USVI-On-Line

Linne, the house really looks great! I hope you and your family create many happy memories there. [/i]

Thank you for sharing this Linne - always interesting!

But as I said in the beginning, I don’t know what’s is common in an American house.

Not much! LOL just in terms of smart, functional, space saving design with such clean lines.

Aesthetically (in other words visually) some northern Euro designs can come off as a little austere for some American tastes. I’m not sure how much we appreciate good ergonomics and clever design. We can tend to put form over function, in other words, sacrifice some aspects of function and efficiency in order to make it look nicer or fancier, with little thought to saving space (bigger is better!)

However, some Euro designs can go too far the other way - sacrifice looks too much for functionality and space saving.

But the stuff you have looks cleverly designed and well engineered but looks great too. Those sparse Euro designs we first started seeing here in Ikea 20 years ago have come a long way to achieving a much better combination of function and beauty.

very neat!

Thank you for all your nice comments.

lprof wrote: When I sent this link to my son, an architectural historian, he responded... "Her house is very hygge!" After learning the meaning of hygge, I agree.

I’m glad, if people say that the house is “hyggeligt”. To create a fancy house is mostly a question about money. For me it’s more important that people can find “hygge”.

PA Girl wrote:My parents had quookers in all their houses and it was used frequently. (My father is German)

In DK it’s not yet common with a quooker. But I think it will come. If you have a baby it’s so easy
with boiling water nearby- for the nursing bottle, the comforter etc. So perhaps I should follow
Cid’s proposal and bring it to USA

Xislandgirl wrote:I love your house!!!
It seems so well organized and very minimal, which I love.

You have a Scandinavian taste, I can see!
For me it’s a compromise. Many of our friends have more stuff in their houses than we have. I like their houses, but I cannot live in a home with too many things, even though it can make a house “hyggeligt” (cosy).

Nancie-Pa wrote:Very nice Linne! So efficient and tidy...you could live on a boat easily, where everything has a place and every inch is utilized.

Some of the glasses in the drawer you can stack. After having filled the drawer I counted how many glasses it contains. The result was 86, which I find amazing myself.

California Girl wrote: I love that it's so energy-efficient..... the best parts is the heated floors!

yes, I also enjoy the heated floors knowing that it don’t cost a lot of money because the house is so energy-efficient

waterguy wrote:Great house Linne. I see alot of wine on those shelfs. If you need help drinking it before it goes bad let me know. It is about 1300 Sq ft as there is over 9 Sq ft in a Sq meter.

Yes, we have some wine, but haven’t yet found the right wine racks. But if you should come to Boennerup I promise you that I will serve a cup of wine for you.

Thank you for the information about the size. I must admit that I don’t know the American unit of measurement. I found a table on the Internet, but I have done something wrong, and I have edited it now.

jmq wrote: We can tend to put form over function, in other words, sacrifice some aspects of function and efficiency in order to make it look nicer or fancier, with little thought to saving space (bigger is better!)

Interesting with this difference. I can tell that we had a hard work trying to find out, how we could save square meters. The house became bigger than we wanted. From the start we had a maximum size, but we tried and we tried, and it wasn’t enough, if the house should function as we wished.

I’m not sure that all European are so focused on function, as we are in Scandinavia. I think it’s more typical here.

Linne

Again, thank you for your comments. It's nice if the topic can entertain somebody.

Beautiful, Linne. Makes me want to clear out the house and start again! I especially love the drawer for the plates, cups, glasses - what a great idea. And the wildflowers - absolutely breathtaking...thank you for sharing with us, enjoy your new home.

Linne,
Amazing house. You did so much with it, I love it.
I too have wide drawers in my kitchen and love them. They are great storage.

We were fascinated with the induction stove top. Had to do some research. It will make our gas tops obsolete in 5 years.

Thanks for sharing!

Linne, absolutely incredible, so simple and elegant. I love it.

Can I be jealous and happy for you at the same time

You have impeccable taste...I wish I had that kind of vision.

Hi Linne!

Your summer house looks great, very Scandinavian. I would be happy there .

Wish you many happy moments there and thanks for sharing.

