Home tour: A Charming, Rustic House in the Genoa Hills

Why, hello there! Sorry for posting a little late today. I've been busy launching a 30 Day Home Love challenge on Instagram with Holly Becker this morning. We hope it will bring a little light to everyone's day and help to make our homes a brighter place! Please do come and join in if you fancy it! SO, on with today's tour. And I thought we could take a peek inside the beautiful rustic home of Sarah Tognetti in the hills of Genoa, Italy today. Sarah, who founded the magazine Slow Home Slow Living Living, husband Gigi and their two daughters Beatrice (15) and Mathilde (12) enjoy a slow pace of life nestled between the beautiful Ligurian mountains and the sea. Their country home is filled with natural touches, raw materials and earthy tones. Fresh in-season flowers and plants also help to bring nature indoors. Welcome to Sarah's cosy world! 

The family's pink residence is nestled amongst a cluster of pretty houses on the Genoa hillside. She and her family are the first to live in the house in over a century. In the past it has been a carpentry workshop, a tavern and a meeting place where people got together to dance during the war. 

"We love nature and our dream is to buy a house with lots of land and be able to cultivate it," Sarah tells me. 

The kitchen has a really Scandinavian feel to it, don't you think? I love the open wood shelving lined with jars of pasta, pulses and rice - they add a really cosy touch. 

A vintage dresser in the kitchen has been painted in a soft grey from Farrow & Ball and filled with bowls, baskets, tins, glasses, kitchen towels and other necessities! 

Look closely at this beautiful space and you'll spot exposed wood beams over the window (I missed these the first-time round), which add a lovely rustic touch to the room.

Pick up similar factory lighting here*.

Sarah shared this picture in the #30dayhomelove challenge on Instagram today as her favourite room. I can totally see why, it's somewhere cosy where everyone in the home can gather. There's also a great wood burning stove which can be fired into action on chillier days. So toasty! 

There's so much to love about the master bedroom - the whitewashed wood cladding, the linen curtains, the plants..... But also, if you have a sloped ceiling, putting in a dummy wall like this is a great way to optimise space. 

Look what we have here! My book The Scandinavian Home! What an honour that my interior book has been a source of inspiration for Sarah. And I see it's in great company too! 

Such a beautiful home, don't you think? 

Is there anything in particular that stood out to you? 

Sarah's instagram feed is really beautiful too - if you don't already follow her, it's a must! 

If you're in the mood for more mountain / hill home inspiration today, make yourself cosy and take a peek at these charming spaces: 

A magical Norwegian mountain cabin

A family home with a breath-taking view of the Austrian Alps

A Norwegian house by a fjord

Sending lots of love and hugs to Italian readers and all today. 

Niki

Photography: Sarah Tognetti / @shabbychicinteriors 

*affiliate link

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A beautifully renovated Swedish farmhouse

This beautiful turn of the century Dalarna farmhouse was the childhood home of  Swedish photographer Helena Blom. Thirteen years ago Helena and her husband Göran returned with their children Elliot and Emma. Since then they have lovingly restored the home. It was important to Helena that the features which make an old house so charming such as the uneven hardwood floor, creaky staircase, beautiful fireplace and wood stove remained intact while the home is updated to reflect modern family life.

With kind permission from photographer: Helena Blom. Lantliv

What a beautiful home! I think my favourite room has to be the sitting room with it's wonderful white floors, wood burning stove and wood beams (and saddle of course!).

What do you love about this home?

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Before And After: A Tiny Off-the-grid Swedish Cabin In The Woods

Have you ever considered a more simple life? Perhaps one that involves swapping urban adventures for a serene rural life? Or maybe you've been considering down-sizing in order to save money and realise a dream! Either way - I think you're going to find todays tour amazingly inspiring! 

As an 'Organic Farming and Sustainable Living' student, Paula Edén had lived in a little caravan in the countryside. Since graduating, she'd always dreamed of returning to 'tiny house' living and a more simple life. Paula set about sketching her dream home and built herself a tiny cabin on wheels. Today, she lives completely off-grid in a 13 metre2 living space, where everything she needs is right there on her doorstep. 

The sketch

Paula had always loved the ideas of a traditional Swedish Falu-red cottage with yellow doors. Her sketch (above) would form the blue-print for the construction phase. 

The Construction

Paula was keen to ensure her cottage was constructed in as sustainable was possible. She worked with natural materials (avoiding plastic and aluminium) and also sought upcycled pieces from reclaim yards - for example, the chassis was made using an old boat trailer. 

Paula sought the help of her Father - a woodwork teacher - and also looked for advice from other people who had carried out similar projects, joining many Facebook groups. As a first-timer, Paula decided to break down the house building process into smaller parts, allowing her creativity to guide her as much as possible. 

