Make time for hobbies

    Remember to create

    Hygge in the big moments

    HYGGE FOR THE TRAVELER

    SHARING HYGGE WITH YOUR LOVED ONES

    Family & friends: build a sense of community

    Choosing relationships carefully

    Improve the quality of your interactions with family and friends

    Be forgiving

    No controversy in hygge moments

    HYGGE ON YOUR OWN

    Coziness in different times of the day

    Love the simple things

    Manage your tech - embrace the benefits of unplugging

    All the other tech

    A smack upside the head for workaholics, perfectionists and self-proclaimed type A’s. 

    Taking care of yourself: exercising and eating well

    Related concepts: lagom and minimalism

    CONCLUSION

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherEmma Janson
    Release dateJan 2, 2018
    ISBN9781386231813
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      Book preview

      More Than Just Candles - Emma Janson

      CONTENTS

      Introduction

      What is Hygge?

      Bridging the cultural gap

      Hygge may call to you for lots of reasons

      Get started

      The Commercialization of hygge

      Not just a lifestyle trend

      Hygge your mind

      Mindfulness

      Consciously Slow down

      Practice being positive

      Practice being grateful

      Meditation

      Hygge your space

      Your town

      Home

      Office

      Shopping

      Fire

      Food

      Update your lounge wear

      Making not so hygge moments hygge

      Outside

      Hygge by the Ocean:

      Rainy Days

      Off-season

      Hygge in all seasons

      Winter

      The Christmas season

      Spring: new beginnings, hope, wonder

      Summer: warmth in the air, lush greenery, relaxed atmosphere

      Fall: hot cider, pumpkins, plaid and your favorite socks

      Hygge your life (time)

      Make time for hobbies

      Remember to create

      Hygge in the big moments

      ––––––––

      Hygge for the traveler

      Sharing hygge with your loved ones

      Family & friends: build a sense of community

      Choosing relationships carefully

      Improve the quality of your interactions with family and friends

      Be forgiving

      No controversy in hygge moments

      Hygge on your own

      Coziness in different times of the day

      Love the simple things

      Manage your tech - embrace the benefits of unplugging

      All the other tech

      A smack upside the head for workaholics, perfectionists and self-proclaimed type A’s.

      Taking care of yourself: exercising and eating well

      Related concepts: lagom and minimalism

      Conclusion

      Introduction

      Several months ago, I visited a dear friend of mine. It was a dark and cold Saturday night in the dead of winter, and he invited a few friends, including myself, over for dinner. When I arrived, he greeted me at the door with a big hug and a smile. He was wearing an incredibly soft cream coloured cashmere sweater, thick wool socks, and a pair of his favorite jeans. He walked me into the kitchen where a beautiful spread of cured meats, cheeses and different kinds of olives, fruits and nuts were laid out on gorgeous ornate, vintage serving trays. There were wine glasses set out for each of his guests, and all of his dishes, food and flatware were carefully selected to look beautiful together. Tea candles dotted the shelves and windowsills. He served us a lovely meal with pasta, salad, roasted meats and Italian wine he had chosen specifically for our food. We had a long drawn out meal and chatted about our families, our work, our lives. We shared jokes, laughed and just enjoyed each other’s company.

      We didn’t know it, but we were having a magical hygge evening.

      What is Hygge?

      Hygge, pronounced (hoo-gah), has been described as being consciously cozy, or an act of creating a safe and comforting environment. There is no direct English translation for hygge, but definitions which come close point to terms like cozy or coziness, charm, content, and warmth. The most important thing to understand is that it refers to a feeling - the feeling of being content, and experiencing coziness and warmth. To expand on that definition a little, the word also expands to describing the recognition of value in a simple moment. At its core is an emphasis on the simple things, slowing down, and – this one’s important – gratitude.

      For the purposes of this book, we’ll call making the conscious choice to cultivate this experience in your life practising hygge.

      Hygge originated in Norway, but was later adopted into the Danish cultural tradition we’re more familiar with today. Hygge emerged as a concept to combat the cold, brutal winters in Scandinavia. During certain times of the year in Denmark, it’s dark for 17 hours per day. Hygge was the answer to the resulting depression that crept in. It’s a wonderfully inspiring concept if you think about it. It shows humans’ capacity for adaptability and resilience. We can take the cold, dark, depressing Danish winter and create a concept that has helped develop one of the happiest nations in the world.

      A quick google search of hygge will lead you to a lot of advice about decorating and links to places where you can buy fuzzy socks and candles. This is because hygge is partly about setting a cozy and inviting atmosphere, and focusing on the aesthetic of space gets a lot of focus and attention. In this book, you will find information on setting up a hygge aesthetic and making use of a few cozy items, however, you’ll also find a lot more. This admittedly North American interpretation of the research on this subject and attempts at incorporating it into my life have led to my understanding of hygge as a state of mind. For this reason, this book shares some insight into how to shift your perspective away from some anti-hygge habits we westerners have ingrained in our modern culture to help you slow down to the pace of hygge.

      This book is centered on how to incorporate hygge into your life. As the concept has been embraced outside of the Nordic countries, it has evolved in how it is practiced. Even within Denmark, the term is loosely applied to a variety of situations. Different people have different interpretations of how to practice hygge, and this book offers a broad perspective on how to incorporate it into your life that focuses on mindfulness, and setting up your frame of mind to embrace hygge the way it was meant to be embraced. While the more traditional take on hygge will be noted as we go, the focus in this book is more on how to bring your mind to your hygge practice in any situation, any season, and any time of day.

      Bridging the cultural gap

      After hearing a bit about hygge, you may notice it sounds a bit familiar. Just because the country you live in hasn’t given this concept a proper name, doesn’t mean the people around you don’t still enjoy it. It’s good to name it though, because naming it gives it power and definition. To help you wrap your mind around the concept a bit more, if you’re an English speaker, it may help to think of it a bit like nostalgia for today.

      Since there is no direct translation, and no identical North American cultural norm to compare it to, I think another way of looking at hygge as being nostalgic for the present. What exactly do I mean by this? Well, consider how we are when we are nostalgic about the past. Think about a time you remember fondly. Are there movies or songs that remind you of those moments? What about smells? Or food, like a particular ice cream store or the roast your grandma used to make? Are there places you go to try and relive old memories and feelings? Relationships you hold onto because of how good they used to be?

      It’s valuable to have happy and warm memories. If you think about it though, it can make us a little sad, can’t it? I had a camp ground I used to go to with my family as a child, and after we stopped going I went back a couple of times as an adult to try and relive those memories. While it was a little comforting to see it again, I actually found it sadder to visit later on. Things had changed, and there was no happiness or warmth in the air. To use an old cliché, it just didn’t feel the same.

      Looking back on the first few years after we stopped going as a family, and remembering visiting old friends, I actually found more comfort in letting go. Moving on and finding new places

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