An American’s Guide For Getting The Swedish Country Look
With the stresses this world has to offer, it is no wonder why there is such a gravitation towards a home that is cozy and relaxing. Our homes are places where we want to connect with our family and friends amidst the fast paced life we are living.
Country decorating has always been a very popular decorating approach in the US, and around the world for that matter. American painted furniture with colonial elements is often what you would find in many homes in America that are designed to reflect the early America period design, but rarely do you see a home decorated with a Swedish reflection.
Swedish country decorating has a slightly different slant than you find in America. The style and approach to furniture is quite a bit different. In Sweden we find the same countryside looks that are found away from the city with a homestead influence. We give you 5 tips to getting the Swedish look with the common elements that you can find in America online and in your local antique stores.
Here Are A Couple Tips To Getting A Country Swedish Look In Your Home
This Swedish decorated house in Dalarna, Sweden has all the rustic elements
you would expect to see in a house set in the Scandinavian country. Borrow a couple ideas from this home for your personal decorating.
1. Collect The Right Style Period Furniture.
This family house in the Swedish countryside has some very authentic Swedish looking furniture. Gustavian style Rococo chairs through out the home show off a Gustavian look that is famously created in Sweden. The chairs alone tell you this home is from Sweden. Finding these very rare pieces of furniture in America is next to impossible, and buying true antiques can be very costly making a whole home decorated around the Gustavian style a far reach for most people.
There are some furniture pieces in America that double the looks found in Sweden.
– Consider decorating with furniture that is has clean straight lines, and made out of wood. In the picture above the drop leaf table looks much like the early shaker style seen in America. Look at some of the furniture from Chelsea Textiles to get some good ideas. Many of these tables such as this one, and this one, can be found for less. Collect furniture such as drop tables which can be used in the middle of a living room paired with a sofa, they can also be pushed against the wall.
Other items that are universal to some degree are wall shelves. Find wall shelves that are made of wood, and slightly cut with a curve. The top of this cupboard is a great example of a look that is found in the country. Plate racks for the walls are easily found on ebay and can be painted any color to create a uniform look within your home. Collecting plates that can be positioned on the wall or on plate racks is another common element in Swedish styled homes.
– Have a couple pieces in your home which are just plain wood. Consider stripping a side chair down to its bare wood, and waxing it. Beauty can be found in wood, and gives a much needed balance towards an interior with many painted finishes.
–Wood Slat walls are another very common architectural element with Swedish styled homes. Often times these walls are painted a white or a gray with gilt mirrors hung on the wall.
– Another option is to collect Queen Anne furniture which then can be manipulated with paint to get the look of the backroads in Sweden.
-Wooden chairs and old benches can be a stylish approach in decorating your home. You can include a corner cupboard, plate racks and even sideboards and serve as storage areas around your dining room.
–Shop on ebay for the just right pieces to finish off every room in your home
2. Get The Color Right
This pinterest page gives a person some excellent examples of Colonial decorating in America. Much like Swedish decorating, painted wood is a very common element. When comparing the two styles, one thing is very evident, the colors are slightly different. Dark blues are very common with Swedish and Nordic style antiques, as well as lighter hues of elementary colors. In this photograph you can see a wide range of salmon oranges, deep blues and red. Consider bringing the historical c0lors that are found in Sweden inside your home.
Decorating with red and pink can be very country. While pink is shunned these days, it can be a dramatic color which can really speak volumes in your home. Getting the right color, and adding additional painting techniques such as distressing and glazing can give a terrific historical look. Black is also a great color for primitive interiors. Other country colors to consider are yellow, and red, and creamy white. Consider putting more of an emphasis on the bolder richer colors such as a deep red than the light blues and whites found in the castles of Sweden. Borrow from the colors found in Sweden for your wood accessories, furniture and walls.
Wood can be painted and heavily distressed to give you the dramatic looks that
are found in Sweden. Light colored drapes around the windows let in the light, and give this home a soft touch. Antique Swedish mirrors also make this home, and a pair of sofas in blue and white stripe are the colors found in Sweden. Wooden floor with Nordic Style runners sewn together making a large rug. In this home antique kitchen table is paired with Swedish Leksand chairs.
Country style decorating can capture the spirit of the simplicity of country living amidst the modern times. Country decorating is one way of reminiscing the pasts. It reminds us of how we are living our lives. Decorations inspired by country living makes us closer to nature. A cozy home reminds us to live simple lives.
