A Dreamy Holiday Rental in Daylesford With a Mini Warehouse Feel

Every single time a fabulous new holiday rental pops up in Australia it resurrects my desire to travel Down Under! Today is one of those days. Stylist extraordinaire Lynda Gardener recently added Room + Board to her wonderful repertoire of holiday rentals. The dreamy space has a mini warehouse feel which is part glass and part conservatory. Beautiful recycled schoolhouse windows flood the living space with light and help to highlight curated pieces, furniture, art and plants which have been individually sourced from personal collections and sustainable suppliers. Located in the heart of Daylesford - a town in the foothills of the Great Dividing Range of Victoria (also home to Lynda's fabulous The White Room and The Barn and The Estate Trentham holiday rentals) - the one bedroom property is waiting for its first guests. Form and orderly queue, please! 

This hand sewn burlap lamp* is similar. I have a cinnamon coloured cushion in my sitting room like this - you can pick it up here*.

Raffia net bag*, organic cotton net bag*, artisan brush

The beams! The pools of light! 

When you go for an entirely white washed space, the furnishings need to work harder to create a cosy feel (this comes from personal experience from the days when my bedroom was white!). Look closely at the above picture and you'll see a load of natural textures at play, all of which help to create a relaxed vibe. 

Rattan poof*, vintage pitcher*

Bemz sells similar linen headboard covers* like this, three legged wooden stool*

I'd love to know where the over-sized brown lamp is from - any tips? 

Could you imagine hanging out here for a few days? 

I'm totally in! 

Read more about the space and book your stay at Room + Board here. 

If you're visiting Melbourne, Lynda also has a property to rent in St Kilda (also on my radar!). 

Australia has been on the world's radar for other reasons lately - catastrophic bushfires. Rescue teams have been working tirelessly to help all those affected, including people who have lost their homes and livelihoods and all the beautiful animals. If you would like to offer your support, here are a few charities that welcome donations:

Koala crisis - bushfire recovery - a GoFundMe page created by photographer Kara Rosenlund (who's home I featured here) which set out to accrue $8000 of funding and current donations exceed $210,000 and counting! Incredible! 

WWF Bushfire emergency fund 

Australian Red cross

Please feel free to add charity suggestions in the comment section below - I know there are many, all of whom are doing what they can. 

Wishing you a wonderful start to the week! 

Niki

Photography: Marnie Hawson

Styling Lynda Gardner / @lynda.gardener

* This post contains affiliate links which means I will make a tiny amount of money if you click on the link and make a purchase. 

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A Cosy Cabin Where the Outdoor Space Takes Centre-stage

I've gone a little off piste this week. OK, majorly off-piste, with not one but TWO cabins Down Under. The first: a garden hideaway, was on Wednesday, and the second - today! But who can blame me when they exude relaxed charm? 

The Woods Ocean Grove is made up of two cosy cabins nestled in the woods in the Ballerine Peninsula, Wadawurring, Australia. With the roar of the ocean and calls from the bush forever present, the property has been designed to embrace the great outdoors with an al fresco dining area, kitchen, bathroom and fire pit. 

Living in Sweden, I understand the allure of embracing the great weather when it arrives - and love the idea of carving out zones in the garden (or even a little balcony). Don't miss the snapshots of the interiors too - full of easy vintage style as well as colours and materials inspired by the ocean and bush beyond, drawing the outside in. 

Lovely inspiration for a balcony. I really like how they've added bar stools and a bar for coffee... wine.... If your balcony is covered, a swinging chair is a great idea too! 

The tiles in this outdoor bathroom give the space a complete look and an air of permanency. And you can never go wrong with a clawfoot tub, right? 

Outdoor curtains add a whimsical, soft touch to spaces which could otherwise come across 'hard'. In this instance, it's a perfect way to ensure privacy in the bathroom too! 

Anyone for tennis?

I actually used to play college tennis (many moons ago)! My serve is so bad these days though I prefer Padel. But I'd be happy to pick up my racket for a swing on this court! 

Could you imagine staying at The Woods Ocean Grove too? Find out more here. 

How great is the outdoor space? I know we don't all have gardens as big as this - but it's still amazing what you can do with a balcony or even a windowseat - and by adding lots of blankets, cushions and oil lamps you can enjoy it long into Autumn, maybe even winter! 

I've also always loved the idea of using colours that reflect your surroundings. Granted that in a city this can be tricky - but there's nothing to stop you from bringing in chestnut browns, rust and burnt orange come autumn, and vibrant green shades in the spring, storing and brining out items is such a quick way to refresh the home and embrace each season - and means you'll appreciate what you have even more. Do you like to update your home for the season? 

Have a fabulous weekend! I'll be back on Monday with a Scandinavian home tour! 

Stor kram! 

Niki

Photography by Marnie Hawson, styling Belle Hemming Bright. Shared with kind permission. Last picture by Nikole Ramsay. 

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A Charming Miner's Cottage Amongst An Acre of Roses!

