White on White Event

These little town blues, are melting away...We are back in Manhattan this week at the New York Design Center on Lexington Avenue! (Last week Rhonda and I were hosted at the D & D Building in New York City by Potterton Books and Country Swedish which we promise to cover in another blog post...great things are happening at both.)

The New York Design Center is home to the Swedish furniture company White on White which will be hosting a Swedish Country Interiors book signing and talk in their beautiful showroom. We had the pleasure to feature White on White founder Lena Kaplan's unique office retreat in our last book Swedish Interiors .

This is a photo from Swedish Interiors of Lena's office studio...we should all have a conference table so inviting! Her showrooms at White on White are of similar mood and design. We urge you all to come to the book signing event

this Wednesday, October 14 from 5 -7 p.m. to view the White on White showroom before Lena moves this month after her ten year store anniversary.

A force in the American Scandinavian Foundation and for all things culturally Nordic in Manhattan, Lena has turned her energies over the last few years towards a gallery in TriBeCa called More North.

The More North Gallery is just around the corner from Nobu on North Moore Street (yup. North Moore. More North. You will find it!). The gallery, opened by Lena with two other like-minded friends, is a veritable scandinavian oasis of light, cheer and good design. The focus here is on the Fine Arts with a rotating exhibit of major nordic painters and sculptors.

More North is currently exhibiting the work of Icelandic artist Hjortur Hjartarson from Oct 6 - Dec 6. "Heavily textural works evocative of Turner, Hjartarson's work is laden with precipitation. Each piece is composed of several layers of paint and glaze, inviting the viewer's impulse to scratch his/her way to the bottom layer in pursuit of uncovering secrets hidden beneath the surface. The landscapes possess an enchanting quality of organic decomposition. Several large scale and smaller canvases will be exhibited." For more information on Hjartarson go to http://www.morenorth.com/

The art gallery also carries decorative arts and a good selction of contemporary furniture. The upstairs gallery is punctuated by a dramatic staircase with birch trees seemingly growing through it. As designed by KOKO Architectural Design, you descend the stairs into a birch grove...

of carved out wooden panels. Utterly charming.

We think More North has one of the best playrooms in the city, too, with its wonderful selection of childrens furniture and toys!

Many thanks to Lena for having us to White on White this week and also to Marianne Thorsen, who's weekend retreat is profiled in our new book, for organzing this special event with White on White!

White on White, 200 Lexington Avenue, New York, NY 212- 988-9194
(website temporarily out of service)

Rhonda and I look forward to seeing everyone at the Event!

E.

Book Launch Celebration

We are so excited that Swedish Country Interiors has been released at last! A thank you to all for bearing with our erratic postings during the next several weeks as we begin our book tour. Our posts have been few and far between as we are also busy preparing for the Washington CT Antiques Show coming the first weekend of October. ( the photo above is a sampling of the types of Swedish items we will be featuring in our booth!) We are looking forward to settling into a winter of bringing you some great posts on homes in Sweden as well as around the States - so please keep checking in!

A huge thank you and hug to Valorie Hart at visual * vamp for featuring images from Swedish Country Interiors in her posts this last week! She does a fantastic job of showing how easy it is to inject a dash of Swedish style into your home, no matter what your budget or existing decor. Refreshing, relaxed and natural - a room done with a bit of Swedish style can be totally uplifting. Valorie is always so stylish so we are very flattered to have been covered by her. Read Valorie's super hints on getting a Swedish look at : http://visualvamp.blogspot.com/2009/09/swedish-country-style-look-book.html

The image above is of a Swedish Pool Pavilion designed by Richard Hirschner (photo: Monson/Ergmann) that appears in Swedish Country Interiors.

To learn even more about Swedish Country style we invite you to join us at our very own COUNTRY SWEDISH INTERIORS BOOK LAUNCH CELEBRATION, Saturday, September 26 in Washington Depot, CT. There will be a 1:00 pm Book Signing Kickoff at the legendary HICKORYSTICK BOOKSHOP where we look forward to meeting you! http://www.hickorystickbookshop.com/ Join us afterwards at our ELEISH VAN BREEMS, LTD. Showroom, located down the road at 18 Titus Road, for a lively and colorful 3:00 p.m. presentation on Swedish Country design. Be sure to stop at neighboring Marty's Cafe and pick up a celebratory Ligonberry Smoothie to fuel you on your way!

