Hygge and Pops of Colour in a Danish home

Hello! I hope you had a fabulous weekend?! The sun's still shining here in Sweden and the dulcet tones of Hanna Järver (thank you for the tip Karolina Modig!) are drifting over from the speakers on the other side of my office! I have a feeling this is going to be a good week, don't you? I thought we'd kick off with the lovely Danish villa of Louise, the creative blogger behind Mor till Mernee, her partner and two children Merle and Neel in Jutland. Welcome to a vibrant family home, filled with interesting art, mid-century classics, wall colours that change according to the season and an all round warm, happy vibe!

In the sitting room Louise has opted for a nougat colour. It's a unique blend that looks a little like a lighter, warmer version of the LADY Pure Color 10961 Raw Canvas. I think the pale pink, red and nougat make a pretty, warm combination, don't you?

Nothing says hygge like a sleeping cat! Don't have a cat?! You can get the vibes from Purrli (I had the sound on for five minutes and kept thinking a feline friend was about to bat my pen - not as relaxing as anticipated!).

The lovely AKARI 3AD light sculpture lamp looks great with the coloured art work on the wall which includes HAND / Paw with golden nails and V. Lundstrom - Opstilling med Kander.

One of the tricks with using colour is balance. Here, Louise has complimented the aforementioned print with a pink junior vernon panton chair.

The dining area is all about the classics. I spy the VP Globe suspension light, wishbone chair and a bright coloured Eames.

A vintage Moroccan rug (source similar here) pops against the white floor and dark grey IKEA kitchen cabinets. I'm loving all the higgledy piggledy crockery on the open shelves too!

A print by Kristine Hellesoe, cushions by Eline Engen (who's home I once featured here) and a restartmilano wall light make a pretty combination in the corner of the sitting room.

The pink wall colour is carried up the stairwell to the upper floor where Merle and Neel sleep.

Merle and Neel's bedrooms are full of vibrant colours and playful details including a Miffy night light and a pair of Series 7 chairs.

All photography © Louise / Mor till Mernee

Oj oj oj. What a fabulous home. So unique, warm and inviting!

Is there anything that stands out to you?

I particularly loved all the items that add pops of colour. I kind of listed some of the pieces as I went along, but to make things a easier, here's a round-up:

Get The Look from Louise's home

1. Eames Molded Fiberglass 4-Leg Side Chair
2. Uden titel
3. Paw with golden nails
4. FLOS IC Lights S Pendant
5. Vintage cushion cover
6. AKARI 3AD LIGHT SCULPTURE
7. VP Globe Suspension Lamp
8. Panton Junior Verner Panton, 1954 Pale pink

If you'd like to see more of Louise's home, there's plenty of inspiration on her lovely blog and instagram here.

And for more Danish home inspiration I'm loving this charming Danish home on a shoestring budget, the cool Copenhagen home of a typographer and a relaxed, mid-century inspired home. 

Have a dejlig start to the week! 

Niki

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Lovely Christmas Touches In A Calm Berlin Home

Friday friends, FRIDAY! And it's a special one in Sweden today: as we're celebrating Lucia. Alongside midsummer, the Lucia celebrations is one of my favourite. In case you're not familiar with the concept, Lucia is an ancient mythical figure and a bearer of light in the dark Swedish winters. This morning parents across the country (myself included) waited in the dark, cameras at the ready, while our children participated in a special Lucia procession - wearing candles in their hair (gingerbread men, 'tomten' (Father Christmas) and other characters were also involved!). It's a sight to behold! White must be on my mind - as I was immediately drawn to Katharina's beautiful home in Berlin, Germany this morning. Katharina sells beautiful homeware pieces through her online shop Edel Weiss. Many of the pieces she sells can be spotted in her home, and jostle for position with a fab array of  Scandinavian design lamps and cultural objects. Look out for the pretty festive touches too! Enjoy the tour! 

Print from wall of art, IKEA Nockeby sofa with a Bemz Belgian linen cover in soft white*. Z1 lamp, Cuba chair

"This year I have decorated a lot with paper stars and natural materials. There are also candles and small lights everywhere."

Woodland trees from Arboretum

Stoff nagel candleholder, Louis Poulsen table lamp*

Eve II limestone sculpture, Kizu table lamp, try the 'Snö' candle by Skandinavisk - smells divine! (20% off with code nikijul20 until 16th December too). 

"This year, our tree will be decorated with white Christmas baubles and pendants made of paper." 

Thonet chair*, candleholder

Vertigo pendant light, AJ Lamp*

What a beautiful apartment! 

I love the wooden trees - I've just been over at the Arboretum site, they sell such a great selection too (got my eye on the forest!). 

Is there anything that stood out to you about Katharina's home?

If you live in Germany, check out Katharina's shop, it's full of beautiful pieces! 

Right folks. That's it from me for the week! If you're looking for Christmas inspiration over the weekend, have a delve through the Christmas and Christmas decorations archives. 

I'm heading to London today to see my sisters and parents - ALL BY MYSELF! Luxury! 

I hope you have a fabulous weekend! 

Niki 

PS If you want to give someone the gift of a home that smells like a Scandinavian Christmas, don't forget to make the most of the 20% discount on seasonal candles from Skandinavisk with code nikijul20.

