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A Lovely, Inviting Berlin Flat Decorated on a Small Budget

Tjena, hur är läget? Or perhaps I should say 'hallo, wie gehts?!' Since today I'm taking you on an apartment tour in one of my favourite cities: Berlin! Oh, how I love that German city - it's buzzing with creativity and has a really special vibe. This lovely apartment in the Prenzlauer Berg district belongs to 34-year-old fashion stylist Juliane who was born and raised in Berlin. Her flat occupies a building dating back to 1900 and is blessed with 3.5 metre ceilings and beautiful stucco. Juliane has been incredibly smart with her budget, sourcing many items on eBay or the high-street and loves to make regular updates. Here's a little more about Juliane's home, in her own words: 

Maison du Monde mirror, sofa from IKEA

What's your background?
I left home after I graduated in fashion design back in 2009. I lived in Rome, Italy between 2009-2010. After I came back, I worked as a fashion editor and then decided to work as a fashion stylist, and this is what I do today. 

Your fireplace is a real focal point - can you tell us more about it?
I always wanted a big fake fireplace and was looking for one on Amazon etc. But due to my small budget, especially at the beginning when I had just moved in, I bought a lot on eBay and a woman was giving away this fireplace for free! It's super big (130 cm x 130 cm) and wasn't painted. I used simple paint lacquer from hardware store Orb. Most people who visit my place think it's always been there. One of my friends wasn't convinced at the beginning and asked why I wanted something so big in my living room! But as soon as I added the colour and decorated it, she got the idea. It has also been green before, so who knows how long the blue will stay!

Fireplace before:
Fireplace in green:






"The green was also a simple mix from the hardware store. I love all the colour cards and it's actually quite cheap. Sure, I love Farrow & Ball but sometimes, cheap doesn't mean bad quality. And the good thing is you can match the lacquer with the exact same colour."

Fireplace today:


The wall has been painted in 'Hochzeitsblau' from the new heritage series by Schöner Wohnen 

Who do you live with?
I have no pets or anyone else living in my apartment. So, it's just me and exactly 19 plants. I'm always counting them when I water so I don't forget any of them!

A group of vases from H&M Home and Søstrene Grene make a lively display on the mantel piece. 

When did you move in?
I've lived in this flat since Summer 2018, it used to be my boss's apartment in fact. 



Are you inspired by a particular interior style?
It's hard to say what interior style I like the most, because for me, it's like fashion. I never wear the same outfit twice in a row. With my apartment it's the same. I love making changes: some new curtains here, and new pillows there. 


IKEA kitchen cabinets have been painted in Graphite chalk paint from Rustoleum

Where do you shop for items for your home?
I love going to fabric stores or markets. I also like to use things I bought for a different purpose. Last time I ended up using a curtain for a DIY project and gave my headboard a completely new look!

I'm not sure I've ever seen such a narrow bathroom! Did it present any decorating challenges? 
Hahaha, yes! It's actually quite typical for these old Berlin buildings. My parents tell me that back in the day, people didn't even have a shower - just a toilet and the shower was added later. In my old flat, the bathroom was bigger, but it had super ugly tiles in aubergine. So, I was glad at least, that this one is in simple white and beige. Where the shower is today used to be a little storage room with a connecting door to the kitchen.

When I first came to look at the bathroom, I knew it would be a real challenge and that I would have to act really smart. No super big wall cupboards etc. Pinterest helped me a lot. I decided to go for a simple mirror with a wooden shelf beneath which my dad built for me. When my four-year-old nephew first came to visit my flat one Christmas, he couldn't believe how narrow my bathroom is and whispered: "Your bathroom is super skinny! Santa won't fit in here."

Curtains from Zara Home, Storage from IKEA, side table found on Ebay. 

How is life in Berlin right now? 
Quarantine is a big word here at the moment. Today, some shops reopened but everyone has to wear a mask when we go to the supermarket etc. I do take some long walks outside or ride my bike, but I am very lucky to have a balcony with sun 24/7. 


Thank you so much for taking the time to tell us more about your home Juliane! Stay safe and well :)

****

I'm feeling really inspired by the fireplace idea. It just goes to show you don't need to spend an arm and a leg to create a fabulous focal point!

Is there anything that stood out to you?

If you're curious to see more pictures of Juliane's home, hop on over to her Instagram here: @ps_ihomeyou.

And how about peeking inside a few more Berlin homes today? Here are some of my all-time favourites:

The beautiful Berlin home and country retreat of Our Food Stories
Get the look from a serene family home in Berlin
A lovely understated, warm and inviting Berlin home

I can't wait to take my girls to this city, I've been planning it in my mind for years! Until then, I'll be taking inspiration from these lovely apartments and dreaming.

Have you ever visited Berlin?

Have a great start to the week friends!

Niki

Photography courtesy of Juliane / ps_ihomeyou

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An Edgy Berlin Home, Full of Contrast


Is it me or has it been a while since we were in Berlin? Given that it's only a six-hour drive away (plus ferry) from Malmö - I kind of miss that German city. Such is life right now, I guess. But nothing can stop us from paying a virtual visit, right?! So, today I'm taking you on a trip to Berlin, for a peek behind the facade of a building in the beautiful Schöneberg district. Nadine Engels lives with her husband and their ''little street dog'' Coockie (also the name of her popular instagram feed). The magnificent apartment is characterised by staggeringly high ceilings and exposed brick walls. But there's something entirely unique about the space too. Think raw, edgy walls, a touch of graffiti, pops of neon and wonderful contrasts throughout. Welcome to Nadine and Coockie's world! 


We did a lot of the renovation ourselves, and love the charm of the old building - even if it creaks everywhere!" - Nadine. 



