Simple yet pretty Christmas / party table ideas

With only a few days to go before the holidays I thought I'd share some beautiful inspiration for creating a rustic Christmas table - or simply a lovely winter party table for friends and family! I love the idea of a natural white or grey linen table cloth or rough wood table decorated with foliage from the garden, with flowers and berries providing the only dash of colour.  I'm taking inspiration from these pretty, yet simple displays.

 

Pictures:
1 + 2:  A Quiet Style in collaboration with West Elm - see more of the lovely shoot here.
3: Hus o Hem - the entire post is full of beautiful inspiration (piled red apples anyone?).
4 + 5 + 6: Table inspiration from Swedish shop Artilleriet (see more here).
7 + 8: Call Me Cupcake - how delicious (and pretty) does that gingerbread cake with cream cheese and cranberry look?

get the look with these stonewashed white and light grey table cloths. 

This holiday I also hope to be tucking into this mouthwatering cake. And perhaps Thomas Kellers Chocolate Souffle. Mmmmm!

What'll be your favourite dish over the holidays?

If you're looking for more inspiration today  - check out 8 beautiful rustic gift wrap ideas? Or maybe pour yourself a coffee (or steaming mug of glögg?!) and take a scroll through the Christmas archive and Christmas / Party Pinterest boards.

Or if you feel like skipping the parties and heading to somewhere beautiful and remote this December, I'm thinking this pretty cabin in the Faroe Islands could do the trick?

Back tomorrow with the final post of the year (so soon?). Have a lovely day!

PS Thank you so much for all your lovely comments and mails about my new book- and for the pre-orders - it really means a lot to me! I hope you'll enjoy it as much as have writing it. I'll be back in the new year with more details! 

READ MORE...

3

I love this Danish Dining Set In My Home!

Sponsored*

Last week I received an exciting delivery - this wonderful oak and white nano laminate table and four oak and leather dining chairs from Skovby. It was like Christmas, except sadly, these beauties are not here to stay, they're here for a shoot. But I might just keep them all the same - what do you reckon? I've always loved the incredible craftsmanship behind Skovby pieces, plus, we've been looking for a new extendable table for a while. Per is also completely taken with the oak and leather chairs - he says they're really comfy! I might just have to write to Skovby to ask if these beauties can hang around a while longer. Read on for more pics and to see if you agree! 

You'll likely recognise the brand Skovby since Helen Sturesson and I have done many photoshoots for them before (see also the #808 counter stool in my kitchen, the #131 home desk and #52 chair in Per's home office and the #452 display cabinet in the corner of my dining room. It's always an honour to collaborate with a Danish family business that spans three generations of cabinetmakers as well as recognised as a frontrunner within functional extension systems for tables. 

I chose the Skovby #119 dining table with an oak wooden under frame with a white nano laminate surface, but it's also available in eight other finishes. I love how the legs are slightly angled, giving the table a vivid and contemporary yet still timeless expression. 

The table is available in two different lengths: a 192 cm version (seen above) and a more compact 142 cm version for slightly smaller spaces. Best of all, they both extend! Beneath the tabletop, is a compartment for storing up to two extension leaves (available as additional purchases) so you can easily extend them another 45 cm to 90 cm! 

Below I extended it by 45 cm, which adds an extra two seats at the table - but for bigger parties, Christmas etc, I'm thinking the 90 cm extension would be perfect - you never know who might rock up - and with a table like this, the more the merrier! 

As mentioned, Per was particularly taken by the #825 chairs (I chose the oak and black leather version, but they are also available in 7 other versions). I have to say, the wood and leather was so lovely and smooth, plus the rounded backs and cushioned leather seat made them super comfy! 

The chair is inspired by mid-century furniture with a light, Scandinavian twist. I particularly love the grain in the wood - but if you prefer supreme comfort - you might like to go for the version with an upholstered back. 

We've always had a built-in sofa in our dining area (the cabinets give us a load of extra storage - the Brantmarks are a family of hoarders and hidden behind those cabinets is a load of stuff ranging from CDs and board games to my accounting and paper recycling, the latter two are not to be confused!). The cushions are all made from linen (a material I love since it adds texture and feels lovely to touch!) and the seating is actually a sunbed mattress from IKEA which I have covered in fabric! 

All in all, these pieces seem to fit our dining room like a glove, I love it when that happens! I hope you like this look too! 

If you're interested in these pieces, find your nearest store here (Skovby ship almost worldwide). 

Wishing you all a wonderful day! 

Niki

PS I've got such an exciting make-over to share with you tomorrow - I was bowled over by the creativity. I hope you have time to stop by! 

