Authentic 1920s house...

I nearly fell over when I saw this over at Emmas blogg - 

it's a house from my hometown Eskilstuna, in Sweden..

I was even more surprised when I followed the link to
her source and found that the person who blogged this
was a girl I think I know.. It turns out she is indeed someone
I have come across in my home town, as she has worked
for the local rag (hence the recognition), however though
we are roughly the same age we did't go to the same schools.

Anyway.. The house these clever girls blogged about is
fantastic and very authentic. It's a duplex from the 1920s
located in a nice part of town. The house has kept many of
the original features and I simply love places from the 20s.
The rooms are large, light and airy. The ceilings tall and clean
leaving ample room for a lot of creativity and fun details.
Also adore the double doors and wide portals everywhere.

Though I love the bones and structural make-up of this place,
my own style may be a tad less boho. That aside I really enjoyed
this little house tour. Here have a look and see what you think..

The floors are magnificent and I love the glossy black! Though
I innately am such a whites and neutrals person, I am leaning more
and more towards black these days. Probably a phase, but I am so
drawn to dark colours right now. A little contrast is always nice!

The blue cabinet looks fantastic and so does the entrance.
Just look at the light and space of this hallway. Heaven!

Everyone has a bicycle in Sweden - it is lovely, and I like the fact
that somehow they look so right inside the house too... The work
station made up by a vintage table and divine Eames chairs is great.
The Apple Mac is identical to the one I am typing from right now. :)

More lovely floors and light filled rooms...

..and how gorgeous isn't that cabinet. I'd say from ca 1910-1920.
Hard to see from here, but divine it is indeed.

A little more Eames (clearly fans..) teamed with travel treasures.

This kitchen reminds me of my very first school. A wonderful old
mansion building from the early 1900s with 50 pupils in composite
class set ups. The tiles on the walls are great and something I like
so much. Especially if they happen to come from Swedish Höganäs,
who as you may know also supplied the roof tiles for the fantastic
Sydney Opera House (designed by Danish legend Jørn Utzon).

x Charlotta

For Manvi!

Lovely, I just want to say congratulations again on all your

fantastic achievements! I am so proud of you!!

Also can't wait to see the fruits of all your hard work over
the past week. I know it will all be amazing!

Am with you all the way!

xx Charlotta

Grey kitchen divinity..

via Bolig Liv magazine

Gorgeous!

..and please note the fish people!

x Charlotta

Stockholm loft..

How about this lovely loft apartment in central Stockholm!?

One of the things I love about Stockholm are all the beautiful
portals and entrance ways. They are so distinguished somehow.

I find it a real crime to install fake floors in a authentic place like

this, however love that they have kept the original structural beams.
I'd rip out the interiors and start over, but can you see the potential!?

Also love how they have rendered some of the original brickwork

and used the natural shapes to form sculptural elements. Those little

steps on the wall on the right are so divine. Love the impact it has
and would fill every single one of them with candles.. Love candles!

I quite like the contrast of a modern kitchen in this space but not
the skinny tall chairs. In another space perhaps, but not here.

The bathroom seems very nice too and I wish I had a shower that spacious.

via

Lagerlings

x Charlotta

And the winner is.....

..the lovely Kerry from 'A Tranquil Townhouse' !!

CONGRATULATIONS Kerry, I am so thrilled for you
and hope you will be very happy with the gorgeous
Rovan Ball lamp! Please post a photo of it when
it has settled into your home!

I can't wait to see it!

 Also, THANK YOU so much 'Buyster' for sponsoring
this give-away. Your generosity is greatly appreciated!

Your extensive range of products at fantastic prices 
are brilliant, and I have bookmarked your site. 
I hope my readers have too!

Thank you Maree for going the extra mile! x

For those of you who missed out, there will be more
give-aways in the future and I hope I have the pleasure
of announcing your name as a winner in the future.

Thank you all for entering and for
your sweet comments and heartfelt encouragement!

