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JOURNEY THROUGH SWEDEN

Sweden is an aesthetic’s DREAM journey! Gorgeous seaside villages, long sun-drenched days, lovely green countryside and wildflowers, endless strings of picturesque islands, great museums, beautiful architecture, and so much more!

01 This small company sells a variety of handwoven baskets, blankets and unique IRIS HANTVERK https://www.irishantverk.se/en 02 ASPLUND home décor, but what’s most special is the https://www.asplundstore.se/ collection of beautiful handcrafted brushes for High quality contemporary furniture home and body, which are made by 6 visually and home décor in classic Nordic impaired craftsmen, according to old Swedish light and airy colors and simple brushmaking tradition. This company has scandinavian designs. been making handmade brushes since 1870! Really lovely shop. Image credit: Asplund Image credit: Iris Hantverk

FAVORITE DESIGN SHOPS IN STOCKHOLM 03 ILLUMS BOLLIGHUS

https://www.illumsbolighus.com/ This Danish shop has branches throughout Scandinavia and in Germany. Everything is Scandinavian-designed, including, kitchenware, homeware, furniture and clothing. I particularly love the leather aprons and metal teapots with wood handles (pictured below).

Image credit: Illums Bollighus

04 DESIGNTORGET

https://www.designtorget.se/ Several branches around Sweden sell a wide variety of home décor, furniture, nick-nacks and décor for the home and garden. All items are designed by a collection of 240 Scandinavian designers. There are heaps of fun, interesting products.

05 MALMSTEN

https://www.malmsten.se/ Lovely collection of classic Swedish furniture (designed by Carl Malmsten), as well as lighting and homewares by other designers. Located right next door to Svenskt Tenn, and the two shops are entirely different in aesthetics, and both are fantastic.

Image credit: Malmsten

06 VINTAGE SHOPPING

Vintage & antique shopping in Vasastan, a beautiful and quietish neighborhood just north of (and walkable from) Stockholm – Several shops flled to the gills with stacks of vintage furniture, dishware, art, housewares, clothing and loads more. Boy, did I ever wish I had a trunk to fll here. I had to RESTRAIN myself! But I did pack into my suitcase a stack of vintage Gustavsberg teacups and saucers which I enjoy using frequently.

Where to fnd: These two streets have a plethora of vintage shops: Upplandsgatan and Odenplan

Photo credit: Svenkst Tenn

07 SVENSKT TENN

https://www.svenskttenn.se/en/

Legendary furniture and interior design shop and a must visit for design afcionados. More details below in my interview with the marketing and creative director.

FUN FACT S tockholm’s subway system consists of 100 stations, each with unique and interesting art installations on walls, platforms or waiting halls. It’s delightful to see what awaits at each station, all of which are linked to form what is essentially one of the world’s longest art exhibitions.

Dalarna, the historical province

in central Sweden, epitomizes traditional Swedish culture with its charming red cottages, brightly painted wooden Dala horses and Swedes donned in traditional dress and flower crowns making merry with singing and dancing around a Midsummer maypole.

DA L A R N A

Dala horses, the perfect archetype of Swedish

handicraft, have been carved by hand in the Dalarna region, the heart of Sweden, since the 1800’s. You can visit two factories in the village of Nusnäs, where you can see the process of crafting these traditional souvenirs, from carving a plain a wood block to painting & decorating a fnished horse. They are traditionally red, but you can purchase them in every color of the rainbow or raw wood to paint yourself. They are still hand carved from wood sourced from local forests and painted by hand. Each is unique and different, depending on the artist who crafted it. I love these old symbols of Sweden!

The cultural heart of Sweden

Midsummer (Midsommar) is the cherished tradition centered around the summer solstice and is celebrated by feasting on a traditional Swedish smörgåsbord (including pickled herring, salmon, herbed new potatoes, bread, cheese, & schnapps), wearing fower crowns and traditional Swedish dress, and singing and making merry while dancing around the Midsummer pole. If you are fortunate enough to be in Sweden for Midsummer the celebrations in Dalarna are a delightful, cultural experience. Most of the villages have celebrations, including Sundborn, where you can enjoy a traditional lunch at Carl Larsson’s house and quaint festivities in the evening in the garden, or Leksand, where the crowd is huge and it’s quite a party.

midsummer

a snow white moment

Staying at a Swedish stuga (tiny cottage) is a fun local experience. This adorable stuga is nestled in the forest between Orsa and Mora. With its snug bunk beds and traditional oven, it feels a bit like being smack dab in Snow White’s cottage. The owner, Karin, leaves out a crock of butter knives, hand-carved by her father, Ingevar, along with a note to say it makes him so happy when guests take his knives home.

