Two lovely Swedish kitchen tours

There's nothing like a warm, cheerful kitchen to brighten up mornings (and cosy-up evenings). One of my Mum's friends calls the kitchen 'the engine room of the house' - so true don't you think?! To round off the week I thought we could take a tour of two Swedish kitchens. Any Swede will tell you that this is a very classic shape for a kitchen in a city apartment - (eller hur svensk kompisar?). And yet these two spaces have been decorated and organised with subtle differences - both lovely in their own way. The first belongs to interior and food stylist and owner of shop Vintage Fabriken - Linda Hansson and the second apartment is currently on the market through Stadshem. Could you imagine enjoying a slow weekend breakfast here?

Credits:
Pictures 1 - 6 - Linda Hansson / photos - Sofia Byström
Pictures 7 - 12 - Stadshem / photos - Jonas Berg

I especially love the colours in the first kitchen - with the green, yellow and blue - so warm and inviting. A few tips on where thing are from - 'Willow boughs' wallpaper by William Morris, the children's chair is by Tripp Trapp, RANARP wall/ clamp lamp, oatmeal linen table cloth, Rörstrand mon amie tea cup,   white marble mortar and pestle, Le Sac paper bag, blue kitchen aid.

The second space is also lovely - so calm! Source vintage chopping boards here, This is a great source for vintage bread bins and tin boxes. If you're a fan of wallpaper you'll like the rest of the home too - check it out here.

For more kitchen inspiration today I like 11 ways to add a little shine to your kitchen (fab spaces!).

Other links I like from around the web today:

How cool are these fun black and white prints for children's rooms. In fact - this entire children / Mum blog is pretty great (love these kids sunglasses - might try to squeeze into a pair myself!).

Love these DIY mid-century planters - project for the weekend perhaps?!

With all this snow outside my door I'm thinking tonight could be a cosy one on the sofa eating this brown ale ice-cream with salty caramel and honeyed peanuts or perhaps pumpkin cookie butter ice-cream. Mmmmm!

This home in the outskirts of Malmö is for sale - I'm tempted to go to the viewing on Sunday - could you image the potential?!

I hope you have a really great weekend (up to anything fun?). See you Monday!

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A beautiful and unique bohemian farmhouse

Do you have days when everything happens so sloooow that you're at least two hours behind all day?! Admittedly it didn't help that I had a brainstorming session for my book launch with a few of my favourite creative friends last night  - which of course required, um, refreshments. Anyhow, I've finally got it together, and I'm actually very proud of myself as this is one extremely fab home tour. Boho style has been rocking the interior world for a while now, but Louise and Matthijs have put their own spin on it in their beautiful late 19th century Dutch farmhouse in the village of Ermelo. The space, captured by Barbara Groen, has been decorated with a blend of Scandinavian, rustic and ethnic style, and is teeming with items find on their travels. Let's take a tour...

 

Photography: Barbara Groen (shared with kind permission). Styling: Marieke de Geus. Found via VTWonen and (My) Unfinished Home with thanks.

What an inspiring space don't you think?

Get the look: Leather Moroccan ottoman / pouf, Adesso Atlas Floor Lamp, (also seen in Genevieve's home), large round jute rug,  source tie dye cushions here. I love this extremely chunky grey knit blanket.

More extremely cool boho homes include a retreat in Marseille, a beautiful Mexican home by the sea, and the home of a florist. Loving the relaxed vibe!

Other links from around the web today:

How great is this cork wall?

We're seeing more and more old school bathrooms - what do you make of this rose quartz / black tile combo? 

Bring nature indoors for the day with this simple yet pretty DIY idea.

Love this blue cabinet against the brass.

Living in Sweden it would be rude not to love clogs - which I do! I'm all over this source of clog heaven!

Speaking of Sweden, it's been snowing all day here (another reason for my slow morning) - I'm waiting for it to slow-up so I can go out on a cabin hunt - isn't this one pretty?!


Have a lovely day!

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Best design blogs 2016

I am absolutely thrilled that My Scandinavian Home has been selected as one of the best design blogs 2016 by Domino Magazine.

Thank you!

I'm in great company - see the complete list of truly inspirational design blogs here. 

Back in a few hours with a beautiful home tour. See you shortly!

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Beautiful nude and white shades in Finland

Hello! It's lovely and sunny here which makes a huge difference to the short, dark winter days. It's called for a slow coffee morning browsing Asun (all in the name of work of course. Eh hem). For those of you who aren't familiar with the stunning Finnish specialist interior decoration magazine think atmospheric spaces, design, decoration and architecture. I especially love these rooms beautifully styled in nudes and white. So lovely don't you think?

Credits -
Asun
Pictures 1 - 4: Stylist: Minna Jones Photography: Pauliina Salonen
Pictures 5 - 8: Stylist: Anna Pirkola Photography: Katri Kapanen. 

Nudes and white have to be one of my favourite colour schemes. It makes me feel spring it just around the corner too!  Could you imagine this combination in your home?

Check out more stunning spaces decorated with shades of nude here.

I am a huge fan of Minna's work and have featured her Finnish summer cottage many times on My Scandinavian Home including here, here and here. Anna Pirkola also has a stunning home - you can take a peek here.

