The Vintage Brutalist interior by M House

It’s been a while since my last post, I know. It was a combination of multiple factors, like a tricky medical condition, lack of inspiration, laziness, you name it. But today, I decided to post an interior discovered recently that amazed me a lot, something special not necessarily in the Scandinavian style we are used to on my blog.

The Vintage Brutalist interior is designed by Moore House Design, a studio based in New York City and Rhode Island. This creative team travels through the USA designing beautiful residential homes or boutique hotels. Too bad that we are so far away, it would be nice to have them closer and get inspired from a near perspective.

The owner of this house, located in Rhode Island, desired an interior dominated by Brutalism, also known as Brutalist architecture/movement, a style that bumped up in the 1950s among the reconstruction projects of the post-war era. The mission of the design team was to combine brutalism with vintage using custom built-in solutions to give uniqueness to the place. It worth to go through the before&after pictures to see how many elements they managed to keep during the redesign process. I always appreciate designers who try to keep things or re-use elements, after all, this means sustainability.

Let’s take a deep dive, and I’ll comment under the pictures what I love in this house.

I find this curved shelf/cabinet a genius idea to hide the television. It is so elegant to hide the Tv when not using it.

The dining area is a combination of vintage and classic pieces, following the curvy lines of the cabinet from above and the lines of the walls. The dining table is a custom furniture designed by Moore House and paired it with refurbished leather dining chairs.

The red line of the house is this dark brown color present in every room of this interior. The below arm chair is a Hunter Easy chair designed by the Norwegian designer Torbjørn Afdal for Bruksbo. Throwing a sheepskin on it turns the chair into a hygge Scandinavian comfy spot.

The sitting area is next to the entryway which caused quite a lot of challenges to harmonize the whole place. The paneled fireplace painted in black was kept from the original design.

The vibe of this house is so masculine, the dark red line gives a calm feeling to the interior. Everything seems so characteristic, like when you are not afraid of using some bold design elements, massive furniture, and dark colors. This is definitely an out-of-ordinary interior on my blog 🙂

 

Photo credits: Erin Little Photography for M House

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Tom Tailor Home of Colors

No worries, this article is not about fashion, however, I could easily write one about Tom Tailor clothing. I’m not into fashion, but I love their collections focused on comfort. So the topic of this blog post is a few home accessories created by the Tom Tailor brand. These days I have my up and down moods, so I needed something colorful that could cheer me up, and navigating between their bright color home accessories products made my day.

Let’s get started with a few favorite items I found. The name of the products contains the link where you can purchase these items, but since this is a Hamburg-based company, many URLs are from German sites. Please leave a comment at the end of this article, if you need a link available for a different country.

 

1. Bings Carpet Colorful Poppy

Such a vibrant and creative carpet to go with. You might even have a neutral room design, and this colorful piece could still be a statement in your interior. I love the colors and the playful lines of this carpet. Jules Villbrandt of @herz.und.blut pictured the Colorful Poppy carpet in the home of @saraheartmann. What a great inspiration, no wonder why I have followed Jules for a few years now!

2. Color Box Highboard

I like commodes, especially if there is any sign of vintage style, and this one totally got me with its sage color. It’s so subtle, and the two bottom drawers with their stronger colors are catchy as hell. Guess this piece of furniture can go almost anywhere due to its shape and size. Good to know that the Color Box range is available in 5 fashionable colorways and four variations.

3. Lazy Lounge Chair

This modern cubic armchair in bouclé fabric along with the T-Orange cushion from Tom Tailor Home is a double impact in your interior. Maybe I’m charmed by the blue color combined with orange since I love everything that’s blueish, but for sure this is a vibrant piece to have in a home.

4. Drop Pure Large Pouf

Poufs are ideal for multipurpose furniture. This minimalistic pouf with its rusty color can be used as a side table in a living room, either as a coffee table or just as something to sit on if you have guests. The pouf has the same bouclé fabric as the above cubic armchair.

5. Satin Bed Linen Surprise

Although we don’t need any bed linen now, I might purchase one of these just for the color combo they used. So fresh and vibrant! People tend to skip quality when it comes to bed linen as no one sees your bed, but I’m super sensitive to what kind of linen we use in our home. It’s just a way to pay respect to my sleep after a hard working day 🙂

6. Nest Shelf Series

A few of us were “forced” to set up a home office corner in the last 2-3 years. This airy and light shelf combined with a desk is a good inspiration for how to keep it simple. I have an extensive Pinterest board with other home office designs, in case this one does not match your needs. The rattan chair is also a Tom Tailor home accessory.

