About Me

Guide to Stockholm

A personal guide to Stockholm, written by me,
for you!

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More about Ceannis

Actually, I think Ceannis deserves their own blog post about their own collection. It is nothing like the Formission pieces, but much more romantic and feminine, and Ceannis only makes textile products such as cushion covers, bags and quilts. The inspiration for the fall/winter collection is based on time, twentyfour hours in a modern woman's life, and separated into four themes:

Early morning - The secret hour
Luxurious and shimmering materials in Scandinavian pale colours with a mix of frosty neutrals, for a quiet and peaceful awakening.

Office time - The rush hour

A unisex business collection with practical computer cases, handbags, travellers and gym bags in leather. Also some more playful products like cosmetics, cushions and throws in happy and cheerful colours such as fuchsia, orange, yellow and lilac, with black as a base colour.

Late afternoon, leisure time - Your own time

Nature is a big source of inspiration for this collection and especially the room in between inside, out and the greenhouse. The collection combines cushions and throws, shawls and slippers for comfort and cosy moments. We love soft qualities such as cord, washed leather and fake wolf fur in natural hues.

Evening, party - The magical hour
The magnificent colours and traditional materials from East Asian cultures combined with a simple Scandinavian design has given the inspiration to create a fantastic party. The colour range consists of red tones like fuchsia, tomato, wine and aubergine with gold as accent.

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Ceannis/Formission won the Formidable award

At every Formex fair there is an award called Formidable handed out to the best exhibitors in different categories such as best booth, textiles, metal and ceramics, to inspire and reward good design.  I took a fancy for the winner of this years prize for best wood/rattan/cane product; Ceannis/Formission and their rattan lounge chair with a low foot stool.

Formission is a fair trade project equally owned by the Federation of Norwegian Commercial and Service Enterprises (HSH) and the Swedish Chambers of Commerce, and distributed by Ceannis. It is a collection created by famous Scandinavian designers and manufactured in rural parts of Vietnam by local craftsmen. The collection is developed by Danish stylist Peter Oedegaard and designed by Nygårds Maria Bengtsson and Thomas E. Alken, and is already out in the shops.

A nice extra feature is that you can easily turn the foot stool into a small table by putting a tray on it, like this:

Other things from this collection, too good to be missed:

Ps. They handed out a rather large version of the basket above to all members of the press, so now I am the happy owner of one of them! It is even nicer in real life, and I think I'm going to use mine to store some of my magazines, just beside the sofa so they are always at hand.

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A short summary of Formex

I've been walking the aisles of the Formex fair today, until my head felt like it was going to explode from all the impressions. There were decorating details, visitors and salesmen throwing press releases at you all over the place. And to find the good stuff, you had to browse through hundreds of booths of crap. I managed to find some nice things though, and also met up with Li from Liebling Allsorts and Elisabeth from Fine little thing! Both very talented pattern designers, and super nice girls. I will give you some more detailed posts on my finds later, but for now, just some inspirational pics from the exhibitions.

Ballroom Blitz by Jan Rundgren, exterior by Design Agency Silver

Art into life - it's my choice by Peter Ødegaard


Disco Dansbana by Defyra


Surreal World by the Swedish Fashion Council

All pictures © Formex

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Preparing for Formex

Tomorrow is the starting day for a big trade show in the decorating and textiles business here in Stockholm, called Formex. I will of course be going, and I promise to cover as much as I can here on the blog, so that all of you who can't make it there also can take part of the hottest trends for this fall.

To start with, I want to tell you about the theme of this years show, called Ballroom Blitz - a statement against monotony, a happy mix of glittering disco balls, flashing neon lights and bright colours.

Designer and head of the Swedish Fashion Council Jan Rundgren has created a night club in the fair's entrance area. "The exhibition is designed like an extravagant night club with a high glam and glitter factor. To enter the night club, you first pass through the VIP entrance, which is completely decked out in silver and black. Once inside, you're back in the eighties' nightclub scene, with lights in profusion, a shiny dance floor and eighties music streaming from the speakers. Adjacent to the club there's a champagne bar in white, silver and vibrant colours that seem to come straight from TV's Miami Vice. By the bar there's also a colourful chambre séparée with a golden table set for the feast.
- I wanted to create a place for inspiration and pleasure. The lounge serves as a sort of island, where you can take it easy and recharge your batteries. And I hope the visitors will want to take a turn on the dance floor, says Jan Rundgren."

