Why This Room Caught My Eye

If I had to nail down one colour I love most, it would be blue. In all its shades. I don't know why, but it always makes me happy and definitely catches my eye. Like in this case - this summer house kitchen colour coded in a soft, summery blue is a sheer pleasure for my interior loving eye. The kitchen fronts, the splashback, the details - it all recalls warm summer days spent on the coast, a fresh sea breeze and loads of good and healthy food. But I digress. What caught my eye in detail? Here's the breakdown:

• Blue Colour Coding: First and foremost, as mentioned, the blue colour coding in this kitchen is a real and instant eye-catcher. Using decorative and practical kitchen details in the same hue ties the entire setting together.
• Wooden Details: Natural, raw wooden accessories perfectly blend with blue. Be it kitchen accessories like wooden cutting boards or wooden jars or bigger elements like a wooden worktop - the combination rocks!
• Painted Kitchen Fronts: I can't tell for sure, but the kitchen fronts look almost like painted by their owner. And that's a great option for everyone who wants a fresh kitchen look without blowing the budget. A DIY to consider!

Does this kitchen catch your eye too?

Photography via Femina

Tweet

Why This Room Caught My Eye

During a regular work week I keep repeating to myself like a mantra: The biggest joy in life is time.  You know, those rare moments when you can sit down, sip a cup of tea and just let the day roll in. No schedules, no to-dos, no deadlines. Leaning back at the kitchen table and feeling the warm sun rays coming through the window. Even though it sounds so realistic, it quite often is sheer fantasy and remains a dream. Speaking of dreams: This Scandinavian kitchen is a dream too and it definitely caught my eye while I was daydreaming and repeating my mantra. What exactly caught my eye? Here we go:

• Photography as Art: Sometimes it's those visual anchors in the background of an interior that catches my first sight. In this case it's the framed photography that serves as art in this kitchen. It is pretty unusual for a kitchen but definitely works in this interior.
• Kitchen Table: This wooden kitchen table has a special feature - probably it's the shape or the colour. Probably it's also the shape reflection between the table and the mirror. It certainly has a mid-century vibe and looks very inviting.
• Graphic Blinds: The graphic black-and-white blinds on the kitchen window set a visual highlight and fit into the kitchen styling by catching up the black elements seen in the pendant, the frame and other decorative elements.

What is your opinion about this kitchen styling?

Photography via Stadshem

Tweet

Why This Room Caught My Eye

Imagine this: Gathering in the kitchen with your family and friends around a big table, serving homemade food, chatting and laughing along. Real happiness seems to include very often the people you love (of course) and good food. And I totally agree with that. Well ok, I would add that a beautiful kitchen and dining area will enhance that happiness of course as I take quite some pleasure in well designed interiors. This kitchen and dining are are a great example of a happy space. Warmth and cosiness with wood and colours evoke an inviting ambiance for happy gatherings. But let me put it in three bullet points:

• Blue Industrial Pendants: These large industrial pendants in a dusky blue hue are a visual highlight for me. Paired together they really have visual impact and tie together the colour scheme of the entire kitchen design.
• Mix & Match Chairs: The playfulness of a mix & match approach when it comes to chairs is a winning factor. Various designs and colours mixed together result in a vibrant and interesting effect. 
• Wood: Hardly any other material has so much warmth and character like wood does. This kitchen is defined by wooden structures and surfaces - from the ceiling over the kitchen fronts to the furniture - definitely a kitchen I would like to cook and dine with family and friends.

Would this kitchen and dining area catch your eye too?

Photography via 101 Woonideeën

Tweet

Dreaming Into The Weekend: Home Inspiration

Nothing is quite as refreshing as dreaming of new home ideas - my inspiration source number one is Pinterest. I always happen to be inspired to redo a corner in my home after seeing beautiful interiors from around the globe. To start off the weekend in style, I am sharing three favorite recent interior design inspirations: a living room, a kitchen and a bedroom. 

