furniture

Apr

2018

Sofa in place

The new sofa is in place. Photo: ©nini.tjader.2018

New sofa in place

It all went very fast after I decided which sofa to buy.

On Thursday morning (April 5th) I decided to try to sell the old sofa on Blocket.se. Two hours later I had the first respons asking me if sofa was still available. I answered yes. About an hour later I had the next response which said if it was still there they wanted it and could pick it up the same evening. So I agreed to sell the old sofa to them and agreed on pickup-time. They came in the evening, picked the sofa up and payed it via Swish, without any arguing about the price. The first contact I had in the morning by that time came back (via email) and wanted me to reduce the price. I then told her that the sofa meanwhile was sold and picked up. Two other also contacted me by that time.

I’ve thought it is impossible to sell sofas via Blocket.se, but this time I was wrong. And I’ve never sold anything via Blocket.se that fast before.

Livingroom without sofa. Photo ©nini.tjader.2018

So there I was Thursday evening without a sofa. Looked really empty.

On Friday, when back from the gym, I went directly to IKEA to buy the new sofa. Delivery was ordered for the same night between 17.00-21.00 hours. It arrived at 19.00 hrs. Two very helpful guys in the car carried it all in and the biggest parcel they carried all the way into the livingroom even though I had only ordered and paid for delivery to the door and no carrying in. Thanks guys! Much appreciated.

That same night I took away all the plastic and such from the parcels but did no more.

Assembly of new sofa going on. Photo: ©nini.tjader.2018

In the morning (Saturday), I got the pillows into their covers and everything laid out for the assembly of the sofa itself.

The new sofa ready to be assembled. Photo: ©nini.tjader.2018

After having breakfast the neighbour came in to help me with the rest of the assembly. The main parts of the sofa is impossible to assemble by yourself. You need to be two to do it.

The new sofa assembled. Photo: ©nini.tjader.2018

After struggling with it for a couple of hours, with a break for waffles with whipped cream and strawberry preserve and coffee outdoors in the afternoon, we finally were done.

Those screws that hold the sides together with the main part of the sofa are really hard to fit and get firmly screwed into place. One of them was impossible and is only loosely there (the one in the upper right back). No matter how much we tried to get it to stick where it should it wouldn’t. It is the one fastening the righthand side-piece at the upper backside (against the wall). I hope it doesn’t matter.

Sofa assembled and in place. Photo: ©nini.tjader.2018

The new sofa is the same model as the old one, a Karlstad from Ikea. This time a 3-seater. The old sofa was a 2-seater (no longer sold by Ikea). I wanted a 3-seater so I can have a night guest should I need to. This is big enough for sleeping in when pillows are removed. The light-grey cover can be washed in the washing-machine if needed. Only problem is that you have to take the entire sofa apart to get the cover off, except for the pillows.

New sofa in place, pillows placed. Photo: ©nini.tjader.2018

The loose pillows (same ones as in the old sofa) were placed in the sofa. Plenty of space left as the sofa is longer than the old one.

The new sofa with its pillows and throw. Photo: ©nini.tjader.2018

To protect the brand new sofa I put a throw by the end of it where my feet usually land. I hope Gustav, neighbours cat, will not have too dirty feet when he comes in and wants to be in the sofa… It has a 10 year warranty but not against dirt on the cover…

I am happy with my new sofa. It will probably be my last sofa.

Mar

2018

Decision about sofa

Sofa, Karlstad 3-seater. Photo: Ikea

Sofa decision.

I made a decision about the sofa.

It will be an IKEA KARLSTAD 3-seater with light grey cover. And not the new DELAKTIG I previously thought I would buy. This is the same model as I have now, just a 3-seater instead of a 2-seater, and with a cover that you can wash yourself in the washing-machine, which saves a lot of money if you need to get it cleaned.

My present KARLSTAD 2-seater sofa. Photo: ©nini.tjader.2018

I’ve always liked the simple lines of the KARLSTAD sofa. It is also comfortable to sit in. I just need a slightly longer one that you in case of need can put up a night-guest in. The present sofa is way too short to sleep in. I also need to be able to clean the cover in the machine. And to get a more stable sofa. The present one is damaged in one corner where a screw fell into the armrest together with what is supposed to hold the screw. I got a new screw from Ikea, but what is supposed to hold it is for ever inside one of the armrests. The armrest to the right in the picture can brake at any time.

