A Cozy Stockholm Apartment With Vintage Charm and Color | HOUSE TOUR

Hi, Homeworthy! My name is Luisa Ketenacci and welcome to my home in Stockholm. I'm so happy that you're finally here. Come on in! You're watching Homeworthy, where we believe every home has a story. Hello, my name is Luisa Ketenacci. I am an interior creative and the founder behind Wireless is not more. Welcome to my home in Stockholm. We bought this apartment four years ago, and the first thing I noticed when I walked in here was the fireplace. And for me, that's really the heart of the home. And I grew up with having the fireplace lit every day. So that was kind of my first impression. And I kind of knew that, okay, this is going to be the home for us. But it needed a complete renovation and the layout was actually pretty tricky. And also, when we moved here, we didn't have any children. And all of a sudden, we became a family of four. So the entire vision naturally had to evolve a bit to become a family home. But I kind of think my intention from the beginning was quite clear. I knew that I really wanted to create a home that felt very joyful, very warm and almost like a warm oasis, I would say. And also, I made a promise to myself that I only wanted to bring in stuff that really spoke to me and that I really loved. And it took quite a few, I mean, a month, actually two years. But in the end of the day, I believe that you can always feel when the home has been put together with things that really speaks to you and things that you really love. So it's always worth the time, I would say. Welcome to my living room. So this space was actually quite funny because I made an entire miniature of the living room because I really wanted to see how everything worked together. So I made small chairs and I made cushions and basically put everything together in a small format just to see how it worked together. And quite a nerdy project, but it's actually quite fun because you can really, really see, I mean, how things will end up. And I had this painting as inspiration. I've had it with me in all my homes and I really love it. And I kind of let that guide me through the colors. And then everything has been really put together with such a care. This carpet I found, it's a brand from Amsterdam and I found it on Instagram. And we worked very close and we actually matched the color with the patterns on the pillows, with the texture from the sofa. So everything has been really put together with such a care. And I really love to add a little bit of detail that catches the eye. And this is kind of a demonstration of what I love to throw in to just awakening the eyes a little bit. So all the fabrics in the living room comes from the French house Musée Paris. And they create the most stunning fabrics and they speak so much for themselves. So they have always guided me a little bit. So for example, I've let the walls be quite soft and pale because the patterns, they are so rich. So it's always a balance to me. And yeah, so behind these actually doors, what I hate the most are the televisions. I think they usually, I mean, destroy the spaces that you create. So I knew that I really wanted to cover it in a nice way. So it took some time for me to figure out how I was supposed to do that. But I found this amazing wallpaper, which is actually created by wood. And then they have like these small gold details, which has been filled in the holes. So behind this little machine is the television. So it's so nice that I can really hide it as soon as my kids leave the room. First, I didn't have it and it just really bothered me, the television, because it really destroyed the whole atmosphere. And I just knew I'd need to find a way to cover it. But it's actually quite simple way of just, you know, hiding stuff that you don't like. And yeah, one specific piece that I really love is this light that we have up here. It's an Italian piece that I found from my favorite vintage dealer here in Stockholm. Actually, he's amazing. And he finds the most incredible pieces. So that was actually the last thing that I found for the living room. And it's just completed the whole space. And I really love it. It's like a small jewelry, I would say. In the bookshelf, I have really collected things over time. But I would say that my absolute favorite item here or piece is this incredible hand-blown vase. It's from an Italian brand called, I'm not sure if I pronounced it right, but Micheluzzi. They create the most stunning Murano glasses from Venice. And I also found them, I find so many incredible small brands through Instagram. And this piece and this brand is, they are, I mean, they are top, top, top. They create really fantastic glassware. So that's my favorite part in the whole bookshelf, I would say. I really don't like to have things in my home that you can find somewhere else. So I usually source everything secondhand or vintage or antique. And I think, I mean, it should really be allowed to let it take some time, because it's always so special when you feel that, oh, I found, I really found that unique piece that will complete the whole environment and look of a space. The things on the wall here are something that I just found when I was looking for something else. And I just really thought they were a little bit fun to throw them in. I'm not even sure if you're supposed to have them on the wall or, I mean, exposed like this, but they are small butterflies that have, I mean, landed on the wall. And I think they're quite fun. The flowers in my home, actually, this time I haven't picked them by myself, but usually I love to just go outside in the nature. And my daughter is completely