swedish magazines online

: : ...... I was in heaven when a friend of mine directed me to a Swedish site .tidningar. where you can browse every page of every Swedish design magazine you could imagine....and many, many non.design magazines.....at first I thought they uploaded every issue, but I couldn't understand how that could even be possible or legal for that matter. but it turns out it's a site to promote Swedish magazines that might be fairly unknown to some or hard to find. you can browse one full issue of each magazine, but that's it. and if you are interested in subscribing, they will direct you. it is still a wonderful place to be!! a great site.tidningar.

so go ahead...browse!

The Cozy Cone

While reading ads for home sales, if you read the word "charmer" "dollhouse" "great starter home", those are all code for small. A scene in the Disney movie Cars, shows a row of motels, in the shape of orange traffic cones. The name of the motel is the "Cozy cone." While watching my 8 year old daughter declared, "Mom, we live in the cozy cone!" At first I wondered what the heck was orange in our home that made her say that! She then went on to say our home feels cozy to her. Cozy is not a word that comes easy in 3000 square feet. Cozy comes pretty natural in small spaces!

I Love White

White. The small space color of choice. A lot of people, stick with white because it can make a small space look larger. While this is true, its not why I use white. I love how white makes me feel. For me its calming. Makes the mind feel less cluttered, and goes with anything. All white rooms with bold color accents are always fabulous. I love lots of color, bold, pale and in between, but white will always be a favorite of mine.

Banquettes!

One of the things I love about living in a small space is it makes you have to plan for what you really want out of your space. I'm seeing more and more banquettes in magazines these days, and I bet they started out as a need for people with limited space. The great thing about banquettes is they can be designed so many ways. Loveseats, benches, custom built right in to a corner. I've seen them designed in country, modern, you name it! Tons of styles are out there on the net, so if you have a limited area, think about designing your very own banquette!

karoline lenhult

: : these adorable patterns are designed by Swedish product designer .karoline lenhult. she's from my hometown of Lidköping. my mom sent me the latest issue of Swedish FORM magazine and in the package she had included an article from our local newspaper about .karoline. [Tack mamma!] Karoline is a mother of three, recent design graduate from HDK [Design School Göteborg], when she was decorating her own house she realized there wasn't a lot of fabrics that were fun for both kids and adults, so she decided to create some! her collection has just recently been released and is available through .ljungbergs textil.

: : for those in the know, her patterns have been inspired by famous characters such as .lilla snigel : :

Found Space

Often when reading articles about living in a small space, I come across the term "found space." Found space? Well, yes, it can happen! This is when thinking outside the box can come in very handy! For me personally, finding space for my home office was a lot of fun. I've changed my office space about 3 times. It took a few mistakes (wrong desk size, not enough file space) to get it just right. Finding the balance between form and function is key for me. I want my space to look great but work great too. The top pictures is of my own personal home office. A cubby with many compartments has worked great for me! There are tons of options now, smaller desks, compact armoires and tons of shelving sizes and styles. Planning is key so really think through what you want your home office to do for you!

montreal

: : I'm off to Montreal for the weekend to visit my sister! au revoir
pic available here.

sven burman

: : check out Swedish illustrator and multi media artist .sven burman. and his work online. watch the woman's eyes for a while, you'll notice she's blinking.

laptop cases

: : my roommate .robin. was shopping for case for her new laptop a little while ago, and came across some cool laptop cases in her research that she wanted to share with the red.house readers. maybe

cute stripes by .builtny. robin's choice. my favorite, of course, since it's orange...but ridiculously expensive. available at rushfaster. fabrix cases, handmade with great patterns.