Picture Credits- isogninelcassettodiadriana.blog, Weranda Country
The Principles Of Scandinavian Design
You read and hear quite a lot about Swedish design, these days – or maybe Nordic or Scandinavian design principles. Since the advent of IKEA as a global phenomenon over the past couple of decades, these terms usually conjure up images in most people’s minds of a lot of quirkily-designed innovative flat-pack furniture, often in bright primary colours. Of course, there is a lot of truth in this view, but it rather over simplifies things.
Scandinavian design as an overall concept first emerged back in the 1950s as a design movement characterized by straightforward designs, a general minimalist approach, a focus on functionality, and, yes, the low-cost mass production techniques we’ve come to associate it with today.
It was perhaps the Lunning Prize, which was awarded to outstanding Scandinavian designers during the 1950s and 60s that was most instrumental in making Scandinavian design what it is today – and helping to define it. And if there is any kind of real ‘definition’, then it’s based on the idea that functional everyday objects can be beautiful too – and that such objects should be easily available to all rather than a privileged few.
Julia Foster Decorative Antiques – juliafosterantiques.com
Simply Scandinavian is a book by Sara Norrman- Amazon $19
Simply Scandinavian is a book by Sara Norrman which celebrates unpretentious and simplicity with understated elegance in interior design. Scandinavian rooms are typically light, airy and bright, with modern furnishings mixed with pretty antiques and vintage pieces. Natural materials, especially wood completes the style of cool, calm and uncluttered living spaces. The main focus chapters of this book include, elegant simplicity, vintage-inspired, pared-down modern and contemporary rustic. 160 pages, published in 2010 by Ryland Peters & Small
This thinking reflected the growth of social democracy in Sweden and other Scandinavian countries over the same (post war) period, in addition to the availability of mass-produced low-cost materials and mechanisation of production. Scandinavian design made full use of pressed wood, plastics, anodized or enamelled aluminium and pressed steel, for example, as it does today.
In recent years, the march of globalisation really has taken Swedish design to the world’s masses in developed countries in highly efficient ways – but ways which are also sustainable as care for the environment is very much central to Scandinavian design philosophy.
We can now see an increasing mix of styles and cultures which is an inevitable result of that globalisation in mixing Scandinavian design techniques such as an ever increasing interest in pine furniture.
Many classic dining tables, for example, may owe as much to modern Swedish design principles as it does to a traditional French farmhouse as today’s furniture designs become increasingly eclectic.
KETTNER’S – Restaurant & Champagne Bar
Kettner’s is located in 29 romilly st, soho, W1D 5HP london.
Elle Decor Magazine – Our Little Big House Blog
Home of British Photographer Paul Massey- See More of this home here
Home of British Photographer Paul Massey
Hanni and Steffen’s Swedish Home
Vintage Home by Judith Wilson On Amazon
It is the perfect alternative for modern white interiors, ideal for family
living—as extra scuffs won’t ruin the look—and low maintenance as well as
relatively inexpensive. For home designers looking to develop a new style from
old looks, this essential resource provides information on how to shop and
search creatively as well as how to identify and avoid fakes. Tips are also
included on mixing various vintage objects creatively in order to create
welcoming and eclectic interiors in any room.
Scandinavian Interior- Taken By Don Freeman Photography
Gustavian Style: Warm Or Cool Tones?
Swedish Gustavian Pine Benches
Gustavian style is all about painted surfaces, intricate wood carvings, distressed wood flooring, and beautiful family heirloom furniture. Gray painted furniture are commonly associated with Swedish interiors. Gray can be both a cold and warm color depending on the hue of the paint. When gray is mixed with yellow, it can take on a color that is more warm, where as mixed with purple, or blue, it can appear on the colder tones. Gray is a staple color in old world Swedish homes, and will work with any color palette. Here are a couple examples of cool and warm color tones:
Cool Tone Examples:
The cool color tones can be very attractive and fresh. Light blue can open up the home, and allow it to appear more spacious.
1. As you can see this home has light blue painted walls, and furniture which is painted in the exact same color tones. Furniture is accented in gold, and other pieces are painted in white.
2. This ad for Tara Shaw is based on the cool color tones. A very light blue floor, and a gray wall with undertones of blue are the perfect back drop for this antique piece of furniture painted in blue-gray. As you can see white washed pine furniture adds a touch of wood, and works with the color palette. See more of the furniture here
Some Tips For Cool Interiors :
– Use several glazes when washing your furniture. Look at the color depth with these chairs- Pair of 18th C. Rococo Gustavian side chairs in the original paint From Marston Luce Antiques. The color is very rich and dark, and would work perfectly with a room based in the lighter blue tones.
