Thank you to Brafab for a great collaboration
Hello friends. I thought I'd share a small update from our cabin in the Northwest tip of Skåne today. As many of you know, we finished the build last spring (full tour
here). And we'd been so busy counting down the days until we could move in that we hadn't thought about the garden. So much so, that when we arrived the cabin was like an island surrounded by mud! Eager to rectify this before the summer, we rapidly had a deck built and set about sowing the lawn. Admittedly the grass is a bit patchy still and in need of some weeding - but it's hard to get up from our lounge set to get around to it. And this friends, is what I wanted to share with you today!
At a summer cottage, particularly one with a small living space like this one, I've learned the outdoor space as just as important as the indoor space. Up here, life spills outs 24/7 as one day leaks into the other - I'm sure it's the same where you are too!
So, the next step was to add some seriously comfy outdoor seating. After a lot of research, we
settled on the
Lyra sofa and
armchairs by
Brafab. And I have to say, it's one of the best additions we've made to our cabin. We're talking plump cushions and a seat deep enough to tuck your feet up under you. In fact, several of our friends who stopped by for a coffee / drinks this summer have now bought a set too!
I particularly like the black powder-coated stainless steel and synthetic rattan on the armrest. But also, the cushions are made using water repellent fabric specially designed for outdoor use which means we don't need to sprint around bringing the cushions in every time it rains (which would be often - and with a cramped living space a no-go!). Instead, we just move them inside for the winter (or for completely crazy weather like the recent 'storm Hans' a few weeks ago (when storms have a name you know you're in trouble, right?).
The other new addition is the
Indus coffee table - made from teak ribs and a black metal frame. It was important for us that it was big (it's 135 cm long) so you're never far from your morning coffee, cinnamon bun, glass of wine!
And finally, the parasol! I have to say, we tempted fate with this one. It had been sunny all summer and then the parasol (
Trieste in natural) arrived and I'm not sure we saw the sun from then on - isn't that always the case? But the good thing about a parasol is that they're not just designed to keep you in the shade, there's also something cosy and comforting about sitting under them at night, don't you think?
This one measures 2.5 metres, tilts and is made from beechwood. It can be fairly breezy up in the Northwest corner of Skåne so we've used the
Grosseto base made from 70kg of granite (it's on wheels which makes it easy to move around).
What you don't see, is that I also planted 19 plants - which doesn't sound like much but when you have sandy soil like ours it was a major job! So actually, I was quite grateful for all the rain after all! Let's hope they survive!
And now, we're hoping for a 'second summer' so we can relax and enjoy the great outdoors for a little while longer!
I hope you like our outdoor space so far. If you have any questions about anything you see, please do give me a shout in the comments below!
Have a 'trevlig helg' (nice weekend) folks, see you Monday!
Niki
PS Brafab can be found in retailers throughout Europe (our sofa was acquired via Bramöbler). To find your nearest retailer tap here. 
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