A Wonderful, Relaxed Family Home In the Heart Of the Beaujolais Wine Country

Sometimes I'm going about my business in Malmö as happy as Larry and then a home tour pops up that knocks me for six and has me dreaming about a total life change! This is one of those days! And once you see the pictures, I have a feeling you might just feel the same. Lysiane Marcel lives in a beautiful 18th century house in the wine-producing region of Beaujolais, France, with her husband Laurent, three children Léonce, Bertil and Colette and their cats and dog. Their home is an inspiring blend of vintage, antique and high street finds (I even spy some IKEA pieces!), giving the space a truly relaxed and personal touch. I briefly caught up with Lysiane, who runs a concept store in Villefranche, to find out a little more about her 'golden' house in the heart of the Pierres Dorées. 

Your house looks magnificent! How old is it and when did you move in?

It is an old vineyard house built in 1752 from pierres dorées, which is the golden stone of our region. We moved in when I was pregnant with Colette three years ago. 

What inspires your interior style?

I follow my heart and allow the house to guide me. 

I can imagine feeling very inspired by a house like this! Was it love at first sight? 

Yes, but we were afraid about all of the space because the house is very large, and we were living in an apartment in Lyon at the time!

Do you plan to decorate the entire house, or will you leave some of the rooms empty?

We plan to create a lot of guest bedrooms for our friends. They are empty during the week, but we often have friends to stay at the weekend. 

What do you love most about your house?

I love the space, the light, the floor and all the little details that come with an old house. 

And finally, do you have any tips for anyone who dreams of owning a similar property? 

It takes a lot of time to find a house like this. We visited 30 properties before we found it! it's all about following your heart, a home must make you feel good. 

What do you reckon, are you ready to enjoy croissants and a café au lit by the pool?! Or perhaps a glass of Beaujolais would be more apt?! 

Check out more of Lysiane's beautiful home over at @une_idee_entete. Lysiane also sells her family's lovely clothes second hand on instagram here. 

I've shown a few other wonderful French country homes (which I still dream about), including:

A relaxed family home in the French countryside

A charming family home in Normandy, France

Before and after: a vintage-inspired family home in Metz, France

Is anyone else feeling truly inspired now for a Monday?!

Have a great start to the week! 

Niki

Photography courtesy of @une_idee_entete, shared with kind permission

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A Charming and Eclectic Family Home in Paris

Tjena! I hope you had a wonderful weekend! I'm feeling all revived after a few days in Le Cinque Terre, Italy with Per (our wedding anniversary gave us the perfect opportunity to go somewhere lovely, sans kids!). And it definitely didn't disappoint - what a beautiful part of the world! Have you been? If not, I can highly recommend it! Anyhow, I'm pretty sure you didn't come here to hear about my mini break and I've got such a charming home tour to share with you today, so let's crack on! This wonderful, relaxed family home in Paris belongs to Eve, who runs the online shop Sweet Party Day,  her husband and their three young children. Eve documents daily life on her delightful instagram feed @Minireyve using a witty and inspiring array of images. The family home represents Eve's passion for DIY, retro decor, and graphics but also provides a haven in which her children can relax and be themselves - in every room! Bienvenue chez Eve!

Sea grass belly basket*, vertigo pendant lamp*, Jungle wall chart / HK Living

A mix of vintage finds, plants and designer pieces add to the lovely, relaxed feel of the home. 

Sofa from Made.com, Cam cam star cushion

Blue cotton throw

Mixer*, Reform kitchen (as before)

Reform kitchen, tiles from Mosaic Factory

Wall decor from Wallmy.com, Rocking sheep

Vintage school desk*

Rainbow rug

Such a charming home! I love all the children's bedrooms and also how the playful touches extend into the living room, it really put a smile on my face. 

Did this home make you feel warm and fuzzy inside too?

If you can spare a moment this morning you must take a peek at Eve's instagram, there are so many quirky touches! You can also browse Eve's blog here. 

Other delightful family homes to enjoy today: 

12 child-friendly ideas to learn from a happy family home in Berlin

Chestnut tones in a family friendly Swedish home

A simple, relaxed family home with Scandinavian touches

Have a wonderful start to the week! See you Wednesday (over the summer holidays I'll be blogging Monday, Wednesday and Fridays to spend a little more time with my family). 

Niki

Photography: Eve / Minireyve shared with kind permission

*affiliate links

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The Genius App Every Parent & Grandparent Needs (25% off!)