– Paint your walls a very light blue and accent with punchy shades of blue such as seen in the table cloth. Add in lots of white painted accent pieces.
– A blue painted wall can go a long way to create a cool interior. Here we see a combination of blue gray and white.
– Brighter whites are used in cooler tones, while beige color washes and upholstery are used for warmer palettes.
Warm Tone Examples:
Warmer tones tend to feature traces of yellow, and brown in the swatches. A warmer palette will make your home appear to be warmer in the winter than a room that is painted in a light shade of blue. Rich yellows work so beautifully with gold, and brass.
This ad for Horchow features an interior bathed in the warmer tones of brown. Wood is washed with brown or beige paint allowing the natural wood to show through.
–Olivier & Chantal’s French Home is a great example of a warm color palette. The walls are painted a dark gray, and red painted furniture give an opportunity for color to be apart of this room. Red is also a warm color, making it the perfect choice against the dark gray walls that appear in this room. Untreated wood breaks up the painted surfaces, and allow the eye some rest. Solid upholstery allows this home to remain uncluttered. Simplicity, and clean looks govern the Swedish style. See more of this home here
-This Campagne cover features a Gustavian room with lots of warm tones. Lots of beige is used with a combination of white. Looking closely at the furniture, painted finishes on the clock and the settee reveal exposed warm wood, with beautiful distressed white finishes. See more of this home here.
Some Tips For Warm Interiors:
1. Paint your walls yellow and combine beige and gray into the interior. Work with darker tones instead of light paint colors.
2. Incorporate stone and concrete into a warm interior. Display stone busts or urns on pedestals. Consider leaving the wood raw and untouched without any polishing or lacquer. Add in brass instead of silver.
3. Incorporate black painted furniture into a warm decorating scheme. Black painted furniture often looks terrific against tones of yellow.
4. Consider also working with the darker green color palette. Combine green upholstery with untouched pine frames, or gilt wood frames. Work with a country theme with lots of distressed furniture, or work with brighter Kelly greens such as the colors featured on Lars Scandinavian Design Book. As you can see the secondary color is always beige not white.
Where To Find Swedish Looking Wall Sconces
PAIR Vtg Ornate Gold Syroco $20 Etsy
Pair of French Style Oval Gilt Wall Sconces with Mirrors $450 Etsy
One common decorative element found in Swedish decorated homes is the use of small mirrored sconces. Not only were these beautiful to look at, they were practical in the 17th and 18th centuries when light switches and modern electricity was not invented yet. Candle sconces were placed on the wall in old times to bring light to a room. The mirror backing magnified the light from the candle which allowed the room to be even brighter.
Sconces were paired with tables, which made sense to protect the home from fire hazzards. Candles at walking height were easier to light at dusk, allowing the freedom of candles on the tables to be moved around from room to room as needed. In addition, stationary candles on the walls didn’t serve a fire risk as much as those on table tops. Often times pictures depicting Gustavian interiors feature demi lune tables paired up with wall sconces. Gustavian interiors are all about simplicity, and symmetry, although I am sure positioning the table or chair below a candle also prevented bumping and tipping over of candles.
Today it is hard to locate a set or a pair of these Gustavian styled wood sconces. They are not a common find! If you are really enamored with old world Swedish and Gustavian styled rooms, hunt around for rectangular mirrors that you can alter yourself.
1. Shop Ebay For Similar Looks
Ebay is one of the best resources for decorating your home. Lets face it, if you are after a particular style, it isn’t going to be in your local antique store, unless you live in Sweden. Shopping ebay allows you to narrow down the parameters, and search for key words. Consider buying something close to the style you are after, and alter it with additional wood, decorative wood appliques, and paint. You do not have to have ALL genuine antiques in your home. Be creative without spending a fortune.
Get the Look For Less- Vintage Primitive Pair Homco Black Mirrored Candle Holder Wall $17.00 Check out this pinterest page with looks you can create for less.
2. Shop Esty!
Esty is often the last place I look, and often times I forget all about esty. Ebay is always my first place to look, although when I have looked on esty, often times there are a few hidden gems.
Last week I was searching through ebay for a particular set of handles for a desk I am finishing up. I found what I was looking for, and waited several days to bid. I ended up loosing the bid to another, and would have spent way to much money anyhow. I looked on esty after loosing the auction, and found an identical set of French pulls for a lot less money. The best thing is I could buy right away. Esty has a LOT of great listings. Take the time to search out key words.
