A trip to the new Nordic Style in Wimbledon

 

Nordic Style in Wimbledon

Well I was very pleased to receive an invitation to Nordic Style’s new shop last week, as I haven’t been down to Wimbledon in quite some time and I definitely haven’t receieved my dose of Swedish furniture in a long time either!  You might remember an earlier series of posts from their Chelsea shop, where we fell in love with the romantic designs of classic Swedish furniture: A Nordic Style Dream in London (I, II and III).

A good example of the neutral palette that is so typical for Swedish interior design 

Well, how exciting that they are now expanding and this time into the beautiful Wimbledon Village.  The Village is the most divine little part of London with charming little shops and coffee places, the perfect place to meet the girlfriends for a fika (the closest English equivalent is probably afternoon tea, or just tea really as you meet your friends for a cup of tea or coffee and some cake) or dinner and drinks.  Especially perfect in this Mediterranean weather that we are currently experiencing..!

Halland Chest of 3 drawers

The shop is, as always, so beautifully decorated with softly coloured furniture, fabrics, beautiful tableware and accessories.  I obviously love seeing all the names of the pieces, as they make me feel so at home: Halland, Skogaholm, Karlsholm…

All the beautiful accessories…

Walking around in the shop just makes me want a whole new house to decorate!  I do love mixing things up for that unique look that is just my own, and from Nordic Style I would first of all go for their Gustavian Oak Bookcase:

I am in love with this Gustavian oak bookcase…

I would also lose myself in all their gorgeous accessories, like my favourite tray below, that I would just love to stack with a gorgeous and healthy breakfast for that Saturday-breakfast-in-bed-situation!

… and I definitely know where to get my perfect breakfast tray now!!

Some elegant tableware 

I would love to hear what you think of this Nordic style – is this how you would decorate your house?  Do you see anything here that you just love?

I was most of all tempted by a very special piece of antique furniture in the shop and I think that I will just have to save it for the next blog post – so do stay tuned my dear!

For all of you with a romantic taste in decorating… how much do you love this shabby chic lampshade? 

 

And this is where you can visit them:

Nordic Style
7 High Street,
Wimbledon Village,
London, SW19 5DX

A Nordic Style dream in London – chapter III

We are on the third chapter on the Nordic Style series and today we are looking at this beautiful fireplace, some classic Swedish tableware and our beloved writer Elsa Beskow:

Classic Swedish fireplace at Nordic Style Chelsea, Swedish Interior

Having lived abroad for almost seven years, the one thing I cannot help but reflect on is the incredibly comfortable indoor climate in Finland and Sweden.  In countries where -30 degrees Celsius is not unheard of, proper insulation is obviously a must, but how did people do it back in the days before radiators and modern heating came along?

The beautiful Farmhouse Table at Nordic Style

In the 18th century an energy crisis roamed in Europe, and there was a lack of firewood because of the ironworks’ wasteful ways.  On top of that houses were heated with open fireplaces that let out 90% of the heat – not exactly super efficient.  So two gentlemen, Carl Johan Cronstedt och Fabian Wrede (1), were tasked with solving the problem and developed a system that lead the heat through various pipes and spread the heat around the house.  Sweden soon received a reputation in the rest of Europe of being able to successfully sustain warm and lovely houses even through the long and cold winters – and beautiful fireplaces now adorned the homes.

The beautifully set Christmas table at Nordic Style 

Now let’s return to Nordic Style: I just love how they have set the tables in the shop – using very soft grays, whites – and of course also reds for Christmas.  I actually ended up buying the table runner that you see above, and it is the perfect addition to my Christmas table!  I am very tempted to also get the lovely Elliot Napkins above as well…

Aunt Brown’s Birthday (Tant Bruns Födelsedag) from 1925

They also have the sweetest touches of classic Swedish details in the shop, like this book by our beloved writer Elsa Beskow (1874-1953).  Swedish children – and children all over the world thanks to translation – have grown up with these books for over 100 years.  Elsa Beskow was a fascinating woman; she started telling stories as soon as she could speak, and having been brought up in a liberal home where the women’s movement was supported, she also expressed the values and ideals that she stood for in the books. (2)

I could really go on and write about this beautiful shop forever, but I will just go ahead and recommend that you visit the shop on Lots Road in Chelsea!  Thank you to Nordic Style for having me over and for bringing such beautiful pieces of Sweden to London.

 Sources:

(1) Stockholms Läns Museum

(2) Floris Books – Elsa Beskow

A Nordic Style dream in London – chapter II

The beautiful chandeliers at Nordic Style

My favourite part about writing this blog is visiting a shop and being inspired to research an era – and then share the fascinating history with you.  This is exactly what happened at Nordic Style, when I came across a few pieces of their Gustavian-style furniture.

Gustavian pieces of furniture are absolutely beautiful and this also happened to be a very interesting time in the history of Swedish design.  It was in fact branched into two eras: Early Gustavian (Höggustaviansk stil) which held some streaks of rococo design and reigned in Sweden approximately from 1772 until 1785, and Late Gustavian style (Sengustaviansk stil) which took over in 1785 and lasted until 1810 and was far less elaborate in style (1).

Classic designs at Nordic Style

Höggustaviansk stil was introduced by King Gustav III, after he spent months at the court of Versailles and wanted to create his own “Paris of the North” upon his return to Sweden (2).  He ordered for his palaces to be redecorated in Louis XVI style, which meant that the dark Swedish winter evenings were suddenly lit up by gilded mirrors and beautifully designed crystal chandeliers.  The trend caught on quickly and soon town houses and country cottages of the more well-to-do families in Sweden were all decorated in Gustavian style – albeit a more rustic and homely interpretation than that of the King (3).

