Sedsel's Serene Oasis In The Heart of Copenhagen

Tjena! I hope you had a wonderful weekend! The weather broke here after weeks and weeks of sunshine which was a real blessing in disguise as it meant we finally got around to doing a few things at home - phew! I promise to share our bedroom make-over soon! In the meantime, across the Öresund strait, Sedsel Roug and her family have just returned to their apartment in Copenhagen after a few weeks in the Danish countryside. You might recognise her serene apartment from a feature in 2019 - when it was a sea of light green. Today, the flat has been undergone an off-white transformation resulting in a calm oasis in the heart of the city. I caught up with Sedsel (who I've had the pleasure of meeting before), to find out more about the colour palette, how to work with contrast, shapes and scale to add interest - and her passion for all things vintage. 

Can you tell us more about your apartment and why you fell in love with it?

The building was built in 1863 and is located next to eat French street Værnedamsvej in Frederiksberg, where you can find lots of cosy shops and cafes. I lived in Brussels and New York and just fell in love with the international vibe of the neighbourhood. 

Since I last featured your home, the colour palette has changed from sea green to a serene off-white. What was the thought behind this? 

I felt the need to create a calmness and wanted the art and vintage finds to stand out. So, I recently repainted the entire apartment in the same colour: 4311 from Flügger. 

Speaking of which, I absolutely love that your home is full of interesting pieces. Can you tell us more about your decorating ethos?

When it comes to decor, I always love an eclectic mix of vintage and found objects, which are collected over time and tell stories of their past. Decorating a home should be like a book - where you enjoy the journey rather than the end. 

What are the important elements to you, when decorating a home? 

I love working with scale, shape and placement. Decorating a home is a feeling and an intuition. I seek intrigue and curiosity with every element I add. I also love working with contrast - using a calm wall colour and then placing art and ceramics in dark colours in front. Somehow, the contrast creates thyme balance I am constantly searching for. 

Do you like to follow the latest trends? 

My home doesn't reflect a certain trend or style - it's a mix of things that move with me and items that tell a story. It's this blend that magically creates an interesting balance and calmness. 

Do you have a favourite piece of furniture? 

I have a big passion for wooden vintage objects. The little eight stool in the shape of an 'eight' (see above) is a big favourite (I found it on Etsy). Wood only becomes more beautiful with time. it brings so much warmth and tranquillity to a room. One should never be afraid of mixing different wood. 

What do you love most about your home?

Our home tells a story and I love to embrace the very fact that our table has stains from glasses, or that our floors are worn from our children running around. I guess I search the beauty in imperfection. Life isn't perfect and stains and patina don't ruin your living space but show someone is living here. 

Beautiful, and so inspiring, don't you think?

I love her quote: ''Decorating a home should be like a book - where you enjoy the journey rather than the end". This is exactly how I feel about my own home. It will never be 'finished'. 

Is there anything that stood out to you about Sedsel's home and / or words? 

You can see more snapshots of her living space over on her beautiful instagram @sedselroug. 

Fancy peeking inside a few other Copenhagen homes to kick off the week in style? here are a few of my favourites:

A cosy Copenhagen apartment full of vintage finds and plants

A wonderful Copenhagen apartment full of soul

A Copenhagen family home brimming with books and design treasures

Have a great start to the week!

Niki

PS I'm still on summertime over here (despite the not very summery weather!) and posting Monday, Wednesday and Friday until a return to my daily posts once the girls are back at school. Thank you for your patience! 

Photography: Sidsel Roug, shared with kind permission. 