The greatest thing about Esty and Ebay is you are supporting local families and small businesses. Every day people like you and I…. Often times they are looking for a small profit, making it very a reasonable place to purchase.
Suggestions:
Smiling Horse Designs has for sale an 18th century Gustavian reproduction gold painted mirror with candle holder. Hand crafted wood painted mirror, using same techniques as in the original design. 7″ taper holder in metal, painted gold. They are selling this incredible mirror for $99 Here you go! The best deal I have seen yet!
Please be sure to add yourself to the Swedish and French decorating page on Facebook. Enjoy lots of photographs and other people who enjoy this particular decorating style
This house is situated outside the town Karlstad in Sweden. The house actually manages without water and sanitary sewer! This primitive styled log house has been passed down for generations. The current family who enjoys this home are the eighth generation.
Gustavian Sconce – www.lauritz.com
Gustavian Sconces – www.smagarde.nu
Gustavian Sconce www.stadsauktion.se
Spegel gustaviansk Johan Åkerblad –www.stadsauktion.se
Pair of wooden wall sconces…. perfect for a country side home. Paint them, and heavily distress them. Buy it for $20 on etsy
Lars Sjoberg’s Swedish Gustavian Decorated House
The Paper Mulberry featured some fabulous Swedish photos of Lars Sjoberg’s house which were featured in Country Style by Judith and Martin Miller. Judith Miller is the co-founder of the hugely successful annual publication Miller’s Antiques Price Guide. All of her books are really well done, especially her antique guides. She is an author of dozens of books, many of which I really look forward to.
Judith’s Country Style details the warmth and strength of the rural tradition in interior design. The book details more than 400 stunning photographs of homes throughout Europe and North America. All the elements essential to creating a country style are covered: furniture, table and kitchenware, floor and wall surfaces, and architectural details. Although I have not had a chance to review this book myself, it looks incredibly interesting if you are looking to decorate in the country styles of Scandinavian or American influences. Judith’s Country Style can also be purchased on Amazon.
I invested in Millers Antiques Encyclopedia, and am looking forward to buying Furniture: World Styles from Classical to Contemporary. Millers Antiques Encyclopedia is only book I keep beside my desk. Miller is the co-author and author of several other , including , More Period Details : The House Renovator’s Bible , Period Finishes and Effects, and Influential Styles.
Additional Books:
Period Kitchens: A Practical Guide to Period-Style Decorating (Period Companions) by Judith Miller (Jun 1995)
Period Fireplaces: A Practical Guide to Period-Style Decorating (Period Companions) by Judith Miller (Jun 1995)
Classic Country Colour: Naturliche Farben fur jeden Raum by Judith Miller
I have not bought or had a chance to look at her Period Finishes, which looks incredibly intriguing. This book is designed for the designer or decorator looking for
a comprehensive catalog of “out of the ordinary” finishes. Suzan Nettleship describes this book as NOT your typical handbook for the weekend “do-it-yourself”
decorator/painter finishes, which is exactly the type of paint books I like to buy. It looks like you can buy this book for $20 dollars with free shipping. In my post with my friend Melanie I detail some painting books that we both agree are the best in the market.
Lets look at this room in particular……………..
He features two Swedish Rococo Style chairs, one with a natural aged patina, and another painted a classic yellow ochre. The most typical colors from the Gustavian period were gray, Swedish blue, and yellow ochre. It has been known that in ancient times Sienna- A clay that contains iron and manganese, has in it’s raw state the appearance of dark and rich yellow ochre.
If you are looking to paint a piece of furniture, consider painting your piece in an eggshell as close to the antique color of orchre as possible.
Daniel Smith has a wonderful Acrylic Paint in Yellow Ochre in an oil based paint, that is meant for paintings. These sort of paints dry to the touch over a weeks period. As you can see the color is very rich.
Genuine or Reproduction Swedish Chairs are very hard to find. My suggestion is to either buy a genuine one from a dealer, or find something that may work with the style.
Blue and white check patterns are hard to find. I often have trouble finding a heavy linen, or woven material adequate enough to use as upholstery. Often times the gingham fabrics are wonderful to look at, but most times incredibly thin to upholster with.
A company on amazon called Linen Tablecloths sell a number of beautiful classic check table cloths for about the same money that a yard of fabric costs. One comment on amazon said that her table cloth shrunk quite a bit in the wash, so consider getting the largest size and prewash it, and iron it before applying it to your furniture.
This wonderful tablecloth by Mahogany might be the best one yet! The pattern is smaller in scale. It is an excellent table cloth, and one to consider for upholstery. It comes in black and white, a bright Swedish blue and white, and red and white.