Have a lovely day!

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Clever small space style in Stockholm

Hello Monday! I hope you had a great weekend? I read recently that people's living spaces are getting smaller. People around the world are downsizing to save money, live greener and well....because they've realised that small can be beautiful too. And this home in Stockholm's Södermalm district is a prime example. Measuring a mere 29 metres square (312 square foot) it's comfortable and practical (double bed - check! Sitting room - check! reading corner, dining room, balcony for two - check, check, check! And, decorated throughout in grey-scale with the fainstest touch of pastels - and an eclectic mix of mid-century, new nordic and designer pieces - it looks beautiful too. 

Styling: Minna Engelmark / Ida Agemo at Wida design Photography: Johan Spinnell / Historiska Hem

Could you live here? I think it looks so calm and cosy - a little oasis in the heart of Sweden's capital city.But more importantly, could you sleep high up in that double bed?!

Get the look: seagrass basket, Hay tray table, Copenhague coffee table, I love this mid-century style sofa, dark grey bed linen, Berlin print, Thonet chairs (15% discount with code MYSCAN), white sheepskin throw.

If you're looking for more small space ideas I've got a week's worth of coffee break inspiration squirrelled away here!

Do you live in a small space - or perhaps looking to downsize?

Have a great start to the week! 

PS My family and I are going on holiday to Sri Lanka next month ( I can't wait! We didn't go anywhere last year since I was working on my book so we've been so looking forward to it!). I was wondering if you have any great tips on places to stay (we love small, relaxed, personal places as oppose to big hotels) and things to do? Thank you so much for any tips you may have!

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The fab home of a French photographer and stylist

Hello Friday! So we got through the first working week of the year  - how did it go? From my side let's just say I'm looking forward to one of these tonight! Fancy joining me?! I thought I'd end the week with the wonderful French home of freelance stylist and photographer Aurélie Lécuyer and her family. The space was captured by Melanie Rodriguez a few years back but it still looks bang up to date - note the pink and drak grey hues, lovely vintage furniture and creative personal touches.... perfect inspiration for the weekend! 

Homeowner: Aurélie Lécuyer. Photographer: Melanie Rodriguez. The Socialite Family.

What a perfect home to celebrate the weekend, don't you think?! It's so personal and relaxed.

Get the look: kitchen - Tolix chairs,  yellow linen tablecloth, Donna Wilson plates, Source vintage industrial wall lights here and rattan chairs like the one shown here. White sheepskin. Etsy sells all kinds of different colour and sized pompoms. Toadstool night light (so cute!).

Try these dark colours and pinks for a similar paint colour match. 

For some reason this home made me think of Malin Persson's fabulous Malmö home (perhaps it was the colour in the children's room and the pompoms? (more fab children's rooms here).  And this charming and relaxed family home in Biarritz (the corridor?).

The images were taken for 'The Socialite Family' - which is so worth creating a fresh pot of coffee for (great site packed with inspiration!). And you can also see stunning images of Aurelie's new home on instagram here.

Before I shoot off for the weekend (there's a blizzard outside so I'm in no rush!), here are a few links from around the web I thought you might like:

Loved yesterday's dark green and grey colour scheme - but this dark blue / green combo in the bedroom is also pretty striking. 

This paint outside the box post is fascinating and inspiring!

Colour of the year rose quartz has even made it into the kitchen, I think it looks kind of great don't you?

How pretty are all these kilim rugs in this room? 

Loving this Dutch hair braid tutorial.

Lovers of architect (and in fact just about everyone) will love this 'hut on sleds' - imagine?

How to keep a clean home (note to self and man...).

So much fun seeing the free downloadable and printable My Scandinavian Home calendar 2016 out there on social media - like this instagram pic! 

I hope you have a wonderful weekend - and stay warm (or cool for those of you lucky enough to be in milder climes!).

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A sophisticated Swedish home in dark shades

This lovely Swedish home captures the essence of 'dark broody' interiors perfectly. It's been artfully decorated in shades of dark grey and a spectrum of greens from olive to emerald. The result is a truly sophisticated and elegant space captured by one of my favourite Swedish photographers - Kristofer Johnsson. Let's take a look around....

Photography: Kristofer Johnsson. Stylist: Alexandra Ogonowski. Featured in Residence magazine. Found via Coco Lapine with thanks.

So beautiful don't you think?

Get the look: tolix chairs,  sheepskin rug, Kånken children's rucksack, dark grey linen bedding. I can just see one of my favourite lamps - the Flos Copycat peeping into the corner of the picture in the bedroom too! For similar paint colours try Farrow & Ball darks.

Jennfier Hagler's fab wishlist captures these tones perfectly!

I also love this dark grey, blue and green Swedish home, the dramatic stairwell in Marie Olsson Nylander's home, and an elegant black and navy home also captured by Kristofer.

It's enough to make me want to dabble in a few dark walls and pieces! - do you have any in your home?

Other links I love today include:

My eldest daughter is moving into her own bedroom and we're having loads of fun picking out a moodboard. This colour scheme is spot on! So pretty don't you think?

Love the idea of bringing rainy days indoors.

Colour block navy with crisp white in the bedroom.

Take me away to this pretty red cabin in the snow.

Have a lovely day!

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