Do you ever feel like dropping what you're doing and following your dreams? If so, perhaps today's home tour will inspire you to take that step! New Zealand born Sandy McKinley left her career in marketing to pursue her childhood passion for flowers when she moved next door to a renowned and newly retired florist. Soon after she opened a floral studio where she created a successful business growing peonies and crafting events and weddings. When the opportunity arose to purchase 1000 mature heritage rose bushes, Sandy and partner Rob Roy jumped at it! Originally from Melbourne, Rob is not a stranger to flowers and had previous experience in restoring historic homes. He set about renovating their cosy Miner's cottage with the same tenacity he applied to breaking horses: "Hard work but incredibly rewarding to see raw beauty release its potential."  An Acre of Roses - a micro flower farm and luxury wellness accommodation in Trentham, Victoria, Australia - was born. 

The charming Miner's cottage was built in 1860 and has been renovated to maintain the original charm and decorated with the help of interior designer Belle Hemming-Bright. Think earthy tones, natural materials and modern creature comforts such as a cedar hot tub, smoothie bar and state of the art coffee machine. Sounds like my kind of place! Maybe it's important to mention at this stage that it's also available to rent on Airbnb?! Yep, I know!

The cottage is packed with lovely vintage finds, portraits and of course, fresh flowers! The blend gives the living space a wonderful relaxed feel and must smell divine! 

Love the earthy colours in this corner - so pretty! Green is one of my favourite accents - it works especially well in a countryside location, don't you think?

Imagine getting toasty under a blanket by this fire? 

FYI We could use a roaring fire like this in Malmö today - it's 12 degrees Celsius (53 F!) BRRRR! 

 

How beautiful!

Earlier in the summer I was dreaming of an escape to the Californian desert, on Monday I was dreaming of a stay at a cabin in Whispering Pines, and now I feel a trip to Trentham is in order. I can't think of a more beautiful place to relax, rejuvenate - and literally, stop and smell the roses! 

So many places, such little time! 

Could you imagine hanging out at Acre of Roses too?! 

Sandy and Rob take bookings for the Miner's Cottage and the Potting Shed here - just sayin'! Keep an eye out for forthcoming events too! 

Wednesday already, and I feel like I have a week's worth of work left to do. Anyone else feel the same? I could use a calming walk through that rose garden! 

Happy humpday friends!

Niki

Acre of Roses is owned by Sandy McKinley and Rob Roy. The interior was decorated and styled by  Belle Hemming-Bright. Photography by Marnie Hawson. 

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My Scandinavian Home: Best of 2017

I can't believe the year has almost come to an end! Is it just me or did 2017 whizz by? It's been a strange twelve months, with many disturbing happenings throughout the world. I like to think of My Scandinavian Home as a little bubble in which to escape each day: somewhere you can pour yourself a cup of super strength coffee (got to get into the spirits of the Scandinavians after all!), put your feet up and transport yourself into a world of interiors - and hopefully walk away with a few new ideas too! I hope you experience this! Here's a round-up of the top 5 My Scandinavian Home blog, Instagram, and Pinterest posts of 2017 - as well as a few other highlights.....



1. A magnificent family home in Amsterdam

2. My sitting room make-over

Photo - Niki Brantmark Styling Genevieve Jorn

3.  My dream holiday home (and garden room) - and yours too it seems!

Photo - Marnie Hawson

Holly's inspiring sitting room make-over

Holly Marder

5. Lovely blues and greens in a Swedish home

Photo: Anders Bergstedt. Home-owner/ stying: Caroline Ulkner /  Entrance.

I used to dabble in it a little, but if there's one thing that's truly taken me by surprise this year - it's just how much I've fallen in love with Instagram (do you have an ever so slight obsession too?!). I was thrilled to reach over 115,000 friends this year - thank you for making it such a fun place to be, and for all your interesting and passionate comments (and to Vogue UK for including my feed in the top 12 interior instagram feeds to follow (*strikes a very happy pose*). Here are the top 5 My Scandinavian Home instagram posts of 2017:

***

1. Living room in a magical mountain cabin
I'm so happy to see a corner of the living room from Marianne Vigtel Holland's magical mountain cabin which James Gardiner and I had the pleasure of capturing for The Scandinavian Home book.  Marianne made so many items for her cabin it was crazy! In this picture alone she knitted the chair cover, sewed together the cushion covers, created the art on the wall and crafted the side table out of tree trunks - I'm not kidding! Check out the full tour of her beautiful cabin here.



2. Josi's hallway in Berlin
Aaaah, how I love this hallway (the bench is available here - just saying!). In fact, I love everything about Josi's entire Berlin home, it's so charming and relaxed - don't miss the full tour here.

3. Sitting room with a boho vibe
The modern bohemian vibe captured our hearts and minds in 2017 (once again)- and this Polish home designed by Magdalena Milejska was up there with the most inspiring! Take the full tour here. PS is this is totally you're kind of style don't miss the bohemian home archive (goooorgeous spaces).



4. Credenza and books
A wall bursting with books, a beautiful mid-century credenza, layered rugs. What's not to love about the relaxed, boho home of Madewell's lead designer - Joyce Lee! See the drool-worthy tour here.



