my scandinavian home

Happy New Year! / Step inside a Cosy Malmö Apartment: Where Old Meets New

Well, hello there, friends! Happy New Year! I’ve got a good feeling about 2025—how about you? Here on the blog, I’m excited to bring you all my latest discoveries from the world of Scandinavian interiors!

Today in Malmö, it’s pretty bleak—snow, rain, and a howling gale. Needless to say, everyone is hunkering down at home, wrapped in blankets with candles glowing! Meanwhile, across town, interior designer Natalie Cécile Coquand is likely enjoying a cosy bank holiday with her family in their lovely apartment.

Natalie’s work is all about creating spaces that tell a story, and this is beautifully reflected in their Malmö city apartment, which she and her husband have been thoughtfully renovating. After recently moving from the Skåne countryside to embrace city life, traces of their rural roots still shine through in their new home, where old and new come together in perfect harmony.

Ready for the first tour of the year?

Natalie was particularly drawn to the kitchen with all it's natural light and character. Notice how a dark red larder to the left helps to break-up the grey/ green and creates a wonderful contrast.

Colours: kitchen cabinet - Kulladal nr 100, walls - Farrow & Ball all white and drop cloth, larder - deep reddish brown.

A ground-floor flat, the kitchen door leads straight out to the courtyard for a cup of coffee in the sunshine (although today, this door is likely firmly shut!).

A separate dining room with a window nook can be used for more formal dinners, and game nights! Note the two toned paint work with darker door frames and skirting boards - a great way to show-off the turn-of-the-century details.

Colours: walls and trim - school house white and drop cloth

In the sitting room, IKEA shelving helps set the scene for a lovely library.

I love how Natalie has made a feature of the wardrobe doors in her bedroom - painting them in a different tone and adding pretty curtains.

Colour: wardrobe doors - light blue

Traditional fabric helps to cover up storage in the hallway and adds a cosy feel.

So lovely!

I hope you enjoyed this peek behind the scenes in sleepy Malmö today.

Is there anything that has given you inspiration for a new year project at home? Or perhaps a detail that stood out in particular?

You can see lots more of Natalie's charming home over at @nataliecoquand.

Up for a few more Malmö home tours? Click through to these:

An artist's home in a former workshop

A Malmö home full of design classics and art

The wood and white home of a Malmö creative

You might also like to see my travel guide featuring 20 things to do in Malmö in wintertime. I hope you pay a visit some day, I'm very proud of this vibrant city!

Thank you so much for all your lovely comments on my final post of 2024 (before Christmas) - I've loved reading them and looking forward to responding this evening.

Here's to a great year ahead!

Niki

Photography courtesy of @nataliecoquand, shared with kind permission.

FILED UNDER: swedish apartment

Merry Christmas / God Jul!

Dear friends, thank you for making this year so special—with your kind, thoughtful, and inspiring comments and emails - or simply for stopping by and having a quiet read. You’ve helped make My Scandinavian Home a space that brings calm and positivity, and for that, I’m incredibly grateful. This community truly means the world to me!

If you’re craving more inspiration over the holidays, here are some of my favourite archives to explore:

Swedish homes
Danish homes
Norwegian homes
Cabins
Small spaces

And for a little sparkle:

Pretty table settings
Christmas / Christmas decorations

Or if you'd prefer to spend a little time offline, you can find all my books here, here and here* (just in case you'd like some extra Scandinavian decorating and lifestyle inspiration over the holidays!).

I’ll be taking a short break to recharge and will return to My Scandinavian Home on Monday 6th January.

Wishing you all a wonderful, relaxing break, a very Merry Christmas and a happy new year to you!

Niki

*advert / promotion for my own work.

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Blog round-up: The Most Popular Home Tours of 2024

Hej friends! With just a few days to go before the Christmas holidays, it’s time for the big blog round-up!

When creating each post, I carefully select homes that truly capture my heart—but that still means a wonderfully wide variety of styles, locations, and interiors. Looking back, it’s always exciting to see which tours resonated with you the most throughout the year. And this year’s top ten is just as eclectic as ever: from Swedish summer cottages and a snowy cabin in Finland to a colourful and elegant Stockholm apartment.

But the list doesn’t stop there! It also features gems from farther afield, including Igor’s chic Berlin apartment, a vintage-filled cottage in California, and even a dreamy ocean-side retreat in Tasmania.

Ready to dive into the top ten most-loved posts of the year? Let’s start from the bottom and work our way up. Drumroll, please...