Photography by Katharina and shared with kind permission

*Affiliate links

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The modern monochrome Stockholm space

Hello! How are you today?! I have to say, I've really taken to working from home. After 12 years of working in an office, there's a lot to be said for sitting at my laptop in chunky knit socks and messy undone hair! Of course, working from home depends very much on the environment. For example, imagine working from home in this apartment of Swedish photographer Jakob Nylund (previously shown here) over looking the rooftops of Södermalm, Stockholm? Calm, personal, monochrome (love the black floor, how about you?) with industrial and vintage touches, not to mention the roaring log fire. I could feel inspired here, could you?!

Fastighetsmaklarna

The apartment is currently for sale here). Hurry! 

Fab ideas to steal - vintage crate as bedside table, anglepoise style wall lights, string shelving, Eames House Bird,  Eames DSW chair, copper pendant lights. Smeg fridge.

Anything that stands out to you?

More black and white home inspiration include one of favourite apartments of all time owned by a creative duo, this fab Helsinki home starring a very cute baby and the cool home of Annie Lindgren.

There's always this office inspiration for anyone who feels like they need to pep up their work space, or this studio for something bright and fabulous.

It's nearly the weekend - woohoo! Any great plans? This one is particularly exciting as I've teamed up with Nest.co.uk, a fab modern design store, to hold a very exciting weekend give-away. Watch this space!

Have a wonderful day!

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The fab industrial style atelier of a creative

Good morning! I do love the middle of the week, although I've got so much to left to do before the weekend. How about you?! Speaking of graft, I'm often thinking about how important my work environment is.  I'd absolutely love to sit in an uber cool creative studio.  This industrial style studio bathed in light, belongs to Sara Bergman, children's book illustrator and creative force behind online shop and interior styling company Love Warriors in Stockholm. Exposed brick work,  vintage industrial finds, concrete flooring and rustic wood  combine to make up a space a space in which Sara can create.  

Sara N Bergman of Love Warriors. Residence magazine. Photographer: Kristofer Johnsson. Post inspired by Coco Lapine with thanks. 

Could you work here? I most definitely could! What a space?

Interestingly while the space is teeming with vintage finds, the desk space is made up of a few pieces from IKEA including the ALEX draw unit and FORSÅ desk light (which I also have in my home office). Etsy is one of my favourite sources for vintage industrial lighting (it's where I found my treasured scissor light). For pendant lights I like the black E27 suspension light from Muuto.

For more studio / office space inspiration I'm loving this, this and this one. Or if you have a small home office I love this work space of a Finnish blogger.

Before I shoot off I also wanted to introduce you to ReStyle Shop on Etsy. If you love Scandinavian mid-century or geometric prints you'll love this online shop selling art created by Czech Republic graphic designer Jan Skácelik. I especially love this one and this one.

I think it's definitely time for some Christmas inspiration tomorrow don't you? Pop back for some very cool Scandinavian inspired festive decorating ideas! See you then!

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A Light Filled Family Home in Berlin with a Nordic Touch

During the Easter school holidays, my daughters and I are heading to Berlin, Germany for a couple of days. It's somewhere I've been saving up for as I've always wanted to take them, it's an amazing city and only 6 hours drive from Malmö! While doing a little research for things to see and do (any tips would be wonderful!), I veered off course (as always), and ended up stumbling across the Berlin home of Judith Schenk - which I had to share it with you guys! 

Judith describes her home as 'Nordic minimalism meets Berlin Altbau' - and the light-filled family apartment is made up of sleek finishes, Scandinavian design, plants and art. Read on to see more pictures and find out about some of the touches Judith has decided on. 

The kitchen is made up of IKEA cabinets with Reform CPH fronts. The countertop is a solid Corian surface. 

The lights are Flowerpot pendants in white.

'Case Study House #10' by Stephanie Kloss hangs over the dining table. A Gubi semi pendant hangs over the table. 

The Model 2065 pendant light by Gino Sarfatti makes a statement in the sitting room. The sofa is from Bolia. 

The plant-filled sun room is bathed in light - a perfect cure for the winter blues (have the leaves come out on the trees where you live yet? Here in Malmö, it's still just twigs - gaaaah!). A desert lounge chair can be glimpsed in the corner. 

Double doors in the living room lead through to the lovely children's room. 

A sofa by Karup Design pulls out into a double bed in the spare room. 

Look at all those beautiful trees - *sigh*, there's nothing like a green view! 

The serene bathroom reminds me a lot of the tones / look I have used in our little cabin bathroom - including brushed / antique brass. The tap is from Grohe. 

The master bedroom is the epitome of calm with walls painted in Portlandstone Pale by Little Greene. Judith has used this shade throughout her apartment: "As we have a super open layout in our flat, this was my approach. Also the paint is so highly pigmented that it always appears different depending on the light and daytime," she says. 

Judith has hung three prints over the bed, including Bleu by Lucrecia Rey Caro*. Arum lights an be seen either side of the bed. 

Absolutely love this home. All the windows certainly help but also Judith has made everything look so effortless and struck the perfect balance between pared-back and personal. 

Did you feel inspired by this tour too? 

See more of Judith's apartment and follow her latest projects over at @kavalierchen. 

Now I'm in Berlin mode, here are a few other tours from the German city: 

A lovely relaxed artist's home full of plants (don't miss this one!)

A bohemian touch in a magnificent Berlin apartment (another favourite!)

The Berlin flat and country home of Nora and Laura

A serene family home in Berlin

And of course, if you're looking for more inspiration this weekend, make sure you look back t the tours I've shared this week, including a Gotland country home (I loved all the discussions about the tiny bath!) and a Stockholm flat worthy of an interior magazine feature - which is currently for sale! 

Have a fabulous weekend friends! 

Niki

Photography courtesy of Judith Schenk, shared with kind permission

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