Photography: Niki Brantmark / My Scandinavian Home

Styling: Helen Sturesson 

*This post is brought to you in paid partnership with Skovby. All words are my own and I only ever work with brands I love and think you will too! Thank you for supporting the wonderful businesses that make My Scandinavian Home possible. 

READ MORE...

7

Helen's Malmö Studio in a Warehouse, And a Smart Space-saving Table!

Paid partnership with Skovby, all words and pictures are my own and I only ever work with brands I love and think you will too. 

A few days ago, I spent the day at my friend Helen Sturesson's beautiful studio across town. Her studio occupies a section of the ground floor of an old warehouse - and all the lovely old touches including a tiled stone floor, round radiators and pipes are still intact. 

Her room is quite narrow, so space saving furniture is the order of the day. Danish brand Skovby launched a new multipurpose table earlier this year, and I knew it would be perfect for the space - both as a side table / desk, but also as a larger table for collaborative work. So, I rolled up with it in my car (as much as I love to cycle, it was a push by bike, even by Swedish standards!) and after a 'fika' (a lengthy chat and copious amounts of coffee), we snapped these pictures - I hope you like them! 

Helen hard at work! 

True to Danish design, and as with all things Skovby, it's beautifully made and really high quality. It comes in a few different versions - this is white oak oil with a white laminate surface.  

I love the brass hinge detail. 

Best of all though  - once you've finished creating, eating, or eh hem, drinking copious cups of coffee, you can fold it up and move it to the side of the room and use it as a side table or desk. Smidigt (smooth)! 

Oh, and just one more thing, for all those of you who love a nifty piece, it also has built-in storage. 

Remember these stools? I basically have them in every room of my house - not kidding. Also from Skovby, they're made from leftover production wood. 

I hope you liked this glimpse inside Helen's studio - the site of many interior meetings and coffee drinking, and feel as excited as I am about new danish design pieces such as this one! 

Could you imagine having a table like this in your home or office? It would actually be ideal for our cabin too - maybe you'll see me heading up the E6 with a full boot soon! 

More info about the #104 multipurpose table here in case you're interested (Skovby have dealers almost worldwide). 

Right friends, it's time for the weekend - and I've got some halloween costumes to make. Are you doing anything in your home?

Have a cosy, not too spooky, couple of days. See you Monday! 

Niki

Photography Niki Brantmark

Styling Helen Sturesson 

READ MORE...

2

My Spring Table With Danish Recycled Glassware

Collaboration*

Hej vänner! Everyone ready for the weekend? Before we shoot off, I'm really excited to share some recent pictures I took in my dining room in collaboration with Pernille Bülow. You'll likely recognise the name. I am a huge fan of Pernille Bülow - an atelier on the Danish island of Bornholm, and I am always excited to see their latest collections. And this one is really exceptional! Pernille Bülow prides itself on producing handmade items from glass and other raw materials in their workshop in the small village of Nexø. The new ReUse glassware consists of a drinking glass (in two different sizes), bowl, vase, oil lamp and jar, all of which have been individually mouth blown using waste glass from the pharmaceutical industry. And every single piece is unique. Read on for more! 

I used this little bench in the kitchen for all the 'props' for the shoot, and they looked so pretty I couldn't resist taking some snapshots before the items even made it to the table! 

When you experience the pieces from the ReUse Collection firsthand, it's hard to imagine that it's made from waste glass. Every year, Novo Nordisk has large amounts of excess borosilicate glass from their diabetes drug production, which is then disposed of. And now, Pernille Bülow has found a way to remelt the glass and shape it into beautiful objects. Look closely and you'll see small bubbles - a result of the production and a hallmark of the ReUse Collection. 

The ReUse drinking glasses come in a small and large size. For the table, I used the smaller size because I felt they were a perfect fit with the bowls. People are often cautious about putting handmade glassware in the dishwasher but fear not - these are heat and dishwasher resistant!  

The pretty ReUse jars with cork lid can be used for just about anything, anywhere in the home - but I have to say they do look lovely in the kitchen filled with oil and salt!

The ReUse vases all vary slightly in size (a sign of mouth blown design!) and look equally beautiful alone as they do on the table in a set of three. I used a single stem - which is all it needs! 

For our spring table I combined the ReUse Collection with a white linen tablecloth, striped linen napkins, and simple ceramic plates - for a relaxed, yet formal rustic setting. 

Let's hope the Brantmark table manners can live up to the setting (there's work to be done, I can tell you *rolls eyes*!). Having said that, there is a relaxed feel to the setting too - which gives way to chatting and laughter into the small hours - hygge style!). 

I love antique silverware, how about you? It always reminds me of lunch at my Grandmother's house as a child.  There was something about the slightly tainted, unpolished appearance of this silverware which made it a perfect fit with the ReUse collection (at least that's my excuse for not polishing it! That obvious?). 