Paid partnership with Doodlespot:

Are you a parent / aunt / uncle/ grandparent / someone who just happens to know a child who loves to draw?! My daughters have always loved to paint. In fact, not a day goes by without some kind of creativity. At one point, when Liv was at nursery, she was so prolific, she'd run through the door clasping 10 "masterpieces". As lovely as it is to see, le't face it, it can be hard to know what on earth to do with them all, don't you think?! At worst there might be one line per page but even the beautiful ones are on poor quality paper that's become a little scrunched and ripped in their school bag! 

And then I discovered the app Doodlespot. I'm the first to admit that I'm terrified of anything techy (seriously!) - but this app is GENIUS and sooooo simple! Available (almost) worldwide on Google Play and iTunes, Doodlespot allows you to capture your child's artwork on your phone. You can then have a play around with the design tools and templates before ordering the framed print straight to your door. I asked the crazies to choose their favourite paintings so we could put the app to the test!

LIV

My ten year old daughter chose 'Lazy River' (seen above and below) which she painted in art class a few weeks ago. She went for a classic portrait template with her name and age underneath so it would look super pro (just like her wonderful piece!). I think she's proudly shown the print to every single person who's walked through the door! 

ALLIE

My younger daughter chose a painting she did of our house and was as pleased as punch when it arrived. Even though the painting was drawn in landscape, she chose the 'portrait' format and had a little play around with the colours - and since she's the artist, who am I to disagree?! 

Doodlespot co-founder Stefan Persson tells me: "Our driving force is child creativity. It is all about helping children to explore and experiment, then we enable you to transform their creations into art you can display on your walls. Filling your home with your own child's art is such a beautiful thing."

The girls and I are so pleased, we've already started thinking about which artwork to get done next! It would make such a great present too, don't you think? 

Oh, and another thing - part of the proceeds are donated to 'War Child', a non-profit organisation helping children traumatised by war. Such a worthwhile cause. 

If you'd love to give Doodlespot a try*, make the most of a 25% discount with the code follow25 until 10th June, 2019! 

Niki

PS I think the last time I showed my crazies together in a post was in their room reveal back in 2014 - with the risk of sounding like a great aunt.... haven't they grown?!! 

*This post is a paid partnership with Doodlespot. All words are my own and I only ever work with brands I love and think you will too. 

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Get The Look: A Bohemian Children's Room In Sepia Tones

I was so excited to share the *golden* home of Sarah Shabacon earlier today. But there was one room I held back as it was just to good to throw in all at once! Isaac and Ziggy's den! The shared boy's room is made up of a few carefully selected pieces all of which are fabulous! I mean, who wouldn't love an palm tree lamp?! And it's all in keeping with the muted, golden colour scheme of the home too. Enjoy the tour!

Get the look

Oeuf Perch Bunk Bed*
Ocean Palm Tree Lamp
Midnatt Pebble bed set
Round Pintuck Pillow
Hanging Wall Basket
Braided Water Hyacinth Storage Cube
Rattan Sunburst Mirror

My eye is still on that palm tree lamp, I feel like I need one of these in my life. Maybe in Allie's room, what do you think? I love the warm, natural tones too.

Is there anything that stands out to you?

If you're looking for a little more inspiration, you can always head over to this archive for more   children's room ideas and Sarah's fab instagram account (word of warning - you could be stuck there for a while!). You might also like to check out her shop BOHÈME to hunt for vintage finds for adults, children and the home too. Just saying!

Trevlig kväll! 

Niki

Photography: Sarah Shabacon
Affiliate links marked with *

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Guest post: The Stylish Room of Ninon, 5

Welcome to Ninon's room, a stylish space that embraces childhood, with pretend play sets and colourful details. 

Ninon, lives in Trèves, a little village in the Lyon area. Adeline and Florent, Ninon’s parents, cleverly used recycled pieces, such as repurposed crib mattresses to create reading and napping areas, or wooden crates as toy dividers and storage.

It’s no surprise Ninon’s room breathes style and simplicity. Adeline and Florent chose a slow life in the country side after a stressful city life in Lyon — Florent is an organic farmer, and Adeline is a graphic designer and stylist. The family favors repurposing and recycling the old, over mass-produced items, so Adeline naturally used her eye for design to create a fun and playful space for Ninon, filled with repurposed objects. This room literally makes me want to get back into childhood!

If you like Adeline's style, be sure to follow her on Instagram, as she regularly shares updates of her beautiful home.

Si

A note on the wonderful guest contributor, Siham Mazouz:

Siham Mazouz is a French photographer and blogger. She lives with her husband, their two daughters, and Daisy, the family's Golden Retriever, in San Francisco, CA. 

Siham launched French By Design in 2010, and inspires readers to approach their decor, style and life in general with a modern French flair and a "less house, more home" philosophy. Her work and photography has been featured in Elle Decor, In Style, House Beautiful, Lonny or Travel & Leisure. 