Hilsen Karin

Thank you again for your nice wishes.

Terry wrote:
We were fascinated with the induction stove top. Had to do some research. It will make our gas tops obsolete in 5 years.

I’m so satisfied with my induction and can only recommend it (we had gas before). But there can be a minus with induction. Perhaps you need to have new pots and pans, because the bottom of the pots has to be magnetic. But some of my pots were ready for a replacement anyway, and my pans in cast iron I can still use.

Maggy wrote:
Your summer house looks great, very Scandinavian. .

I can tell you that we have been to Ikea really many times. Hubby don’t like to go shopping, (unless it’s a shop where you can buy tools, then he can use a lot of time). But Ikea is on our way to the summer house, so it’s most practical that we shop there together - also because we sometimes need some heavy things. Last time he moaned “Oh no, not Ikea again”, we have been there 3 successive Fridays. But we have had a lot of good stuff from there and always have a cheap hot dog, before we leave.

Linne

Linne,
Sounds like Ikea = our Home Depot...hot dog stand included.

I hope you enjoy your beautiful and very up-to-date retreat.

Terry

Now we only miss the sitting room, before we have finished the most important furnishing of the house.

So here some more pics and tips.


THE DINING ROOM

The dining room and the kitchen are together in one room. In Danish it’s called an “alrum”.
I’m not sure what you call it, perhaps a “family room”?

The room is in the middle of the house and here you find the entrance to the other rooms.

We have chosen to have the guest section with sleeping rooms and bathroom and our section separated of a wall and have a door to each section. If we are only the two of us, we can close the door to the guest section to save energy, and if we have guests each part can close the door and have some privacy..

The picture between the doors is one of our pics of stones from “our” beach in Spain. Hubby has enlarged it and photocopied it on photo paper. It’s a cheap way to get a wall picture, and we have done the same in other rooms too and just bought some cheap frames.


<a href="http://picasaweb.google.dk/lh/photo/m2n ... site"><img src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_4aSBK_jB-gs/TMc33 ... 230017.JPG" height="600" width="800"></a>



We have space for 10 persons by the dining table and have 2 extra leafs for 2 more persons each. The chairs are originally bought for outside use, but we haven’t found the right chairs yet, so we use them both inside and outside now.



<a href="http://picasaweb.google.dk/lh/photo/oni ... site"><img src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_4aSBK_jB-gs/TMc3z ... 230025.JPG" height="600" width="800"></a>



The hall tree we had in the old house, and the dried flowers are very old too. The flowers are all picked on our plot before the grass took over. We don’t have any of these flowers more, but there were a lot of them the first years, we had the plot.


THE GUEST SECTION

The wall, which separates the 2 sections, is filled up with cupboards on each side of the wall. We like, when the cupboard is built into the wall.


Here the corridor to the guest section:


<a href="http://picasaweb.google.dk/lh/photo/0zW ... site"><img src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_4aSBK_jB-gs/THy1y ... 280600.JPG" height="800" width="600"></a>


There is a cupboard for each guestroom, and we have placed a mirror on each door. If you open both doors you can see yourselves in the mirror from different sides.


<a href="http://picasaweb.google.dk/lh/photo/1FW ... site"><img src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_4aSBK_jB-gs/TMc30 ... 230022.JPG" height="600" width="800"></a>




The two guestrooms will mostly be used of our family, so we have one for our son and daughter in law and one for our grandchildren.

In the room to the grown up people the bed is with elevation. I don’t think they will use the elevation very much, but there is possibility to look at TV in the bed, so perhaps they will do that in the wintertime. Behind the picture on the wall is a television plug. We have a small TV, which we can hang up there.


The picture, which hides the TV plug, is one of those we have taken of our flowers outside. The two pictures on the other wall are pictures of cactus flowers from our plot in Spain.


