Red, yellow and blue the 50's way

Orangy-red, mustard yellow and pale blue is a favorite colour combo for me. Such a classic pallette from the 1950s and still going strong.

Love these planters from Pad outdoor, available here.

Excellent rug designed by Amanda of Red Jet Whistle blog.

A vintage Aldo Londi vase that I love and cherish.

Soft and lovely Orla Kiely towels.

Midsummer night

For the first time in years we had great weather for the celebration of the longest day of the year, St.Hans' as it's known over here. It's a custom to put together a big bonfire, which they also had at our summer solstice destination of choice – Hellviktangen at Nesodden. We had to leave before the bonfire got going, but it was still a very enjoyable evening in great surroundings.

A splash of colour

I found this little gem of an ad via Poppytalk. I thought I'd share it with you.

Flight of fancy

Oh to be able to catch a flight back to the 60s or early 70s. (Minus the on-plane smoking, of course. To think that was allowed not that many years ago...)

Rug love

I love the colour and pattern combos of this rug. Unfortunately I can't tell you anything about it as I have forgotten the source, but maybe you can tell me? (What I can tell you however, is that the pink stool - Dot - is an Arne Jacobsen design. In case you wondered.)

Summer dreams

I saw this floating cabin in Sköna Hem 2 years ago and it's been in my head ever since. Isn't it a great design? It is actually a boat, so the owners can enjoy a different scenery from their cabin whenever they like. I guess it's not too practical if you have small kids (or dogs who are water crazy). But apart from that, I think it must be a fantastic way to spend a summer holiday, preferably in a Scandinavian archipelago. Dream on...

The motors around the back.

If this tickles your fancy and you want to see more photos from the article (and/or read it if you understand Swedish), click here.

Bitossi lamp?

Who'd have thought I had room for another tabletop lamp? Well, when one as big and lovely vintage as this one turns up for a reasonable price, I make room. I think this might be a Bitossi/Raymor as the Italy stamp (see inset bottom photo) is very similar to the ones on my Rimini blue Bitossi items. And the pattern looks very similar to this one (click to open link).

I'm considering getting a different shade for it. What do you think?

Interiors anno 1961

Hope you've all had a nice weekend. I thought I'd start my blog week by giving you some nice living room interiors from vintage French magazine Art & Décoration, their april issue in 1961 to be specific. The magazines (as a lot of interior books) back then seemed to print mostly black and white photos – due to economics, I guess. But then again, the few full page color images are really a feast for the eye. (The last pic here is an ad, hence the text on it.)

I love the use of colors in these rooms. Petrol blue being one of my favorites.

Tote cravings

I love tote bags. Can't seem to get enough of them. They are so practical for all type of errands - grocery shopping, taking stuff to and from kindergarten, beach trips, you name it. The one above is my latest and I'm very, very happy with it. It's designed by the talented Heather of Skinny LaMinx and you can get your own from her etsy shop, click here. Not only has she sewed it but she designed the lovely bird pattern and printed it too.

There are so many nice tote's around at the moment. Here are some of the ones I got my eyes on:

Luxor bag from Marimekko. Pattern by Rinne Niinikoski.

By Lucienne Day. Sadly no longer available... If any of you know where I can get one, PLEASE get in touch!

Picknick pattern by Marianne Westman. Most known for prints on ceramics, but now also available on linen. From Designtorget. Part of a lovely collection - I wouldn't mind the tea towel either.

'Jakten' tote, also from Designtorget. Pattern by Ulla Bodin.

What the cat dragged in over the weekend

On my recent trip to London I bought an orange lamp (above) at Habitat. It was only £15 and I thought it would go well next to the tv in the living room. And it did. But on Saturday I went thrift shopping and found this:

Which goes even better. And was just £3.50! I just love the crafty feel to this one. It's a vintage West Germany ceramic item. The basic shade is new (from Åhlèns).