As someone who has always been interested in interiors, Paula was keen to put form ahead of function - which is fairly unusual in the 'tiny house' world where space is of a premium! The interior was constructed with left over storm wood, which she combined with new bead boards. 

Once the construction work was complete, the fun began: decorating! Paula painted the interior an earthy sage green using linseed oil paint code S 3010-G70Y and complimented it with Waldemar wallpaper from Boråstapeter. The muted colour scheme and natural wood were deliberately chosen to reflect the surrounding nature. 

Delivery!

The house was delivered to a borrowed plot of land on a farm in Småland, on a hill surrounded by pastures, forest and lakes.  

The interior

The cottage has been kitted out with everything Paula needs - including seating lined with cushions and a set of table and chairs from where she sits to eats, reads and catches up with friends - after coming home from her job as a nursery teacher. 

Living completely off-grid, Paula uses the Wood-burning stove to cook her meals as well as for heating. She collects drinking-water from the nearby farm and a hole in the ground serves as a fridge. Paula also collects rainwater from the roof and swims in the nearby lake to wash. A small solar panel has been attached to the side of the cottage to generate electricity. 

The ceiling serves as extra storage for important utensils such as an oil lamp and a basket used for foraging and gathering homegrown fruit and vegetables. 

Look closely and you'll also spot her sleep loft - a cosy nook above the kitchen!

Vintage tins and jars in the kitchen add to the warm, cosy vibe of Paula's home while providing somewhere to store food. 

How lovely! 

Such a beautiful, cosy little space to potter around in!  

Per and I are planning to build a small cottage in the garden of the summer cottage - but we never actually considered building it ourselves! Feeling inspired, I asked Paula a little more about what it was like to build a cottage, and if she has any tips for anyone looking to do the same:

"It's so much fun to learn how to build a house! It's also great to be able to build your home just the way you want it. On the whole, I felt the process went really well.  I may not have done everything by the book, but I'm happy with it! 

Taking it one step at a time and leave room for creativity. Look for support from other people who have carried out similar projects (there are plenty of groups on Facebook).  And don't think too much, just go for it! 

Remember: not everything needs to be perfect - it won't turn out as you had planned anyway!"

Wise words indeed! 

I couldn't resist asking Paula one more question - how is she finding life in her tiny cabin in the woods and how does she have any plans for the future?

"I really enjoy living in the woods and I feel at home surrounded by trees and meadows. My dream is to be surrounded by a couple of other tiny houses occupied by friends so we can share water and electricity. There's something beautiful about silence, but life is more fun with others!" 

Thank you so much to Paula for graciously sharing her thoughts and images. You can see many more snapshots of her life on a farm over at @paulas.hus. 

Looking for other tiny house inspiration? Peek inside the world's smallest luxury home (it's also on wheels!), a tiny Danish beach cabin that's big on style and Dream life on a budget: a tiny cabin and pottery studio in the woods. 

Are you feeling as inspired as I am? I'd love to hear your thoughts on Paula's lovely home below! 

Niki

Photography: Paula Edén, first seen in Land magazine 

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A Contemporary Yet Cosy Rural Retreat In The Catskill Mountains

A few years back I visited the Catskill Mountains to capture homes for my first book Modern Pastoral - it was a bit of a whirlwind tour and I've always vowed to return. When I do, I've earmarked the studio at Table on Ten. Table on Ten is a restaurant, cafe, inn and a gathering place for farmers and artists alike. It's located in Bloomville in the western Catskills, just a few hours from New York. Known as 'studio on the hill', the cabin stands alone on a 23 acre hillside overlooking the Catskill Mountains. It's simple and understated, yet contemporary and cosy - just the way I like it! Think vintage furniture and a roaring wood burning stove. Oh yes, and you're only a stone's throw from the best wood-fired sourdough pizza west of the Hudson! 

Did someone say wood-fired pizza?! Even if you don't stay onsite (Table on Ten also offers three other apartments through Airbnb) - it's well worth stopping by at the restaurant to take in the rural surroundings and treat your taste buds! 

Sound like your kind of holiday? Perhaps we'll meet around the table one day! 

You can find out more about Table on Ten here (for the foodies among you - there's a sample of the menu here) and book this studio on Airbnb. 

A few other homes /spaces in the Catskills I think you'll love: 

A Calm White House in the Catskill Mountains

A Black and White Retreat in The Catskills (I visited and captured this one for my book - it was even more wonderful in person!). 

Before and after: an attic in the catskills becomes a light and airy guest room

See you there?!

Niki

Photography courtesy of Table on Ten with thanks.

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