My daughter, Anna, eats, sleeps, breathes, devours, obsesses, demands, wants and needs FASHION.  I see the spirits of her Swedish female ancestors carrying on through her.

My great grandmother, Brita Bergström, was obsessed with the latest fashion trends of her time but having 12 children and little money she had to improvise.   Brita would look in store windows, memorize the style and material, head home and weave the textiles on her large loom and sew the clothing for her kids.  The children were always stylish and were the only kids in their school to have gym strips.

My grandmother, Stina Bergström (Orwald), read Vogue religiously and was reknowned in her small home town of Hudiksvall for her beauty, style and humble personality.  Anna’s over-the-top personality likens my great Aunt, Helga Bergström, who was fiercely independent and outspoken.   She never married and loved every minute of her single fiesty life!

My mother, Karin Orwald (Thorsen), Anna’s grandmother AKA “Mormor,” was ALWAYS stylish and so clean and fresh, with a lovely air of Estée Lauder floating around her.  She taught Anna the importance of the crisp white shirt and the essential accessory- the shoulder pad.

Anna’s blog: I NEED A SOCIAL LIFE