Here are some vintage cups I found at the same shop. The one on the left is by Staffordshire, England while the one to the right is by Stavangerflint.

My heart skipped a beat when I then saw this trivet... The graphics are just perfect. The material is a lightweight metal one with a cork underside.

I got lots of other stuff too, some of which I might put in a later post. All in all, it was a great weekend for vintage bargains for me.

My weekend away

These pictures are from the house in Valdres where I spent my weekend. There is a small group of us who go every year. The place is (finally) under renovation, but the old interior has its charm, I guess.

The lamp stand is like something extra terrestrial. And someone made a lot of effort carving trolls into the sideboard.

If you want to see more photos of this house, I did a post two years ago.

Svenska dansband (Swedish dance bands)

Before I go away for the weekend (offline) I thought I'd serve you a little treat. If you have a connection to Scandinavia you might be aware of the phenomenon of 'dansband'. If not, you can read more about it at the end of this post.

The photos are from the book Svenska Dansband (which can be ordered for only SEK 59,-/about $10 at Bokus - they deliver Internationally. Totally worth the investment). If you have some spare time (like a couple of weeks) and would like to see a lot more dansband photos, log on to www.svenskadansband.se where you can browse some 6800+ images. In alphabetical order. Enjoy!

Top of the props.

I wonder if these suits were reversable.

Someone must have thought tie-dyed women's blouses would look really cool on a man band.

One of my favorites. Probably because I wore something similar in the early 70's. When I was 4 or 5.

Nice placing of the names. But where's Danny himself?

I wonder what the concept was behind this shoot.

Love the combination of the extreme golden platform boots juxtaposed with the barn in the background. Agriculture meets glam rock.

A great portrait. And the name is so ahead of its time. Sex and the City eat your heart out.

What can I say? The shoes, guys...

No comment.

I fear these guys were posing on quick sand.

The guy to the far right keeps intriguing me. Never seen anything like it.

And now for the Klimax.

This one's been doing the internet rounds for years, but it's kind of like the mother of all dansband pics so I simply had to include it:

Some background stuff: The golden age of Swedish dance bands were in the late 60's- early 80's. These photos were printed on postcards that were handed out to the fans during concerts. Now collecter's items (of course). The bands played in 'Folkparks' and hotel bars mostly and were hugely popular. The Scandinavian people must have really been into dancing back then (we're talking swing type), because there were such a huge number of these bands about. The outrageous costumes came about not only for style impact but for something as banal as tax purposes; In order to be able to write the bands' stage clothes off on their tax, they had to pass as 'fancy dress'.

Have a nice weekend!

New old bits and bobs

Was I pleased when I found these two the other day. Yes, I was. The large vase is most likely a Bitossi, the smaller one is by John Anderson for Höganäs. Dare I say how much I paid for them..? The equivalent of $10. Yup :-)

On a more kitschy note (but not any less lovely), I also got these items: ice bucket of unknow make, mug by Staffordshire Potteries and a small creamer by Figgjo Flint with a pattern called Safran. Great mustardy 60s/70s colour.

London purchases

I said I would post some pictures from my London purchases shortly... Erhmm, well, it took a bit longer than expected. But here they are:

Melamine cups from London Transport Museum.
Designer: Michelle Mason
(check out all her cool products on her web site michellemason.co.uk)

Another mug from London Transport Museum.
I spent a bit longer than expected on this new tube line called the Overground,
so I thought the cup was not just a great design but also a nice memento.

Here's a close-up of the actual fabric pattern that is used on the seats on this line:

This big brass ring is a purchase from Spitalfields market, off Brick Lane. It is an area of London I hadn't previously explored, and I really enjoyed the market stalls there. Lots of great stuff including vintage clothes and accessories.

Traditional tweed patterns in a new way. Irish rather than English, but heck... looks very To The Manor Born to me :-) I'm sure it will go nicely with my classic duffel coat in the fall.
From Hanna Hats.