Susan Black makes wonderful collages, mixing paint and re-used material of all sorts. Like this piece, which I found on her blog 29 Black Street. If you like what you see, you can buy her work at her Etsy shop.
A Weekend Cabin in Stockholm's Archipelago
Some people have more talent (and knowledge) than others. Just look at Carouschka Streijffert! She is a Swedish artist, architect, set designer and writer. Among other things...
I first notice her creativity, when she appeared on a Swedish TV "remake-my-home" show. Her work stood out, was soooo much more inventive than the other designers. She was very clever in finding new use of old spaces, by using very small means. Re-use seem to be her thing.
One incident stands out in my memory: the carpenters argued about something she had planned. When they didn't get it, she pulled out her bright red lipstick, and draw a sketch on the wall!! Nice touch ;-) Much of that side of her is visible in her own weekend cabin. The focus is on simple living, in harmony with nature. No fancy styling to impress, just the basic necessities. Love it.
All of a sudden her summer house is showing up in many blogposts here and here and here. A well deserved attention. But few seems to know who created this space, build to fulfill a dream of escape. So even though I already blogged about this cottage on my other blog Creative Living (before I started this blog), I think it's about time to present Carouschka Streijffert and her work, here too.
Carouschka Streijffert's weekend shelter on an island in the Stockholm archipelago. The surfaces are raw, with unfinished plaster walls, wooden floors and lots of clever storage.
Windows in all directions, blurring the borders between indoors and out. Below I have added some smaller images of Carouschka Streijffert's art work and stage set sketches, to the larger images of her house.
Combined kitchen, living room and study below, wooden stairs to the open space, sleeping area above.
Carouschka Streijffert has placed small tables and chairs all around the house, and in each direction, on the outside - ready for work ore a quick meal.
The larger images are from photographer Martin Lof's blog and Sköna hem, and the smaller ones (of her artwork etc) are from Carouschka Streijffert's own website. Like her style? Check out her awesome Stockholm loft here.
March 8!
Some Mimosa to all of you ladies reading this today - March 8, 2012.
Have a great day, everyone!
New book: The Natural Home - very Wabi Sabi
If I had to pick a favorite interior stylist, I would be..... well, there are so many good ones, but this month it is Hans Blomquist. What I like most about him, is that he masters sooooo many different styles. He doesn't have one signature style (I don't think), but he knows what style works best in each situation. May it be Baroque, Romantic French, hard edge Black & white, Colorful & playful, Raw Industrial or natural Wabi Sabi, he masters them all!
Much of the latter is presented in his upcoming book The Natural Home, which will be released by Ryland, Peters and Small in April. The publishers haven't posted many photographs yet, but I found the ones below over at the great blog French by Design. Awesome photos by Debi Treloar. As usual.
The Natural Home is a place where natural materials and motifs are the key elements of home decorating. The book celebrates perfectly imperfect objects in homes that have grown with time and are photographed un-staged. Could it be more Wabi Sabi?
Hans Blomquist starts off by exploring the essence of the natural style:
- In Texture, he revels in the textures and patinas of natural materials.
- Still Life reveals Hans' passion for creating displays that showcase treasured pieces, while
- Plants and Flowers celebrates the beauty of nature and the cycles of the natural world.
- Colour presents his favourite earthy, natural colour palette, which provides the perfect backdrop for hits of brighter natural hues.
- The second part of the book, Homes, presents a series houses and apartments that showcase the beautiful simplicity and elegance of the natural look.
The Natural Home will fit perfectly in my bookcase, in between all my Wabi Sabi books (among them Axel Vervoordts book Wabi Inspirations) and other books celebrating the used & imperfect, like Emily Chalmers book Flea Market Style, Christiane Lemieux's UnDecorate and Ramnek/Ulin's book Nesting.
Contemporary photographs with a vintage feel
This Saturday I give you a set of pictures, though mostly modern, have a feeling of times past. A wee bit on the romantic side, perhaps? Well, spring is in the air, so why not? Enjoy.
Photograph by
Photograph via
Photograph by Walter Breidenbach
Photograph by Sibylle Bergemann
Photograph by Kamil Vojnary
Feathers all over the place
First, I'd like to thank beautiful & talented Susanne, the editor behind the blog Me and Alice for mentioning this blog as her favorite, when interviewed by the Brazilian Magazine Casa e Jardim (House & Garden). I am very humbled and flattered! Head over to her blog, filled with beautiful pictures of her country home, up in the north of Sweden.
This was a great surprise - and a lovely start of my weekend. I'm looking forward to working in my garden the next couple of days. Lots to do. Soon enough Easter is here. Below are some feathery pictures I've collected on Pinterest to help me get into an Easter mode. Enjoy your weekend!
Pictures from the top: www.emiliehalpern.com, parisapartment.wordpress.com, www.louiseroe.dk, flickr.com/photos/nationaalarchief, and of course tumblr (without source).
Your secret hideaway by the lake
The other day I blogged about a stunning weekend house by the lake, here. That house sleeps 10 people. This house (actually a garden shed/greenhouse) is a wee bit smaller - sleeps 2, I guess. Both have big windows overlooking the lake. Which house do you prefer?
This greenhouse - garden shed - guest house is designed by the Finnish firm Avanto Architects.
Vote for Best Home Design Blog 2012
How nice. This blog is nominated for Best Home Design Blog 2012. It's a VERY long list of nominees, but if you want to cast a vote for me, CLICK HERE TO VOTE. Voting ends March 2.
UPDATE: We ended up on 175 place (or there about) among 462 nominated blogs. Thanks friends for your votes. It was an honor to be among the nominated, and great fun discovering new blogs from this long list. Head over to see for yourself.
Raw elegance in New York City. En renoverad dröm!
This classic New York city apartment was recently renovated by Olson Kundig Architects. They transformed the space from a traditional pre-war, partitioned layout into a simple open plan. The project included reclaiming some of the building’s original features, such as two cast iron riveted columns and the original masonry walls.
To open up the old apartment, Olson Kundig Architects raised the ceilings, and removed many interior walls. The windows were enlarged to allow daylight to penetrate deep into the space. Seemed to have worked well. I'm delighted to see an apartment with such restrained decoration... a few classics but no (short lived) trendy items of the kind that quickly dates a place. Well done!
All the aged materials give the flat a Wabi Sabi feel, don't you think? Love the white ceiling and sheetrock walls, the exposed masonry, the black steel and the reclaimed oak floors. All images via.
Like the work of the architect firm? Here is another example - a stunning getaway by the lakeside. More on Jim Olson's ideas on architecture in his book Houses.
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