Do these rooms inspire you too? Happy weekend, friends!

Photography: Living room via Ohhh...Mhhh, kitchen via Hallonsemla, bedroom via Fantastic Frank

Tweet

Why This Room Caught My Eye

It's been quite a while that I featured a kitchen in my weekly 'Why this room caught my eye' blog series but today I am drawn by this fabulous kitchen for its excellent design. It is a great example of a combination of two styles, something that seems ambiguous at the first sight, but perfectly works when thoughtfully put together. The cold, industrial stainless steel fronts with the vibrant, warm kilim rug for example - a great way to create visual contrast and interest. But let me put it together in three short bullet points:

• Stainless Steel Kitchen Fronts: I love stainless steel kitchen fronts, especially when combined with other materials for the worktop as for example wood or stone/marble. When choosing stainless steel fronts, I prefer to opt for so-called smudge-proof surfaces that don't show fingerprints etc.
• Vintage Kilim Rug: I have never thought of a vintage kilim rug for a kitchen. But it works so well in this example, especially as it is juxtaposed to the modern, clean and almost industrial look of the stainless steel kitchen fronts.
• Adjustable Sconces: How about opting for an alternative to the so often used fluorescent tubes above kitchen worktops that disperse unpleasant light and love to flicker after a while? I like the idea of adjustable sconces as here showcased. You can adjust them to your current needs and highlight certain areas of your workplace. Smart and good looking!

Speaking of kitchens I would also like to share with you the video of the food blogger event that I had organized for Siemens Home Appliances two weeks ago. I gathered some of Germany's finest food and lifestyle bloggers for a fun event in our cookingLounge in Munich. See how fun it was in this little video (and hear me speak German):

Photography via Trendenser, Video via Siemens Home

Tweet

Why This Room Caught My Eye

Sometimes it is sheer simplicity that catches my eye. In a world where visual cues are exuberant, a quite setting attracts my attention pretty quickly. Especially when there is one or two little style elements that add that dash of sophistication to a simple interior design. When I spotted this kitchen, I felt like I would love to sit there on the table, have a cup of coffee, flip through a few favorite interiors magazines and let the day pass by. As simple as that. But what caught my eye in detail? Here are three points:

• Industrial Pendant: Lighting is essential in any interior and one of the most important interior design elements. Kitchens seem to be the ideal place for vintage, weathered industrial pendants. Probably because they evoke some fantasies of a large bakery from the past. Or the image of a large French cuisine from the late 19th century? I don't know what, but it always works.
• Tiled Wall: Metro or subway tiles have really made a grand entrance in the interior design scene. Mostly, tiles were used for the splashback in kitchens. But an entire tiled feature wall? Pretty cool!
• Black Eames Chairs: In this rather simple kitchen void of clutter, a design classic makes a stark statement: they reveal the owner's sense for design and style. And opting for simple, black Eames chairs is the best option to underline the sophisticated, calm look of this kitchen.

Are simple interiors catching your eye, too?

Photography via Fastighetsbyran

Tweet

Why This Room Caught My Eye

I am a big fan of the String shelving system. So far I have always seen it in living rooms or home offices. But never in a kitchen - until I've spotted the above shown picture. A String shelving system for the kitchen? I'd say oh yes! Well, I could definitely live with this kitchen concept (I keep repeating: If I had a decent kitchen), but for the time being I can just indulge in this photography and here's what caught my eye:

• String Shelving: Well of course the most obvious first - the incredibly cool and stylish String shelving. I really love it cause it's a sort of design understatement. It is simple, unostentatious, sleek and rather sophisticated. Definitely a cool choice - even for the kitchen!
• Industrial Pendant: This low-hanging, black glossy industrial pendant is a perfect match for the shelving system made of wood and white metal strings. It adds a certain urban vibe to the setting.
• Bistro Chairs: These seem just perfect here - they catch up the pendant's black colour and seem to counteract the rather modern shelving system by recalling the timelessness of old Parisian bistros and brasseries - a visual delight!