The ReUse glass bowl is great for soup, cereal or just about anything really and it matches the drinking glasses perfectly. 

My favourite item in the collection has to be the ReUse oil lamp.  I'm a big fan of oil lamps in general - they've been slowly replacing candles in my home since they're a bit Moore convenient! I particularly the simplicity of this one. It's also SUPER easy to refill and light (as an oil lamp expert, this isn't always the case!). I now have three of these beauties dotted around - because they work absolutely anywhere in the house - on a coffee table, windowsill (well away from the curtains of course), on my desk (in Sweden it's perfectly normal to have a lit candle on your desk on a dark day - something I've been quick to embrace!) - anywhere! 

I showed this beauty to my sister Cas last night over a Zoom call, and she actually paused the call to buy one! Let's hope those mouth blowers can work quickly, I have a feeling these are going to be a big hit! 

It feels like we're all set for Easter now! One month early too! t  

In the meantime, I'll be burning the oil lamps to warm up these chilly Scandinavian evenings and enjoying my granola even more from my glass bowl!

I hope there's something in this collection that has caught your eye too. Pernille Bülow ships worldwide (more info here). 

Would you like to see more from their collection? Take a peek at the SKY Lamp here, here and here in my home and the Pernille Bülow Odin glassware captured at my summer cottage (I have such great memories from that day!), and also the ReUse outdoor light chain in my little back garden. So many lovely things in one place! 

If you have any questions about anything else you see in these pictures please do give me a shout in the comment section below, I'll be happy to help. 

Right friends, I think that's it for the week! 

Wishing you all a wonderful couple of days and see you Monday!

Niki

*This post is a paid partnership with Pernille Bülow. However, all words and images are my own and I only ever work with brands I absolutely love and think you will too! Thank you for supporting the small Nordic businesses and ateliers that make My Scandinavian Home possible.

READ MORE...

2

Cosy Autumn Ideas From Laura and Nora's Beautiful Homes

I have heard that Autumn is fairly late around the Northern Hemisphere this year, is this the case where you are? In Sweden, it has hit us with full force! Think blustery gusts sending golden leaves spiralling through the chilly October air and dark candlelit days. It's definitely time to update the home to embrace the golden season to the full! 

I have been following Laura and Nora for many years and never tire of the beautiful inspiration they share. Famous for their recipes, the pair live in Germany (although once flirted with a summerhouse in Southern Sweden) and love to share snapshots of their apartment in Berlin and country home. Here are some Autumnal (that's 'fall' for you guys across the pond!) touches from their living spaces (including several tablescapes!) to get us into the spirit and fill us with ideas for the new season ahead. 

Nothing says Autumn like an artisan teapot* and a steaming cuppa to warm the cockles! 

A little side table in their outhouse can be pulled out at dinnertime. At this time of year, small items foraged from the great outdoors help to bring nature in. Why not create a simple bowl of acorns, conquers and other items for an instant display. 

Blankets are your best friend in Autumn and winter - add them to sofas, armchairs and beds so that you can curl up, get cosy and keep the chill at bay! 

Cosy sheepskins add to the cosiness of the season. This Danish-made Little Petra chair is a favourite of mine, but simply draping sheepskins* on furniture can make a difference! 

A thick rug (by Cappelen Dimyr) and branches with berries help to add a cosy in-season touch to their cosy sitting room. 

A simple vase of foraged branches with golden leaves looks so pretty on the dining table. 

Or if you'd like to go all out, hang branches from the ceiling for an autumn dining table with wow factor! 

Edible berries and fallen leaves make a charming touch to the table setting. 

I couldn't resist sharing a snapshot from their powder room. Although tiny, it packs a punch thanks to the textured wall, pretty tiles and linen towel. 

Extend the season outdoors by adding string lights, candles and plenty of cushions and blankets! 

Pumpkins make a really lovely touch to the autumn table. I've noticed that  green pumpkins are particularly popular this season! 

Rustic linen in tones of brown add to the texture of the season and a bouquet of Autumn flowers ensures a burst of colour. 

Don't forget to wrap up warm in cosy knits to keep the chill at bay! 

Trust Nora and Laura to create such beautiful autumn table scapes - great inspiration for the coming months, don't you think?

Is there a particular way you like to update your home in Autumn? if so, I'd love to hear about it in the comments below. 

In the meantime, here is a little more Autumn inspiration for the weekend: 

11 Autumn updates to steal from a Danish home

5 mysiga autumn ideas from a Swedish country home

5 cosy Autumn trends, Scandinavian style

Have a cosy weekend! 

Niki

Photography: Our Food Stories, shared with kind permission

READ MORE...

2