10. A perfect Swedish summer cottage for Midsummer's Eve

9. A charming farmhouse in the southern Swedish countryside

8. A dreamy white vintage-filled cottage in California

7. A dreamy cottage by the ocean

6. Pia's country home in snowy Finland

5. Emma Sundh's beautiful sustainable country home

4. A back-to-basics Swedish cottage with a wild bathroom

3. A sprinkle of colour in an elegant Stockholm home

2. Plants, art and design in a beautiful Berlin apartment

1. Beata's lovely Swedish country home, full of secondhand finds

These beautiful homes are just the tip of the iceberg—there’s so much more to explore in the archives! If you find yourself with a little downtime over the holidays, or you’re craving a peaceful moment filled with inspiration, why not dive in and discover even more treasures?

Have any homes stolen your heart this year—or even in years past? Perhaps one has sparked ideas for your own projects, or maybe a particular detail resonated with you. I’d love to hear about it! Please share in the comments below so we can all revisit!

A heartfelt thank you for being part of the My Scandinavian Home community in 2024. Your positivity, kindness, and enthusiasm have truly made this a wonderful space to share and connect. To everyone who has read my books or given them as a present—thank you so much! I’m deeply grateful and hope they’ve brought joy, inspiration, and maybe even been passed along for others to enjoy too.

I’ll be back on Friday with one final post for the year. Until then, sit tight—just a few more days before we can all relax and savour the holiday break!

Niki x

1. Svenskfastighetsförmedling, 2.Länsförsäkringar Fastighetsförmedling 3. Bjurfors 4.Interior design - Colette Miller, photography - Lynda Kennedy 5.@thevintagerose_ 6.@pienimaalaistalo 7.Emma Sundh 8.SvensktFastighetsförmedling 9.Photography: Mia Borgelin Styling: Thomas Lingsell For: Historiska Hem 10.@igorjosif 11.@beatanison

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Traditional Swedish Christmas Decorations in Victoria's Cosy Home

There are just eight days left until Christmas—are you ready (if you celebrate)? I have to admit, things are feeling a little chaotic here. I’m way behind, but hey, at least the tree is up and twinkling away! That counts as a solid start, right? I’m holding out hope that in the coming week, a little Christmas magic will swoop in and get everything sorted.

In the meantime, I’m taking a deep breath—and a good dose of yuletide calm—from the beautiful Swedish kitchen and dining space of Victoria Oderland in Åsa, a small coastal village in the countryside near Gothenburg.

This cosy living area is brimming with all the charm of a traditional Swedish Christmas: an adventsljusstake glowing softly in the window, candle wreaths suspended overhead, and a warm glow from plenty of candlelight. But there’s one decoration in particular that really stands out—something quintessentially Scandinavian: the Julbock (Christmas goat!). Stay tuned for more on this festive icon!

Have you seen one of these guys before? The Julbock (yule goat) is a Scandinavian Christmas tradition with roots in Norse mythology and pagan harvest rituals. Initially linked to Thor’s goats and fertility symbols, it later became part of Christian Christmas celebrations. Traditionally made from straw and tied with red ribbons, the Julbock symbolized good fortune and holiday spirit. Today, it is a cherished holiday decoration, and can be seen on tables, windowsills and doorsteps. Do you have something like this in your country?

So pretty! I love the atmosphere, I so hope my house can feel like this by the end of the week.

Oh, and did you spot the guy on the kick sled? This form of transport is particularly popular in the countryside further North where they get plenty of snow, it's a great way to get around!

Is there anything from Victoria's home that you loved in particular? If you'd like to see more, head over to her inspiring instagram feed @simple.slow.living.

Would you like to see a few more homes with a festive touch today? Check out the Christmas archive.

Have a happy start to the week!

Niki

Photography courtesy of @simple.slow.living, shared with kind permission.

Nina's Warm and Cosy 19th Century Home in Wintertime

On the 21st of December, we’ll celebrate the winter solstice—a turning point, as from then on, the days will gradually become a little lighter. Hooray! Today, in Sweden, it’s Lucia—a celebration of light, marked by a girl wearing a crown of candles, leading a Lucia train of others dressed as little Father Christmases, gingerbread men, and other whimsical characters. It’s a beautiful tradition filled with songs and Lucia bullar—delicious saffron buns.

The darkness at this time of year also means the lights are often on all day—a detail we rarely see in interior photos. That’s why I was so excited to discover Nina’s home in Hamburg, Germany and the way she captures the essence of winter indoors. Picture sheepskins draped over chairs, golden slivers of sunlight, a roaring fire, soft, atmospheric lighting, and, of course, the subtle hints of Christmas. Her house, built in 1888, provides the perfect setting, with its wooden beams, chequered tiles, and charming architectural details that exude timeless character.

I hope this gets you into a cosy mood for the weekend!