7. Nordic Chic Sofa

If you would like to have a summer vibe of fresh lemonade in your living room, don’t be afraid of using this bright yellow color. The simple lines of the sofa are a clear sign of Nordic style. The coffee table is also from Tom Tailor, and the armchair too, see below for further details about this one.

8. New Wave Pure Sofa

It wouldn’t be me if I would skip a design setup with earthy tones. I love this color combination of grey, green and brown. A living room like this is calm, and I guess this is one of the main principles when designing an interior, to give calmness to the place. The sofa is available in multiple colors, and the wooden stools in 2 dimensions and shapes are from Tom Tailor too. 

9. Tom Pure Armchair

If you follow my blog or any of my social media channels, you know by now how important it’s to me to have a comfortable, good-quality armchair in my home. We’ve invested quite a lot in our reading corner, but it is worth every penny. The Tom Pure armchair seems comfy, and its footstool will guarantee total relaxation. This is available in 90 colors, so if you don’t want to go with white, you can pick another color.

 

Photo credits: @tomtailor_home with thanks!
All available links to online shops can be found here: @linkin.bio/tomtailor_home

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Hazel House – A video tour that amazes me

When I see beautiful homes designed by stylists, I often wonder what the interior stylist’s home looks like. I guess the Hazel House designed by its owner, the stylist Nat Turnbull, answers all my questions. This small apartment in Melbourne, Australia is the perfect reflection of creativity, imagination, and style.

What I love the most in this apartment is that they used the materials in their natural state, the dominant stainless steel in the kitchen is combined with the cabinetry and island in a very subtle way. The cement balls holding the kitchen island is the ultimate focal point in this place, I mean WOW. The Peruvian Clay color of the kitchen cabinetry is beyond beautiful, the curve lines on the cabinets add so much drama and creativity to the furniture. The concealed door that takes you to the bedroom from the kitchen is a genius idea of including a door in the overall design.

In the living room the second-hand Le Bambole sofa by B&B Italia found on eBay had been reupholstered, so I’m totally into the sustainable approach of furnishing a home. The book shelf is done by Softer Studio, too bad that they are based in Australia, so far away from where I’m located. I like their soft style with thin lines, and I would definitely love to have 1-2 pieces from them in my home.

If this is not enough, I could go on with the amazing ceramics by Katarina Well, but I guess it’s time to stop writing and to let you get inspired by this warm and stunning apartment.

 

 

Photo, video & design credits:
Photography (including the cover photo used by me) by Sean Fennessy.
Architecture and Interiors by Adriana Hanna.
Styling and Interiors by Nat Turnbull.
Laminate and Surface Materials by Laminex.
Filmed and Edited by Dan Preston.
Production by The Local Project.

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BarnHaus, created for unforgettable memories

Wow, this is a good period, I’m posting another locale treasure lately. This time I found a Saxon barn house, called BarnHaus :), turned into a magical place. I adore those interiors where the owners have the courage to preserve an original idea, but still manage to renovate/re-build into something totally new and modern.

BarnHaus can be rented out for short stays, and it’s located in Jibert village, 1 hour from Brașov city. The property consists of 2 separate buildings: the House with 4 double bedrooms and 2 bathrooms, and the Barn with 1 double bedroom, a large living room and a fully equipped kitchen. The place can be booked for min 2 nights and for max 12 persons. You will have the house to yourselves only, the owners are offsite, but reachable on phone. They have a no smoking and no shoes inside policy. Me, like this a lot 🙂 This means that the place will never get overcrowded and cleanness is a vital aspect of their business.

And now a few words about the design. I love the brownish, earthy tones of the interior design. The high ceilings along with the high fireplace gives a real cozy feeling to the place. The original beams kept in the living room show respect to the old times and Saxon traditions. The sitting area, the dining area and the wooden elements are all in a total harmony. I’m all in for the rattan lightings, those are some strong focal points of the place. I envy those people who are bold enough to have black furniture, this kitchen actually adds extra depth to the room. The brick walls here and there seem to be the red line of the property, as you can find those marvelous walls also in the bedrooms. The abundance natural light inside the house is simply beautiful, and the external fireplace is one of the most hygge spots of the property.