Style File

I often find myself drawn to many different styles when it comes to home decor. I think a lot of us are not sure what "style" we'd fit under. It would be nice to declare, I'm modern and be done with it. After all, you can like jazz music and country music, and not have to worry about it making your CD player clash! So what do I like? I like funky. I like color. I like white. I like clean but not cold. I like lots of stuff as long as it does not take over. Bottom line, I like a place you can walk in and not worry about getting something dirty. Give me comfy any day!

blow

: : ohh, just one last one... this is my absolute favorite so far. simply, beautiful! .antigirl.

more from antigirl

: : tiphanie [antigirl] also sent me some sneak peek photos of her most recent work, which will be up on her website very soon..... along with some pics of the actual creation of the pieces. can't wait to see the final work up on the site! thank you for sharing with us .tiphanie.

antigirl

: : the biggest excitement of the day, an email from antigirl [tiphanie brooke] popped up in my inbox. I had been waiting for a reply and was so happy to hear back from her! I've blogged about her before. her work is absolutely beautiful! and finally today, I was able to purchase my very first piece, .flights of fancy.

it's gorgeous, and I can't wait to get it in the mail! I'm considering buying a few more. she has a great collection available right here on her website.


the second most exciting and inspiring thing today was watching all the marathon runners brave the rain and the wind to run their 26 miles....I think they are all heroes! they are incredible for putting themselves up for such a challenge. congratulations all whom completed the marathon! you inspire so many.

fjorn. scandinavian living

: : found happy surprises on my del.icio.us account today, my friend .maiya. had left me a few great new links. she took me to .fjorn. scandinavian living. a great place for authentic, classic Swedish and Norwegian pieces, both for your home and for yourself to wear. beautiful tablecloths from Ekelund, a Swedish wild horse candelabrum and cozy fleece blankets from Klippan. all of it available at .fjorn.

thank you mai. : : love : :

Small Space Big Business!

Seems that small space design has become big business. Looking around the net and in magazines, its not hard to find articles or information on "how to make you space look bigger." Companies have figured out that most of us do not have tons of space, and even people who do, often have smaller spaces within them that need ideas. Pottery Barn has caught on and now has a section on their website (and catalog). Furniture that is scaled down to fit small spaces . Of course Ikea has been designing this way and has broke into the US market very well. With baby boomers down sizing and generation X starting out, big business will have a market for "small living" for years to come!

First Post

I've decided to write about a subject near and dear to my heart. Small space living! I have lived in my nearly 1000 square foot home (with my husband) for almost 16 years. The house was our starter home. We have thought about moving a million times. We've been asked why we haven't a million more. I came to the conclusion this year, I just don't want to. I'm happy here. Our house is close to being paid off. I enjoy trying to figure out how to make the space work better. Its been a joy. I don't need space to make me happy, I need my space to work well. Oh and did I mention we added 2 kids along the way? One bathroom 2 girls. Rock on!

(Picture: Cottage in Seattle)

felt lighting

: : beautiful felt lighting by .mary-ann williams. via .hemfeber.

lost city arts

: : found a great place for mid-century modern furniture, with work by every mid-century designer you can imagine, jacobssen, eames, mies...above a beautiful credenza by .george nelson. and a beautiful and incredibly practical table by .bruno mathsson. visit .lost city arts. online or in person if you're in New York City.

my dream desk

: : this is one of the most beautiful desks I've ever seen! from the norweigan design firm .norway says. who created the mica MP3 player which was all over design magazines this past year. these guys have put Norway on the design map. their website is well worth a visit.

...and I'm going to start putting away money right now for my dream desk! available at nova 68 for $ 2,250.

flamboyant Rococo at .the conran shop.

: : the other day I came across some beautiful desks at .the conran shop. Although I've always known of Sir Terence Conran, his work as a designer and his furniture chain Habitat [now owned by IKEA]. I wasn't aware that there was a "conran shop", and that it is available online in the US. I always think it's so hard to find modern, well designed yet unique furniture pieces in the US, I do wish these were a bit more affordable though.... I was still happy to discover .the conran shop. because I like almost all of their pieces !! And of course, this flamboyant Rococo style dresser stole my heart!

and for my two friends, .louise. and .maiya. who just became homeowners....maybe .the conran shop. is something for you to check out?

two colored aalto

: : you can find these beautiful two color .aalto. vases in .iittala's. 2007's .alvar aalto. collection. available through scandinavian details. I just found this site a few days ago and was so thrilled, they have all of my favorite products!!

lula

: : .irene. at .bloesem. [ a wonderful place to be] reconnected me with my home town of Göteborg, Sweden the other day through her post about .lula. a multi-disciplinary art and design partnership based in Göteborg. Wonderful illustrations and graphics work.