A Scandinavian Influence In My Home

I have a proud Scandinavian heritage in my family, Viking blood running through my veins. My maternal Grandmother was Danish, and despite having lived in England for most of her adult life she remained always, so very Danish. She left her homeland shortly after the war, on her own, leaving her three siblings and parents behind. In England she met my Grandfather and fell in love, and although never lived in Denmark again her Danish ways never left her. Her influence on all of my family is still so strong, from the way we decorate our homes, our awareness of midsummer rituals, right through to our Christmas traditions with gifts and a huge meal on Christmas eve, and handmade paper and straw decorations on the tree.

Growing up we spent most of our Summer holidays in Denmark, with my parents sleeping in a tiny touring caravan which we would drive with across Europe after taking a short ferry crossing to Rotterdam. My brother and I would sleep under canvas beside the caravan, and we loved it. Long Summer days of riding our bikes through cool dark forests that met the sea, and spotting deer grazing in the wheat fields. We were often invited to the homes of Great Aunts, Uncles and Cousins, nodding politely as we barely understood each other. I can still remember how beautiful those Danish homes were, with light wooden floors, cosy rugs and jugs of wildflowers. Similarly my Grandparents home in England was never quite the same as other English homes and my Granny’s Scandinavian style was immediately evident. These were the days long before Swedish home superstores arrived in the UK and everyone was familiar with that Scandinavian look.

I grew up knowing the names of Danish homewares and jewellery designers like other kids knew British Home stores and Habitat. My parents would excitedly plan shopping days while we were on holiday and fill every nook and cranny of the tiny caravan with goodies to bring home. Items ranging from beautiful paper napkins and melamine plates for picnics to expensive handblown glass lamps which they would save up for before the Summer came. It seems ridiculous now to say they got excited about paper napkins, but honestly back in the 80s you couldn’t buy simple everyday items in the UK that had had any thought what so ever put into the design. Certainly not at a reasonable price.

For me this sums up Scandinavian design – simple everyday items that are thoughtfully and beautifully designed. I was so lucky to have these experiences as a child and to grow up surrounded by lovely things, and I have developed a strong appreciation for design because of it. It might sound silly to say but I would love to pass this on to my kids. I would be kind of mortified if they had really bad taste, haha!

These days thankfully Scandinavian homewares are much easier to come by, and with online shopping we have access to far more unique and interesting items than are available on the high street.  Eniito.com is an online marketplace committed to bringing together the very best handpicked Scandinavian designers in order to make their stunning goods available to the rest of the world. Their mantra is to “share the Nordic design principles for quality, minimalism and functionalism” and they aim to offer the ultimate shopping experience to add a little Nordic signature to your everyday.

ENIITO offer everything from Furniture, accessories, art, tablewares, jewellery, fashion and children’s wares. Each and every piece is carefully selected and reflects perfectly their simple mantra of minimal, functional, and quality. I have chosen a few pieces from ENIITO, mostly to accessorise my son’s room with. This is a room that I love and like the rest of our house it has pieces of simple, modern white furniture mixed in with vintage, reclaimed and traditional. The chest of drawers in the corner is a Victorian one that belonged to my parents which I lovingly lime waxed before my eldest son was born. This minimal style optimises the light and space in the house, and creates a canvas that is perfect for adding cosy textures, pops of colour and pieces of interest.  

The first piece I chose was the white oiled solid oak stool from Collect Furniture. This gorgeous little piece makes me happy, I love anything that is made from a stunning natural material like oak. The simple design feels solid and pleasantly chunky, and the wood is warm and smooth to the touch. It’s one of those pieces that will grow with the kids, and will I’m certain find a use and a home for many years to come. I like to grab it to perch on whilst the kids are playing on the floor, and they like to ride across the room on it as it thoughtfully has little wheels on the top side for this purpose!

These gorgeous unisex pyjamas are by Snork Copenhagen. They also come in a summer style and in a nightdress and are made in the softest cotton imaginable and come in several lovely colours. I probably haven’t surprised anyone by choosing this beautiful minty green! He loves them and literally doesn’t want to take them off, which is fine by me as he looks so sweet in them!

This Rhino with Cub print is by Løfberg (and framed by me). Løfberg do other gorgeous hand drawn designs, all created with a ballpoint pen. I think it can be hard to find children’s art that is a little more sophisticated, and I love this pared back, monotone look for this room. It’s also an incredibly sweet depiction of Rhino love which my son loves!

These lovely DIY paper animals are by Papermals, and they are put together by folding and tucking in the flaps, no gluing or sticking necessary. It’s a fun little craft to do with the kids and they get a lovely toy/room decoration afterwards. These would make a gorgeous gift item and I will be stocking up for sure!

This very sweet cushion is called cheek to cheek and is by Anna Lindsten Illustration & Design. The little forest mouse is awake on the front, and asleep on the back, and the again the monochrome with little pink touches is so stylish. My little boy loves it and carries it around the house with him!

The final item was this fabulous magazine holder, which I decided was one for the grown ups 😉 Made by Caia of Sweden in the softest tan leather, with little brass details which really give it a touch of luxury and style. We have never really had a satisfactory place to put magazines before! Floor racks always get in the way, and magazines and papers start to irritate me then they begin to pile up on the coffee table. I never even thought of putting them on the wall like this, but then I’ve never seen such an attractive solution before. I love how they are out of the way and yet easily accessible from the sofa.

You can see all of the items I chose from ENIITO here and browse the rest of their beautiful site here. I’m thrilled with the addition of these pieces to our home. They have added a real touch of Scandinavian style to my son’s room, and yet each and every piece works anywhere around our home, and they are frequently being moved around as the kids take them with them from room to room! Each piece is indeed minimal, functional and quality, and I think my Granny would approve 🙂 xx

This post was kindly sponsored by Eniito and the products were gifted to me for the purpose of this post.