Wabi Sabi meets Scandinavian Modern - in Norfolk, England!

I have spent these past, rather rainy days finishing the re-organisation of my studio/home. But not just. I've also prepared a set of interesting house projects I think you'll like. All houses have a distinct focus on simple, elegant living, close to nature. 

I've already started over at my more colorful blog Creative Living with a post of a new Danish home. Let me start here with a house I found via the great blog Desire to Inspire

It's the Norfolk home of the London art dealer Stuarts Shave. The house is situated deep in english farmland (I guess it's his holiday retreat), and designed by David Kohn Architects 2010. Below is a pic of the largest room of the house - the living room, decorated with the same soft natural colors you'll find outside. 

The architect describe the project like this: The living room offers wide views back across the garden, past an open hearth, to the newly planted apple orchard and nut grove. The plan of the house has been echoed in the landscape to create rooms of wild grasses, flowers and trees each offering different degrees of remove from the house, to be enjoyed at different times of the day and year.

Above: the dining space facing the bedroom area. 
Below: the bedrooms are rather small and each has a separate exit out to the garden, as seen on the floor plan below. 

Then a set of pics, by danish photographer Ditte Isager for Elle 2011. Now the place is drained of color, and the focus is on the furniture etc. The Wabi Sabi stillness is gone. The home has become a stage set where trendy details play the lead. 


Samma hem fotograferat av två olika fotografer, med två olika resultat. De sista bilderna visar ett hem, omstylat nästan till oigenkännlighet för Elle sommaren 2011. Det enkla, eleganta och naturnära har blivit en teaterscen, dränerad på färg. De grålaserade väggpanelerna och det grå betonggolvet ser nästan trendigt kritvita ut. Det är även intressant att notera hur de utbytta föremålen gör hemmet "nättare", mer feminint, där inredningsdetaljerna lyfts fram på bekostnad av helheten. Hemmet som en teaterscen. Kan det bli trendigare? 
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Check out my other blog Creative Living here.