After our discussion on Swedish Country design we will be hosting a light smorgasbord at our Showroom starting at 4:00 p.m. Space is limited for the talk and smorgasbord so please call or e-mail to let us know you are coming! ( For addresses and more info contact Jamie at Eleish van Breems evbltd@gmail.com 860-868-1200)

We really hope you can join us for any one of these events or to spend the whole day with us in charming Washington Depot. We look forward to seeing you!

Edie & Rhonda

The Splendid Willow Interview

Read the Splendid Willow design interview of Edie and Rhonda by Monika Claassen where we
discuss our new book, our design style, Fritz Hansen, kitchens, wall colors and some of our design crushes and heroes at: http://splendidwillow.com/

Monika , a self described "design junkie" is the force behind Splendid Willow, one of the few blogs in the States to concern itself almost exclusively with Swedish decor and design. This stylish mother of three is interested in all things "edgy classic with a Swedish twist" and her blog is rife with fine examples of this look. We had crossed paths with Monika many years ago and were absolutely delighted to have gotten back in touch with her through the blog world! Monika is a kindred spirit to us in her passion for spreading the word on Swedish style and we were so honored to have been profiled by her on her truly splendid blog , Splendid Willow~! Thank you, thank you Monika!

E & R

Back to School!

Lars and Martin went back to school today! They did not look half as styling though as this young Saami man from a 1970's National Geographic issue...

...or as adorable as these Saami children and their teacher in this photo of a Saami school circa 1926. Note the sod hut, turned up shoes and the boys pompom hats. My mother has dolls like this that her Dad brought back to her and her twin brother from his business trips to Stockholm in the 1930's. The northern provinces and Lapland still retained remanents of the their native folk dress even into the mid 20th century, especially in the more remote regions and villages.

Linnaea Borealis

IMG_4310 - Twinflower, Linnaea borealis, originally uploaded by Hughman being....

King of Flowers

He still inspires... this man caught between the Baroque and the Enlightenment. I love the fact that Carl Linnaeus set out to define and solve the mysteries of botany and taxonomy while wielding only a swan's feather pen and reading by a seal fat lantern. Totally un-intimidated by the task he set before himself, he never seemed to let geographic isolation in Sweden or his humble beginnings deter him from his vision.

He was very much a man ahead of his time, reporting on the similarities of man to apes (pre-Darwin) and advising the government of Sweden on how to train rice and tea to grow on the tundra - today's version of genetic crop enhancement. The charm of Linneaus definitely lies though in those other ideas and pursuits of his that just did not quite take off or seem very of the period - flower clocks, swallows hibernating under the sea, pearl culture on the Baltic and seeing in the the New World what he believed to be the actual remains of the original Paradise. And who's to say? Nature and God ruled supreme in Linnaeus' world. In "Essay on Man" his contemporary, Alexander Pope, writes:

Slave to no sect, who takes no private road,

But looks, through nature, up to nature's God!

A Swede today who is working very much in tune with nature is landscape

architect Ulf Nordfjell. He has more in common with Linnaeus then you may think, having studied both botany and zoology before becoming one of Sweden's leading landscape architects.

Nordfjell won the coveted Chelsea Flower Show 2009 Gold Medal this year
for a garden (above) that combined Swedish modernism with elements of the classic English cottage garden. Stephen Lacey, noted British Garden journalist describes Nordfjell's style as thus:

- A powerful sense of landscape and ecology

- Plants treated as sculptural objects

- Natural materials

- Modern furniture and design details
- Lean lines and absence of clutter
- Bold contrasts of natural and man made elements

- A garden that changes with the seasons
- Meticulous attention to every aspect of the composition

....well, it doesn't get much more Swedish then that!

In 2007, to celebrate Linnaeus's Tercentenary, Nordfjell designed another Gold Medal winning garden for the Chelsea Flower Show in London called "Tribute to Linaneus". In it he used plants that Linnaeus cultivated himself at Uppsala University and at his private residence in Hammarby as well as native Swedish woodland plants. The overall color theme was white, silver and green with lots of white martagon lilies, vibernum roseum, pine, iris and, of course, Linnaeus' name sake wildflower linnea borealis.

The most subtle combinations become magic in Nordfjell's hands. Here a detail showing a combination of wild ginger ground cover with ferns, white violets and snowdrops.

Here, another example from the "Tribute to Linnaeus" garden. Note how Nordfjell incorporates materials such as steel, art work panels and hard edges into the more traditional planting scheme.

"I think Swedish nature is always present in my garden design." says Nordfjell
in his company profile. " I grew up in the north of Sweden and spent my childhood surrounded by huge woods and streaming rivers. From our house we could savor the scent of Linnaeus' favorite - the twin flower linnea borealis. When they were in bloom the pine trees in the wood there were carpets of them, which is rare even for Sweden."