The price for the KARLSTAD 3-seater with the light grey cover is also very attractive. Even adding the cost for the delivery and the getting rid of present sofa, it is still much cheaper than the DELAKTIG one which I at first thought I’d get.

Ikea DELAKTIG sofa modules. Photo: ©nini.tjader.2018

So, it won’t be one of the Ikea DELAKTIG modules plus cushions as I previously thought. The KARLSTAD 3-seater with the light grey cover is so much cheaper and it is still a good enough sofa.

As soon as the snow outside is gone (it still isn’t) I will .order the sofa. The only way to get it into the living room and the old one out is doing it via the patio and the garden. As long as the snow hasn’t melted fully that is a very slippery and wet way to go. But soon…

The way through the garden. Photo: ©nini-tjader.2018

Mar

2018

Sofa time again

My present sofa, an IKEA Karlstad 2-seater. Photo: ©nini.tjader.2018

It is sofa time again.

Sofas come and go for various reasons. I think I remember most of mine… so not THAT often. But now it is sofa time again.

Presently I have an IKEA KARLSTAD 2-seater. The 2-seater was discontinued quite some time ago and is no longer sold. The 3-seater is still sold. My Karlstad sofa has one cover in grey and another cover in white. The grey one needs to be cleaned by a laundry and the white cover can be cleaned in a regular washing machine.

I switched to this sofa after some time in my present flat. When I moved in here I hade a 3-seater sofa from MIO which was much too big and clumsy for the smaller livingroom in this flat. It was almost impossible to get rid of that sofa. Tried to sell it at Blocket.se. No deal. In the enda after much trying I gave it away for free to a neighbour whose son needed a sofa. Just to get rid of it. It is hard selling sofas – or even giving them away – on Blocket.se. There are too many sofas there. I am personally a bit suspicious of second hand sofas as you have no idea what has happened to their cushions… So no wonder they are hard to sell.

Ikea Delaktig by Tom Dixon. Photo: ©nini.tjader.2018

When IKEA announced the release of the sofa DELAKTIG by Tom Dixon my interest was awaken. Finally a clean and simple sofa without any thick armrests and with space under it to make it easy to vacuum-clean the floor. It was introduced on February 9th 2018 in the warehouse. I went there with friend Ulla to have a look at it, sit on it, feel it, experience of that was what I wanted.

Ikea DELAKTIG by Tom Dixon. Photo: ©nini.tjader.2018

I love it. It is comfortable. It is flexibel. The cover can be cleaned in a regular washing-machine.

BUT, at about the same time, the new brochure for spring from MIO landed in my mailbox. So I had a look at the sofas there. Found one that looked promising and flexible and had covers that can be cleaned in a regular washing-machine. That is actually important as it is very expensive to have the covers cleaned professionally at a laundry.

MIO Clean sofa. Screenshot from MIO website.

The one that caught my eye was called CLEAN and filled all the criteria I had for a new sofa.

So I went to MIO to have a look at it, feel the covers, get some details and sit in it.

Good enough but not a sofa that made me feel that that was the one. Too boring. Too ordinary. Too much like any other sofa I’ve had over the years.

So I went back to Ikea a second time to look at DELAKTIG again.

Ikea DELAKTIG by Tom Dixon. Photo: ©nini.tjader.2018

That is my next sofa. What I love about it is its clean lines, it comfort and its flexibility.

I love the light grey covers and they are washable in the washing-machine at home. To begin with I don’t need more than one lean-to-pillow of the thicker model, and one slimmer armrest. If I later feel I need more cushions/armrests for it, it is possible to get that later. Ikea is supposed to be selling this sofa for at least two years it has been said. So, no hurry.

I only need to decide if I want the smaller 149 cm long model, or the longer 202 cm long model. I have space for either. For the longer one I need to remove one smallish book-case, but that’s all.

First I have to get rid of my present sofa before I can order this one. I will at least TRY to sell it via Blocket.se. If no luck, Ikea can remove it when delivering the new one.