<a href="http://picasaweb.google.dk/lh/photo/peO ... site"><img src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_4aSBK_jB-gs/TKMxp ... 250677.JPG" height="600" width="800"></a>



<a href="http://picasaweb.google.dk/lh/photo/kSZ ... site"><img src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_4aSBK_jB-gs/TKMxp ... 250678.JPG" height="600" width="800"></a>



<a href="http://picasaweb.google.dk/lh/photo/u5B ... site"><img src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_4aSBK_jB-gs/TKZ44 ... 250679.JPG" height="600" width="800"></a>




We also have a small loft room here, where 2 persons can sleep.


<a href="http://picasaweb.google.dk/lh/photo/Rsh ... site"><img src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_4aSBK_jB-gs/TKMxg ... 250663.JPG" height="600" width="800"></a>



We couldn’t find the right furniture to the children room, so I persuade hubby to make long plank beds. We wanted a room, which both can function as a sleeping room and as a room, where children can play and look at TV (the TV plug is hide behind the picture here too). The mattresses we have had made in a good quality to sleep on, and below is a big drawer on wheels to keep the bedclothes, and some plastic boxes to keep the children’s toys. Hubby also made a little table on wheels, so it’s easy to move it.


<a href="http://picasaweb.google.dk/lh/photo/RdM ... site"><img src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_4aSBK_jB-gs/TKMxh ... 250666.JPG" height="600" width="800"></a>


<a href="http://picasaweb.google.dk/lh/photo/BEN ... site"><img src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_4aSBK_jB-gs/TKMxi ... 250668.JPG" height="600" width="800"></a>


The mobile is very old. It’s a gift to me from my father.


Our grandchildren have made the two small paintings as a birthday present for hubby.

<a href="http://picasaweb.google.dk/lh/photo/eAa ... site"><img src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_4aSBK_jB-gs/TKMxk ... 250670.JPG" height="600" width="800"></a>


There is a loft room here too similar the one in the other guestroom.


<a href="http://picasaweb.google.dk/lh/photo/UX1 ... site"><img src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_4aSBK_jB-gs/TKMxj ... 250669.JPG" height="600" width="800"></a>



In the bathrooms we have used the same cupboards with drawers and the same granite as in the kitchen. We like, when a small house do not have too much different stuff, and we were convinced that both the cupboards and the granite would be very practical in a bathroom too.

We have chosen a big washbasin here, big enough to wash a little baby in it - or grandchildren’s dirty feet. We have space to the right, so you can use the table as a baby-changing place. Hubby thought it was a little silly to do it in this way, our grandchildren don’t use diapers more, but I persuade him – some in our family have babies, and some of our son’s friends have babies.

And now we are glad that we made a baby- changing place. We hadn’t expected it, but our son and DIL had a nice surprise to us in Easter. We will get number 3 grandchild about the first of November!



<a href="http://picasaweb.google.dk/lh/photo/yYw ... site"><img src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_4aSBK_jB-gs/THy1B ... 280553.JPG" height="600" width="800"></a>


There is 2 taps, because there are 2 guestrooms about the same bathroom. So two people/children can brush their teeth here at the same time. The taps are our favourite taps, we have the same at home too. They are so practical - with taps in the wall it’s much easier to clean the table and the basin, the tap itself is very easy to clean because of the form and the surface, and you can turn it away from the basin, if you need that (for example if you are washing a baby there).



<a href="http://picasaweb.google.dk/lh/photo/Spz ... site"><img src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_4aSBK_jB-gs/TKeeB ... 280557.JPG" height="600" width="800"></a>



The toilet is also easy to keep clean. As you can see it’s a wall - hung toilet, the cistern is between the two walls (which also save space), there is no places to collect dirt because of the form, the inside have a special surface, which should prevent chalk and dirt, and the toilet seat has quick release, so that you can remove it totally. The toilet seat also has soft close, so that small boys don’t risk harming a vital part of their body, if the seat fell down.


<a href="http://picasaweb.google.dk/lh/photo/aw3 ... site"><img src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_4aSBK_jB-gs/THy1B ... 280555.JPG" height="600" width="800"></a>


In the shower we have a shower panel – also very easy to clean, not much to polish.

