We finally caught up with Laurie Theurer, author of Swisstory, to find out more and host a competition to win a copy! This new book is an entertaining illustrated history of Switzerland for all ages 9 to 99.
What prompted you to do this book?
I first approached Richard Harvell at Bergli Books with the idea for a game about Switzerland. We met to discuss the possibilities and it became fairly quickly apparent that my talents did not lie in game design, but rather in researching and writing about history. After a few tries and invaluable input from Richard, we found the heart of this book together.
What is Swisstory about?
When most people think of Switzerland, images of chocolates, cheese, Heidi, William Tell, banks, and yodelers come to mind. There are volumes and volumes of books that detail the horrors of European history in general, but Switzerland – even though it’s in the center of Europe – is not typically included in those horrific tales. In truth, Swiss history is just as bloody as the rest of Europe… and in some cases even bloodier. Swisstory: The Untold, Bloody, and Absolutely Real History of Switzerland is about just that. History is brutal… and Swiss history is no exception.
What was the biggest obstacle you came across when choosing or writing the book?
I think the biggest obstacle was in finding out what exactly this book wanted to be. Richard Harvell and I discussed multiple ideas that I could pursue, as well as a myriad of voices that could tell the story we wanted to tell. I sent many, many, many drafts to Richard and reviewed his notes until we finally found the right formula. Only then could I set about producing the twenty chapters that make up the book
When some people have been complaining about how they will get their groceries and products, one of our readers has been very active in compiling a very useful list to share! Thanks to Josana Mendes for putting this together and forwarding on to knowitall.ch. Josana wrote, "I'm gathering delivery websites around Switzerland mainly from small producers to try to help business that might suffer in the near future. There are way more options beyond Coop and Migros. Please check the updated list so far and don't hesitate to copy to share with others."
Farmy.ch (delivery all over Switzerland of local producers) and I have a Fr. 20 voucher for anyone doing their first shopping
www.farmy.ch/invite/josana652?nzp&locale=fr-CH
Ugly Fruits, also delivery all over Switzerland of local producers
https://uglyfruits.ch/en/uglyfruits
Organic food delivery in Switzerland
www.mahlerundco.ch
Vaud: culti-shop.ch
www.culti-shop.ch
Vevey: Delicatessen that is offering delivery
www.ratatouille.ch
Valais: Fraîcheur de votre jardin
www.fraicheurdevotrejardin.ch
Neuchâtel: Label Bleu
https://labelbleu.ch/fr/neuchatel
Jura-Nord Vaudois
www.lespaniersdelaferme.ch
Special discount for knowitall.ch clients available until end of 20 November 2019!
About 6 years ago, knowitall.ch featured an article about PikPerfect... they have come a long way since then! This easy-to-use website, which enables you to produce your own, professional-looking photobook is still going strong. We caught up with Rushad Vevaina to see how the company has evolved.
Why did you start PikPerfect Photo Books?
With the onset of the digital camera, and now smartphones, we often take thousands of photos every year, most of which just end up sitting on our device. Or if we're good about it, backed up safely in the cloud. Having a well-curated annual family album or a photobook of your last vacation is a more enjoyable way to relive these memories and share them with friends and family.
Sorting through thousands of photos is often a daunting task, so that's the first hurdle. Once you get this done, not everyone has the time or patience to spend hours trying to design them into a photobook. We had exactly the same problem - juggling work and kids left us with little spare time so we never got down to making many photobooks. We started PikPerfect Photo Books to address this problem, we now help thousands of working professionals and busy parents preserve their memories for the years to come.
The new stamps from the Swiss Post Office were released a few weeks ago. It is so exciting to see what they have come up with. We love the new beer ones shown above. What fun it would be to use for a party invitation! It doesn't cost anything to order stamps via the website as you pay the face value and postage is free!
When ordering, make sure you choose the ones that say: non oblitéré. Otherwise, you will receive stamps that have the postmark on the day of issue. Some stamps are offered as "autocollant" for peel-off stickers; or "gommé" for the kind you need to moisten.
Would you like to learn more about the art of brewing beer? Then take part in the Post Office's competition to possibly win 2 tickets for a guided beer tour in Bern on 20 November 2019 or a sheet of “The art of brewing” stamps worth Fr. 8.-! Deadline is 31 October 2019 so hurry and click on this direct link to the entry page in English.
Here is another new set that is beautiful and could be used for a wedding invitation.
Super prize to be won! Read on.
On a recent smartphone photography workshop held at the Château de Vullierens, given by Elisabeth Fransdonk from EMO-Photo, we met up with a new entrepreneur, Maxime Eymin. We are very enthusiastic about his high-quality lenses for portable phones, branded SMART EVASION, that we wanted to share it with our readers. As a thank you for this article, Maxime has kindly offered a super prize: a phone case and lens pack - a Fr. 108.- to Fr. 128.- value!
Maxime, what is your photographic specialty?
I specialize in landscape photography. I love nature. This is also why I love so much Switzerland. I travelled quite a lot and saw so many other amazing places.
Our planet is just amazing! But it unfortunately suffers a lot because of human kind. Our goal is also to positively impact our environment. This is the reason why we want to offer quality and durable products. We don’t want products people won’t use or that they will throw away each time they change mobile phone. We are also careful to our footprint when importing our products. We limit the usage of plastic to the maximum. We haven’t chosen yet the association we will be supporting but it is important for us to give back some of our benefits to associations who are working at protecting our planet. Our products destinated to EU countries are shipped from Ensovo warehouse, based in north of France. We decided to be working with them because they help young entrepreneurs to start their own business, and they also employ people in reinsertion into the workforce. Their company has a positive social impact. We are happy to contribute to their vision and mission by choosing them as our partner.