 Kerry, please email me your details 

so that we can organize to send the lamp to you.

xx Charlotta

Thank you Marija! xx

Today I received the most wonderful email that not only made

me glow with happiness all day, but also made me sit down

and think about how important the blog world is to me, and all

of us who take time to research, write and share our inner most

thoughts, desires and treasured finds here in this virtual world.

The email was from Marija who writes a wonderful blog called 

'Holding Court' (..when she is not a busy interior designer and

mother of two in Chicago..). Well she is always a mother of two,

but you understand what I mean.. Though this kind spirited girl

angel has only blogged at 'Holding Court' since mid-January
2010, she already has over 100 loyal followers, and she always gets
a large number of loving comments on her brilliant posts. If this
alone does not prove that she is someone special, then read on..

"Just a quick email to let you know how much I've appreciated 

your thoughtful comments....on my blog as well as others.  

I also love your blog.  It's real and interesting and you don't try

to be something you're not.  And I mean that in the best way possible.  

There are bloggers trying to post a certain way, comment a certain 

way, make friends with certain bloggers and all along, they're losing 

themselves.  Or at least not showing themselves.  I hope that doesn't 

sound preachy.  Just wanted you to know I respect what you're 
putting out there.  I knew we were kindred spirits when I read your
Aubrey Road  post and then the comment you left on my post about
my daughter's  9th birthday.  I'm glad we've met. Gave you a
mention in my most recent post.  Check it out. Hope you approve :) 
Marija"

You can understand that this stopped me in my tracks and had me

truly teary for a good while before I could even go across to her blog

and read the post she wrote about me. She calls it "a mention", but

it is so much more than that! It's a genuine, sweet and truly kind post

that says so many nice things about me that I had to get a big box
of double layered tissues. I felt/feel so loved and appreciated!

 (NB! All images are borrowed from 'Holding Court' - please go there for the original sources.)

If you are not familiar with Marija's blog, please do yourselves a

favour and jump across right now. It is so well written! She totally

has a way with words! (..and please note that she learned English

at the age of 5. Her mother tongue is Croatian!) A clever reader once

so rightly said "Marija, you are like a flash of brilliance". She
truly is a flash of brilliance - in fact she is one of my fave reads!

She has me completely wrapped from the heading to the final
full stop, and I could not be more certain that you all will feel
exactly the same when you start reading 'Holding Court'!

 (NB! All images are borrowed from 'Holding Court' - please go there for the original sources.)

Here are links to some of her brilliant posts.. I am showing you only

one from each month, but I do not kid you when I say I could just as

well have streamed her whole blog through to here. ALL her posts 
are good, and I find myself purring with excitement every time
they pop up in my inbox. Without further ado, here are a few
that I particularly enjoyed, from January to the now..

(NB! All images are borrowed from 'Holding Court' - please go there for the original sources.)

January 2010 - 'First Impressions'

In this post she writes so beautifully about one of her closes

friends in the world - actually the lucky woman she refers to

is more like a sister to her, though not by blood. By heart!

February 2010 - 'I'm Marija. This is my blog.'

I love that she started blogging and the way she does it!

I also loved this post (also Feb) about passing on special
treasures.. I totally support the monogrammed world!

In (Feb and) March I read wonderful posts labelled 'Hearsay',
where Marija introduces a compilation of the best things she
saw/read in the past week.. So full of divine links and finds!

This picture made me sure I had died and gone to heaven!

'Hearsay volume 3' 

'Hearsay volume 2'

Then came April when I cried (yes again..) over the beautiful
post she wrote about her daughter Olivija on her 9th birthday
  'Rite of passage'

And here would be one of the photos of her stunning daughter,

but I don't believe in posting pictures of other people's children

on my blog just because I feel like it so the spot is left blank...

I also think you should take the time to read 'Happy Talk' -
a post about the sad and unnecessary negativity in blogland,
and of course you must read her fantastic post named 'Inspiration'
that got me writing this long response of in heartfelt gratitude for
having been more than just "mentioned".. xx

Cory, Nigel and Olivija! I hope you know how lucky you are to

to share your lives and house with this woman! She is a rare find!