A few things I'd like more of inspired by Linneaus and Ulf Nordfjell.... since the delicate wild flower linnea borealis most likely won't grow for us in Connecticut, I am going to plant more of the delicate aquilegias - something I know will grow in our woods and gardens. Linneaus studied them extensively ( look at those stamen and pistels!) and the original pressed collection can be found at the Linnean Society of London.

...and I am a bit obsessed with the flower clock idea. Does anyone know any living gardens that have incorporated this into their design?

Linnaeus House, originally uploaded by seadipper.

...and then there is Hammarby that has inspired documentary fabrics and the decoration of countless botanical engraving wallpapered rooms around the world. Wait for another post from Rhonda and I on this and visit the Linnaeus house at http://www.hammarby.uu.se/historia/history.html.

E.

Its been a tough re-entry for me this week back at Eleish van Breems after a trip out to bucolic Scandia, Minnesota. Its Wednesday and I've only just noticed that all of my Rogers & Goffigon samples are missing ....

My jazz loving, glider pilot boyfriend runs with a group called the Red Wing Soaring Association. I was enticed out on an early morning trip to their Osceola, WI glider port by promises of a hearty breakfast at my favorite stop - the Scandia Cafe. When you arrive at the cafe you are greeted by a giant Dala Horse...

...venture further throughout this charming town and you begin to see the painted Dala Horses everywhere. I love the sense of humor and the total send up of the CowParade that claims to be the world's largest public art event. ( You must have seen this...since its inception in Chicago in 1999 the CowParade has been held in 66 cities on six continents with artists and architects participating to paint their own cow.) The whimsical Dala Horses of Scandia were conceived by the Gammelgarden Museum for a celebration marking Scandia as the first Swedish settlement in Minnesota.

If you are ever in Minnesota the open air Gammelgarden Museum is worth a visit http://www.gammelgardenmuseum.org/ to see how the early settlers lived. Their midsummer celebration with traditional costumes and dances is a much look forwarded to summer activity and destination.

E.

For Love of Linen

Hi out there to everyone in blog land. Edie has been asking me to make an appearance, and I apologize for not writing sooner. Right now, I am working on a fantastic project in Washington, CT that is in the Gustavian style. Every once in a while, a project comes along that not only is a creative challenge, but also is just a joy to work on.

So, what inspires us when we work on interiors? Fabrics, color, mood, and location set the stage. Sometimes, it is as simple as finding the perfect swatch of fabric, and bingo, the space is defined. Linen is a fabric that I find I come back to again and again when doing design. Sweden, historically is known for its amazing linens ( the image above comes from the Skansen website http://www.skansen.se/ . Skansen musuem in Stockholm actually give demonstrations on the art of linen weaving ) and I love finding antique linen from there to bring back for projects.




For natural, hand woven fabric being made today, I especially love the fabrics of Rogers & Goffigon Ltd.. I love their color palette as well as their wide variety of linens and cottons. They are a perfect fit for Swedish inspired interiors.




Here, a rare photo of the visionary founders of Rogers & Goffigon Ltd., Jamie Gould and Jack Flynn. The partners attention to detail, commitment to fine weaving and eye for quality has made their fabric house a favorite with designers around the world.

Their latest venture is called DeLaney & Long Ltd, , a fabric collection of outdoor quality fabrics. Look at the weave on this - something you don't see often in an outdoor fabric. I can't wait to use it!

Well, its back to the job sight for me. Hopefully I will have a chance to post again soon.

Cheers!

Rhonda

"Swedish Country Interiors" shoots to #1 Design Book on Amazon after Cote de Texas Post

The surge was swift and strong and Joni Webb has proven again to be not only one of the most generous voices in the blogosphere but also one of the most influential. We are huge fans and have been following her, slipper man and that great zebra rug around breathlessly for awhile now. Thank you Joni! You are the greatest and our other most beautiful blog mentor ! And yes, we know that book ranking fluctuates daily but it was such a thrill to see the pre-sale response to the book after all of our hard work! And the post on Cote de Texas was beyond beautiful. We are totally bowled over.

If you have been lost for some reason in the D & D building for the last few years, have been living under a rock or just simply not a blog reader (its ok...) you can jump into Joni's smart inquiring mind on all things interior design at: http://www.cotedetexas.blogspot.com/ .

We love you Joni! A million thank yous...

xo E & R