obsessed with picking flowers. So wherever we go, she stops and she asks, is this one allowed to pick or not? So I think it's really special to always have fresh flowers in your home. It kind of makes the space feel a little bit more alive. And it doesn't have to be as fancy as these. You know, it can be enough with just some green flowers that you find along the way. My new brand, Memora 1937, which I'm just about to launch. So you will actually be the first one to see this. And I just came from the factory where they produce them. And they're hand-boned, embroidered in Prague. And it was really, actually so much fun to be able to see the process of how they made them. And it's such a detailed work. And I was, the way they did the folio of the logo on the back, it's really like chemistry to find the right temperature and find the right gold color to be able to make it stuck on the fabric. Because the photo albums are covered in quite exclusive fabrics, which makes the whole process quite hard to actually be able to bound them, to add the logo on the back. So yeah, it was really fun to be able to show them. And it was a project over two years, actually. Because when you try to find someone that still do the hand-boned parts, it's actually almost impossible. Because it's mostly machine-made today when you create books. So it took me two years to find someone that was actually willing to try to bound them. And so they arrived last week. So I'm so happy to finally have them here. My journey into the design, I would say, have been shaped by many different phases in my life. I started in fashion. And then I went into high-end real estate in the center of Stockholm. So I was selling penthouses and loft apartments. And I got to see so many incredible homes. And that really opened up an entire world of interior to me. So I went much deeper into the interior. And today, I would say, everything comes together very naturally in my own first brand, Memora 1937, which is photo albums, hand-bound embroidery, that are designed to be a part of your home. And a part of your interior, rather than stored away. And I would say also my intention with what I do today, with what I'm creating, is a little bit of an invitation to pause. Because our everyday lives are so incredible stressful. And I just really need to want to create, I mean, a space where you can be a little bit present and put your energy to the things that really matter the most. So this is the kitchen. It's actually kind of an open space. It's just close to the living room. And my favorite piece in here, I would say it's actually the table. And it's pretty funny because this stone, I found in the stone factory about 10 years ago. And it was like a slop piece. It was a piece that was just so small. So nobody really was interested in this specific stone. So two years ago, when I went back, I saw that the stone was actually still there. And I just felt that as a sign for me to buy it. And I decided to create a table of it. And the thing with the table is that it's so, I mean, the stone is so, so heavy. So the tricky part was to find legs that could actually carry it. And it took like six months to try to source something. And then all of a sudden, my mother's friend was moving out from her house. And she said that I have these legs from the veranda. And then I just got an idea that they could actually be, I mean, big enough to carry the stone. So they're from an old house that was actually meant to just throw away. But they were perfect because they were just the right size to be able to carry the whole table. As I mentioned earlier, I just really love to look in antique stores. So these specific chairs I found, and they had just the right feeling. And they're actually really old. So when you lift them like this, you can see that this is the old technique that you use. So they're, I mean, the quality is amazing, which is, it usually is when you buy like actually older pieces. And then I just wanted to twist it up a little. So I painted them pink. And yeah, actually the kitchen was the only part in this home that we kind of reused, or we didn't change the kitchen. I just decided to change the color and make it high gloss, just to add something. But I really wanted the kitchen to blend in to the room since it's an open space. I just really wanted to tone down the kitchen. And this stone was the previous buyer that bought it. So I really had to adapt the color of the fronts to match with the stone because basically I just wanted to make the entire kitchen invisible and try to hide it in the whole space and atmosphere. But I am actually quite a big chef. My husband, he's Italian, but he never cooks, unfortunately. So I spend a lot of time in the kitchen and I really enjoy to cook when I have a little bit more time. And I'm a huge coffee drinker, so I make coffee every single day. The kitchen in this home is the part that I haven't put so much love into, but I kind of like that it's just blending in and not taking too much attention at all. I just wanted to find lights that just also didn't take too much of the attention. But I really wanted them to do the work because, I mean, we live in Sweden. It's usually very dark outside, so we need a lot of lights in the home. But once again, I wanted them to just blend in and kind of disappear, but still add and do the work. So this plant is actually, it's quite funny because me and my husband, we argue a lot about these plants. I love it. I always love to have a lot of green plants in the home because I think that balance the entire atmosphere. But my husband, he thinks it's way too big. So he is actually dragging it out to the