I'm constantly arranging and rearranging my String shelves. I love them to bits, but never seem to get the setup just how I want it. But I guess that's part of the fun, right? I've never been big on color, especially not red. I've always leaned towards neutrals, however, these crazy colored germans have really won me over (they're all Scheurich). Apart from the crazy germans the shelves are currently holding WG planters, a Pantella lamp, a Muuto vase (a birthday present chosen by my dad!!), vintage Hadeland pieces, danish studio pottery, small model Panton chairs and books... My comfy leather chair is a Siesta chair, designed by Ingmar Relling in 1965 for norwegian manufacturer Westnofa. It's still in production, although by another company. Relling was the norwegian Wegner, a great designer from the Scandinavian design movement. You probably know that The Chair by Wegner was made famous by Kennedy in a tv debate, but did you know there are 16 Siesta chairs in The White House?
Ingmar Relling also designed these great daybeds for norwegian manufacturer Ekornes in the mid- sixties. They're called Combina and were part of a vey successful line of furniture that could be combined in many ways, hence the name Combina. We used to have them at home when I grew up, and one of them became my bed when my parents got new couches. The seat could be lifted to store my pillow and duvet when I had friends over. It's a classic mid- century piece of furniture, similar to several other daybeds of the era. These are not the ones we had back home, I found them in the exact same color after I put an ad on FINN (the Norwegian equivalent to Craigslist) What are the chances?
The aerial photos on the wall are for a project I did a few years ago. It's the last time I did one that didn't have a client. These are diagrams of the energy content and direction of waves and mapping of the topography on a site for a wave powerplant. I did it out of pure obsession and a solid dose of concern for landscape preservation and it turned into a thesis....
There's gotta be a solid dose of greenery in a home, right? I looove plants and planters. My most treasured planters are the 100 year old brown storage jars from Sandnes, near my childhood hometown. They were made by Graveren (later Gann Graveren) while they were still producing ordinary storage jars, baking bowls and roof tiles, before they started attracting artist and produced more colorful, patterned pieces. They're so rustic and cosy and remind me so much of home. My parents were kind enough to pick up these for me from an antiques store back home, they sometimes prefer driving instead of flying when they come to visit. They even found me a really large one.
My mom and dad are so sweet. They even found me this credenza in ... you might have guessed ... Stavanger!! It was made by a local furniture factory called Svena møbler, that was really big in the 60s. It's got such a great shape and so many gorgeous details, I just love it! Through the door you can see my new kitchen. My goal was to get a better connection between the living room and kitchen, color and material- wise, and I'm so glad it's finally done! I'm trying to convince my husband to paint the wall behind the credenza black. It would be such a great contrast to the teak and the kitchen wall that you see through the door. No luck so far... The big old radio next to the door used to belong to my husband's grandparents, and we were so lucky to have it handed down to us. I'm not sure if it's working, but it sure is a great place to put some pottery.
Finally, I'm sneaking in some pics from the kitchen counter- new use for old pottery, Stavangerflint Sera and Brunette. Have a great week!!
