A delightful home in Finland

Hello Monday! I hope you had a fab weekend? My alarm went off at 5.30am this morning - not ideal but you know what they say about the early bird....and it certainly rings true this morning. This is the beautiful Finnish home of Riika Kantinkoski - photographer, artist, stylist and blogger extraordinaire.  Think light wood floors, soft greys, Scandinavian design pieces and impeccable Finnish style. Oh how I'd love to start my week in this home, how about you?!

Photos: Riika Kantinkoski, with kind permission.

Honestly, Riika's home is like a breath of fresh air...it's just so effortlessly serene!

I love the idea of grouping different shaped vases with flowers from the garden, so simple yet so pretty (more indoor garden ideas here).

Items I know and love (in order of appearance): String shelves, aquarelle print (by Riika), Hay about a chair. SINNERLIG table lamp, macrame wall hanging (by Riika). SINNERLIG stool. Bedside table, Linen bedding.

You can keep up to date with Riika's latest home updates, projects and designs on her beautiful blog Weekday Carnival.

More oh so beautiful Finnish homes here, here and here.

Have a wonderful start to the week!

PS so pleased to be invited to be a part of luxury online home store Amara's 63 beautiful kitchen ideas piece. And thrilled to be nominated for 'Best European Interiors Blog' in the Amara Interior Blog Awards. My voting page is here. Exciting!

The serene white home of a designer

Hello Monday! I hope you had a wonderful weekend? My family are over visiting and Sweden's pulled out all the stops on the weather front (finally!) so we've been doing what we love most - spending time on the water, swimming and sailing, it's hard to believe that in four months time the Öresund could be iced over (eeeek let's not talk about it!). Today, I'm feeling inspired by this beautiful summery home across the Baltic in Poland. Located in Szczecin, designer Jacek Kolasinski has kept the palette an almost entirely serene white and filled the centuries old family home with lovel Scandinavian classics. The terrace is beautiful too. Perfect, calm inspiration to start the week...

Photography: Karolina Bak -shared with kind permission.  Post inspired by Vosges Paris / Remodelista with thanks.

Aaaah, I do love white, perhaps I couldn't go for the full white look in my own home as I do love to mess it up a little, but it doesn't mean I can't drool over the look in others'  homes- it's just so serene! How do you feel about all white?

The white Caravaggio pendant light and Concert lights are subtle yet beautiful. I also loved the touches of natural wood (that side-table in the garden!), rattan and the mid-century items- they really pop out against the white backdrop.

More dreamy white homes here, here and here (this Finnish one is a favourite...). 

Have a lovely day!

A lovely light-filled Dutch family houseboat

Yaaaay, it's the weekend (almost)! The sun's shining and I can see the sea sparkling in the distance (definitely heading off for a swim shortly!)....but first today's tour. Could you imagine anything more wonderful than living on a house boat at this time of year? Brought up in a sailing family, I was practically born on a boat and this would be my dream come true, but it does conjure up images of a rather dark, cramped living space. Not in this Dutch house boat captured by Binti Home though. Located a mere 10 minutes from the centre of Amsterdam, Annelie (co-owner of Bynorr.nl), Hans and baby Scott's home is flooded with natural light. The self-designed open-plan space is uncluttered with fresh white walls and pretty pastel accessories.  The only real hint that it's afloat is from the water seen from the living room window. Such a lovely family home, don't you think?

Homeowner: ByNorr.nl. Binti Home (shared with kind permission). Featured in Flair Magazine.

Apart from the fresh colours, patterns and light wood I think my favourite thing about this home is the mix-match coffee tables in the living room. How about you?

I love the cute children's room too. For similar inspiration it's well worth popping over to fellow Malmö blogger Paul et Paula. My favourite online children shops right now are The Youngsters (owned by my talented interior designer friend Genevieve who also lives in Malmö and who I recently collaborated with on my little girls bedroom) and British/Swedish brand Indikidual (Syreeta used to live here too!) - so lucky to be surrounded by such talented people!

There are a load more pictures of this lovely home plus a full write-up over at Binti Home and Flair Magazine (in Dutch). 

For more inspiration from Holland this weekend (after all, the Dutch do have such a great sense of style don't they?) there's an entire archive here (scroll through the first one as it's most likely this home). 