To be continued…

Feb

2018

The Furniture & Light Fair, Stockholm 2018

The Furniture & Light Fair, Stockholm 2018. At the entrance exhibition by Paola Navone. Photo: ©nini.tjader.2018

The Furniture & Light Fair, Stockholm 2018

On Saturday I visited the Furniture & Light Fair, Stockholm 2018. I visit this fair every year. It is interesting. There are beautiful and innovative furnitures and lights shown. It is my favourite fair.

The fair is big though. They fill all the three halls of the Stockholm Fair ground. By the time you get to Hall C, you are exhausted and don’t really see what you are looking at… One thing I appreciate with this particular fair is that they do not sell anything except to resellers.

The entrance exhibition by Paola Navone was wild and craxy. I kind of liked the hug flowerlamps though…

Chargeable by usb lamp. This small lamp you can carry with you. You charge it by usb-cable. It lasts for about 20 hours. In the shops it costs SERK 1800. On the fair you could get it for SEK1000. The attachable fixture that hangs over the side of the chair is an add-on. I didnät ask for the price of that.

As for the furnitures and lights… there are beautiful things and there are wild things. Less office furniture this year than previous years. As for trends? I see lots of black details. There is still natural materials in wood and carpets in natures own beige colors… Less pink. Less pastels. The lamps and lightings are interesting and with the LED technique I guess the possibilities to create real interesting lightings is much larger than the lamps from former days. Lots of small stools. Lots of small chargeable lamps that you can carry with you. Lots of thing metal legs on small side-tables.

Someone has looked too close on the similar stool from Ikea I would say… Photo: ©nini.tjader.2018

Others may have reported from the fair with more details like the names of the producers and such. I intentionally don’t. I am more interested in trends and looks than the producers. But here are some of my impressions that I caught on picture.

Hover over the images to see eventual text about the picture. Re-load page to get the images in a different order.

At the entrance exhibition.

Bathtub of wood.

Hanging lamps.

Cats- and banan-lamps.

Black, black, black…

Green conference corner.

Tools for curtains.

Grey and orange and teal interior.

At the entrance exhibition.

Wooden animals.

Carpets

The cat lamps.

Ceiling lamps.

Wall-containers for small stuff.

Chargeable by usb lamp.

Outdoor furniture.

Someone has looked too close on the similar stool from Ikea I would say…

Shelves of sticks… Doesn’ look to stable.

Stools in a pile.

Varpets in greys.

Peanut-shaped chairs.

More stools.

Mice-lamps.

Lights

Small tables.

One single stool.

A beautiful wooden bench.

Balloons in the ceiling

Outdoor plantstands.

Tools for curtains.

A chair with beautiful details.

Tht little table in the background… Love it.

Lambs skins.

At the entrance exhibition.

Nice, square bed.

A wall decoration.

Chargeable by usb lamp.

A puff on wheels.

More stools.

Cactus

wall full of chairs.

Black, black, black…

One of few pale interiors.

Hanging lamps.

Daybes. I think this one was at laast years fair as well. It is nice though.

At the entrance exhibition.

A bed with mice-lamps.

At the entrance exhibition.

Oriental carpet. Love this one.

Chargeable by usb lamp

At the entrance exhibition.

Ceiling lamps.

Wallcontainers for storage.

Outdoor benches.

A bathtub of copper.

One crazy interior.

Dec

2017

Flexible sofa daybed from Ikea

Flexible sofa daybed. Photo: IKEA

Ikea recently announced a very flexible and useful sofa daybed. Here in Sweden it will be introduced on Feb 9th 2018 and according to the information be sold for two years. Which means you don’t have to rush it to get one if you want one…

Flexibel sofa daybed. Photo: IKEA

I totally fell in love with it.

On February 9 th 2018 IKEA and Tom Dixon announces DELAKTIG: An open ”platform for life”, based on a frame of aluminium. The idea is that DELAKTIG will challenge design-conventions in the furniture branch and welcome everyine to add functions of their own or totally change it.

IKEA and Tom Dixon have also designed add-ons which complement the platform. The add-ons can be combined in several different ways. Add armrests and a lamp. Add a table and new cover for the back-pillow. Change position of the armrests. Change the armrests. Add more pillows. Or change the cover.

Salestart: February 9th 2018
Salesperiod: 2 years

soifa, daybed, furniture. ikea, tomdixon

Flexible sofa daybed. Photo: IKEA

This one would be the perfect sofa-daybed-guestbed in my livingroom as I see it.

