Step Inside Franziska's Home - With Flowers Around Every Corner!

 

Hey there campers. How are you today? Hang on in there friends! And if you're a care worker (or other key worker) reading this after your shift (I know there are quite a few of you) - thank you from the bottom of our hearts, we think you're amazing. Ready for a dose of beautiful interior inspiration? Today it comes in the form of Franziska's home in a small village in South West Germany which she shares with her husband and three sons. There are many things to love about Franziska's home (check out the eclectic chairs, Scandi touches, earthy tones and beautiful light for starters!) - but what really stood out to me were the flowers. Look closely and you'll spot a bloom in every single room except the hallway (but something else will make you smile in that space!). I asked Franziska to tell us why in-season flowers are so important to her, particularly in these times. Enjoy the tour!  

"I love playing with flowers and their colours. It's pretty amazing how they can affect an interior. I love it when our home is decorated with seasonal flowers. I particularly like to decorate our table with flowers because I try to make every single dinner a special one for our boys."

"Flowers affect our senses in different ways. I hope that one day my boys can look back and cherish their childhood memories. Maybe they will remember the smell of flowers from our home. The essence of flowers are an excellent tool to connect myself with my inner child."

"In this difficult and crazy time, we are all living in right now, our home is literally our castle. There is nothing more important than a good and safe home."

Simply lovely! 

If you check out Franziska's instagram feed, you'll discover that the display above her bed is continuously changing. Such a lovely sight to wake up to each day, don't you think?  

Do you have a flower 'routine' - or perhaps you have a wonderful garden from which you can bring in all kinds of blooms? I'd love to hear about your favourite flowers! 

Every Friday I go out and buy a beautiful bunch of flowers for our table. This week it's made up of lilacs and peonies and it smells so wonderful. They really lift my day! Now I'm thinking I might just try to put flowers all over my house this weekend. Nothing complicated - maybe a single peony here and a branch of blossom there.  Thank you for the inspiration Franziska! 

Got a little more time today? 

Check out the subtle flowers and plants in this Norwegian home in summer time and 5 beautifully lagom ways to bring a spring feel to your home. 

Stor kram! 

Niki

Photography: Franziska / @_wohnblock_ shared with kind permission. 

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Before and After: A Dated House Becomes a Fresh Mid-Century Modern Home

I think it's time for an awe-inspiring 'before and after', don't you? It's the only way to truly understand what can be achieved with a little (OK a ton) of vision and hard graft! Even if your home is just the way you want it, an incredible reveal is a pure joy to ogle at. In the case of this beautiful house in Ottewell, Canada, it took the masterful eye of interior designer Kristina Lynne to transform an outdated, stuffy living space into a light and airy mid-century modern home. Let me talk you through it. I hope you feel as mesmerised by the transformation as I am!

Kitchen before

Kitchen after

Kristina opened the kitchen out and used high end warm wood cabinet fronts from Kitch on IKEA units. This is a trick I've grown to love. Using IKEA basics helps to keep the price point down while adding high end pieces where it counts (cabinet doors, worktops, taps etc) will evoke a unique, high end look and increase your enjoyment of your new space!  

I also really like the concrete countertops which add an industrial touch while a textured honeycomb backsplash and open white shelves keep the style fresh and relaxed. Lovely! 

Sitting room before 
If it weren't for the wall-to-wall shag carpet (I mean, seriously, that had to go, right?!) the before is pretty cool in a whisky swigging, mad-men-esque kind of way. But wait until you see the 'after' and you'll quickly decide, like I did that light and bright is the way to go!

Sitting room after

At a first glance I wondered if Kristina had raised the height of the ceiling to reveal beams - and then I realised that actually it's just the effect of the white paint! Painting the beams in a contrasting colour also helps to bring this wonderful feature to life - they were completely lost before!  

One of the biggest changes was blocking off the second door - which served no purpose, making space for useful built-in shelving and a reading corner! The whole room was also given a fresh white update which helps to capitalise on the light pouring in from the panoramic window. Love it! 