5. Put a ring on it (see what I did there?)
A beautifully wrapped gift by Finnish blogger Local Artisan in all its crinkled paper and pine wreath glory has already racked up over 7000 likes in the last 24 hours! In fact, it's so pretty that I'd be happy to receive this without a gift inside, how about you? (Note to man - don't take this last sentence too literally). If you haven't wrapped your pressies yet - see our complete round-up of beautiful nature inspired gift wrapping ideas!

Aaaah, Pinterest you'll always be my go-to for moodboards and styling inspiration (if only I could actually tear myself away to do any work - do you find this too?!). Here are the top 5 My Scandinavian Home pins of 2017:

1. This cosy bedroom from a charming Swedish apartment decorated in white and wood
has totally captured pinners hearts having appeared on Pinterest over 590,290 times. How crazy is that? Then again there is so much to love about this little space, right?

Photo: Maria Sahlander Styling: Emma Fischer for Bjurfors.

Rember that green sofa we all fell in love with in a sitting room in Yeabridge House? Combine it with a fabulous mix of old and new and you get the top My Scandinavian Home *power pin* of 2017 (yes, this really is a thing - it's measured in terms of clicks and saves in case you're curious!). Whatever you do, don't miss the full tour here - it was one of my favourites!

Photo - Benjamin Edwards Home-owner - Mark Homewood

While green sofas are always fab, greige is a bit of a safer bet  - which is why this elegant Swedish sitting room created by H&M Home was hugely popular! Get the complete look and feel here. 

Stylist: Lotta Agaton

The relaxed dining space in the Norwegian home of Maja Hattvang appealed to many - which makes me so happy as I love her edgy and relaxed style! See the full tour here (if you don't already follow Maja on instagram, you must!).

Maja Hattvang

And finally, I was so happy to see the delightfully simple bedroom in the Copenhagen home of Karen Maj Kornum of Another Ballroom - captured by James Gardiner and myself for The Scandinavian Home book! You can see a full tour of her home in the book and here and here (that's how much i love Karen Maj's home!).   

Photo: James Gardiner.  Stylist: Niki Brantmark. Featured in The Scandinavian Home book published by CICO.

I am so grateful for the support of businessed big and small without whom My Scandinavian Home wouldn't be possible (you can see a list of many of my partners and the different types of collaborations we offer here).  It's been a year of fun and inspiring partnerships - but I have to say I do have a little penchant for make-overs! Here are the top 3 from 2017:

Greenhouse makeover with Samsung and The Frame

Oh how I loved working on this make-over in a little greenhouse in Upstate New York with Emily Henderson and the Barbarian creative team. A special thanks also to Brady Tolbert for your amazing organization skills and interior design eye and Agata Helena for hair and make-up. See more pictures (and films) of the make-over here and here.

My sitting room make-over with Bemz

Photo by me, styling by Genevieve Jorn. See more here!

My new window nook with Nordal  

Photo by me, styling by Genevieve Jorn. See the full tour here!

I've been writing a way in my little corner of the world and was so happy to launch not one but two new books this year (still not sure how I did it, but it was a wonderful feeling to get them in my hands!) - Lagom: The Swedish Art of Living a Balanced, Happy Life launched in September and is available in English US, English UK, French and Portuguese with 4 more languages to follow in 2018 - weeeeee! And The Scandinavian Home launched back in the spring!

Photo: Niki Brantmark.

Photo by Karin Björklund

Aaaah. it's been so much fun looking back over this year. Do you have any favourites from everything I've shared? Or perhaps you have some personal highlights you'd like to share - if so, I'd love to hear from you in the comment section below!! And please do also take it as an opportunity to let us know if there's anything you'd like to see more of in 2018.

Before we head off to enjoy the holidays I just wanted to say a few words of thanks.

I am constantly amazed by the incredible pool of creative talent in the online communities - not only among the professional interior designers and photographers, but also writers, artists, designers etc, all of whom contribute in some way and are kind enough to allow me to share their work. These 'creators' dare to put themselves out there for the world to critique (a scary prospect, I can tell you!) - and I thank each and every one of you who inspires us every day!

I'd also like to say a HUGE thanks to the wonderful team behind My Scandinavian Home - including my right hand gal Ana Degeneer ( a whizz at graphic design, picture research, writing and everything in between - she can even code - isn't that b*d *ss?!!). If you're thinking of starting a blog in 2018 (go for it!), Ana sells the most stunning blog design templates through her shop alongside her book '30 days to minimal blogging'.

I've also been lucky enough to work with the talented interior designer Genevieve Jorn - (we always have such a laugh and no photo shoot is complete without a chicken pasta from my local deli!) as well as the fabulous Sarah Brooks-Wilson who moved to Malmö earlier this year and is the speediest interior stylist I know (and always arrives with a smile and wearing the most fabulous outfit)! So happy to have you guys on board!

And finally - to all of you, who come here each day and make My Scandinavian Home a happy place - none of this would happen without you. Thank you for all your amazing support this year and making this little space on the web such a pleasure each day. Here's to a fabulous 2018!

Niki

PS those of you who like to reminisce might enjoy looking back at the 2016 and 2015 round-ups (so interesting to see how interior style has evolved!!).

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