The Fashion Council has also designed three different themed stands to show the biggest trends this autumn; Ballroom Dancing invites you into the tea lounge or a "dance palace" dating from the 1930's. New concepts of cosy make us want to totally refurbish.
- Snugly fitted out interiors are what it's all about today - people are talking about 'the new cosiness'. Toned-down colours like burgundy and navy blue are on their way back. The inspiration comes from the thirties and forties, and above all from Art Déco, explains Lotta Ahlvar, managing director of the Swedish Fashion Council.

In Super Sonic, visitors will be tempted to strut it on the disco dance floor. The style is showy and glitzy and bursting with energy. Here, music is the prime inspiration - rave, techno, funk and disco. Strong colours, fluorescent lights and lots of cool effects.

The third theme, the dreamlike Surreal World, is an artful mix of wonderland and the unreal, so expect some surprising encounters. Here, the inspiration comes from Surrealism and painters like Salvador Dalí and René Magritte.

Another interesting exhibition is Art Into Life - It´s my choice by creative designer Peter Ødegaard that brings eco-design to modern man.

- New approaches will give a new lease of life to lots of tired old expressions, so they'll feel refreshing and genuine once more. I simply want people to start seeing recycling as a philosophy, to start buying with their hearts and minds, says Peter Ødegaard.

The design group Defyra will transform the café at the eastern entrance into a Disco Dance Floor in true Ballroom Blitz style, this time with a textile framework. Defyra aim to create a café environment with a cheerful, glam Scissor Sisters look that at the same time takes its inspiration from the traditional dance floor.

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New artwork from Anna Lena Mayor Ekeblad

I have featured Anna Lena Mayor Ekeblad's art before, but she just told me that she has some new work on her homepage, so I hurried over to take a look. I loved it the first time, and I'm still smitten with her stylish "feel good art"! Imagine having one of her paintings in your home, you would get a boost of self confidence, courage and happiness every time you looked at it!

long hope and dream anything can happen and dare to believe i believe in moments i believe in kisses i believe that life is wonderful some times

you can do anything everything and control the destiny of life with your heart live now

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Designer Zoo

Designer Zoo is 800 square meters in central Copenhagen, partioned into two floors housing a design shop, gallery and work studios for eight Danish designers, artists and crafters. In the store you can buy products not only from the inhouse designers, but also from 15-20 specially invited handcraft designers, such as Anne Black and Malene Helbak.

Two of the inhouse designers seemed especially interesting to me, the first one being Anna-Carin Dahl, a ceramist who works mainly with nature inspired porcelain, combining the unspoilt nature with a more raw and urban expression.

The other is Jane Holmberg Andersen, also a ceramist, but her works have a little more unrefined feeling, with matte surfaces and a more neutral colour scheme.

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JOY by Mel Lim

This company has such a great copy that really says it all, that I couldn't resist just copy-pasting it here:

"JOY by Mel Lim celebrates it's third year by bringing you joy to all aspects of your life. we explore new ideas in paper, bringing graphics & patterns to life through it's new organic baby clothing, comfort and luxury to your home through it's one of a kind hand made pillows and fashion through it's ultrasuede totes and bags.
joy is now a complete lifestyle."

"The story of Joy
an expressive and vibrantly colorful line of stationery called JOY was born when designer Mel Lim could not find correspondence cards to send home that were not white in color. her old nanny would have flipped if she had seen an all white card as white is the color of death in the chinese culture. coupled with her background in interior and wallpaper design, Mel created her line using energetic symbolic colors and elements, blending east and west, modern and vintage, letterpress and offset printing."