An Eames lounge chair* , but of course - what better piece to use in a reading corner and help create a mid-century modern vibe? The only problem is, you could get stuck there for hours! 

Bedroom before

Bedroom after
I am so glad that I was not the one to have to scrape all that stuff off the ceiling. I've done something similar in a previous flat and to say it was unpleasant job is an understatement! But whoever put the hard graft in to even out the walls and white wash them has done a sterling job!

 Bathroom before

Bathroom after
Moving the loo to the side of the room to create room for a shower was key to the success of this space. It's even making me wonder if we should do away with our bath upstairs and put in a lovely shower like this instead. I wonder if I'd miss the bath? Do you enjoy baths?

A huge amount of work also went into tiling the space, re-plumbing it, laying a new floor, as well as fitting a new bathroom cabinet.

Entrance before

Entrance after

Kristina ditched the small closets, red carpet and linoleum floor in favour of hand cubbies, a great bench / coat hook area and tiled floors. The result is a fresh and clutter free hallway. 

What an incredible transformation! Great work Kristina! 

I'm going to look at the Malmö house market in an entirely new way from now on! 

What did you think off this renovation? 

You can see more of Kristine's projects (as well as some really inspiring 'before and after reveals' here). 

If you love a before and after as much as I do, check out this archive (there are some incredibly talented people out there!). 

Have a lovely, sunny day friends. Stay safe, stay well. 

Niki

Photography courtesy of Kristina Lynne, shared with kind permission

*affiliate links

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A Dreamy Hidden Gem In Menorca, Spain

This summer we planned to visit my sister and nieces who live on the island of Mallorca, Spain - who knows, maybe we'll make it later on in the year, I really hope so. But for now, I'll allow this beautiful Menorcan finca to whisk us away to the sunny climes of the wonderful Balearic Islands instead - come and join me! Let's dream of days by that pool with friends and family, casually trailing a hand through the cool water while we sip on a granizado. And when the midday sun starts to scorch - a cool, calm interior awaits for that all-important siesta! Ready to visit the hill top 19th century Es Bec d'Aguila? Let's go! 

 

Gaaaah, so lovely! 

I've never been to Menorca, even though it's not that far from Mallorca, but I've heard that it's a rugged, beautiful island and it's high on my list. Have you been?

If you plan on going, maybe this finca is one to squirrel away in the holiday file? You can find all the details here. 

Shall we pour ourselves another granizado and do a little more holiday dreaming today? Don your sunhat, and enjoy these beautiful places that await. After all, this too shall pass.  

A bohemian style hideaway in the desert

A rustic summer cottage on the swedish island of Gotland

Loll about at The Chalet, Byron Bay

Not too keen on the heat? How about this cool, Icelandic hideaway on the coast? 

Sending lots of love to family and friends in Spain today, we're all thinking of you.  

Niki

Photography courtesy of Es Bec d'Aguila - found via Style Files with thanks. 

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A Cosy Boho Living Space With a Drop Of Golden Sun!

Hejsan! A drop of golden sun goes a long way to raise the spirits right now, don't you think? I stumbled across these lovely pictures captured for the Maison du Monde Spring Summer 2020 Tuscany Collection and could feel the warmth oozing from my screen, I knew I had too share them with you! The beautiful spaces have been furnished with a relaxed, boho blend of rich textures in earthy tones of ochre, burnt umber, rust, and sunset yellow - and are bathed in warm pools of sunlight! Pull up a chair amica, it's time to get toasty and dream of summer days alfresco! 

 

Can you practically feel the sunlight on your face?!

I love the sitting room in particular - I could totally get cosy there and wile away an entire afternoon (or two, or three) there, how about you?!

Did anything stand out to you?

I was going to show you a really colourful Danish home today but the post has got slightly held up - bear with me, I promise it will be well worth the wait later on in the week. Feeling excited about it already!

Have a lovely, sunny day friends!

Niki

Photos from Maison Du Monde / found via Planete Deco with thanks

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