I arrived in London yesterday evening and rushed over to see my newborn niece, I have to say she's soooo beautiful - tiny! I can't wait to stop by for another cuddle (I might try to pack her in my suitcase without my sister seeing). But first, today's post. And since I'm feeling a little Christmassy I thought we should take a peek inside the Norwegian home of Nina Holst of Stylizimo blog and see what she's been up to by way of decorations (it would be rude not to right?!). Needless to say, the Christmas touches are beautifully subtle and draw on the abundance of nature outside her door. They're also in keeping with the rest of her home, with a palette of white, grey and green which look lovely against the natural wood, rattan, seagrass, and walnuts! Enjoy! 

Photography: Nina Holst - Stylizimo

I love Nina's choice of simple seasonal plants and flowers which include a white amaryllis, hyacinths, sprigs of Skimmia and of course a fir tree, I bet her home smells divine!

Other items I know and love: Dining - Wishbone chairs, By Lassen Kubus candleholder, natural seagrass basket (love these!), sitting room - AJ floor lamp, painting for sale by Nina, sheepskin throw. Bedroom - series 7 chair, AJ table lamp, glass vase.

Just because it's December.....I also absolutely love this Danish home decorated for Christmas, a cosy Swedish cottage with twinkling fairy lights and a country-style Swedish Christmas. Oh I wish it could be Christmas everday.....in Scandinavia!

Have a lovely day!

PS Happy birthday to my beautiful friend Laura - who I've known since the day I was born (our cots were beside each other in the hospital maternity ward (25 years ago eh hem) and we've been friends ever since!).

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When do you start bringing a touch of Christmas into your home? When I grew up in England we'd wait until a few days before Christmas. Here in Sweden however, the first of advent is a big day and it's not unusual to catch a glimmer of stars and advent candles in the windows and fairy lights in trees by 1st December. The decorations are usually beautifully simple and fuss-free and draw heavily on nature. This home in Bergen, Norway from the 1800's belonging to Per Olav Sølvberg, an interior stylist and blogger for Residence, wife Ragnhild, four children and two dogs is a fine example of this. Mini fir trees and fir tree branches, hyacinths and naked branches from the trees outside adorn the space for a lovely Christmas feel.

 Home owner: Per Olav Sølvberg. Photography: Kristofer Johnsson. Residence. Found via Elvs with thanks.

So pretty! I can almost smell the lovely scent from the fresh pine needles and hyacinths, how about you?

Items I know and love: Dining area / sitting room Z1 pendant light, IKEA PS 2012 chair, Muuto wood table lamp, Flos 265 wall light, R print. Kitchen Le Creuset pot, stools, vintage chopping boards. Workspace: Light box, this lovely rustic milking stool is similar.

I also love this inspiration for a 'simple and delicate' Scandinavian Christmas. And a welcoming understated bouquet of eucalyptus on a guest bed.

How cute are these DIY Cranberry wreath placecards? So pretty!

More Scandinavian Christmas inspiration found here (scroll down passed the first home as it will be this one) and here.

Have a lovely day!

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This week has been all about Sweden, so I think it's about time we visited another Scandinavian country, don't you? As much as I'd love to be padding around this Norwegian cottage drinking slow-brewed coffee - we'll have to stick to visiting Norway in spirit. (Guh! one day, huh?!). This lovely home in Oslo belongs to Randi Mageli and has been beautifully captured by Filippa Tredal. It's actually fairly small (50 metres square to be precise) but what it lacks in size it makes up for in inspiration - fab paint colours (with shelving to match), and a mix of second hand finds and Scandinavian contemporary pieces. Lovely!

Filippa Tredal. Inspiration found via House of C with thanks.

It's nearly always the elements of surprise which catch my eye - in this case I'm loving the corner with the sheepskin throw, yellow cushion and a cactus!

I also like how Randi's painted the shelves the same colour as the wall - it really makes the items on display pop. It's simple to do too - just order a little extra paint and apply it to inexpensive wooden shelves from IKEA. Perfect! 

Is there anything in particular you love about this space?

A quick guide to a few of the items: EKTORP sofa,  Menu afteroom chair, DOCKSTA table, source a cosy white sheepskin throw here, Y print.

Other fab Norwegian spaces include the cosy and relaxed home of a blogger, a rustic cabin high up over the fjords, and a Norwegian home decorated for Christmas.

Have you ever visited Norway? I've been to Bergen - so beautiful!

Have a lovely day!

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Hello Friday! There's just time to squeeze in one more fabulous home tour this week - that of Henriette Amlie Kalbekken and her two children in Oslo, Norway. Henriette is a freelance interior designer and stylist as well as an avid painter. She also drives the award winning Norwegian blog Designlykke (which is written in english - yay!). Henriette's home is in a state of constant change (no exaggeration - this is how her home looked this time last year). Right now her home is a beautiful blend of greys, greens and white with a delightful cognac touch. Look closely for lots of innovative and inspiring ideas too....

Photography: Henriette Amlie Kalbekken shared with kind permission.

What a wonderful home, don't you think?!

Loving how an old leather handbag has been used as a plant pot! Great idea...

Here's a round-up of where items are from: the paint in the kitchen is 'dark lyon' from Nordsjø. Sitting room: vintage sofa by Erik Jørgensen, side table by Bolia. Hallway: Muuto dots. Hay bag. Bedroom: AJ lamp, linen bedding.   Children's room: the green colour is 'intense paris', shelf from Elfa. FYI there's a charming vintage school bench for sale here  - hurry though, they only have one! Others available here.

Impeccable style clearly runs in the family as her sister also has a lovely home - check out a tour of her sitting room here.

In case you feel like taking it a little easy today - after all it is POETS day right?!...Here are some links I love from around the web:

Would you dare to go bold on your walls like this?!

 I love rue magazine's list of favourite breast cancer awareness products (that rug?!).

I spent a good few minutes trying to work this picture out - is it the entire neighbourhood that's at an angle - or the girl?

I don't know about you but I'd quite like to kick off the weekend with a 'Harvest Sparkle'?! And then I might just tuck into some yummy pumpkin soup followed by a chocolate cake or dark chocolate and peppermint pie. Mmmmm! Fancy joining me?!

Back tomorrow with an exciting new book review which includes a home tour of one of my favourite Danish artists! See you then!

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