What caught your eye? What's your opinion on the String shelving?

Photography via String

Tweet

Vipp Interior Styling: A Blogger Competition

My last week was marked by a fabulous design blogger tour called 'Bloggers Universe' in Copenhagen. That's why this week is not a regular one on the blog so today's usual 'Why this room caught my eye' will be replaced by a great styling workshop I attended.

Alan from Bungalow5 organised a fab tour and one of our stops was the stylish showroom of Vipp in Copenhagen. Truth be told, I haven't been dealing with Vipp too much before this blog tour, but after our visit I am completely stunned and fascinated by this Danish brand. But let me start from the beginning. Just so you know, I will need a bit of your support here!

We were invited by Vipp for a blogger breakfast in their showroom where Sofie Egelund, one of the owners and the granddaughter of the inventor of the iconic Vipp bin, Holger Nielsen, presented the moving history of this family business. I was impressed to see how a simple bin has made its way into iconic design and how the third generation of the family steers today's endeavours of this Danish brand. Really moving!

While we were nibbling on refreshing fruits and cereals and relished in amazing croissants, we couldn't help but notice the huge pile of props in the middle of the showroom. Moreover, the entirely empty two kitchen settings and the bathroom setting made us thinking - what's this all about?

Shortly after the presentation we were confronted with a little challenge. We were divided into small groups and asked to style all three settings in a given time frame. After we were done, we had to snap pics of our stylings and share them on our social media accounts and blogs as this is a blogger challenge - those stylings with the most likes will win! 

I was rubbing shoulders with my friend Gerard from 'Walnut Grey Design' from the UK and fellow blogger Agata from 'I Like Design' from Poland, and even though every one of us has a totally different taste in aesthetics, we managed to compromise and create three beautiful stylings. I am no stylist at all so it was a great experience and learning for myself. Here are our results:

Kitchen Styling Number 1

Please vote for it here:

Instagram HERE
Facebook HERE

Kitchen Styling Number 2

Please vote for it here:

Instagram HERE
Facebook HERE

Bathroom Styling

Please vote for it here:

Instagram HERE
Facebook HERE

So taking into consideration that I am a bloody amateur, what do you think of our interior stylings? Did anything catch your eye? Thank you my friends for all your support!

Photography by Igor Josifovic

Tweet

Why This Room Caught My Eye

My ongoing obsession with kitchens must have two crucial reasons: First, ever since I moved away from my parent's place I've lived in apartments with tiny kitchens or better said kitchenettes. Even now I only have a sort of two square meters kitchenette where you constantly bump into sort of everything if you try a half turn. Second, I sort of discover my little passion for cooking healthy food. Now this is still largely undermined by the aforementioned kitchenette, so show me any lovely kitchen that is bigger than five square meters and I am all about to swoon and dream a dream of a decent kitchen for myself. 

So when I spotted this kitchen shot by Adriaan Louw Photography I was more than enchanted. I think I would also go for a signal colour kitchen to make a little style and personality statement and this fresh green has a strong impact on my eye. But let me begin from the top:

• Green Kitchen Fronts: A fresh and invigorating green for kitchen fronts and shelves? I would say YES! I imagine a kitchen as the heart of a happy home with lots of happy cooking, chatting, eating, meeting, working, partying. So yes, a green kitchen could be a real option for my future home.
• Stainless Steel Gas Stove: Imagine this - I am working at a home appliance company and haven't got any decent ones myself due to my tiny kitchenette. If I had the option to choose, I would definitely go for stainless steel appliances and most certainly for a great gas stove.
• Copper Pots and Pans: Vintage copper pots and pans on a hanging rack - this is the perfect style statement in a modern, playful colour kitchen. It adds a notion of heritage, of history - the omnipresence of a kitchen as the heart of a happy home is underlined by the addition of vintage kitchen accessories such as these great copper pots and pans. 