60 x 102 Inch Checkered Tablecloth Blue and White
Check out this wonderful Blue Hill Classic Tavern Check. You couldn’t get any more Swedish than this fabric.
Blue Hill, 52″x90″; Classic Blue Tavern Check, Flannel Backed, Vinyl Tablecloth; “Made in the U.S.A”
Blue Hill, 52″x90″; Classic Red Tavern Check, Flannel Backed, Vinyl Tablecloth; “Made in the U.S.A”
Durable Hand Woven 100% Cotton Red Picnic Check Tablecloth 54″ X 90″
Durable Hand Woven 100% Cotton Blue Picnic Check Tablecloth 60″ X 60″
100% Cotton Jacquard Check Dishtowel Yellow Honey Bee 18″ X 28″ Set / 6
Mahogany Large Check 100-Percent Cotton 60-Inch By 90-Inch Euro Tablecloth, Red and White
This picture was blown up to show you how lovely the portrait painting is in this room.
Investing in some quality antique LOOKING oil paintings can really turn your room into more of a historical look.
Check out my page on my favorite 100 oil reproduction paintings, and keep your eye on ebay for some portrait paintings for your rooms.
I have been thinking about this lovely handpainted portrait painting for my home, as the colors are hues of blue. Keep an eye on ebay and you will find affordable oil paintings that work with the colors of your room.
Classic Art of Old Masters- Officer in Uniform
Completely Handpainted Reproduction Painting Beautiful Young Girl in a Grey and Red Dress
Completely Handpainted Reproduction Painting Little Girl in A Blue Dress
Another beautiful detail in this room is the simple wall stripe on the top of the walls. Sjoberg shows us how easy it is to add some interest to the walls without going into complex patterns. You can see he has formed boxes with paint to look like moldings. In the following pictures, he creates an extra special place for a wing chair. Painting frames on the wall can give extra attention to your furniture. Symmetry, or balance to a room is important to the Swedish look .
Some additional furniture that has the Swedish Looks:
3 Pc Cherry Finish Wood Empire Style Nesting Table Set
Weathered Three Drawer Cabinet in Red
Hand-painted Louis Xv Bombe Chest
Tyndale Accent Table – Bailey Street -6003250
Bailey Street 6043208 Dylan Table
Boutique 3P2/LN YO95 Avocado/Linen Decorator Fabric
Cooper Classics Isabelle Pine Console Table
Fluted Half Column Set (plane Capital) F4
Grandfather Clock in Rich Brown – Coaster
Infinity Instruments The Dais – Distressed Round Table Clock
Design Hole Online has some interesting pictures of alternatives to bed canopies, such as ones which anchor to the ceiling. Beautiful wood bed canopies are very hard to find. One thought that came to mind is to bend plastic molding onto a backing of some sort. Home Renovators on amazon has some stunning ornate crown molding that might or might not bend. Although as you see in this design, it is rectangular, instead of the classic round, so bending wouldn’t be an issue if you wanted to interpret or copy this look. This Rococo could be a wonderful look to a bedroom based around a Swedish Gustavian style. These bed canopies are also called bed coronets.
Lars Sjoberg’s house featured in Country Style by Judith and Martin Miller
Lars Sjoberg’s house featured in Country Style by Judith and Martin Miller
Swedish Furniture Gustavian Decorating From Lars Sjoberg’s house Featured in Country Style by Judith and Martin Miller
Gustavian Furniture & Decorating – Swedish Furniture found in Lars Sjoberg’s house featured in Country Style by Judith and Martin Miller
Gustavian Furniture & Decorating – Swedish Furniture found in Lars Sjoberg’s house featured in Country Style by Judith and Martin Miller
Gustavian Furniture & Decorating – Swedish Furniture found in Lars Sjoberg’s house featured in Country Style by Judith and Martin Miller
27 Breathtaking Swedish Wall Clocks
Find Cartel Clocks On Ebay- See it here
A Continental Gilt Wood Cartelle Clock, C. L. Malmsjo & Co., Goteborg-
A Continental gilt wood cartelle clock, C. L. Malmsjo & Co., Goteborg, late 19th century, 8-day bell striking movement by Lenzkirch, painted enamel dial, Arabic numerals, within an ornate pierced and carved case with laurel leaf decoration and a ribbon cresting, signed dial and movement – Northgate Gallery Inc.