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The new wallpaper collection from Ferm Living

Ferm Living just launched their second collection of wallpapers, called Graphics in Nature, and that is exactly what it is. Lots of tree and leaf silhouettes in mostly neutral colourways such as black, white and grey. Not as bold as their last collection, and therefore it will probably fit more people's tastes.
Although I have to admit I am still more into the older ones. Actually, they are not that old, as they added two new patterns to that collection just last week (see two bottom pics)! Perhaps they will be working on the two different collections simultaneously?

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Stephanie Levy

Stephanie Levy is an american artist who has been living in Munich, Germany for the last 11 years. Having studied art in both Tennessee and Berlin, she now works as a freelance artist and illustrator. She makes collages and paintings, mainly with interior setting motives, from materials like origami paper, old IKEA catalogs and gold leaf. What I like most about Stephanie's work is probably the bright colours, simple shapes and the contemporary but still homely feel of the interiors she depicts. If you are interested in getting some of this for your own walls, Stephanie will soon be opening her own web shop!

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10 quick with Li Aronsson

Saturday sweets

A style study on using white and wood is what I put in your bag of eye-candy for this week. Some of the pictures show room settings with little dots of bright colours, while others are more minimal and go for just the neutrals. Which do you prefer?

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Tea towel love

Recently I've been seeing a lot of beautiful tea towels, so I thought I would share some of the goodness with you. These are my favourites from Etsy.

Clockwise from top left: Ice lollies by MrPS, Leafy motif by Michelle Brusegaard, Garlicious by 1420designs, Owl towel by artgoodies, screenprinted dishcloth by 12gypsies, Spring tree by PataPri.

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You have to see this apartment!

A couple of weeks ago, my blog friend Kristina over at the Karkovski blog posted a link to her friend Mette's blog called Mettes Potteri. I followed the link, and was stunned by the beauty of her home. And, it isn't just beautiful, it's very cleverly designed too, with my favourite part being the sofa in the livingroom also functioning as a double bed and a guest bed! (Look at her blog to see how it works.) Mette, a Danish ceramist and childrens wear designer, lives in this light 78 square meters city apartment with her husband John and their baby boy. Now, this is Scandinavian style at it's best, mixed with a bit of country and retro as well. I am very proud to be able to give you a sneak peek into Mette's home!

The super smart sofa/bed/guest bed, with the bedding and top mattresses tucked away in the chest.


John's desk in the livingroom.


The dining table is also used as Mette's work table, with an inspiration board on the wall and her fabric stash conveniantly at hand.


Baby's room. Love the old cupboard with the black trunk on top.


A new use of old metal bathroom shelving over the bed, and a pair of Mette's baby pants on the wall.


Totally organized! Look at that spice rack next to the window with all the spices poured into identical glass jars...


The small kitchen table is covered with pretty oilcloth, very practical when dining with a messy baby. And I believe that is some of Mette's pottery we see in the cabinet on the wall.

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Vacation time again!

Marimekko Autumn collection 2007

Loving the new Marimekko collection, as always with their strong simple patterns and beautiful colours. I'm especially smitten with the Aarni and Kulkue patterns! I've got to get that Kulkue mug!

Update: Guess what I got from Sia when we met after her trip to Finland? The Kulkue mug!!! I love it, and I am so happy, it's the best present I've gotten in a long time! Thank you so much Sia!

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A Liaison pillow covers and throws

Limited edition (only 100 per print) photo pillow covers and throws with silk backing from A Liaison. Perfect for perking up your plain sofa.

via MoCo Loco

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BlueFlip Art

I just recieved an email from Matt Regan (thanks Matt!) where he told me about his art site, BlueFlip Art. I think you should check it out too, because it's full of great giclee prints, and most of them are sold for under $ 20! Another good thing is that 10% of every sale goes to a charity chosen by the artist.

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The cutest sheets

Look at these super cute sheets and duvet covers from Esthex! Totally sweet, and the best thing is that they have plushies and music boxes to match.

The designer behind all this is Esther Schuivens, who started making these dolls after a day of looking through her old childhood drawings in her parents attic. She was very inspired by the funny proportions and simple shapes, where a triangle makes a dress and eyes are just two big circles. The long spindly legs also makes the dolls easy for kids to carry around!

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