To learn more about Siham, visit her at frenchbydesignblog.com or connect with her on Instagram : @FrenchByDesign.”

Photography Siham Mazouz for How the French Live, Gibbs Smith, 2018

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Before + After: Allie's bedroom make-over

Just as I feel I've got to grips with one stage of my younger daughter's life she suddenly shifts a gear and moves into an entirely new phase! It's Allie's 8th birthday today (happy birthday wonderful girl!), I'm really not sure where the time has gone (this was her at Christmas two years ago)! She suddenly feels so grown-up! Allie's been wanting to update her bedroom for a while now as she's grown tired of her bunk bed and outgrown many of her toys. So, over the past few months we stripped it bear and donated old toys to charity and started all over again. I know I've shared a few snippets on here over the past few weeks, but I thought it'd be fun to run through the complete make-over from start to finish. I hope you enjoy the tour!

Before

The last time we decorated her bedroom was in collaboration with Genevieve Jorn in 2014 - and I still think it has a fresh, vibrant look. Allie had simply grown out of it and wanted something a little calmer and more mature. Gen also gave her fabulous interior design guidance on her new room too.

During

Allie was the cat that got the cream when she got to paint some of the lower sections of the wall (heavily supervised by the ever-concerned man!). We used Jotun Lady 1059 - Complexion on three of the walls (seen here to the left) and Minty Breeze 7163 on the back wall - seen to the right (both kindly gifted by Jotun). Complexion has a subtle pinkish tone to it which was unexpected but creates a lovely, soft feeling the room.

After

The room only came together once the rug and Industriell pendant lamp were in place. It's amazing how that can happen. At night, the lamp fills the room with the warmest light and pretty shadows dance on the ceiling. 

The rug* was handmade by Etsy shop So' Homeso*. it's really soft and made from 100% recycled cotton and fringes of linen. The one thing I haven't done yet is buy an underlay to stop it slipping around. I always forget this but they're so important for a clean finish (and safety!). We've had the wooden blocks for as long as I can remember - they're so simple yet so popular!

I picked up the row of hooks (two combined) from local Malmö shop Geijersgatan 53 (these ash hooks are similar)- I think I've pretty much installed a row of these in every room of the house now! Here is the same set in my  kitchen! The pretty jumper* is from Danish brand Molo this season.

A collaboration with Montana came at the perfect time to swap out the large bunk bed for a single bed and make place for open shelving (Montana Free System Shelving in New White with two Rust panels). I can promise you now, they're not going to stay this tidy! Allie has had the Apple Papple print by Fine Little Day your years - she tells him all her secrets - apparently, he's a great listener!

Allie's always drawing, writing and cutting things out - and now she can pin them onto a cork board - as well as write messages on her pegboard (both from Granit). I was kind of hoping she'd write reminders like 'remember PE kit' - but it looks like that's not gonna happen! 

I can't tell you how many paper fortune tellers the girls make - they're all over the house!

 Allie can't go more than 5 metres without doing a cartwheel. She loves gymnastics! This set of wooden gymnastic rings from Lillagunga were a special request and have been such a hit!

Another hit, is her new rattan bed.  It was originally a daybed (from Nordal), so we added a 105 cm mattress to make it comfy enough to sleep on. In case you missed it, I wrote a post about it here. 

The bed is made with Hanako duvet cover and pillow case from Camomile London. The white linen curtains were made to order by Not Perfect Linen* - I always buy my curtains from them since they are high quality and beautifully made.

And finally, a little place for Allie to sit and write etc (I have to confess she rarely sits at her desk - often preferring the floor instead, but still, I thought she might need it one day!). I was so excited to find the secondhand chair at AB Småland in town. I've seen a load of similar ones here*.

 In case it's been difficult to keep tabs on what's what - here's a quick round-up of the items:

The kit!

From top left: Jotun Lady 1059 - Complexion / Minty Breeze 7163 
/ rust panels from Montana Free System Shelving / green clamp light (Granit) / cork board / pegboard / gymnastic rings / hanako duvet cover & pillow case / Ypperlig mirror (IKEA) /  ash hooks / rattan daybed / rug*

I hope you like Allie's new room as much as my daughter does!

If you're wondering about anything, just give me a shout in the comment section below and I'd be happy to help!

Right, better run. the sun is shining and we've got a birthday to celebrate :)

Have a fabulous weekend!

Vi ses på måndag!

Niki

A special thank you to all the amazing brands that made this bedroom make-over possible and made one little girl super happy! 

Affiliate links marked with *

Photography: Niki Brantmark - My Scandinavian Home. Interior design: Genevieve Jorn. 

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