Nordic Style Chelsea, Swedish Interior

Sengustaviansk stil was characterised by strict shapes and less ornamental designs than Höggustavians stil.  France had previously been a great source of inspiration when it came to style and interior, but Sweden now turned to England for ideas – a natural result of the Franco-Swedish War in 1805-07.

The war is obviously a long story but in short Sweden wanted to help England get rid of the fierce Napoleon, when he pronounced himself king of Italy in 1805 and then rather ruthlessly executed young Louis Antoine Henri de Bourbon (4).  There was a lot of fighting back and fort that led to a strong opposition in Sweden towards everything French during this time.  The resistance was especially strong in Gustav IV Adolf’s circles and since they were the main trendsetters, their choices naturally affected design and style across the country.

Later in the 1800’s Provincial Gustavian style was made popular by Carl and Karin Larsson, which we learnt more about in the previous post: A Nordic Style dream in London – chapter I.

Old school Swedish kitchen sofa, Nordic Style, Chelsea, Swedish interior London

The piece of furniture that inspired me to write this blog piece on Nordic Style in the first place was this 18th century original Swedish settle.  For me it brings back such wonderful memories of a beautiful farmhouse that belonged to a friend’s family and where we spent a lot of time as children.  They had furniture very similar to this settle as they had kept the house close to its original style with stunning wooden floors, Windsor-style chairs, lots of red/white and blue/white chequered fabrics and of course chickens roaming in the garden!

Clever storage often used by the maid of the house 

These settles – or sofas – were common in Swedish homes a few hundred years ago, and you can still easily find them scattered around Swedish kitchens.  Back in the days there was often no padding in the backrest or – for some inexplicable reason – on the seat.  Small cushions would sometimes be used to make it a little bit softer though.  These pieces of furniture were often given to the maid in the house to use as a bed, if she didn’t have her own room.  She would keep her clothes and work outfits in the storage space under the seat – an excellent solution for teeny tiny modern day London flats if I may say so!

I am very happy to say that today it is completely acceptable to make your sofa lovely and comfortable by decorating it with cushions and pretty throws.  I would LOVE to have one of these in my kitchen one day, preferably in front of a window, by a big dining table similar to the ones that we can see above.  It would be a terribly comfy one though, as I can’t imagine anything less appealing than an uncomfortable sofa – no matter how traditional it is!

We have one more post coming about Nordic Style – and the previous one you can find here: A Nordic Style dream in London – chapter I.

Sources:

(1) Wikipedia – Gustaviansk Stil

(2) Inspirations from France and Italy by Betty Lou Philips

(3) ft.com – Interiors: the trend for Gustavian

(4) Encyclopaedia Britannica

A Nordic Style dream in London – chapter I

Nordic Style, 109 Lots Road, SW10 0RN, London

On Saturday I finally made it over Nordic Style, a wonderful Swedish interior shop based in Chelsea.

 Decorated with the most beautiful pieces of Swedish furniture

Stepping into the shop was like arriving in a classic Swedish home; one that I one day intend to live in, whether it is here in the UK or in Sweden!  The tables were so tastefully set and the classic candle holders, table runners and lovely red flowers brought that warm, cosy Christmas feeling that we long for this time of year.

Carl Larsson table £2995 at Nordic Style 

I fell in love with this Carl Larsson-style table with its unique blue details in the cream coloured wood (see picture below).  In fact, the table awoke my interest in historical Swedish designs, so I will use these beautiful pieces of furniture as a backdrop when telling you about a few fascinating interior styles that have prevailed in Sweden over the past few hundred years.

Carl Larsson (1853-1919) is one of the most beloved Swedish artists through times, and together with his wife Karin Larsson (1859-1928) he lived a life dedicated to family and the arts.  Carl was a painter and his works – especially the ones of his wife, their eight children and their home Hyttnäs in Sundbord – became very popular and reached a worldwide audience.  This quote from Carl Larsson’s offical website gives a wonderful description of Carl and Karin (1):

“Lilla Hyttnäs became Carl och Karin’s mutual art project in which their artistic talents found expression in a very modern and personal architecture, colour scheme and interior design.  Carl’s paintings and books have made Lilla Hyttnäs one of the world’s most familiar homes. But not only that. The quality of the light, Karin’s liberated gift for interior design and the lively family life as it is depicted in Carl’s beloved watercolours, has become almost synonymous with our picture of Sweden.” – from the official homepage of Carl Larsson

A closer look at the Carl Larsson table 

Carl drew inspiration from the English Arts and Crafts designs, as well as Art Nouveau.  He and Karin thought about the long, dark winters in Sweden and so cleverly brightened interiors by using lots of whites, light creams and all the beautiful light blues, sage and pinks.  They also made sure that the little amount of light that was available in the winter, was accentuated by intricately carved wooden mirrors around the house.  Accessories were kept to a minimum, and a decorative look was created through stenciling on walls and textiles (2).  

Lilla Hyttnäs is today a museum open to the public, and the house, its interior, the paintings and designs left behind are still the most wonderful source of inspiration to people all around the world (2).  It is not uncommon for design houses and interior shops in Sweden to encourage their own designers to turn to Karin Larsson’s work for inspiration for new collections, and I found a lovely example of this at the home ware shop Hemtex here.

Given all the beautiful pieces in the shop I have decided to split up this post into a few separate chapters.  Do stay tuned my dear and we will continue our adventure in just a few days.

 

Sources:

(1) The official homepage of Carl Larsson

(2) Inspirations from France & Italy by Betty Lou Phillips