balcony and I'm dragging it back. So it's back and forward. But I think it's kind of work as a, it separates a little bit the kitchen and the living room. And I just love that it is this big. He absolutely hates this one. So, but I think it's, yeah, and I also very much love this huge. And I think it adds, the shine really adds something to the entire space. There's also a detail in here that I'm not really sure if I love or hate, but they kind of speaks to me. And I found them on Etsy. It's an artist based in Barcelona. And she creates this ceramic plates. But the first thing my daughter said when she saw them, Mom, have you thrown pancakes on the wall? Because they, and she's so right, because they actually do look a lot like pancakes. So, but I kind of like them. And I think they add a little bit of fun to the space. The idea behind my Instagram account, why less is not more, really comes from my instinct of questioning rules. I have always been drawn to more personal spaces and people that kind of dare to follow their own eye rather than a correct formula. So I believe today we tend to overthink and we often try to fit in. And to me, I mean, in your home, what matters the most, it's how things actually makes you feel. And I believe we kind of lose that sometimes. So I think we all need a little bit more of that freedom thinking. And that's really what the name is about. I mean, I really want to encourage people to create spaces that are more guided by a feeling rather than rules, I would say. Let's head into the reception room. This room is, I think I would say it's my favorite room in the entire apartment. And it's, of course, because of the fireplace. I'm crazy. I lit it in the morning and in the evenings. And this is where I sit and work every day. And it was, you know, when we bought this apartment, it was such crazy layout. So basically, this room was just an open space connected with that part, which is now our bedroom. But everything was just open. And I just really wanted to create a corner and kind of to use this space because it was just a passage. And today it works like, you know, we can sit here and have breakfast. I can sit here and have lunch. It's my working space. And it's also, it became an extra room in the house. So it's very cozy as well. I think the first thing that many people, I mean, notice is for sure the ceiling. And it was actually added quite late in the process of designing the space. And it is actually not painted. It is a wallpaper, but I've chosen a small part of the motive. A part that is kind of more blending in a little bit more with the colors. Because the other part of this wallpaper, I think it's actually a woman. And I just chose to cut it in a way that I could only have this very nice forms that also just created this very hand-painted feeling. And the walls, I'm not sure if anyone really sees it, but they are actually painted in a way that it creates some kind of depth. So they have been painted in a certain technique so that it's shifting depending on where in the room that you stand. And it's actually, for me, I think it's very effectful because it really add a little bit of dimension, even though you really not see it. And the sitting area also, it's quite funny because I knew that I wanted to add a little bit of waves in the sofa, but I didn't find the right forms. And then my daughter had this toy that had just the right waves. So I actually used her toy as a mole, an inspiration to just create those soft waves that added a little bit more lively feeling to the sofa. And I think it turned out pretty well. And it's just not too much and just very soft. For me, my absolute favorite item in the whole home is this specific rug. And it's made by this incredible, talented artist. She is a French artist called Marie Le Margot. I think I pronounced it right. And she actually created this specific rug with the inspiration from the room. So she got to see the patterns on these cushions, which I really, really love. She got the ceilings, the wallpaper. She got the color codes from the walls. And then she created it. And it's crazy. I never get tired of it. And every day that I come in here, it's really the first thing that I see. And it makes me so happy. For me, it's more a piece of an art than a rug. I've put on the wall. I had had this incredible piece of art that was an inspiration for these glass vases. I think it was kind of a big installation with small glass bowls with vases in different heights. And I just really loved that one. But I think it was antique, so I couldn't find it. And then I just decided that I could actually kind of recreate that look. So I found this really simple glass vases on, I think it was Etsy. And I just decided to try to put them in kind of the same position as this piece of art that I just had in mind for so many years. And I think it turned out pretty fun. And along with the art on the other side, I think they balanced the space pretty well. And one other piece that I really love in this room is this tiny bar. Now it hasn't been used for a while because I'm actually expecting our third kid. But it's really nice. And it's designed by a Swedish, quite new brand. And it's actually really lovely to have a small bar. And it's not taking too much of the space. So it kind of blends in. It was actually standing on legs, but it took too much air. So I decided to try to put it on the wall and it blends in much better. And it's really, it's a very beautiful design. Another part in this room is this beautiful piece of art that is also by a Swedish artist called Valtur. And it's her way of playing with the nature is actually really, really interesting