Of course I need to see it in real life, sit on it and feel its materials, see the colors in reality, before I make up my mind. But on pictures it looks just perfect.

Flexible sofa daybed. Photo: IKEA

I like the simplicity and clean lines of it. And I like the flexibility.

Flexible sofa daybed. Photo: IKEA

If I get this one I have to get rid of the KARLSTAD 2-seater i presently have (which I recently had the cover cleaned for SEK945 as it was really dirty). I know selling used sofas online is a more or less dead market and you get next to nothing for a used sofa, if you at all manage to sell it. But to get a new sofa in, the old one has to go.

Sofa daybed. Photo:IKEA

It comes in light grey, dark grey or blue and in various sizes.

Sofa daybed. Photo. IKEA

Download the IKEA_pressmaterial_DELAKTIG_Tom_Dixon_9feb_2018 in Swedish for more details, ictures and prices here.

Oct

2017

The chaise longue is now gone

The chaise longue. Photo. ©nini.tjader.2017

The chaise longue is now gone. Sold it on Blocket.se and it was paid for and collected on Friday past. It has now gotten a new life in Norrköping.

The chaise longue. Photo: ©nini.tjader.2017

I bought it when I lived at Vårby Gård where I had a larger livingroom than here. It is very comfortable, but too short to sleep in (except for short whiles in front of the TV). I bought it with white cover. Later, after I moved to the present flat, I had a new lightgrey cover done and bought from Bemz. Bemz does covers for Ikea furniture in lots of qualities and colors and patterns. Ikea no longer makes this model of the Ektorp chaise lounge with an arm rest. They already didn’t when I wanted an extra cover for.

The chaise longue with light grey cover from Bemz. Photo: ©nini.tjader.2017

The last couple of years I’ve on and off considered selling the chaise longue because it took up too much space in the livingroom. And now I finally got around to putting it up for sale. It took a couple of weeks before I had a buyer, but in the end it went out the door and I could make the changes in the livingroom that I wanted to do.

The livingroom without the chaise longue. Photo: ©nini.tjader.2017

My livingroom became an entirely new room without the chaise longue. So much new space… So airy…

The livingroom. Photo: ©nini.tjader.2017

The fitnessbike also got a new placement which opened up the entire space in front of the bookcase.

The fitnessbike. Photo: ©nini.tjader.2017

I placed the fitnessbike at the spot where the smaller chair (Ektorp Jennylund from Ikea) used to be. Also from here I can watch the TV when on the bike. (That is important as it is SO boring to be on the bike).

The livingroom. Photo: ©nini.tjader.2017

The chair is in a much better place now and I can also use the foot-rest the way it is supposed to be used (instead of having it hidden more or less under the sofa-table by the TV). This became a very inviting spot to sit.

The livingroom. Photo: ©nini.tjader.2017

I had more plans for moving the furniture around, but I won’t do that just now. I am presently happy with how it turned out now with the chaise longue gone.

The livingroom window. Photo: ©nini.tjader.2017

A bonus with this change is that I got better space for the plants that live in front of the livingroomwindow over the winter season. The largest aloe vera, which for a couple of months has been living in the bedroom, now has been moved back to the livingroom and placed near to the floor in case it would fall over (it is very unstable).

Gustav (the neighbours male cat) came in briefly on Saturday and stopped in the door looking very disturbed. His chair was not where it used to be and there was a fitnessbike there instead, and the chair was moved… He ran out fast. He, like most cats, does not like changes. He has been in with his owner after that, and that went much better. In the end he will accept the change.

The livingroom. Photo: ©nini.tjader.2017

Even in the evening the larger plants are now visible instead of being hidden behind the back of the chaise longue. Both the aloe vera and the figtrees have special plant-lighting to enable them to survive winter indoors with poor light conditions.

One of the reasons to get rid of the chaise longue was to get space for an eventual guestbed… But I won’t place a guestbed here after all. On the other hand, if I move the fitnessbike, there is good space there for an inflatable guestbed in that spot.

I’ve also moved around a lot of the lamps and lightings to get them in better spots. Having good light in all corners is important. I have one smallish table too much and one floor-lamp too many. Presently I don’t know where exactly they will end up. I also suddenly have too many cushions as there is no chaise longue any more to put some of them on.