18th Century Swedish Giltwood Cartel Clock –Jacqueline Adams Antiques
18th Century French Giltwood Barometers
Swedish Painted Grandfather Clock Talisman London
18th & 19th Century French Giltwood Barometers
18th & 19th Century French Giltwood Barometers
Outstanding Reproduction French And Swedish Furniture From NOIR
For more than ten years, Noir has been designing, building and importing a unique collection of home furnishings. The company emphasizes their collections around natural fabrics, carved furniture and outstanding finishes. The best thing about Noir is they base their collections around the very best designs of our time. In their collections, you will see a variety of furniture from key designs in history such as Empire, English, French and Gustavian looking pieces.
Noir builds their furniture using high quality solid wood, instead of composite woods. You would be surprised to learn that some of the most recognized furniture brands which used to build in wood, are now gravitating towards composite woods to save money. Noir uses solid wood, something that is almost forgotten in a world concerned about the bottom dollar. Buying solid wood will ensure that your furniture will stay in your family for years to come.
Wood washes have become extremely popular in the last 10 years. Some of the best reproduction designers such as Restoration Hardware have been building furniture that combine the best of painted furniture and the beauty of wood in a wash finish. With painted furniture, you often don’t get the detail of the wood, and additionally wood left alone can look rather plain. Washing wood gives you the extra edge towards an appearance of aged furniture that we have all come to enjoy.
Noir’s Gustavian Pieces……
I am particularly thrilled with the Fabian three seater sofa in a weathered finish, as well as the Fabian loveseat. With this collection, they have also produced an armchair to complete the collection. It seems as though the Louis XVI styles,(square back chairs, and sofas) can be challenging to find locally, but they are still widely available through dealers, ebay and amazon of all places. Gustavian collections such as these three pieces are incredibly hard to find and some what rare to have available in a reproduction, which makes this collection particularly exciting! Scroll through their website, and find dealers who carry the Noir furniture here.
Designers Pick The Best Milk Paint Color For Furniture
Pictured, Slate Blue and Oyster White , both by Old Fashioned Milk Paint Co.
In House Beautiful’s “Add a Pop of Color to Your Furniture” key designers revealed their best paint colors for furniture. Brian McCarthy’s reveals his favorite colors from The Old Fashioned Milk Paint line.
“Find a piece that has good lines and trick it up. I’ve taken a plain pine chest of drawers from a junk shop and done a simple, cottagey finish with milk paint. Start with a base in Swedish blue-gray and lightly brush over it with white, pulling back with steel wool in spots to reveal more color.” -Brian McCarthy
The gray Donald Kaufman color swatch that Carey Maloney suggested would look fantastic on any piece of furniture, and would be a great color that you could base your entire Swedish home around. The Blueberry Myrtille would look fantastic on a dresser chest with tons of distressing. This color was chosen by designer Christopher Maya. Ruthie Summers suggests Ralph Lauren Paint’s Relay Red , while Thomas Burak suggests Benjamin Moore’s Heritage Red Exterior Roo, both would look terrific on a Swedish accent chair.
A Museum Recreates The Look Of Century Old Swedish Interiors With Historic Costumes
Picture Credit- Skansen.se
Skansen: Traditional Swedish Style – New And Used Options from $42
Founded in 1891 by Artur Hazelius, Skansen was the first open-air museum in the world; its aim to show how people lived and worked in the past in the different regions of Sweden. Hazelius was a teacher and researcher in Nordic languages who felt that traditional ways of life were disappearing with the onset of industrialization.
He started to collect an extensive collection of objects, which he put together in the form of tableau-type interiors, in a building in Drottningattan in the middle of Stockholm. Gradually, however, he wanted to show whole houses, furnished with traditional objects, furnishings and works of art, inhabited by people in historic costume, and through Skansen this idea became a reality.
Published in association with the Skansen Foundation, this beautiful book is illustrated throughout in colour. It describes not only the museum and its buildings, but also presents a microcosm of Swedish life, culture, art and architecture. The natural landscape of the museum setting is used to enhance the regional variations in Swedish art and architecture, with buildings from the southern part of Sweden being located in the southern-most part of the museum and so on.
Each chapter is devoted to a particular region represented by the museum: northern, middle and southern Sweden, as well as a typical Swedish town quarter. The buildings described here vary in date from the Vastveit storehouse, which was built in the fourteenth century, to the Skane farmstead which was finished in the 1920s. Stylistically, the range of buildings displayed at the museum is enormous: we move through time and style from the summer pasture farm, or Faboden, with its essentially medieval form of wooden construction, through the classical elegance of buildings like the late-eighteenth century Skogaholm Manor, or the impressive malm house built for the merchant Charles Tottie, to functional timber frame of the early twentieth-century Assembly Hall from Varmland. The informative, but accessible, text has been written by Ralph Edenheim, who is a Swedish art historian, and Head of the Department of Cultural History at Skansen. 128 pages.