and cool. And I think this, I mean, there are not so many windows in this apartment. So for me to be able to add a little bit more of the nature in here, really completed the entire space. So he's really cool. The first thing I actually knew that I wanted to have in this apartment was this really delicate light switches. I found them the first time I stayed at a hotel in Paris. And they are like, I've been really compromising to be able to get them in because they are small like pieces of jewels. They're very expensive and they're handmade in France. But for me, I think they really add like a touch. So I had to like take away so many other stuff to be able to still have them. I had to compromise, but I think they are really gorgeous. Small pieces of diamonds on the wall, I would say. The layout of this room was actually pretty tricky. Everything here was just opened. And to be able to create a second bedroom, we decided to close it. But instead of just wasting the space, I decided to create a small niche. But what I really like is this secret door where we storage the wood for the fireplace. And it's just a smart way of hiding it because it's not always so nice to just have it exposed in a home. So yeah, that's my secret door for the wood. I would describe my design style as very elegant at its core, but with more expressive layers. So I like to always start with a very calm base. And then I like to add colors and patterns and textiles and always personal items that speak to you. And I always try to twist it up a little bit and add something a little bit unexpected that catches the eye, I would say. And to me, I have always felt very, I mean, inspired by Southern Europe. And the way they live with colors and the home usually feels a little bit more personal and generous. And I think that in my home, in my way of designing spaces, that you can really feel that I get a lot of my inspiration from South of Europe. So I just genuinely love to create spaces that feel really good to be and just feel very safe and happy. So let's head into the master bedroom. So this space, to me, I would say it's quite natural. One of the most natural rooms in the house. And I think that was really intentional because I really think the bedroom should feel quite relaxing and calm, but I just didn't want to have like plain walls. So I added this textured wall, which for me always adding so much warmth to the room. And as I used to add, I wanted to just add something a little bit more fun. So I chose this little crazy bedspread. And actually, my wardrobe was basically, here was the second door to exit the apartment. So we really tried to rethink the space. And so we shut that door. And so now we're only using the other one. And it became a rather okay wardrobe for me. I would say I have 90% of the space and my husband has the rest for him. One piece in this room that I really, really like is this chair. I found it very early, actually in the beginning of this process. And I have no idea what brand it is. I found it on auction. And I think it was really good timing because I was the only one bidding. And I think it's super special and really, again, adds and elevates the room a little bit because the base is very soft. And then it's really nice to just add a few pieces that stands out a little bit more. The bed for me, it kind of, since everything else is quite white and beige, I really needed to spice it up a little bit. So I found this really fantastic fabric from Larsson. And it's kind of this velvet feeling which adds really nice touch to everything. And it's kind of really necessary in here because otherwise it would have been actually too boring. So it really elevates the whole room and it allows everything else to just be quite soft. I mean, even though you just chose really calm colors, it doesn't have to be boring. I mean, I chose to work with this fabric wallpaper that makes things a little bit more fun. And then always try to add a little bit of extra richness to all the textiles, which really, I mean, allows the room to be soft, but still very interesting for the eyes. And this curtains also is that kind of detail that really just makes everything a little bit more interesting and not just too pale and plain. So for me, I mean, you can go pretty safe and easy in the colors. But as soon as you add, I mean, a lot of textures and layers, everything just feels so much more interesting to me. As a child, I was very creative. I used to make my own jewelries. I pressed flowers. I created my own books, which is funny because it's what I'm coming back to today in design. And over time, I lost touch a little bit of my creative side. And it took me a while to actually reconnect and find my way back into that creative side. But today, I mean, designing and creating feels so natural to me. And I just think it's such a big part of who I am. And I feel very grateful to have built a life around something that I truly love. And also, I would say something that feels also really good is that I can show my children that it is actually possible to work with something that is close to your heart, even though the road isn't super straight. It's always, I mean, worth it if you love it. Well, so if you follow me, we're going to head into the kids' room. This room was actually the only bedroom that was in the apartment from the beginning. And we didn't have any children when we bought the apartment. And then I got two kids for the clothes. So I had to kind of create a bedroom for two kids. And I just really didn't want to take away, you know, their area where they play. So I decided to design this bed, which looks like... I mean, during the days, it's