Carl Lars House &Garden in Sundborn

The artist Carl Larsson and his wife, Karin, lived with their family and worked in this treasure of a house, Lilla Hyttnäs, which remains in their family and is now a museum. I absolutely loved touring this delightful home, flled with Carl’s delightful art and Karin’s handwoven textiles, and catching a glimpse into this family who seized every opportunity to celebrate life and who lived so lovingly and artfully. They painted art right onto the bare walls and there was no holding back. The house is full of color and joy, just like Carl’s art. If you are an art or design lover, this is not to be missed! It is located in Sundborn, in the heart of the Dalarna region.

Image credits: Carl Larsson-gården

The painting directly on the wall around the doorway was a gift from Carl to Karin, who was an artist in her own right. She was skilled at weaving and wove the textile hanging in the doorway (along with many other weavings throughout the house).

This was the guest bedroom (shown below). Guests who slept in the little cupboard bed inscribed their names on the inside of the cupboard doors. Karin wove the tapestry adorning the blue chair and the bed covering (which pattern was created for the local townswomen to create themselves). Her work was remarkable. She was definitely ahead of her time!

KARLSBYHEDENS POTTERY

Traditional pottery workshop in Sundborn, where each piece is handpainted in cheerful foral patterns. I love my little cake plate, pictured here with kanelbullar (cinnamon buns).

Shop: Karlbyhede 32, Sundborn In summer, there’s a little shop set up near the Carl Larsson house.

WEST COAST ISLANDS

Either visit one or two as a day trip from Gothenburg (Göteborg) or, better yet, spend a few days enjoying these scenic islands, strung along the coastline.

In summer, Swedes from around the country descend upon the islands to stay in their cottages for the season. There’s delicious fresh seafood, boat rides, good walks and people making the most of these long summer days.

The pretty little village of Mollösund, one of the oldest fishing villages in Sweden, is brimming with sweet summer houses and sailboats. We rented an adorable little cottage covered in roses with delicious strawberries growing in the garden.

O R U S T

T J ö R N

The lovely island of Tjörn is comprised of wooded hills, nature reserves, fshing villages and a dreamy rugged coastline. This is a great place to visit for nature and art enthusiasts.

Sheep graze alongside the interesting and unusual works of sculpture as you follow the path among the rolling green hills. It is quite fascinating and a bit surreal to view these contemporary sculptures as they sit in juxtaposition upon an ancient settlement where you can still see stones and gravesites from 2000 years ago! The gigantic white head of a woman, titled Anna, by Spanish artist Jaume Plensa, sits at the highest point of the park and can be seen from miles around.

PILANE SCULPTURE PARK

NORDIC WATERCOLOR MUSEUM

My daughter and I loved touring this interesting museum of contemporary watercolor paintings, located in the very pretty fshing village of Skärhamn.

https://www.akvarellmuseet.org/en

This tiny island is accessible by what seems to be the shortest ferry ride ever and spent a night but wish we’d stayed longer – what a sweet place to relax, ride bikes and just enjoy!

We stayed at the most darling little place, created by a couple from Stockholm, Magnus, a photographer and Nina, a costume designer.

Nina is truly an artist, as she pieces together bits of cloth, both new and vintage to make all the bedding, curtains and decor. Simple, peaceful and CHARMING!

ESCAPE TO THIS SUMMER SPOT HAMB URGÖ

QUICK BITES

Räksmörgås (open-faced prawn/shrimp sandwiches throughout the west coast of Sweden) are fresh and tasty. They can be found all over, from seaside cafes to food halls. Topped with eggs, dill, cucumber and a squeeze of lemon, they are HEAVENLY! östermalms Saluhall in Stockholm. This fabulous food hall, opened in 1888, is considered to be one of the top 10 food halls in the world. European food halls are such a fantastic way to feed a group of people with a variety of tastebuds.