I am happy with this change of the livingroom. It feels so much more inviting now than it did before I got rid of the chaise longue.

The livingroom at night. Photo:©nini.tjader.2017

Mar

2017

Livingroom – planning a refurnish

Part of the livingroom with he corner I plan to refurnish. Photo: ©nini.tjader.2017

For some time now I’ve been planning a refurnishing of part of the livingroom. That is, moving some furniture around to new locations in the room.

Part of the livingroom. Photo: ©nini.tjader.2017

This is the wall between the door to my outside place and the sliding door to the bedroom.

My plan is to move the low bookcase towards to sliding door to the bedroom, and all the rest to the wall to the right of the bedroom door.

Part of the livingroom. Photo: ©nini.tjader.2017

This, above, is where the two high bookcases in the previous picture would go. The TV and the TV-bench would go to the previous wall, to the left of the low bookcase. The picture wall would move as well. The chair would go into this corner, in front of the higher book-cases. The pouff on the floor (with a red pillow on) would go elsewhere as well.

Part of the livingroom. Photo: ©nini.tjader.2017

The width of the TV-bench is the same as the width of the two high book-cases in the first two images.

The CD-DVD-shelves would stay where they are and the bookcases in the right corner above would be put more straight toward the wall to the right. They are presently angled.

Part of the livingroom. Photo: nini.tjader.2017

All the cables for the TV etc. would have to be moved. There is an outlet for them just inside the bedroom, to the left. Only “problem” with that is that I would never be able to close the sliding door to the bedroom with that solution. But I never close that door anyways, so…

Part of the livingroom. Photo: ©nini.tjader.2017

With this solution of the furnishing, the sofa would be towards the TV, and not like now, when you have to lay down in the sofa to watch TV. Nothing bad with that though… The new place for the TV would probably be better for watching TV (and not falling asleep on the sofa).

Part of the livingroom, my sofa. Photo: ©nini,tjader.2017

What I would do with the small round table beside the chair would still have to be decided.

Part of the livingroom. Photo: ©nini.tjader.2017

That I haven’t started yet with the refurnish is all about how much work that is… I like to have it carefully planned in my head before I start moving around the furniture and cables. To move bookcases you need to empty them first. They are too heavy to move with content in them. AND I would be without TV and internet during the move of all the cables.

I will do this one day in the near future though. I’ll report with pictures when it is done.

Feb

2017

The Stockholm Furniture & Light Fair 2017

The Stockholm Furniture & Light Fair 2017. The entrance exhibition by Jaime Hayon. Photo. ©nini.tjader.2017

The Stockholm Furniture & Light Fair 2017 is now over. I visit this fair every year to see new trends, beautiful furniture and lightings and to get impressions and input on what is to come in the near future when it comes to furniture and light. This year was no exception. I was there.

I visited on the one day that is for the common people, like me. The fair goes on almost the entire week for the pros. One of few fairs where you cannot buy anything unless you are a company. Liberating.

The Stockholm Furniture & Light Fair 2017. Photo: ©nini.tjader.2017

Overall impression was that the furniture is more rounded and stuffed than previous years. There are more colors. There was a lot of blond wood everywhere. There were less office chairs, more regular chairs, less office interiors, more interesting lightings (both in form and expression), more diningtables/conference tables.

This year I managed to visit all three halls and a short visit to the Green room hall. I even sat down for a while in the C hall and listened to an event about trends.

The Stockholm Furniture & Light Fair 2017. Photo: nini.tjader.2017

I took fewer photos this year than I use to. But, I’ll show you the ones I did take. I do not keep track on designers and/or firms or who did what. I just look at how things look and if I like them or find them interesting in one way or the other.

The Stockholm Furniture & Light Fair 2017. Photo:©nini.tjader.2017

Reload page to make images sort differently. Click an image to see a larger version. Hover over an image to see a comment if there is one.

The obligatory daybed. This year in green.

Nice pillows

Shelf-light. Like it.

A very comfortable chair.

Not a butterfly chair but similar idea

Wooden trees for … where?

This years number one designer plant.

Wall lamp with really long arm.

Natural colors carpets.

Various nice lamps.

Cozy bedroom

Interesting lamp with 2 lampshades, one inside the other.