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Travel Diaries: Design Hotel Villa Copenhagen

Unpaid Press trip*: 

Living a short hop over the famous Öresund bridge from the Danish capital city, I'm used to day trips to Copenhagen - but staying the night is something of a major luxury! Especially when it involves a design hotel (you know me!). Housed in the century-old former Danish post and telegraph office, the magnificent Villa Copenhagen is a short hop from the central station - making it easily accessible from the airport - and wait for it, Malmö! Hooray! When Per and I were invited to visit on a press trip a while back, we had grand plans for the weekend, but once inside the lobby, these quickly fell by the wayside in favour of seem R&R. Think incredible architecture, drool worthy interior design and a rooftop lap pool (warmed with the excess heat from the hotel's cooling system). Read on to discover more about our stay at Denmark's latest 'conscious luxury' design hotel - maybe you'll be the next to visit?

Step inside the hotel and the frenetic sounds of the city fall away as you're transported into another world. Designed by Danish archive Eva Harlou, the former courtyard, has been transformed into a lobby under a magnificent glass dome, and serves as a reception (although there is also an option to check-in remotely which comes in handy in the current climate) and a gathering place for tourists and Danes alike. A perfect setting from which to start my stay - and await Per with a glass of Prosecco!

Unless travelling alone, I'm a little sceptical about eating in hotel restaurants - mainly because I feel I should be out discovering one of the city's many haunts. But KONTRAST, the in-house brasserie has a street entrance, giving the feel of an independent restaurant. Plus, executive chef Tore Gustafsson and his team have pulled out all the stops. The dishes take inspiration from the southern gastronomic world of Europe and North Africa and made using local ingredients (including some from the hotel's own hidden garden). True to Danish stye, the presentation, explosion of flavours and wine selection of our taster menu were absolutely impeccable - as was the 'masked' service! 

It also helped that the setting was beautiful too - combining the historic decadence of the building with the rawness of nearby neighbourhood of Vesterbro.

The interior design has been a strong talking-point since the hotel opened on 1st July, 2020 - not least because of the fabulous and sustainable Earth Suite - so I was falling over myself to get to our room (nothing to do with the Prosecco, I promise!). 

The hotel had appointed several design and architecture firms to ensure that the interior design matched the magnificent grandeur of the Neo-baroque facade. With 390 rooms to decorate, I can imagine this was no easy feat, but it quickly became clear to me, they had achieved that and more!  

With views out over Tivoli Gardens, we may have been in the heart of a vibrant city, but our room was a picture of calm and serenity - and somewhere I could imagine actually living! It was beautiful. 

The rooms are blessed with high ceilings, herringbone floors and a calming muted colour scheme. Danish decadence at its finest! 

For the design, interior design firm Universal Design Studio took inspiration from grand Copenhagen residences and the work of Danish painter Vilhelm Hammershøi to create spaces that combine the past and the present. Natural materials, custom-designed furniture, smooth marble surfaces and touches of brass help to bring the rooms to life - and sent my design heart a flutter! 

After a trip to the hotel lap pool and a stint in the sauna, we returned to the room to find the bathroom stocked with hand soap, hand moisturiser and shampoo and conditioner from the SKOG - calm of the boreal forest - collection by Skandinavisk. Per was especially happy - it's been his favourite ever since our weekend at a friend's cabin in the woods. And he's not even the preening type! 

We woke up - incredibly well rested - to a sunny Autumn morning in Copenhagen and after enjoying the hotel breakfast (who doesn't love an omelette bar and a strong danish coffee? - But if a buffet breakfast isn't your thing, I noticed the hotel also has a wonderful in-house bakery) we headed out for a wander through the streets of the Danish capital before making our way back to Malmö by train. 

All-in-all, a heavenly stay in Copenhagen! 

If you could also use a little 'conscious luxury' and like the idea of surrounding yourself with fabulous Danish design - Villa Copenhagen is waiting for you! 

Definitely one for the travel files, for when we're free to roam again. 

Oh, and if you feel like splashing out, everyone is talking about the Suites. Next time, perhaps! 

Niki

All photographs by me except the first one which is by Stine Christiansen

*Disclosure: Villa Copenhagen covered our hotel expenses as part of a press trip, however I was not paid to write this piece and was under no obligation to feature the hotel on any of my channels. As always, I only ever write about interiors I love and think you will too. 

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