Below are pictures of Swedish Interiors are those taken from photographer Photographer Joanna Holmgren found in two publications Skansen: Traditional Swedish Style , Swedish Folk Art: All Tradition Is Change
Swedish Interiors – Photographed By Photographer Joanna Holmgren
Swedish Interiors – Photographed By Photographer Joanna Holmgren
Swedish Interiors – Photographed By Photographer Joanna Holmgren
70 Rococo Swedish Stamps For Home or Business Use
Set Of Anna Griffin Lot Of Stamps – Original Listing Here
I never considered picking up stamps until I stumbled across the stamp collection of Anna Griffin. If you love the elegant floral, ribbon and swag pictorials often associated with the times of Rococo romance and Swedish architecture, furniture and art, then consider adding these prints to your own home or business. You might get inspired to make over your pantry cabinet, or hand write your name in your library book collection. There are endless ideas that you can use with beautiful stamps. Make your own holiday cards, stationary, or note pads around the house. Here are 70 of the very best stamps and accessories that can work with the Gustavian Rococo theme.
1. Scrap-booking is exploded in recent years. While there is millions of ways to dress up your family photo albums, some of the simplest designs are the most classy. Martha Stewart uses old fashioned black and white pictures with silver labels. Get this same look for less on the pages of your photo albums with stamps and photo corners. If your album is on cream paper, consider cutting out labels with the same cream paper, and using decorative stamps to add captions.
1. Circular Cartche Anna Griffin 3/4″ x 3 3/8″ x 1/4″ $8.32
2.Rose Motif – 3/4″ x 1 5/8″ x 3″ $5.96
3. Plumes Motif 3/4″ x 3-3/8″ x 3-1/4″ $8.32
4. Lovely Floral Stamps – Set of 7 Designs $7.39
-EK Success Tools Punch, Journal Plate $11
Look at this picture of the EK Success Photo Labels Punch. Don’t you want that for your albums?
2.Add beautiful labels to your flower pots. Why not? I have added lion ring pulls to my planter pots which I can hang tags, or ribbon from. Paint your planting containers and use tags and matching stamp ink in a coordinating color. Consider adding tags with written names of the flower, and details of when to plant it, how long it takes to germinate. Be sure to use clear tape over the tags, which you can then cut to simulate the look of formal lamination. Make every detail of your home personalized and pretty
Set of 7 Anna Griffin Wood Mount Stamps (Words & Phrases) Found On Ebay Original Listing Here
Home Storage Identification
4. Dress up your storage boxes and pantry baskets with custom tags. Who says you cannot paint cardboard storage boxes with flat latex paint? I do! Find coordinating card-stock that matches your boxes and tag your storage.
In this post “26 Ways To Organize Your Organize Your Kids Room With Shoe Boxes” we show you how easy it is to organize with banker boxes and shoe boxes for a neat and tidy storage room and garage.
5. Use round plain sticker labels such as those from Kraft to custom stamp your own labels that you can add your beautiful handwriting to.
-Avery High Visibility 2 1/2 Inch Diameter White Labels 300 Pack
-Avery Removable Labels, 3 x 4 Inches, White, 80 $6
-Avery Square Labels, 2 x 2-Inches, Pack of 120 $8
Anna Griffin Ornate Frames Rubber Stamp Lot –Original Listing Here
Oval Cartouche Wood Mount Rubber Stamp Original Listing Here
Beaded Brass Cartouche Stamp Original Listing Here
Wedding Wreath Stamp Original Listing Here
Small Business Use
5. There are more small businesses that ever. There has been an explosion of small niche businesses at antique flea markets, and antiques nationwide. Instead of tagging your merchandise with plain tags, use it as an opportunity to brand yourself. While people may not be able to see the face behind the product, your specialty items look ten times more expensive with beautiful packaging.
-This photography studio uses a stamp on the back of their photo envelopes.
-This company uses little burlap bags, with stamping.
–Inexpensive paper bags can be dressed up.
-This site offers CUSTOMIZED stamps from any graphics on your computer.
-Look how beautiful this photography or scrapbooking business looks with stamping
-Look how a simple round punch can be dressed up.
-Dressing up your packaging doesn’t have to be complicated. Look how beautiful this salvaged ribbon looks.