Recycling bins.

STRING all whites.

The floor pillow. You see them everywhere lately.

School desk.

Bar stools with back-support.

Stools.

Triangular and rounded chair.

To have extra shelves on the lamp is a good idea.

Airy lamps.

Dingroomtable or conference table.

Hooks.

Blond wood.

A sofa with too many details if you ask me…

Crocheted floor pillow.

STRING all whites.

This should be really easy to do yourself for hanging your magazines.

Interesting lamps.

Last years number one designer plants.

Crocheted pillows.

Clothes hangers.

The greige livingroom… I would never want these colors…

Small wireless lamps.

A blue diningroom

Carpet patterns.

Really useful lamps/lights/plantstand in one.

Rounded shelf units. Imagine that in a large room.

UFO lamp.

Feb

2017

Where did I see this before?

Image from Instagram

Some time ago this image of this bookcase/room-divider appeared in my Instagram flow.

I immediately thought: Where did I see this bookcase/room-divider before?

Well… Ikea of course. Their bookcase called VALJE. Not the same of course, but very similar though the Ikea model has a backside, the above does not.

Similar? Yes. I would guess that the price is far from similar though…

Ikea VALJE. Image from Ikea.

Nov

2016

STRING shelf and butterfly chair

A STRING shelf. Image from the internet.

When I got my first room of my own (when my grandmother moved to her sisters) I got some furniture that today, again, are popular and the very things to have.

One of them was a STRING shelf, like the one above. I had the exact same model. At the time it was one of the cheapest shelfs you could get… Today this small unit costs SEK 995 in most places. Which is a ridiculous price for a shelf this simple that has been produced for such a long time.

STRING shelves storage system. Image from the internet.

The shelf was designed in 1949 by Nils Strinning. Today it is an entire storage system, not just a simple shelf, that can be combined any way you want it. It is very flexible.

STRING shelves storage system. Image from the internet.

New incarnations of it comes every year.

Do I like the STRING shelf today? No, not really. I did then. It was the shelf for my then entire library of books. Most books I borrowed at the communal library so I didn’t need all that much storage space for them. We couldn’t really afford buying books but I got one or two for each christmas and birthday. I do not like the STRING shelf today. Particularly I do not like the price it has today. In my mind it is still a simple shelf which I remember as something cheap you got when you couldn’t afford something more expensive.

Butterfly chair. Image from the internet.

The other piece of furniture I got for the room of my own was a butterfly-chair. Mine was yellow as the above but had black trimmings around its edges, and black legs. The most uncomfortable chair there is… There was no way you could sit comfortably in it. So most of the time I spent on my bed, which was a 120 cm wide bed (with a dark grey bedcover and lots of pillows). The butterfly chair of a model like the above one also were cheap to buy. You saw them in any room of a teenager at the time. The butterfly chair has made a come-back the last couple of years. No longer a cheap chair though, but over-designed in various expensive materials like leather and furs.

The butterfly chair was designed 1938 and was introduced in Sweden in the 1950-ties. It was designed by Antonia Bonet from Spain and Juan Kurchan and Jorge Ferrari-Hardoy from Argentine. It has been called many names like Sling, Wing, Safari and Butterfly.

The orange wall with me and Bosse. Photo: my father Oskar Tjäder

Combine the STRING shelf and the yellow butterfly chair with this orange-cerise feature wall which I got in my room. It was not painted. It was wallpaper. I don’t remember which color the other walls in the room had, but I suspect it was greyish-white. The picture is of me and Bosse in 1964-65, my boyfriend at the time. I also remember that wool sweater which I bought for my very first salary at my very first job….

I guess it is “sustainable” that old designs still work and are still used… but it gets a bit boring to see the same things again and again.

Sep

2016

Disaster or opportunity?

I’ve got a stain from black currant juice onto my white cover on my Ektorp daybed…

The other day I passed my Ektorp daybed in the livingroom on the way outside with a glass of homemade black currant juice in one hand. I then wanted to pick up the book I intended to take outside into the sun… The glass slopped… A few drops of the juice landed on the white-covered daybed… And there it is. A large, blue stain on the white cover. Disaster?

Stains from black currant aren’t easy to get rid of, if at all possible. I don’t know of any working methods to get rid of this kind of stain.

