Black and white inspiration

We had a chance to admire the old steam ships in Puumala a couple of weeks back - the Saimaa steam ship regatta took place in the beginning of July, and these beauties were seen on the go by our summer house.



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I see these, and think, hmmm - why do we need other colors than black and white :)? Let's just combine some white furniture, and some black details, and we have a fresh summer house decor!

We have a traditional Finnish blacksmith nearby, his shop is called Goosemeadow, and below some of his fantastic work he has done for us:

Oval chandelier by Goosemeadow blacksmith

The above oval chandelier is a true beauty - we had it custom made as our dining table is 120X300, and anything of standard size looks - well, ridiculous - hanging above it. He got EXACTLY what we were looking at.  I need to remember to post some pictures when I've decorated it for Christmas ;)!

I especially like these cute hooks - they will become a coat rack one of these days!

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musta ja valkoinen sisustuksessa, mustavalkoinen sisustus, kesämökin sisustus, kyläseppä, käsintaotut pyyhekoukut, käsintaotut kodintarvikkeet

Paper yarn



When spending the summer in Finland, it is impossible to miss the home accessories made, at least partly, of paper, whatever material the paper is made of. The true pioneers, and very successfull at it, are of course Woodnotes and Hanna Korvela (carpet above and below), but there are tons of options you can make yourself, as well!

Hanna Korvela's ENCORE2




The above Hanna Korvela's woven cotton and paper yarn carpets called ENCORE2 are beautiful. And you can get them in 8 different colors!

Especially paperyarn - you can use it for almost anything, it's machine washable at 30 degrees, the price is reasonable (well, not for the design products made of it...), and the variety available is unbelievable! For example, at Lappajärven Värjäämö you can get the yarn, and many KINDS of yarn, in following colors:



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So far Hanna Korvela and Woodnotes seem to be staying with the very earthy colors like below, but perhaps we start to see a change when other producers hit the ground, let's see!

Hanna Korvela's CARTA place mats and table runners


 







About blueberries and chip baskets



Blueberry time

 Blueberries seem to be so early this year! Time to dig out the traditional Finnish chip baskets stained on the bottom despite the greaseproof paper to save it. The chip baskets come in all shapes and sizes, of course, and designed for different use; small baskets for children picking blueberries:

 a little bigger ones for picnic, then mommy's version of blueberry and mushroom basket:



Pinetta's baskets

For buying milk and going to the market place we have a different kind:

Chip basket for milk

Pinetta's market basket

And for sure this wasn't Finnish handicraft, if we didn't have our own versions for sauna wood:

Chip basket for sauna wood

There's even large ones for storage. They are handy, beautiful, and most of all - when you purchase them, the seller don't tell you - please note, that the handles are for decoration only... :). This has happened to me twice this summer, amazing!!

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pärekori, ostoskori, puukori, säilytyskori, kesämökin sisustus, sisustuksen trendit, sisustustrendit

Concrete

Skulpturfabriken's seashells

 

Concrete has been used now for years for things outdoors - flower pots (Granit has some nice ones in their store, just couldn't find on the website), and tiles, and road blocks (best of them shaped like boats or turtles, which both are my favorites when used in correct places).  There was a nice article in the new ELLE interiör (Swedish edition) about Skulpturfabriken in Gotland, Sweden, and it is definately on my list of 'have-to-visit'. And of course Gotland as a whole - it is a wonderful island, a true summer-time travel destination!

Decorating items made of concrete look really nice, and are handy (only heavy, if you fancy moving your things around as much as I do, even from country to country...)

Sköna Hem 07 2011

Now concrete has found its way to our summer kitchen (hurray all of you, who still haven't put on the finishing after 20 years - don't :)!), and our terrace table, and even a coffee table...Hmmm.

Sköna Hem Country 01 2011

The below floor art by San Francisco based Transparent House  is beautiful.

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And - if you want your walls to look like concrete (if you've painted them, silly you!), you can get a concrete look-a-like wall-paper, and have the original look back! Plenty of options in the market - I especially adore the Norwegian betongvegg. I adore the photos on their website, as well! Go and check it out - unfortunately I'm not able to share them with you!

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betoniset sisustuselementit, betoni sisustuksessa, betoninen pöytätaso, sisustuksen trendit, sisustustrendit