Before

After

If you would like to see more beautiful pictures and moments of this property, check their Facebook or Instagram pages and do not hesitate to book a weekend on their website. Your welcome for the inspiration, it was my pleasure 😉

 

Photos credits: 1st photo by @gracegotte, the rest of pictures by barnhaus.ro – shared with kind permission
Design by: @gracegotte

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Irina Neacșu, my favorite Romanian designer ever

It’s been some time since I posted a local treasure, although my region is full of talented people who end up creating handcrafted art. I’m not very much into Romanian interior design (I have my reasons, folks 😉 ), so I could not tell the same about that. However, there is one Romanian designer, Irina Neacșu, to whom I would hand over my home to create an interior design proposal without any hesitation (not that it would need a redesign).

Irina Neacșu is a designer and botanical artist, a member of the American Society of Botanical Artists, and founder of the Romanian Society of Botanical Artists. She drew my attention many moons ago with her botanical textiles, pillows, and upholsteries. In the latest years, she focused more on botanical art and painting. Since I’m totally in love with botanical art, I continued following her and admiring her works on her online Shop. Back in 2016, she moved from Bucharest to Brașov, she opened her own Irina Neacșu Studio and founded an art school, Cembra School of Botanical Art and Design, where she organizes courses and workshops in painting, drawing, textile art or design.

What I love about her work is that she managed to come up with a large palette of ideas, having wall arts, graphics, herbal teas, greeting cards, and even plantable paper (wow!) and wellness products. I gathered a few favorite items below, enjoy!

 

Ilex, watercolor on paper, 900 RON. Available here.

Wallnut still life, watercolor on vellum. Not available at the moment, but follow up here.

Primerose, watercolor on paper, 2.151 RON. Available here.

Pine and chamomile bath salt, 50 RON. Available here.

Lost Mountain, raw plant mix for herbal tea, 45 RON. Available here.

Pine&bergamote gift box. Not available at the moment, but follow up here.

Plantable paper with various seeds, 60 RON. Available here.

Greeting card printed on recycled paper, 14 RON. Available here.

Pine wrapping paper, 12 RON. Available here.

 

Photo credits: cover photo by @deersphotos from Irina’s IG feed; all product photos from irinaneacsu.com

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Cabin ANNA, the perfect solution to be in sync with nature

It’s been one year since I launched my blog. In this time, I had the chance to show you some really nice interiors thanks to the generous people I contacted for allowing me to take a peek inside their homes. I’m more than grateful for this. Thank you for enriching my small blog with your beautiful interiors 🙂

This time I found a treasure in the real sense of the word. I feel that this cabin idea is in perfect sync with me and the way I feel about being in harmony with nature. No wonder why my husband and I bought a house next to the forest.

Cabin ANNA is an idea born out of a personal project of building a small garden house in the backyard of Caspar Schols’ mother, the Dutch designer, and architect who developed this cottage idea in 2016. Since then, this cabin has become a award winning architectural masterpiece winning The Project of the Year at the 2021 Architizer A+Awards’ Architecture. What makes this small cabin so special is that it’s built on a structure with two flexible shells as external walls, supported on rails. Depending on your mood or weather, you can move the shells as you like, either turning the bedroom into an outdoor terrace or a spa spot with a hot tub under the sky, or leaving the shells closed and enjoying the natural light coming in if the weather is chilly. What a genius idea to be in perfect sync with nature!

The ANNA Meet is a slightly different idea then the one from above, the ANNA Stay. This second model, the Meet, has 4 flexible shells allowing you to move 4 external walls as per your needs. This cabin is for family gatherings, small weddings, business meet-ups (if your company is aiming for a natural environment) or even office space. I would say it’s a perfect solution for all kind of group activities, being so close to nature it’s only a booster for your productivity and creativity.

If you are in The Netherlands and would like to try one of their cabins, you can book a stay on Holenberg.com by choosing one of the ANNA experiences. In case you would need more information on pricing, models, materials or transport, do not hesitate to contact the Cabin ANNA team here. For further pictures feel free to check their IG feed, I can assure you that it’s full of magical moments.

 

Photo credits: Tõnu Tunnel and Jorrit ‘t Hoen – shared with the cordial permission of Cabin Anna

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