What has caught you eye in this kitchen? Are you a colour kitchen person or would that be too much for you? Let me know!

Photography via Adriaan Louw Photography

Tweet

Why This Room Caught My Eye

Have a look around the room where you are right now - what catches your eye immediately? Those salient visual cues are the essence of my Tuesday blog series 'Why This Room Caught My Eye'. There are always a few visual cues that stand out and make a real design or styling statement. I've committed myself to three elements that catch my eye so today again I want to line out why this room caught my eye. Let's roll:

• Colourful Illustrations: I am a huge fan of illustrations and I've recently started my little gallery wall. This cute selection of colourful illustrations in the kitchen caught my eye immediately. I like the neat order here and the dominance of kitchen related topics. Cute!
• Happy Kitchen Appliances: Kitchen appliances haven't got to be dull or boring. Whether you like the sleek look of stainless steel surfaces or you prefer a happy dash of colour - a statement piece of kitchen appliance can brighten up any home! Love the happy yellow here!
• Stripy Sweater: Ok, I admit, this is not an interior design or styling factor. But hey, after all don't forget that you and your beloved ones make part of a happy home (yes, the most important one). So if your home is a happily styled, so should be you! And there's hardly anything happier than a stripy sweater!

Happy home styling & happy Tuesday, friends!

Photography via Ikea Family Live

Tweet

5 Happy Inspirations: Fun Tea Towels

A few days ago I instagrammed a pic of my new Donna Wilson plates while doing the dishes (yes, roll your eyes, I haven't got a dishwasher at home). Dishwashing is one of those chores that I deeply detest. However, I've found a way to cheer up even the dullest of household chores by washing happy plates. Yet another great way to add fun and happiness to the spooky dish washing duty are fun tea towels. Off I went to find five really happy examples for you and here is my loot:

1. The tea lover will appreciate a good storm in the cup, won't you? The beautiful illustration and the fab font are such a winner combination. Seen on 'To Dry For'.

2. Graphic, colourful, happy - the tea towel named 'Royal Hawaiian Triangles' by Canadian designer Avril Loreti will make you want to dry the dishes several times a day. Found through my Canadian blogging friend Tim.

3. Ooh la la - for the little (or grand) Frenchman in you here comes the 'torchon' (tea towel to dry in style - à la française. Seen on 'To Dry For'.

4. Doing the dishes is good for mental escapes - you get time to think of nice places you'd like to visit next time. Like a little mountain hut deep in the forest. Oh, probably it was the Leah Duncan tea towel that made you dream about mountain peaks and deep forests?

5. Combine old and new! Take a linen tea towel and print some neon polka dots and lines on it - and you'll be ready for a glam dish washing action in you kitchen. This one can be found on 'La Cerise sur le gateau'.

Happy dish washing:-)

Tweet

Why This Room Caught My Eye

Hello my friends! I am back after a wonderful weekend getaway to a quaint little German town and a busy Monday full of interviews - yesterday I gave my first radio interview to the German national broadcaster WDR. You can here me speak HERE (in German) and I must admit - I loved it! Radio is fun. But I digress. Let's get back to Tuesday eye candy and my regular column entitled 'Why This Room Caught My Eye'. 

Well just look at this fabulous picture! It is a detail shot with a close angle from what could be a dining room or a kitchen. It combines so many beautiful details and styles that it naturally caught my eye. But let's structure it a bit:

• Personal Gallery: I absolutely love the idea of a personal gallery that can be changed from time to time. This is the ideal way of exposing your latest flea market finds, heirloom pieces, recent buys.
• Fresh Blooms: Hands up who's tired of the grey and cold weather! I am raising both my hands! For a fresh breeze of spring in your home it takes as little as a bunch of fresh blooms. Grab a bunch on your next market visit!
• Vintage Wooden Table: Such a vintage wooden table is a big wish of mine for one of my future kitchens/dining rooms. I love the tactile feel of an old wooden table, the history you can feel while touching its surface. Bliss!