more like a sofa. I can sit there and I can breathe and they play. And during the night, it's actually turning into small beds for them. And for me, I would say it's a very smart way to, I mean, really use the space of the room, because the bed is not allowed to take so much space when you create it like this. And also during the days, I mean, they're more like sofas that they can just hang and we can read and just really use it in two ways. And in here, I've used the same technique on the walls. It's painted in a specific way to just add a little bit of interesting surface. But to me, it felt a little bit boring. So I needed to add something on the walls. And then I found this incredible Ukrainian artist, which creates this handmade rattan flowers. She actually creates many different animals, but I chose to only use flowers. And it kind of creates a 3D effect in the room. And I think that was really putting the entire room together in a more interesting way. So I was very happy. They actually came in here as the last part of the interior. And I think they just add a little bit of fun detail to the room. I love animals and my kids really love animals. And I actually chose the giraffes because I think they're just so cute. And the kids, I mean, they look really, really nice. But actually, the kids, they play a lot with it. So they are actually riding these giraffes and play with them every single day. But I think they're pretty fun and they add a lot of, I mean, volume to the room, I would say. A piece that I really love in this room is this tiny little rattan elephant, which is not very practical. I found it on an auction in France. And I just think it's such a cute little table. But it's, I mean, they play with everything. So it's kind of still holding together. I put some limb here and there. But it's, I think it's so cute and also adds something a little extra in the room. And also, I mean, the base in here was also pretty calm. So I needed to add something a little extra. And then I found this really lovely curtains. And I decided to make this pretty generous and also add cushions in the same patterns. And it's a very easy way of just putting it together. And it's also very cute. And it has this theme of jungle and trees. And I think it goes very well with, I mean, all their cute animals in here. Actually, this room was much bigger from the beginning. But today, this part is behind this wall is actually our bathroom. So we took a little bit of this room and just to be able to create a bigger bathroom that had a bathtub, which was very important to me. So let's head into the bathroom. So this bathroom is, once again, it has a very elegant core. But then I really wanted to add something more interesting. So I chose this really, really big mirror that also, I mean, kind of triggers the eye to make it feel bigger. And then I chose this more crazy rug just to, you know, add something a little bit more surprising. And otherwise, I mean, the base is very calm. It's very soft. But I always need something that really elevates the entire look. And this specific mirror is actually from the same antique dealer as the big light in the living room. And it's also one of my favorite parts in here. It's an old vintage Italian mirror made by Glass. And I think it also really just adds a very elegant detail to the room. Since I got kids, I've been very like, I'm not using so much products at all, because I just learned so much about what you put on the skin. So most of my products, it's all natural and just bought from this urbanist or specific place. So they're not super fancy. They're just very natural. There's actually one brand that I don't think is completely natural and that I absolutely use. And I'm not sure how you pronounce it. I think it's Officine Universelle Bullae. And they just create the most stunning small packages. And so this is the toothpaste. And it's actually really good. And this tooth mouth water. And so it's quite simple, my products, but they do the work. Something that was really essential to me was to have this, have a bathtub. I think I actually have only been in the shower twice, because I only use the bathtub. I bath in the mornings and I bath in the evenings. And my kids do the same. They are absolutely obsessed with the bathtub. So I'm so happy that we actually chose to extend the bathroom and fit in this bathtub. So the shower is for my husband and the bathtub is for me and the kids. So I think that is just it for the bathroom. This room is actually our guest toilet, which is pretty sad because I'm never in here. But I really, really love the wallpaper that is, it's very, I mean, unique. So it's sad, I never get to see it. And then I found this really lovely mirror that really matches the wallpaper so well. But it's very tiny and small, but it's still, I mean, I think it's nice to create a really beautiful space for your guests. Even though it's not our main bathroom. To me, the word home is about presence, to me. I would say, I mean, our surroundings affect us more than we believe. So I'm very intentional with what I surround myself with. And I think a home should feel safe. It's where we reconnect, it's where we get a little pause from the outside noise. And it's really the place where we create the most beautiful memories. So to me, I would say home is really everything. It's really what home is. I mean, it's the only safe zone that we have. And it should really inspire you and also calm you. And it should be, I mean, the place that you can get to recover from the outside world. Thanks for watching. Be sure to go to homeworthy.com for exclusive content, shopping guides, and so much more.