Of course I’ll try to get it off in the laundry, but if I don’t succeed? Is this then a disaster? Or is it an opportunity?

Should I color the entire cover jeans-blue?

I have a second cover for the daybed, light grey, from Bemz. Ikea stopped selling this model of Ektorp daybed years ago, including its covers. Getting a new, white cover is expensive and nothing I presently can afford.

So, should I color the entire cover jeans-blue?

Aug

2016

Table-basket?

Table-basket from linea.se. Picture borrowed from linea.se

Table-baskets… I wonder: how come that designers seem to get the same idea of a design at the same time? Now, for instance, those table-baskets (or whatever they are called).

Table-basket from IKEA. Image borrowed from IKEA.

There are slight differences between them both in price and looks. But the basic idea is in my eyes the same.

Table-basket from Bloomingville, sold at ellos.se. Image borrowed from Ellos.se

They are supposed to be used as sofa-tables or similar and the top can be lifted so you can use the “basket” under it. Or maybe you cannot with the one from Bloomingville? It has no “bottom” and has a marble top.

I actually like them all. The price varies wildly though.

The ones from Linea.se are actually a set of 3 called Vincent. Costs SEK598 for all three of them
The one from IKEA is called KVISTBRO and costs SK299.
The one from Bloomingville which is sold at ellos.se is called Svante and costs SEK 2499. The price is high, probably because it has a marble top.

Jun

2016

The Josef Frank Exhibition at Millesgården

Yesterday Ulla and I visited the Josef Frank Exhibition at Millesgården. The exhibition was about his patterns, furniture and paintings (aquarelles actually). Josef Frank lived between 1885 and 1967. Read more about Josef Frank here.

The exhibition is in the building just inside the entrance to Millesgården.

I’ve always loved the patterns of Josef Frank and their colors. Now we had a chance to see them in real life, and also his aquarelles, which are less known to the public. He started painting at the age of 68.

I knew he made furniture and particularly that long sofa with the tulips pattern is famous.

The patterns are colorful and picture plants and animals with a lot of fantasy. They are very decorative.

The pattern in the middle in the picture above is called “Italian Dinner” and have pictures of all the ingredients in an italian dinner, like vegetables and sea-food among other things.

Most of the patterns I’ve seen before in various contexts. But not his carpets. The above carpet was created in the 1930-ties. Hard to believe that they did carpets like this at that time. The pattern of this carpet has been replicated in a planting outside in the park, filled with summer flowers.

The mural on this wall is an enlargement of one of Josef Franks paintings. Behind this wall is the exhibition of some of his aquarelles. The audience here was not really of the kind I normally see in the places where I go. Lots of elderly ladies of the upper classes, with a particular way to speak. Among them a few younger persons and some that very much wanted to look like artists. Interesting… There were more visitors there than we had expected for a Wednesday afternoon. Tourists? Yes. But not too many.

Joes Frank started painting at the age of 68. He said he didn’t have the techniques required but he enjoyed painting. I love his pictures and think they are really good.

The above pictures look like they are illuminated from the back of the pictures, but they are not. The effect is there because they are placed against a black background and because of the colors in the pictures.

The landscapes he painted… Just love them. Particularly the last one above. That, and the light, is exactly how it looks just about everywhere around the Mediterranean.

The above is a timeline about the life and works of Josef Frank.

We then had a look at what was on offer in the gift shop. As usual with these kind of places the prices are high. No. I didn’t buy anything. The guy in the picture was noted though. Trying very much to look like an artist?

The small glass vases below was also for sale at the gift shop. I don’t remember if they had anything to do with the Josef Frank exhibition or not. I noticed them as they look so very alike to some other small glass vases I’ve seen elsewhere for a fraction of the price asked here.

We then went out into the sculpture park at Millesgården and to the sun and blue skies.I will publish those pictures at a later occasion.

May

2016

Guestbeds

Foldable guestbed. Image borrowed from JYSK

Sometimes you get guests who need to sleep over for one reason or other. Then you need some extra bed or solution to make that possible. If your space is limited and live in a smallish place, that is not all that easy to find a solution.

The above bed is from JYSK and probably one of the most common models for temporary beds. Usually awful to sleep on. And n you need space to store it when folded, mattress and all. IKEA has a similar model and there are probably many similar ones in the market.

