The More, the Merrier.

Black knitted cropped sweater, "Mary", Monki. Brown faux sheepskin jacket, Lindex. Dark blue skinny jeans, Cheap Monday, Weekday. White patent boots, Dr Martens, Nelly.

(Photos by me.)

I just now realized that the first picture reminds me of Eli, that creepy Heroes character who can clone himself.

Photo from Herosite.net

Sorry about that - I promise my clones are very friendly!

I don't have much to say about this outfit. It's comfortable, it keeps me warm, no more, no less. I did wear some black eyeliner for the first time in months, that's always something! The lipstick is Maybelline's "Red Revolution", I can't get enough of it at the moment.

Don't miss the latest giveaway, and have a great start of the week!

Make It Count.

I know it doesn't always seem like it, but I am truly grateful for everything that I have.

For my families; the one I was born into and the one I've created for myself.

For the blessing of waking up every morning in our own bed with the love of my life and the most adorable cats anyone could ever ask for.

For the opportunity to live in a house I feel one hundred percent at home in, for the people in my life who refuse to give up on me even when I simply cannot be the friend they deserve.

For the rare chance to work with what I love, and what's even more rare, to be able to cut down on assignments now that my depression makes working nearly impossible.

For all of you who read my blog, write me comments and letters and make me feel so much less lonely.

I have made so many mistakes in my life, but I must have done something right to end up right where I am. Or maybe it's faith, maybe it's luck, maybe I don't deserve any of this. Either way, I'm grateful.

Sure, it's over a month until Thanksgiving, but that doesn't mean you can't still give thanks, right?

Last night, I started thinking about how lucky I am. Our stove has been broken for four days which means we've only had cold food (we don't own a microwave), as well as the heater that hasn't worked in forever - I didn't mind until now, when the outside temperature has dropped and we have to watch tv looking like we're off to a polar expedition any minute.

And still... life is pretty spectacular. I try my best to remember that, even when I eat cold pizza leftovers for dinner wearing a winter coat and woolen socks and I cry for the 10000000034576425645926892046th time about the fact that I can't call my best friend and ask her to come over and watch the latest How I Met Your Mother episode with me. Especially then. Because she's no longer here, but I am. And it's my duty to appreciate it; today, tomorrow and every single day until I finally join her. Otherwise, our time apart will have been all for nothing.

Life's too short for wasting. Let's try to make it count. [Insert carpe diem cliché of your choice here - they're all true.]

It's Giveaway Time - Make your skin glow with Manasi Makeup!

This, my friends, is Manasi Makeup Lyster Creme Bronzer - one of the best makeup products I've ever used. It doesn't only give your skin that subtle yet visible sun-kissed glow, it also smells like the most delicious dessert you could ever imagine! (I raved about how hard it is not to eat it with a spoon here.)

I've used mine instead of blush every time I've put on makeup since I got it in June, partly because of the amazing scent, partly because it looks so much better, younger and more natural than any powder blush.

Bronzed from head to toe for Johanna Vikman S/S12. Photos by Karin Foberg.

The creator of this product is the sensationally skilled make up artist Susanne Persson, with whom I've worked for years, since she's the one who always does the make up and hair for the Johanna Vikman campaign and lookbook shoots. Manasi Makeup is her own cosmetics brand, where she develops products that she finds are missing on the market today.

Susanne in action.

And, well, since I happen to be completely obsessed with my Lyster Creme Bronzer, of course I want you guys to discover it, as well!

For the chance to be the one lucky lady who will receive the bronzer in her mailbox, all you have to do is this:

1. Follow According to Annika via google friend connect or Bloglovin'...
2. ...like According to Annika, Manasi Makeup and the Manasi Makeup Webshop on Facebook...
3. ...and leave me a comment on this post to let me know you've entered! (Don't forget to add your e-mail address so that I can contact you if you win.)

My Monki Wishlist: Colorize It.

Purple knitted tube scarf, "Cameron". Mustard knitted cropped top, "Piccolina". Striped hair bow, "Toki".

Orange sheer shirt, "Lindy". Mustard boots, "Eva". Peach mini skirt, "Marusha".

Navy zipper dress, "Editha". Navy bow print wollen golves, "Bow". Rusty red knitted beret, "Rebecka". Orange 3/4 length pants, "Juliette".

Yeah, yeah. So I got a little crazy with those pretty autumn leaves in Photoshop. It could happen to anyone.

While my fall wardrobe looks a lot more like my first Monki wishlist, this is sort of what I'm aiming for. Bright, vibrant colors, though still from that amazing fall palette - mustard, plum, navy and that gorgeous burnt orange. There's no way I'll turn away from the Dark Side and go all Color Crazy on you, but hopefully I'll be able to incorporate some more colorful elements into my looks this season.

Though I'll have to do it fast - it feels like fall has just barely arrived, and still I know that those sneaky snowflakes will start falling any day now! And in Sweden, winter means a whole different wardrobe, where keeping warm needs to come first. I mean needs to. Putting prettiness first would lead to all of us freezing to death, and there is nothing I'm less keen on than to die young and become a beautiful, fashionable corpse. But with that said, I'm looking forward to the challenge of looking at least semi stylish even with a red nose, covered in six layers of tights! (Yes, I do wear six pairs of tights during the winter months. Might settle for three if I'm wearing thick pants on top.)

Not speaking of colors, but speaking of Monki - today I noticed that there is a new, stunning grey shirt in their webshop, with the most flattering name!

I hope we an all agree on pretending like this was, in fact, named after yours truly. Considering that I walk around most days like a living, breathing billboard for the brand, I think it's only fair that I get to hold on to that sweet, sweet illusion!

Blue Times Two.

For a 20% discount on this dress, or any other LOVE item, enter ANNIKABLOG20 at the checkout! Valid until October 13th.

Blue one-shoulder dress, LOVE. Grey knitted socks, Lindex. Orange suede wedges, Nelly.

(Photos by me.)

I did an awful lot of writing here on the blog yesterday, so I'll try to keep it short today!

I figured this was probably my last chance to wear an outfit as bare as this one before the cold weather arrives - and I took it. I wanted to create a look that smells of summer, sunblock and souvlaki: basically something I'd wear out to dinner while enjoying life on a Greek island.

To get the lip shade I knew I wanted - red, obviously, but with softer and shinier finish than I normally wear - I mixed two colors from Maybelline: I started out with one coat of "Coral Fever", then one coat of "Red Revolution", and topped it off with a touch of my amazing creme bronzer from Manasi Makeup. I usually wear it as blush, but since I wanted that sun-kissed feel, I went all in with the bronzer today - I used it on my lips, cheeks and eyelids, and mixed it with some lotion and applied it onto the collar bones and shoulders.

As you can imagine, I probably wouldn't have worn these knitted socks with the outfit, had I actually been on a Greek island. It was funny, though: I could see that the outfit looked good without the socks, but it just didn't look like me. Something was missing. I tried on the socks with the wedges sort of as a joke, and in an instant the whole look went from, well, a cute outfit, to something I would feel comfortable wearing. That's what I think is so fascinating about personal style, when you find those little things that you can use to make an outfit yours. It can be the tiniest details, and they don't even have to look good, as long as they're right for you! This time, for me, it was a pair of knitted grey socks. Apparently.

Right, keep it short. Okay. I guess I'll just watch the latest Glee episode with my kitties (my little girl absolutely loves music, so Glee is her favorite tv show - she and I really must be related!) and leave you guys to it. By the way, thank you so much for your incredible comments on my last post - I can't believe you took the time to read through all that! You're all wonderful, and you deserve the best weekend possible. You always do.