{"id":17485,"date":"2022-12-03T09:30:47","date_gmt":"2022-12-03T08:30:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.homesandantiques.com\/?p=38067"},"modified":"2022-12-03T10:13:38","modified_gmt":"2022-12-03T09:13:38","slug":"a-1930s-railway-cottage-in-sweden","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/homesantiques\/rss_feed\/a-1930s-railway-cottage-in-sweden\/","title":{"rendered":"A 1930s railway cottage in Sweden"},"content":{"rendered":"

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By Katie Pike\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Saturday, 03 December 2022 at 12:00 am<\/p>

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Carolina Hodanek has been interested in interiors since she was a young girl. As a child, she would spend her weekends visiting museums and galleries<\/a> with her father, who introduced her to art, and her pocket money was saved for \u2018beautiful things\u2019.<\/p>\n

Her first job couldn\u2019t have been more fitting \u2013 \u2018I was the one who held up the items at the local auction house,\u2019 she says. Today, she runs a home and garden shop, Apotekarns in southern Sweden, and it would be fair to say that she lives and breathes interiors. \u2018If I\u2019m watching a thriller, I\u2019m looking at the set design \u2013 what furniture do they have? What wallpaper?\u2019 she laughs.<\/p>\n

However, the moody backdrops of Scandi noir are far removed from Carolina\u2019s own decorating aesthetic, which is all reds and greens with touches of blue and yellow. But, despite the strong, primary colours, there\u2019s plenty of atmosphere, too, thanks to her collections of vintage glassware, painted furniture and bold artworks.<\/p>\n

\u2018I\u2019m drawn to brave prints and strong colour \u2013 I like to use all of the colours in the rainbow and I\u2019m very eclectic in my tastes, mixing soulful handcrafted pieces with vintage<\/a>,\u2019 she says. \u2018I love the character of old things \u2013 how they tell a story. And reusing things is better for the environment, too.\u2019 Pieces gleaned from Morocco, Hungary and India add richness and visual interest. These are places that she usually visits regularly on buying trips to seek out the beautiful and unusual for her shop as well as her home.<\/p>\n

Carolina moved here with her two children, Vincent (11) and Simone (six), four years ago. It was an easy sell. A 1930s railway cottage in the pretty coastal town of Simrishamn, with a stream running through the garden. Inside was a blank canvas, ideal for Carolina, who has clear ideas about interiors.<\/p>\n

\u2018It\u2019s such a beautiful house,\u2019 she says. \u2018It\u2019s old and a little bit quirky and it has an incredible garden. I just fell in love with it.\u2019 On moving in, she painted walls and hung a striking vintage wallpaper. The plaster effect in the living room was achieved with a Little Greene<\/a> shade of pink. When asked if she collects anything, Carolina laughs. \u2018It\u2019s too easy for me to find beautiful things. If I buy one thing, then I\u2019ve invariably started a new collection. Luckily, I have the shop so I don\u2019t have to keep everything in my home when I run out of space.\u2019<\/p>\n

Favourites include coloured Art Deco and 1950s glass and, at this time of year, vintage German ceramic<\/a> Santa Claus figures. \u2018They\u2019re hard to come across now \u2013 I mostly find them at auction, but I\u2019m only interested in the bigger ones,\u2019 she says. Her favourite possession though, is the 1920s portrait of her great-great-grandmother that hangs in the dining room.<\/p>\n

\u2018I don\u2019t know much about her except that she was strong-willed. She was an artist and she travelled to America on her own as a young woman \u2013 at a time when it was highly unusual to do so. The painting doesn\u2019t go so well with the rainbow colours in my home but she\u2019s a non-negotiable when we move.\u2019 The warm colours of Carolina\u2019s home lend themselves well to the season, with Carolina amping things up with decorations, candles and foliage. \u2018Christmas means that I have an excuse to add a little bit more,\u2019 she says. \u2018I think I\u2019m a maximalist.\u2019<\/p>\n