Inflatable guestbed from JYSK. Image from JYSK.

Another solution is to get an inflatable bed that doesn’t need all that much space when stored and not used. That’s what I did. The above one is from JYSK and comes in a small tote. The bed when air in it can, in my case, be put in the kitchen, just beside the fridge. Below you see how little space it takes.

Neither of these solutions are very comfortable though. For one night or maybe two, but…

I recently saw an arm-chair bed at IKEA. It is called VALLENTUNA.

This is one smart arm-chair guestbed. Comes in a couple of different colors (I prefer the light grey one above) and you can get it either with a high back or a low one. And you can get it with or without armrests.

To use it as a bed you take hold of the bottom front of the chair and drag it out to full-size bed-length. You then use the zipper of the cushion you normally sit on and you get a mattress.

No, I wouldn’t want to have it in orange…

Another solution, if you have the space for it, is a regular sofa-bed. The above one is called ASARUM and is also from IKEA. It is 3-seater, which you actually sit comfortable in. Problem with most sofa-beds otherwise is that they are uncomfortable to sit in.

Not only is this a 3-seater sofa when not used as a bed, but you can transform to a smallish double-bed, 132 cms wide by dragging out the mattress.

It also has a very good price… It is simple with clean lines. I really like it. It has space under the mattress for keeping the bedding for it.

ASARUM is my favorite. But I don’t have the space for it unfortunately. Maybe if I sold my chaise-lounge… (which isn’t long enough to sleep on). But two differently grey sofas in the livingroom would be a bit much, right?

Mar

2016

Take photos of your home

There are several reasons that your should to take photos of your home.

1. For insurance reasons to have a picture-record of what you have in your home.

I originally started to take photos of my homes for this very reason. To be able to prove what I owed in case of burglary and theft in my homes. At the time I started doing it digital photography was not that widespread. Pictures were still mainly produced on paper and paper-copies were the ones you saved for insurance reasons.

Take photos of everything you would want to document that you own. Plants, books, decoration items, pictures on the walls, content of drawers and cupboards and closets. Be thorough and detailed. Photograph in good light, preferably day-light so the items get the right colors.

Don’t forget to take pictures of the titles of your CDs, DVDs, records, books etc. It is much faster than writing down all the titles…

The most important with those pictures taken for insurance reasons is to keep them in a safe place and not only in the computer itself. The computer can be stolen, then with all its content and then the pictures are gone too. Make backups and store backup in a safe place. Think thefts and fire (or any other natural disaster that can strike).

2. For styling of your home.

If you want to style your home, re-arrange your furniture, build a picture-wall, get an overview of a room, there is no better way than taking pictures of your interiors.

What you get is an overview and you can SEE the room (or the corner or the wall) in another way than you normally do by just living in the same interiors.

If you have the possibility to, get up on a ladder or a pallet to get the extra overview of items you want to re-arrange. You might realize then that there are too many things in a certain spot, or that they are arranged in an awkward way.

Take both close-ups and overviews of your interiors. In natural light preferably. Digital cameras are good at taking pictures in quite poor light conditions, but the best is to use the natural light in those hours when it is the best. When that is, depends on how your windows are placed and which direction your windows are turned. Never take photos in full sun-light. It is very difficult to get good pictures in full sunshine as the shadows become too sharp.

You will be surprised how different your home looks on pictures compared to in real life.

3. For blogging about your home.

If you want to blog about your home and show pictures from your interiors, the rules are the same as for the styling and insurance photos. Shoot them in natural light. Zoom in or out on what is important for the blogpost. Get up high on ladder or a pallet if you want to get an overview.

One difference with blog-pictures is that you can arrange them to your liking. Remove items you don’t want to show. Move items around to get the effect you want. Be personal. Don’t try to make your home look like in a magazine about interior design – that can be really boring. (Not the magazine the look like a magazine picture).

4. Other reasons to take photos of your home.

Other reasons for taking pictures of your home is to make comparisons over the years of how your home has changed. Which furniture and/or solutions or decorative items survived over the years. Which disappeared. How did your taste and style change over the years.

Here are some fun pictures for comparison of my livingrooms and my bedroom.

New sofa in place

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Sofa decision.

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The Furniture & Light Fair, Stockholm 2018

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