This past August I took a spin through North Modern in Copenhagen, a new design fair focusing on Scandinavian furniture and interiors (and one of the most compelling shows I’ve seen in a while). My favorite find? Oje-Blik, an upstart furniture and housewares line from Cecilie and Daniel Noer, a Copenhagen couple that lives half the year, with their three girls, in a tiny house they built for themselves in the village of Roskilde, about 20 miles west of the city.
“We designed the house together,” Cecilie says. “It was Daniel’s idea to model the house after a circus wagon, which is long and narrow. As a result, I know how to make use of every little inch of space.” The couple also used almost 90 percent reclaimed materials in the construction; “We designed the house around a leftover set of windows we found while driving around the countryside,” Cecilie says. “I think that windows should be on the top three priority list when you’re building a house. It’s so important; when I’m inside, I don’t feel any division between the inside and outside.”
Join us for a tour.
Photography by Balder Skanstrom-Bo of Madman Factory.
Above: Cecilie, a singer, and Daniel, a furniture designer and break-dancer, at home.
Above: Cecilie is a furniture designer as well as a jazz singer and composer with a new album out (for more info, go her music site Cecilie Noer).
Above: “We love brass as a material, because it has such a lovely, warm glow and it reflects light,” the couple says. For a similar lampshade, consider the Pumpkin Origami Lamp Shade ($43.40 on Etsy), available in several colors, including white. A suite of Bertoia dining chairs surrounds the tiled Oje-Blik Dining Table No. 2.
Above: Herbs and kitchen utensils are suspended from a rail via S hooks.
Above: The Oje-Blik Shelf has three hand-painted shelves and copper brass supports; prices start at 800 DKK ($118). Photograph via Oje-Blik.
Above: In the living area, both the coffee and dining tables are covered in ceramic tiles. “We like to work with high-gloss tile because it reflects light around the room,” the couple says. “It’s also a practical surface to keep clean.” The doors are mounted on rolling hardware so they don’t swing into the room, freeing up floor space.
Above: An Oje-Blik Daybed with untreated oak legs, from 12,499 DKK ($1,848), and an Oje-Blik Tiled Top Table (available in several different colors) anchor the living area.
Above: Reclaimed sliding glass doors are mounted on barn door hardware.
Above: A polished concrete floor in the studio area.
Above: In the master bedroom, Daniel built a closet using reclaimed wood. “Almost every piece of furniture that’s not of our own design is from flea markets or vintage stores in Denmark and around Europe,” Cecilie says.
Above: A marble bedside tray is suspended from the ceiling and a pair of vintage mirrors reflects light in a corner of the bedroom.
Above: In the bathroom, the sink console is clad in pale aqua tiles. “I love colors, green and blue in particular,” Cecilie says. “I feel about colors the same way I do about music.”
Above: Built-in bunkbeds in the girls’ room are painted a citron yellow; the walls are papered in a polka dot pattern.
Above: A view into the greenhouse, which opens off the kitchen.
Above: A table of the couple’s own design serves as an outdoor dining spot.
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