<a href="http://picasaweb.google.dk/lh/photo/Y4W ... site"><img src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_4aSBK_jB-gs/TKi1G ... 160207.JPG" height="600" width="800"></a>



OUR SECTION

Like the guest section we have a corridor with cupboards here. Our cupboards are wider and higher than those in the guest section. I have to use a ladder to put something in the top cupboards, but we use it for stuff, we don’t use much, as extra bedclothes etc.


<a href="http://picasaweb.google.dk/lh/photo/OKe ... site"><img src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_4aSBK_jB-gs/THy1z ... 280601.JPG" height="800" width="600"></a>

<a href="http://picasaweb.google.dk/lh/photo/FkU ... site"><img src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_4aSBK_jB-gs/THy1x ... 280598.JPG" height="800" width="600"></a>


The cupboard, we bought, was with shelves, but we have put many drawers to pull out into it.


<a href="http://picasaweb.google.dk/lh/photo/K3u ... site"><img src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_4aSBK_jB-gs/THy1L ... 280566.JPG" height="800" width="600"></a>



Our bedroom, where we have beds with elevation too:


<a href="http://picasaweb.google.dk/lh/photo/4bn ... site"><img src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_4aSBK_jB-gs/TKMxe ... 250657.JPG" height="600" width="800"></a>



The wall with the cupboard is a partition wall between the shower in the guestroom and the bathroom. We had to do it in this way, so that the shower could be deep enough. But then we decided to do it a little wider than necessary and use the space to a built in cupboard.


<a href="http://picasaweb.google.dk/lh/photo/bad ... site"><img src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_4aSBK_jB-gs/TKMxg ... 250662.JPG" height="600" width="800"></a>


The picture on the wall is cornflowers from our plot.




The view from the bedroom:

<a href="http://picasaweb.google.dk/lh/photo/c9Y ... site"><img src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_4aSBK_jB-gs/THy1N ... 280567.JPG" height="600" width="800"></a>


The bathroom is nearly similar the guest bathroom. But it’s bigger, and we also have a steam cabin.
The cabin has different possibilities; you can get massage of the body and the feet, hear radio or just have a shower. I don’t know yet how much we will use it, but our grandchildren think is funny to have “laser beams”, as they call it. We were thinking of having a hot tub, but then it should be a outdoor instead. The electricity to a hot tub is prepared, but I’m not sure, we will have one. A hot tub is much more expensive to buy than a damp cabin, and we were told that we need to heat the water regardless of we are staying in the house or not. So that isn’t in harmony with our “green” profile.


<a href="http://picasaweb.google.dk/lh/photo/8u1 ... site"><img src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_4aSBK_jB-gs/THy1I ... 280563.JPG" height="600" width="800"></a>


<a href="http://picasaweb.google.dk/lh/photo/TVv ... site"><img src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_4aSBK_jB-gs/THy1J ... 280564.JPG" height="600" width="800"></a>


<a href="http://picasaweb.google.dk/lh/photo/uIS ... site"><img src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_4aSBK_jB-gs/THy1E ... 280559.JPG" height="600" width="800"></a>


<a href="http://picasaweb.google.dk/lh/photo/Drh ... site"><img src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_4aSBK_jB-gs/THy1F ... 280560.JPG" height="600" width="800"></a>


<a href="http://picasaweb.google.dk/lh/photo/xvD ... site"><img src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_4aSBK_jB-gs/THy1G ... 280562.JPG" height="600" width="800"></a>



The view from the bathroom:

<a href="http://picasaweb.google.dk/lh/photo/soX ... site"><img src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_4aSBK_jB-gs/THy1D ... 280558.JPG" height="600" width="800"></a>




THE LAMPS

To find the right lamps has really cost a lot of time. We didn’t want expensive designer lamps, both because of the costs, and because it can tempt thieves.

But we were lucky to find some cheap ceiling lamps, which are very similar our ceiling. We have them in two different sizes. The big ones in the corridors, the dining room and the sitting room and the small ones in the bedrooms.