-Reconsider using wide popsicle sticks with stamping.
-Natural jute twine is a perfect way of adding a natural touch with your tags for your merchandise.
-Here we see a square tag dressed up with a custom square stamp. The whole package looks so much prettier.
-Here we see a ice blue round punch dressed up with a beautiful company stamp.
Make Your Own Tags:
Don’t spend money on tags, when you can make your own tags at home.
-EK Success Tools Punch, Real Estate Sign 4.3 x 3.3 x 6.5 inches $15
-Extra Large Merchandise Tag 3-1/8-Inch-by-2-1/8-Inch $20
-EK Success Tools Punch, For Sale Sign, 4.3 x 3.3 x 6.5 inches $14
1.Beaded Brass Cartouche– 3-1/8″ x 4-1/8″ $8
2.Oval Cartouche– 3 1/8″ x 4 1/8″ $8
3.Georgian Cartouche-3/4″ x 2-3/8″ x 3-1/8″ $6
4. Wedding Wreath – 2 1/2″ x 1″ $5.21
1.Ribbon and Swag Cartouche 3-3/8″ x 3-1/4″ $8
2.Romantic Cartouche 3/4″ x 3-3/8″ x 3-1/4″ $8
3. Ornate Motif Stamp 2-1/8″ x 4-3/8″ $6
4.Swirl Motif– Perfect for a banner on stationary $6
1.Floral Garland -1-1/8″ x 2-1/2″ $5 (This would be a great pair above any of the plain frames above) , (Beaded Brass Cartouche, Oval Cartouche)
2.Large Blossom Motif 3/4″ x 2 3/8″ x -1/8″ $6
Bottom Row:
1. Medallion Motif Round 3/4″ x 3-3/8″ x 3-1/4″ $8
2 Square Medallion Motif -3-3/8″ x 3-1/4″ $8
3.Feather Fleur de Lis 1-5/8″ x 2″ $5.21
4.Old World Styled Bell with a Bow $6.64
Other Beautiful Stamps From Anna
– Anna Griffin Clear Stamp Sets – In The Garden – Ideas For Stationary $7.39
-Anna Griffin Brass Stencil – Swag Ornament $2.52
-Anna Griffin Clear Stamp Sets – With Gratitude– Ideas For Cards $7.39
-Anna Griffin Clear Stamp Sets – Borders- Perfect For Invitations, Weddings Stationary Set of 4 borders $12
Anna Griffin Margot Collection – Vine Border 1-5/8″ x 4-3/8″ $6.64
–Basket Motif Stamp – 3 3/8″ x 3 1/4″ $8.32
-Anna Griffin Fanciful Alphabet $7.39 Use With A Ruler For Perfect Lines
-Stamp Set – Salutations– Perfect For Envelopes or Cards $11.34
-A Set of 14 Wedding Stamps Lettering $11.34
–Perfect Border For Wedding Invitations. Flip it upside down and you have a large border for the top of an invitation $7
–This border would look great with two borders paired on either side of a center stamp.
-Again create a banner for your invitations or cards with this floral border, which has more of a garden theme. $6
-This scroll border was designed to make long scrolls. $6
-Anna Griffin Collection Punches – Wedding Bow $7.56
-Anna Griffin Brass Stencil – Wreath Border $2.52
Swedish Scrap Booking Paper From Anna
Anna Griffin – 12 x 12 Ivory Flocked Paper – Grey $2
Anna Griffin – Willow Collection – 12 x 12 Flocked Paper – Blue Damask $1.59
Anna Griffin – 12 x 12 Flocked Paper – Floral – Blue $2
Anna Griffin – 12 x 12 Grey Flocked Paper – Platinum $2
Anna Griffin – Willow Collection – 12 x 12 Flocked Paper – Blue Damask $1.59
Anna Griffin Paper 12″x 12″ Willow Stripe Blue $10
AnnaGriffin Paper 12″x 12″ Francesca Floral Green .59 cents
Anna Griffin Paper 12″x 12″ Carmen Yellow Quatrefoil
Anna Griffin Paper 12″x 12″ Francesca Flowers Taupe
Anna Griffin 12 x 12 Flocked Paper – Floral – Green $2
Anna Griffin – 12 x 12 Blue and Grey Flocked Paper – Green $2
Anna Griffin – 12 x 12 Gold Flocked Paper – Blue $2
Anna Griffin – Fleur Rouge Collection – 12 x 12 Flocked Paper – Blue Damask $2
-Anna Griffin – 12 x 12 ivory Flocked Paper – Damask