Steal This Look: Simple Scandi Children’s Room

One memorable July, I found myself in a friend’s seaside summerhouse just outside of Gothenburg, Sweden. As I stood in the tiny kitchen, surveying the interior, I couldn’t help but admire the efficient use of space throughout the cottage.

At this similar summerhouse in Söderfors, walls and wood floors are painted bright white to open up the small rooms. We especially like the children’s bedroom, which features twin metal beds, step stools as bedside tables, and a frothy tulle pendant light. And the good news is: the cottage is for rent: see Widerlov & Co.

Above: Windowsill plants and a few graphic linens stand out against an otherwise all-white bedroom.

The Essentials

Above: The Piper Bed in stainless steel is $599, no box spring needed, from Room & Board.

Above: Designed by Jonas Bohlin, the Liv Light is made from layers of tulle and can be sourced from the Scandinavian Design Center for $749. For a DIY alternative, see our post Design Sleuth: Green Liv Light by Jonas Bohlin.

Above: Ikea’s Molger Step Stool is made of birch; it looks good as is or can be painted white; $29.99.

Above: Original BTC’s Hector Metal Table Lamp is $255 from Horne.

Linens and Accessories

Above: The Aina Pair of Curtains are available in bleached (shown) and seven other colors of linen; $49.99 from Ikea.

Above: Matteo’s Black Tick Sham Pair is $95 for two queen-sized shams, $125 for king, from Matteo Home.

Above: From Chicago store Unison Home, Sailor Navy Sheets are made in Portugal; $140 for the queen size fitted and flat sheet. The Sailor Navy Pillowcases are $32 each for the standard size. For more ideas, see 10 Easy Pieces: Striped Sheets.

Above: Fog Linen Work’s Cotton Senovinis Blanket is $134 from Dry Goods New York.

Above: Hand-dyed Indigo Shibori Linen Textiles made by Lookout & Wonderland start at $220 at The Primary Essentials in Brooklyn.

Above: White Kardemumma Plant Pots range from $1.99 to $12.99 from Ikea.

For more ideas, see Children’s Rooms in our Image Gallery of rooms and spaces. On Gardenista, have a look at a New Basement Playroom in a 1908 Garage. And for more of our design dissections, Go to Steal This Look. 

N.B.: This post is an update; the original story ran on July 3, 2012 as part of our Scandi Summerhouse week.