Thank you again Marija - you really did make my day!

AFI your friend,

xx Charlotta

P.S. .. and for God's sake don't forget to read THIS post where

Marija shares a wonderful list of personal suff as part of an award

that she so truly deserves! And yes that is her house! And she managed

the entire build from pre-build bulldozer to lantern on front steps!!!

Italian beauty..

Oh I fell in love at first sight when I saw this amazing

place over at lovely Mia over at 'Solid Frog'. Bellissima!

This place is simply stunning and I kept on oooh'ing and 

aaaah'ing through the whole post! I mean, just look at the 

floors, the windows, the paneled walls, the chic decor..

All images via B&B Italia

Jump across to Mia's to see the full set and read her post.

If you aren't familiar with her blog you are in for a nice

long read - this woman rocks! Happy exploring all!

xx Charlotta

PS! Please don't forget my GIVE-AWAY, that ends this Thursday.

Be sure to enter your name to win this beautiful table lamp.

Dare you go here?

Image found on Tumblr, but have no reference. If you have it, please let me know. Thanks. x

Would you feel safe here?

Better be here alone or in a group like this?

Iiiiih, I am swinging between panic and exhilliration

just looking at this picture. The force in that water..!

Mama Mia!

x Charlotta

Friedman perfection..

A little while ago I posted about this fantastic workroom

that nearly made me hyperventilate with excitement. I just

love everything about this room - from the bones, to the black

glossy floorboards (diagonal!) to the furniture and finishes!

 I didn't know then that it was in fact shot by Douglas Friedman,

and so nearly fell over backwards when I discovered the rest

of the images from the home that houses my dream studio when

casually flicking through his amazing portfolio of works.

Caramba! Just look at this place - it is fantastic. All of it!

It is all just perfect and I could move in right now!

x Charlotta

NB! Please don't forget my GIVE-AWAY, that ends this Thursday.

Be sure to enter your name to win this beautiful table lamp.

O'hoy!

I love big boats - I really do. Actually my dad had a nice

big boat (for being in Sweden in the 70s) when I was little,

that we used to spend a lot of time on during the summer.

 via Swiss Miss

We'd go all the way from my birthtown of Eskilstuna, across

the lake, through several locks and out into the brackish waters of 

Stockholm. After spending a few days in this amazing city, we'd 

adventure out into the archipelago and then back home again.

 via Stockolm turist byra

I think Stockholm has one of the most beautiful harbours (several!) 

and archipelagos in the world - ca 24 000 islands to visit and explore!

This is magnificent yacht not our boat (ha!) however one that

I found via Douglas Friedman. It is simply beautiful don't you think!?

I think authentic boat decking can look fantastic in a bathroom, even for land-crabs.

Shall we meet here girls - lunch is on me! :)

What ever that grey/black thing on the wall is - I love it!

One day perhaps? :)

x Charlotta

NB! Please don't forget my GIVE-AWAY, that ends this Thursday.

Be sure to enter your name to win this beautiful table lamp.

The Singita Lebomo Lodge

How about this soothing haven of a guest lodge, that is

set high above the Kruger National Park in South Africa!? 

The lodge offer a total of 15 luxury suites, all designed in a 

'contemporary-meets-local-craftsmanship-style' that is so 

soft on the eye that I feel relaxed just browsing their gallery.

It has taken its name after the 'Lebomo Euphorbia tree', and

there is certainly a lot of wood used in the amazing interiors.

Each suite has sweeping decks from which you can watch 

the wild- life unfold in the national park below. You can even

spend the night on the bed that complements each private deck.

How amazing wouldn't that be - can you imagine the sounds

from the wild-life beneath!? I'd love to do that. How exciting!

For more information click HERE and 

to see more images click HERE.

 

NB! Please don't forget my GIVE-AWAY, that ends this Thursday.

Be sure to enter your name to win this beautiful table lamp.

x Charlotta