<a href="http://picasaweb.google.dk/lh/photo/Yt6 ... site"><img src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_4aSBK_jB-gs/THy1y ... 280599.JPG" height="800" width="600"></a>

Looking for lamps to the bathroom took most time. The law says that we need special bathroom lamps, if they are close to water. We couldn’t find anyone we liked, which didn’t cost a lot of money. It’s common to use small halogen spots in bathrooms, but because we have ceilings up to the roof, it claimed a special insulating, which we thought was too expensive. So now we have just placed one of the cheap ceiling lamps in the bathrooms too, not too close to the water. And we think that the cheap solution is nice!


<a href="http://picasaweb.google.dk/lh/photo/3aL ... site"><img src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_4aSBK_jB-gs/TMc32 ... 230019.JPG" height="600" width="800"></a>


In the bedrooms and the loft rooms we have LED lamps with flexible arms. Hubby doesn’t like visible cables. So he has drilled grooves in the wall, put the cables in and covered and painted it again. After my opinion he has done a great job.

<a href="http://picasaweb.google.dk/lh/photo/Q-P ... site"><img src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_4aSBK_jB-gs/TKM07 ... 290604.JPG" height="413" width="800"></a>


We have flat ceiling in the entrance, the utility room and the deposit room and have placed lamps on the ceilings here.

<a href="http://picasaweb.google.dk/lh/photo/tXR ... site"><img src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_4aSBK_jB-gs/TKMxn ... 250674.JPG" height="600" width="800"></a>


In the kitchen we have these lamps

<a href="http://picasaweb.google.dk/lh/photo/SGD ... site"><img src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_4aSBK_jB-gs/TKMxm ... 250673.JPG" height="600" width="800"></a>

I don’t know the name in English of the white “bar” they are placed on, but you don’t have electricity to the single lamp but only to the “bar”, so you can move the lamp if you like that.

The “bar” over the freezer and refrigerator has the same principle, but the lamps are halogen spots,
which also gives light on the kitchen island. Halogen light can bee too sharp, so we have a dimmer to these.

<a href="http://picasaweb.google.dk/lh/photo/8G3 ... site"><img src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_4aSBK_jB-gs/TKMxl ... 250672.JPG" height="600" width="800"></a>


And we have of course energy-saving bulb in all the lamps, which isn’t LED or Halogen (actually we cannot buy the ordinary bulbs longer in EU).


THE MUSIC

We have a BOSE Lifestyle, which we like because of the wireless technology, and the possibility to have 2 zones. Sometimes one of us likes to look at TV, and the other one want to listen to radio or DVD. We have one zone in the sitting room, and number two zone goes to the 2 loudspeakers in the kitchen and the loudspeaker in each bathroom.


Now I again have told a lot about our vacation home, and again it’s a very long story. I hope that some of you still find it entertaining to read about it and see the pics. I myself like to look in magazines with pictures of people’s home, even though they perhaps not have the same taste, as I have. Sometimes I can find inspiration in a single thing.


I expect that the sitting room will be finished in about 3 weeks. Hubby has to put up some bookcases first. So you will hear from me again!!!



Linne

My few words of appreciation for the time you have taken in writing and adding photos of your new vacation house do little to convey the interest I have in each aspect. I can honestly say that I find it to be very warm and welcoming while very green and functional. I can imagine living in such a house very easily. Thank you for sharing such a detailed tour. I look forward to hearing from you again as you continue with the sitting room.
We also have music in the master bath... one of those little things that are often enjoyed!

How wonderful that you can look forward to another grandchild soon! May all your family have many, many joyful moments at this house.

Linne,
You've done it again! I so enjoyed your vacation home in Spain and now I get to see the marvelous home that you have "at home". You have done wonderful things in a small space. It is so compact but yet so welcoming. Congratulations on the new grandchild. You must be excited. Your "boys" are just so handsome and must be growing by leaps and bounds. You are so kind to share all of this with us and we appreciate it so much. Keep us posted on the new grandchild and the sitting room.

Linne, thanks for taking so much time to share all the details with us! I still love your ceiling lamps and how they match the ceiling! Everything is so clean and functional, I'm impressed with how you thought to plan a sink and counter for baby washing & changing, and slow toilet seats to protect little boys! You've thought of just about everything! I think your house should win some kind of award!

Congratulations on the pending arrival of your newest grandbaby! I look forward to pictures of the sitting room and the baby!