Do you like this room? What caught your eye?

Photography via Forever Love

Tweet

Why This Room Caught My Eye

A new Tuesday has dawned and yet a new room has caught my eye. This time I am back to a kitchen design that is quirky, unusual and absolutely adorable. Or happy so to say. Probably my eye keeps on being caught by lovely kitchen designs cause I’ve lived in an apartment with no real kitchen for the past six years. But let’s not digress. Here are the three reasons that caught my eye in this little kitchen:

• Irregular, open shelving: The walnut wood covered back wall is highlighted with the irregular mounting of open shelves to store food, crockery, tableware.
• Coloured shelf backs: The irregular shelves are a highlight themselves – to set them off of the walnut wood panel, the backs of the shelves have been painted in various matching colours. These harmonize perfectly with the kitchen’s front colour and tie the whole colour concept together.
• Statement kitchen colour: The walnut wood itself is an eye-catcher, but the designer has set another element to make this kitchen even more special. The ice blue hue covers the kitchen front and top and serves as a statement colour. 

What caught your eye in this kitchen? Any likes or dislikes? Let me know! 

Photography via Wallnut

Tweet

Why This Room Caught My Eye

Hello to my new Tuesday blog series 'Why This Room Caught My Eye'. I started last week and hope you will enjoy my little observations on interior design every Tuesday. It so happens that my eye got caught once again by a remarkable example of kitchen design. Actually, it is a little corner of a kitchen. But this corner is so exquisitely styled, that I've picked this example to tell you what caught my eye.

Three factors got me hooked on this kitchen:

Green Colour Coding: The green colour code is a fabulous example how one statement colour can draw the eye's attention to a certain room. A playful yet moderate use of decorative green decorative elements adds a great flavour to this kitchen.

Simple, white tiles: The simple, old white tiles make the perfect backdrop to make the colour coding and the vintage oven pop. Use white to add visual highlights that catch the beholder's eye!

Vintage Oven: This tiled vintage oven with a weathered top and fronts - no words needed to say why it caught my eye!

I hope you liked this room as much as I did. Is there anything that you liked or disliked in particular here? Let me know!

Photography via Scandinavian Deko

Tweet

Why This Room Caught My Eye

I bet you are a big Pinterest fan just as I am. Well, sometimes I get lost in the visual spheres of Pinterest and browse through dozens (hundreds?) of inspiring pictures. And it always happens that my eye gets caught by certain rooms. Now, I've decided to share these rooms on a regular basis here and give you a very brief explanation why that room caught my eye. I hope you will like it!

I am starting this new little blog series with this amazing kitchen picture. So what caught my eye? It's basically three main reasons:

• Wooden Planks & Beams: The wooden planks on the ceiling and floor as well as the beams add a rustic, country style feel to this little kitchen.
• Stainless Steel Surfaces: The stainless steel fronts and countertops act as a contrasting juxtaposition to the rustic feel of the wood. This triggers visual interest in such a small space.
• Colourful Display: The happy displaying of colourful kitchen accessories spices up the whole kitchen by adding a very individual style and focal point for the eye of the beholder.

This kitchen could be a happy kitchen of mine! Anything that catches your eye?

Photography via Residence Magazine

Tweet

Ideas For A Happy Weekend

One of my various problems with homeware, home accessories, decoration etc. are cups and mugs. I have too many and I keep on buying new ones. I can't help it - guilty as charged! I love my coffee in the morning and during the day, and I adore my tea in the evening. And these gourmet pleasures are elevated when beautiful mugs and cups come into action. So there is my perfect excuse for new cups and mugs. I bought this mug just a few weeks ago and I love it insanely. Now I only need to find such a fab mug holder and I could present my little beauties accordingly! Don't you like it? Have a great weekend, my friends!

