A beautiful family home in The Hague

You may recognise this beautiful Dutch apartment from a post last April. It's the home of Saar Manche and her family, this time used as a muse for Over the Ocean - a store highlighting the best of European design with a handpicked selection of children's clothing, toys, and home goods.  Over the Ocean is inspired by 'creative mothers living in different European metropolises and reflecting the authentic style of those cities'. Photographer and illustrator Saar Manche recently opened her doors to share the essentials that make their everyday life more beautiful. Let's take a peek inside....

Photography / Home owner: Saar Manche. Over the ocean.

Oh so pretty. And relaxed. And calm.

I especially love the cabinet in the bathroom. How about you?

My usual get the look: Bertoia chairs in white, this mid-century credenza is similar (or pick up a vintage one here), Source vintage cameras here. Round rattan chair and white sheepskin throw. Milk maid stool. Children's clothes from Over the Ocean.

I love floors with hand painted harlequin pattern. You can see other examples in the hallways of Swedish singer's home, a Swedish country home and a lovely home on an island. Oh and this hallway is amazing too - so striking! This DIY tutorial is handy if you're tempted! Hmmmm, maybe I should do this in my bedroom?!

Have a lovely day!

PS This is not a sponsored post - just a great collaboration I thought you'd like to see!

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A Stockholm pad in monochrome and 'tan'

Wake up, it's a beautiful morning.....plus I've got a fab flat to show you! This relaxed two bedroom space in Södermalm, Stockholm (styled for sale) is full of nice touches, and rocks many of the design trends in the interior design world right now. From a tan leather sofa and kilim rug to a washed linen tablecloth and an abundance of plants (it seems they have a fondness for Kate Moss too!). I especially like the second bedroom - it's not always easy to furnish a narrow room but this one looks fab, don't you think? Loving the low bed.  Let's take a tour....

Bo /Sthlm - Fastighetsmäklare found via (my) unfinished home with thanks

I love how easy it looks to live here don't you? A super comfy sitting room, relaxed place to eat, a work space....and pretty much bathed in pools of light where ever you choose to sit. So nice!

A few items I know and love: sitting room - source a similar kilim rug here, I love this tan leather sofa. The koushi lamp is similar. The Kate Moss book and 'life is a joke' print. Dining area - burlap grey linen table cloth (beautiful!), bentwood chairs, grey sheepskin rug, bell jar. Bedroom - washed linen bedding in white and dark grey. bedroom 2 - blue linen bedding (love this).

I'm also loving this fantastic Danish apartment in the same scheme - imagine?!

Today I've been invited for lunch at a small local communal workspace inhabited by a bunch of talented creatives including the designer behind Swedish Ninja (looking forward to getting a glimpse of the 'Little Darling' first hand)!

I hope you've got some fun plans for today too!

See you tomorrow!

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Because very small can be very beautiful too

Well, hello there! I'm feeling all revived today after a long weekend in the sun - the highlight had to be our picnic on the little island of Hallandsväderö off the south west coast of Sweden with this view (that cottage?!). The girls even took a dip - so much fun, but BRRRRRR! I hope you had a wonderful few days too? Right, on with today's tour! We've seen a 'shrinking homes' trend lately - which is why I wanted to kick off the week with this little Swedish gem - proof that very small (we're talking 32 square metres / 344 square foot) can be very beautiful too with a few very clever tricks. For example, a raised bed gives space for storage underneath, floor- to-ceiling shelves act as a room divider (a coat rack divides the hallway and kitchen) and a swivel chair can be used for the corner of the bedroom or turned into the sitting room area. Which means you really can get it all - a kitchen / dining area, hallway, bedroom, sitting room area and even a desk to sit and study / work. So clever!

Stadshem. Photography: Jonas Berg.

What a great use of space! Perfect inspiration for anyone living in an itsy bitsy space.

The narrow space-saving sink in the bathroom is especially handy too.

Is there anything that stands out to you?

Get the look: bedroom - the bed is bespoke with MALM drawers in white underneath. I love this rattan pendant lamp, white waffle blanket, this white clothes rack is similar (this clothes rail is a good space-saving one too), sitting room area: these mid-century nest tables (need to hurry though! If sold, try these), this is a great source for antique chaise longues, Hay hero dot cushion, vintage string shelves. Kitchen / dining area: IKEA shelves, white KitchenAid, this pendant lamp is similar.

It's also might be worth checking out the small spaces archive for lots and lots of one room apartment inspiration!
 
Have a wonderful start to the week (if only we were all here......?).

PS Lovely of those of you who messaged me about catching a glimpse of our family summer cottage - you've inspired me to explore the possibility of taking a few snapshots this summer. My husband's grandparents bought the land and built it and it's been passed from generation to generation. It looks very much as it did when it was first built - both inside and out. In the meantime, I was honoured to be interviewed about 'My Expat Life' for Motherland - are you a mother living outside your home country too?

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Order and poetry in the Stockholm home of a creative

Hello! It's a public holiday here in Sweden tomorrow so we're gearing up for a few days at the cottage - which I'm soooo looking forward to! But I'd never leave you without a beautiful home tour and a round up of a few links I love of course! This home in Hornstull, Stockholm really stood out to me for it's vibrant colours (the greens, the yellows....the orange!) and relaxed, lived-in vibe. The lovely space belongs to interior architect and designer Marie Dreiman and her husband and centres around  their philosophy of 'order and poetry'.  I certainly see that from these pictures, how about you?

Photos: Patric Johansson (shared with kind permission). Featured in Elle Decoration.

I love the sunny yellow cabinet - it's so cheerful! And the green in the kitchen is beautiful too. Is there anything that stands out to you?

Get the look: kitchen / dining - There are some really fab 1950's dining chairs here (including this blue formica one).  Tolix style bar stool in yellow. Sitting room: Corona chair by E Jörgensen and sofa by IKEA, rattan chair, pick up a teak mid-century chair here. I love this and this vintage filing cabinet. Bedroom: the Hay polygon quilt cover is similar, source a mid-century bedside table here, Le Klint pendant lamp.

Other relaxed homes I love include this mid-century inspired home in Berlin, a light filled Swedish family home and a cottage in the Australian countryside (in case you missed them).

I thought I'd leave you with a few links I love this week too:

Dining with lighting and plants overhead.... and the easiest indoor plants to grow (and keep alive) indoors.

A great way to store LP's.

Possibly the cutest children's clothing I've seen this season. 

Love the mix in this kitchen!

Where I'd like to be sitting right now. Want to join me? We could dangle our feet with a champagne cocktail? Say yes!

Which reminds me, have you ever seen Isaac's live lip-dub marriage proposal? If not, you must!! It's so wonderful!

And finally - the 22 most beautiful places in the world - do you agree?

Right, that's it from me. Better go and pack! Eeeee!

Have a wonderful few days and see you Monday....

PS Oh and calling all Stockholmers - Photographer Petra Reger (who's fabulous home in a former factory I featured here)  is looking for a lovely home story in Stockholm to photograph early next week. If you have any tips Petra would love to hear from you.

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