isak

: : lovely patterns at .isak. I think it's a Swedish designer based in Britain.

Midsommar

: : Glad midsommar! today is midsummer [midsommar afton] in .Sweden. Iz and I are celebrating all weekend together with our Swedish friends.

: : these are my favorite midsummer pics from flickr : :

teatime

: : inspired by the peonies in my own room and a post a little while ago on d*sponge, I was happy to discover .teatime. and exhibit put on by .rose & radish.

: : I can't go a day without fresh flowers in my room now : :

The king of flowers

: : this year Sweden celebrates Carl Linnaeus, .the king of flowers. , on his 300 year birthday. Carl Linnaeus can, as it's expressed below, "claim may magnificent honours". but what I would like to highlight, and what I personally feel thankful for are Swede's special relationship with nature. I think of it almost as a seed that he planted in us, as a nation, which has continued to grow and is still to this day, so deeply rooted in our culture and in each individual. One aspect of Swedish life that I miss the most, access to nature and people's respect and love for nature.

Carl Linnaeus, 1707-1778
By Claes Britton

The great Swedish natural scientist Carl Linnaeus can claim many magnificent honours. He was, beyond doubt, one of the most influential scientists in history, crucial to our present day understanding of how the species on this planet relate to one another, and widely acclaimed as one of the most important progenitors of Charles Darwin. Linnaeus, who was trained and practised as a physician, was the first ever to define the human being as an animal among other animals, naming it Homo sapiens.

As such, Carl Linnaeus is surely the most famous Swede of all times internationally, and something of a forefather of contemporary Swedish science. Linnaeus was also the foremost explorer of the vast country of Sweden. He travelled extensively, meticulously studying and classifying the nature, people and culture of region after region, starting with his famous voyage to remote subpolar Lapland. As Linnaeus was also a brilliant and powerful author, his records of these travels, as well as other writings, are living classics, still widely read today.

It is also fair to say that Carl Linnaeus, more than any other single person, implanted in our national soul that very special relationship with nature that we Swedes continue to experience so profoundly to this day.

Article excerpt from linnaeus300

linne2007 [additional information here]

Inside Avenue on "Ex Wives Club" -ABC TV

Did anyone see us on "Ex Wives Club", aired on ABC last Monday? Okay, if you blinked you probably missed it. We did too, actually.

So this is what happened. About a year ago we got a call from a producer from ABC TV. They want to use our store to shoot a scene for a new reality show staring Marla Maple, Angie Everhart and Shar Jackson (Shar who??). Shar Jackson, let us inform you, used to be married to Kevin Federline, who used to be married to Britney Spears, got it?

Being in Southern California, we are just as celebrity obsessed as anyone else. Plus, we thought it would be a nice little publicity for our store. Mind you, we are a little store (and we meant, LITTLE) with no more than two pennies to rub together for an advertising budget, so we jumped at the chance. We got all dressed up, all made up, cleaned up our store--all in anticipation of the filming.

The next day the crew came with Marla Maple and Shar Jackson. They were extremely nice, and we could tell they were amused that we were all dressed up. I, the owner, was given one line--"cash or charge". I was told to pretend that they are buying all these things, but that they will give them back after filming. Fair enough, I said. Free publicity, who can ask for anything more?

So let us tell you something about reality TV, there is nothing realistic about it! It's all scripted. From what we can see, people were told what to say and how to say it. That doesn't even count the editing that is done afterward.

We saw the first episode of the show and to be honest with you, it is such a YAWN!! We never see so many blubbering people in our lives! Man, these people cried and cried. You just want to slap them and tell them to get over it already.

And that is why we might have missed our 5 seconds of fame on TV....

The Prettiest Shades of Blue

We have this thing for blue. Not all shades of blue, of course, but soft blue, robin's egg blue, gray blue... You know, the kind of blues that don't make you feel blue but soothe your heart and your soul. We like mixing it with white (for a beachy look)and with lots of mirrors (for the Hollywood Regency look). It's quite a winning combination. Check out this picture below from Methome to see an example of what we meant:

And here are a few products in blue that we just adore (all can be found in the home decor section).

Desi Stool

Blue Light Spencer Table




Flamingo Lamp

Blue Chinoiserie Box

Black is so...90's--Decorate with Colors Instead!

Black is so 90s, so claimed Vera Wang in the business section of the New York Times this past Sunday.

We unequivocably agreed. Frankly we're tired of black. Or beige. Or brown for that matter. When it comes to home furnishings we think colors are SO in! Not gaudy, obnoxious colors that hurt your eyes when you look at it, but vibrant, sunny colors that are used cohesively...

Here are few examples that show colors being used widely and successfully:

Note the intensity of the wall colors, and how it is offset with the softer, more neutral colors of the furnishings.

Here is another view of this room:

(Photo courtesy of Met Home)

If you are into colors right now, check out the shop by color section at Inside Avenue. It groups items into color scheme to make it easy to shop by your favorite color theme.

carl larsson

: : .... and all of this reminiscing of traditional Swedish art got me thinking about my all time favorite, .carl larsson. One of Sweden's most well known artists, who depicted the Swedish home of his time (folkhemmet), and particularly his own home, in such captivating motifs and beautiful bright colors.

modern kurbits

: : the work by .jantze brogård asshof. incorporates traditional kurbits patterns into modern furniture designs.

kurbits

: : I have felt particularly inspired by traditional Swedish kurbits patterns from the region of Dalarna, lately. I'm excited about re.discovering this Swedish art form. I think this will spark some new work......

precious

: : how do you not fall in love with the work of .feinedinge.?

away

: : in a foreign city this week....sleeping in heavenly beds.

love is in the air

: : nine years and counting......every day more lovely than the one past....

: : tack älskling : :



.antigirl's lovely .flight of fancy. recently framed, in the background.

brazil baby

: : found this photo when I was organizing last weekend. I'd like to re.introduce myself. brazil born to .swedish. parents. developed a serious addiction to guaraná soda and caipirinhas early on.

the new red.house

: : hello lovely red.house readers.

this is more of a personal note. I've noticed that I am wanting and have been wanting to be more personal with all of you. there is so much more I want to share. I want to share more of me, more of my daily thoughts and more of my personal creative work. so, I'm going to give it a try! from today on there will be more of my personal photos....more of my work...more colors...more swedishness.....more red houses.

and hopefully more of you all! I hope you will share your thoughts with me as you always do. thank you for being so wonderful! tack. det betyder så himla mycket!

: : ooo and the blog roll has been updated : :

swedish kitchens

: : .jeu de paume. is a small family run Japanese publisher, who have created some lovely books with wonderful imagery of Swedish homes. My favorite is of kitchens in .stockholm.

there's so many great designs of simple commodity products in Sweden. here's a sneak peek into my mom's pantry [from my Christmas trip].

update: : looks like they're currently searching for couples without children living in .stockholm., for their coming book. if you're interested, there's more information on lovely .emma's blog.