Photography via My 2nd Hand Life

Tweet

BlogTour Sponsor: Du Verre Hardware

My series of the fabulous BlogTour London sponsors continues! Let me kick-start this with a little question: What is very tactile, tangible, touchy-feely, design conscious and traveled the world? Ah no, it ain't me. I am speaking of one little but noteworthy detail in interior design: cabinet hardware. To be precise - Du Verre hardware. 

Du Verre not only is a leader in quality and original design for cabinet hardware, they also pay due respect to our environment. The die cast designs are made of eco-friendly recycled aluminum and add a green connotation to every kitchen design. While going through the information on Du Verre, I was amazed by the great deal of design consciousness. Du Verre collaborates with numerous award-winning designers and artists to create unique styles for every taste. The product palette is extraordinary and meets all kind of tastes - from traditional to modern hardware designs.

I have never paid attention to my cabinet hardware. But then again I realized that these bits are the ones we touch, tear, push and pull day in, day out. Have you ever paid attention to the tactile feel and the form that you grip while pulling your cabinet hardware? It is something I consider the unconscious sphere of design in every day life. And companies like Du Verre make it oh so noteworthy to consciously use and appreciate our cabinet hardware. 

Follow Du Verre on Twitter and like them on Facebook.

Photography: Kitchen via Remodelista; hardware via Du Verre

Tweet

BlogTour Sponsor: Blanco

Today I am starting a weekly blog series specially dedicated to the wonderful sponsors of BlogTour London 2012. These companies are forward-thinking, open minded brands that reach out to bloggers by sponsoring a unique blogger event such as BlogTour. Modenus has done a wonderful job in finding these partners - and it is now my pleasure to give back a bit of love and blogger happiness!

Today I would like to draw your attention to Blanco, a German big player with international acclaim in the field of luxurious faucets and sinks for the kitchen. Now you might think this is not so interesting - but think twice! Unlike cushions, throws, vases or lampshades a sink or a faucet is not something you'd like to change on a seasonal basis. It is a design decision to last. And one that requires a good deal of consideration. After all, you will decide on long lasting design. And also for an area of your home that will be frequently in use - daily to be precise. 

I've lived for such a long period of time in rented apartments with poor sinks, ugly standard faucets and totally unhappy kitchen appliances. Now imagine the power of a beautiful faucet and sink such as my favorite here, the Cerana sink made of fireclay that matches modern and traditional tastes. Combined with one of the new water-saving faucets by Blanco it would not only make my home happy but the environment, too. Now here's to a happy kitchen! 

If you like to stay up-to-date with sleek design for your kitchen, follow Blanco America on Twitter and Facebook.

Photography via Blanco

Tweet

Decoration Idea: Letters

When I spotted this picture, I instantly fell in love with the look of it. The subway tile splashback, the rugged wooden countertop, the vintage faucet, the traditional espresso machine, the ceramic sink and the surprising pop of colour - the red letters saying EAT. The simplicity and individuality of this decoration is what I like most. In a rather neutral surrounding such a simple twist of decoration can really make a vivid statement. And it offers a countless number of possibilities: The letters come in various colours, sizes, materials, finishings. And if you love letters too and happen to come to Berlin one day, make sure to visit the unique Berlin Letter Museum (Buchstabenmuseum). Here's to letters for the home!

Photography via Heartbeatoz / Dustjacket Attic

Tweet

Kitchen Idea: Open Shelves

I think I've nagged more than once about my super tiny kitchen here on the blog. However, with small kitchens you have to be smart when it comes to storage and display. One great idea to use the wall space are open shelves. They not only offer storage space, but also add a visual highlight to any kitchen.

I have five open shelves in my kitchenette and even though they are way less decorative as the one above seen on Helt Enkelt blog, I love to change the displayed goodies - an ever changing selection of simple stoneware, colourful bowls, tea boxes, a few white Ikea storage jars and an old candy box from the Bretagne - that's it about in my 'petite cuisine'. What's your stance on open shelves? Do you have some at home?

Photography by Anna-Malin for Helt Enkelt blog

Tweet