"We were lucky to discover the beautiful dual-toned concrete wall when we removed the wallpaper, the only thing we added was the 'Miau' - which we did before our dog moved in....'' - Nadine.

I love the way the Tom Dixon copper round pendant light* contrasts with the exposed concrete wall!


The Walton Ford print is from an exhibition a few years back at Louisiana Museum of Modern Art in Denmark (I remember going to see it!). The poster is still available in the museum webshop here


I love how Nadine has hung a Ferm Living Mirage Blanket* on her bedroom wall - it makes for great art! It's not the first time we've seen Ferm Living used in this way - remember this Berlin home with a Merge rug*

This linen bedding* is similar to the one seen. 

There are so many striking spots in Nadine's home, don't you think? I particularly love the bedroom and dining room! 

Is there anything that stood out to you?

Shall we take a little trip down memory lane and visit a few other Berlin apartments? I am always inspired by:

A lovely, budget-friendly Berlin pad (check-out the DIY fireplace!). 

Have a lovely day friends!

Niki

Photography: Nadine Engels, shared with kind permission

*This post contains affiliate links with means I'll make a very tiny amount of money on anything you click through and buy - at no extra cost to you. 

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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. 


'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: 


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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A Serene Swedish Home In A Berlin Rental

I seem to have fallen into a phase of featuring homes of expat Scandinavians right now - and based on the messages in my inbox, I'm not the only one feeling inspired by them. So, today I thought I'd share the home of a Swede living in Berlin! Ellinor Belvén was born and raised on the island of Kungsholmen in the centre of Stockholm. Ellinor moved to Berlin around 8 years ago and founded SALTY Interiors with her friend Annetta in 2016. I caught up with her to find out more about her home, her journey to becoming an interior designer and how living abroad has influenced her style. Welcome to Ellinor's world! 

Have you always wanted to be an interior designer?
Ever since I was a child, I was exposed to art and music. I started singing in a choir at the age of 6 and continued my journey in music schools all the way up to high school. In addition to the music, I had lots of interaction with architecture and interior styling, as family members were working in the field. Leaving the music path however, I started a new journey into the business administration field with my University degree (Master's in Business Administration & Economics). I worked a few years with numbers, but soon felt a great need of surrounding myself in a creative atmosphere again. And so, after moving to Berlin, I was able to combine my financial skills with the creative, and I worked as a buyer in the e-commerce interior market. This opened up new possibilities, and in 2016 I quit my day job and created SALTY Interiors with my friend Annetta. We have been running our SALTY business for 4 years now and are really happy to see the success we’ve achieved. All those long hard hours are so worth it!

Can you tell us a little more about SALTY Interiors?
SALTY Interiors is a creative agency specialised in interior architecture and visual content creation. We work closely with private clients, interior brands as well as real estate agencies to provide expertise in every work field. We are passionate about creating comfortable and beautiful spaces, working with natural and sustainable materials, as well as keeping the aesthetics light with a minimalistic warm touch. Annetta & Ellinor; both coming from Nordic countries (Iceland & Sweden), we were raised surrounded by design and a general understanding about form and interior style. With a background in interior sourcing & buying we started our business in 2016 and since then we have combined our strength in buying and our desire to create. We look at each project like an empty canvas and an opportunity to create something unique.  

Your home is beautiful, when was it built?
I moved into this beautiful “Altbau-wohnung” (the name in German), which is a house built sometime before the 1930’s. It has the typical “Altbau-features” like high ceiling (approx 3.30m), stucco and ornamented double doors between the two big connected rooms. It’s a 2 room + kitchen apartment, which measures around 75 sqm.
  

How did you approach the interior? 
Since it’s a rental flat, I didn't want to put in too much money into renovation, so I simply did what I could with a small budget. That meant a lot of time spent painting walls! In the two big rooms (living room and bedroom) I have painted the walls in 4 colours, all very different, but still coherent with one another. In the living room I have warm grey on three walls and deep forest green on one wall, and in the bedroom three walls of beige, and one wall of dusty pink. Since the rooms are connected with the double doors, it was important that the colours fit together, in any way you turn your head.









Would you say your style is still very much Scandinavian or have you been influenced by German / Berlin style? 
I would say my style is very Scandinavian. The one element that I love about the German/Berliner mindset however, is that people would prefer to give away old furniture than throw it away, which means that there is furniture on the street (“Zu Verschenken” - to give away) everywhere. I have several pieces of furniture in my flat that I found this way, my kitchen table and bed headboard for example.

Table from Nor11, sculpture by Kristiina, Cooee 'pastille' vase

Despite being fairly minimalist, your home still looks lovely and cosy, how did you achieve this? 
It’s very important to me that my home feels cosy and inviting. I want to be able to relax and feel at ease, and safe in my space. I work a lot with coherent colourways (as already mentioned) and a lot of textiles make any room feel more comfortable. I also love plants and have lots of them on every windowsill and on every table. 


Where do you shop for pieces for your home?
I use a lot of different sources for my interior pieces, either it’s brands that I work with, old furniture that I brought from Sweden when I moved, or I find furniture on the streets of Berlin. But of course, I have my fair share of IKEA furniture too. The trick is to mix old and new and make it your own style. 

And finally, can you share your favourite interior instagrams with us? 

What a lovely, calm home! 

I love the idea of finding items out on the street - they leave pieces out like that in Copenhagen too, but sadly not in Malmö. Do they do this in your city? It must save so much hassle - and also reinforces the idea that one man's trash is another man's treasure! 

Got a mo? See more pictures of Ellinor's home on the SALTY Interiors instagram feed and the latest swoon-worthy projects by SALTY Interiors here

Other beautiful Berlin homes:


Have a great day - halfway there folks! Wooop! 

Niki

Photography courtesy of SALTY Interiors

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