Have a wonderful couple of days and for those of you in America...long weekend!

PS if you fancy a dip this afternoon but have no where to go - you can always imagine yourself relaxing in one of these beautiful swimming pools. Love!  

Zoe Dent's exotic yet calm oasis in Avalon

Happy July! This has become one of my favourite months since moving to Scandinavia. When the sunshine comes out, there's no where I'd rather be and today's a ripper (I took this pic in Helsingborg yesterday, can you believe it?!). To celebrate I'm going for a home tour with a tropical vibe. And Zoe Dent of The Wedding Nest has achieved just that. Her light and open plan Australian beachside pad in Avalon, which she shares with partner and new born baby, reflects her love of nature and the seaside. The interior is decorated using a neutral colour palette and the varying textiles and textures add depth.  Wall to ceiling windows and plants bring the outside in to form a wonderful oasis of calm.  Let's take a look...

Photography: Hannah Blackmore (shared with kind permission). Styling: Claudia Stephensen. Adore Magazine.

What a wonderful living area, don't you think? I'm sure it would feel sunny even on the greyest of days.

A few items I know and love: Basket lampshade,  Beni Ourani rug, search for tribal ceremonial necklaces on etsy, wishbone and Safari chairs, juju hat (on wall).

Is this your kind of style?

For more boho-exotic inspiration I'm also loving Jade Jagger's Goa retreat and this little piece of paradise in the Philippines. 

Have a lovely sunny day!

PS I love to see unique online boutiques grow in exciting ways and Blackthumb is doing exactly that. This month the store, which brings a collection of Nordic design home and gardening products to North America, has added items from fab Scandinavian brands Nur Design, By Garmi, Kreavtivitum and Menu to the mix. I've got my eye on the Concrete Copper Chunk candle-holder, Nur tray and Opuntia print. How about you?

A calm white house in the Catskill Mountains

It's my last day in the USA today. We've had such an incredible time on our Upstate New York house tour. The home owners couldn't have been more welcoming (with breakfasts and snacks straight from their farms, big smiles) and the nature was beautiful (snakes, deer and chipmunks by day and fireflies which twinkled like stars at night)! One of my favourite places was the catskill Mountains so I thought it'd be apt to post a home tour from there today. The house belongs to J.M Generals store owner Jeffrey Monteiro (who also designed this fabulous dress) and film actor Clayton Dean Smith in Peakville, Western Catskills and recently featured on Design Sponge. You'd be forgiven for thinking it's in Scandinavia with it's lovely painted white floors. What a great home, don't you think?

Photography: Maxwell Tielman / Design Sponge

I do love an all white painted / decorated home. I'm not sure if it's the aesthetic, the light, or the serenity but it would definitely be my go to look if I had a country home (hey, a girl can dream right?!).  How about you?

I'm off to have a little walk about in Williamsburg now, never been to this part of the city before. Tips welcome! And then it's back to Sweden tomorrow - awww I can't wait to see my little family, I've missed them! And I'm looking forward to getting my daily posts back in order too - thanks for being so patient over the last few days.

I hope you have a wonderful day!

A dreamy white and grey Swedish space

Wake up it's a beautiful morning! At least if you imagine you're floating around this dreamy white Swedish apartment. Styled for sale by Stadshem, the space has been decorated almost entirely in white and light wood, with the faintest touches of greys. A perfect way to start the week, don't you think?

Styling: @Blackbirdstyle & Emma Hos. Photo: Bodil Bergqvist. Stadshem.

A few items I know and love: sitting room - sofa / throw on sofa / grey floor lamp / e27 light / Gothenburg print / butterfly chair. Source a similar macrame wall hanging  (love the DIY version hanging in Kaisa's bedroom). Kitchen: Menu chair, Thonet chair, rattan Rug, Artek stools.

Pssst! At the time of writing the post I wasn't sure where the lovely throw on the sofa and throw on the bed were from - now I am able to update the post! Thank you lovely anonymous commenter!

More dreamy white, light wood and grey homes here, here and here. And if you'd like to get the look in your workspace - this white and wood office is perfection!

Have a lovely start to the week!