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dream decor

Danish dream home tour and interview with the stunning owner

Posted on Sunday, April 30, 2017

It was LOVE at first decor site when I first saw Annika Von Holdts amazing Copen hagen home. I fell totally for her perfect mix of old golden frames together with modern clean Nordic decor. When i started to read about Annika she is also very simular to myself. She takes no B shit, hates cheak kissing mingles and always speaks her mind.

OF COURSE I hade to contact Annika for a quick interview about her home, Copenhagen and how to decorate stylish when you have small kids…..enjoy!

Danish dream home

These antique golden frames made my decor heart fall in deep love at first site:)

THE INTERVIEW!

Hi Annika! I will begin with saying that your home is absolutley stunning! Its every decohollics wet dream came true. And its not often I as a decor brain washed blogger get a full speed decor crush.

So my first question will of course be how did you get the inspiration to your perfectly old/new mixed decor?

Annika: I get inspired by everything around me, really; Travel especially. Places, spaces and faces, you know. And with a background in the fashion industry, perhaps I have a confident eye. But my interior design interest is more like a passion, if you will. I don’t compromise or cut corners. I buy carefully thought out design, which often has the added benefit of being timeless. Maybe I’ll spend a little more money here and now, but in turn the things I buy will last me a lifetime … or at least until I get tired of them. Having said that, I’d like to add that style, character and sophistication are by no means dependent on money. There’s beauty in (almost) everything. If you care to look. I know exactly if I like something when I see it.

A home, really, evolves over time, layer upon layer. I never follow trends. The problem with trends is that a particular style tends to go overboard in the attempt to perfect it. In my opinion it ruins the whole. There’s no surprise. I like a bit of the unexpected. And most importantly, I think a home should reflect the people living there, it’s not working for me if it looks like an exhibit.

I like elegant, but a somewhat cheeky aesthetic. I am a bit of design snob, admittedly, but furniture and decorative items should be so much more than just status symbols. I regard some of them art. Functional art. And they should strike joy for the owner.

I like to combine things, different styles, different periods, old and new and the secret to making it work is there is no secret, really. I only have one rule of thumb; NO MESS; I can’t live in a messy house, or with too much stuff. I hate tablescapes and collections, and the only collection on display in my house is a huge frame wall with pictures and photos that mean something to me and to us as a family. I’d rather have few but good things or few and bold things, than a house full to the brim of stuff. I guess you could say that I represent the antonym of a hoarder. I find a sense of relief in shedding the unnecessary. I don’t have things lying around that I don’t use. If I don’t use it, it has to go. Same goes with my clothes, shoes and makeup.

How did you get the idéa to your fab golden framed black/white photos? (that I just fell in love with)

Annika: The big frames were bought in second hand shops – the kind of shops that smell of cigarette smoke. I got them cheap, removed the old pictures and fixed the frames them up with spray paint. I like a bold statement. These are completely over the top, and that’s why they work so well in a home like mine; They get to shine in their own right. If you have a frame like that, you don’t need much else on the wall. And besides, I can’t afford the art I want.

You have written a book about interiors! Tell us a little about that?

Annika: Yes, I have written a book about interior decoration titled: “The Little Book on Decorating with Less”. It invites the reader into my home in Copenhagen – characterized by a “less is more” interior design philosophy and a love for clean lines, classic design and a palette of monochrome hues. It’s basically a guide on how to celebrate the things you’ve got, rather than buying new things all the time.

And it’s a lot about uncluttering and getting rid of the stuff you don’t like, or never use. It’s a little “coffetable” book, so little you can fit it in your purse. It was inspired by my daily practice of posting a snapshot on Instagram – a lot of people seemed to like my interior posts, and I thought something pretty could be created in print, too. It sold out in 2 hours – 3 days ahead of publication when I posted the launch date and a pre-order option on Instagram.

You as a mom, do you have any decor tips for parents to be? That still want their home to stay just a LITTLE bit stylish?

Annika: My tips to parents with small kids is this: Have a designated place for everything. And teach your mini-you to put their shit back in their designated space when they are done playing with it. Nobody wants to step on Lego in the dark.

You really don’t have to alter your interior style just because you have small kids. I had a white slip covered sofa when my son was a toddler. Worked like a charm. Teach them to respect their surroundings and clean up after themselves. Those lessons may come in handy later in life anyway.

And last! If Im going to Copenhagen can you mention 3 interior stores that I simpley must visit?

Annika: My favourite interior shops in Copenhagen are: Paustian, Casa Shop and Studio Oliver Gustav.