Interview: Marianne Lamberth of Nordic Bliss

Scandinavian design has been increasingly dominating home interior trends in the UK in recent years. We British have grown very fond of the clean-lined and useful products that are often made from natural materials that seem to feed our need for emotional comfort. I myself am a huge fan of the design traditions that have filtered through from the Nordic countries. But I wanted to find out a little but more on the topic. Luckily I knew just the person to speak to.

Marianne Lamberth (pictured above with husband Andreas) is the founder of Nordic Bliss, an online shop specializing in Nordic furniture, accessories and textiles for the home. I caught up with her to find out what inspired her to bring her Scandinavian design ethos to the UK and how she goes about selecting the products that she features in the shop. She also shares her top tips for achieving a successful Scandinavian-inspired home interior. Enjoy!

Can you please tell us a little bit about yourself?

ML. I moved to the UK after having moved seven times between all the Scandinavian countries (Denmark, Norway, and Sweden). My father is Norwegian, my mother is Danish and my husband is Swedish. I am the oldest of four sisters. I taught Swedish at the local college for a year and now do private tuition. I prefer vegetarian food. I procrastinate, a lot. Every time I renew my passport my eye colour “changes” (I’ve reportedly had green, blue and grey eyes so far). I am a night owl. People’s first impression of me is often that I am shy and quiet, but that usually changes.

You have lived in Norway, Denmark and Sweden before moving to England five years ago. Why did you decide to move to the UK? 

ML. When I was 20 years old I decided to move to the UK to study a Bachelor in Behavioural Science. Although Sweden is absolutely beautiful a young heart wants adventures. England sounded appealing and multicultural, it has a language I could understand, I could be close to London, and new opportunities etc. It was exciting and challenging all at the same time.

Why did you decide to set up a webshop selling Nordic accessories and decorative items?

ML. In Scandinavia almost every person has a blog and everyone reads blogs. I have followed a very large number of fashion and interior blogs since I was 20. It was partly my way of staying in touch with what was happening in Sweden. This is also what developed my personal style preferences. In Scandinavia you spend time at home, you don’t work as long hours, and you invite people home for a coffee or for dinner quite regularly. When I finished my Masters Degree and moved in with my husband and started looking for furniture and decorative items for our home I often found things on these Scandinavian blogs that I loved, but couldn’t buy in the UK. So I thought to myself “Maybe there are others in this country who also wants access to these things?”

You run the shop with your husband Andreas. Who does what? Do you have specific roles at Nordic bliss?

ML. I would say we have very specific roles because we have very different talents. Andreas is practical, organised and loves physical work, I am more of an idea machine who loves to create and invent. At the moment he takes care of wrapping, packaging and shipping, getting everything to the post office in time, stocktake, and ensuring that I get the most important things done first (and don’t just start on my next idea). I decide which products to stock, design the website, do the social networking (blog, tweet, facebook), send press releases, do the VAT returns, in summary most of the admin and creative work.

Where do you source all the products that you sell in the shop?

ML. All our products are from Nordic brands and designed by Nordic residents. I have done hours of research online and visited design expos such as Formex in Stockholm to find products I would like to have in our shop. It is always different to actually see and feel a product than to see it on your computer monitor, which can sometime lead to disappointment but also to pleasant surprises.

How do you choose the products that you stock?

ML. One of the aims was to try to have a collection of products that are good quality, durable but also affordable. When I had just finished as a student and started furnishing our flat I always searched the web for affordable items, and I remember my frustration when I found something I loved but with a price tag that meant it was out of reach.

From the very beginning we decided not to stock the most well known Nordic brands (there are already many great shops who have these) but instead focus on smaller, new designers, such as Shyness by Anna Bilén (who won the Swedish Elle Decoration Textile Award in 2010) Ylva Skarp and her beautiful prints that have continued to take the Scandinavian blogosphere by storm, as well as Antlers by Lapland W Design. We love being part of bringing something new and interesting to the UK market.

How has growing up in Scandinavia affected your approach to design?

ML. As I mentioned earlier, Scandinavians spend a lot of time at home and instead of going to the local pub they would have neighbours and family visiting. I think the amount of time that is spent in the home has lead to a focus on furnishing and decorating your home. This might be why beauty and harmony is just as important as function for Scandinavians.

I was born in the very, very North of Norway, up where the sun never rises during the winter and where the cold winter nights can literally kill you. In a place like that you long for light and you become very close to nature. That is probably why there is typically so much white in Scandinavian interiors and why we love our natural materials such as wood.

How would you describe your dream home in terms of its interior design scheme? 

ML. I love to keep the basics as simple as possible so that it is easy to update and make changes to the colour scheme. I would want a really high ceiling and massive windows, I wouldn’t mind if they stretched from the floor to the ceiling. It would have a beautiful natural or white washed (not painted white) wooden floor, white walls, and I wouldn’t mind a wonderful warm fireplace or two and glass doors to a lovely garden. Then I would add colours with my accessories such as pillows and throws, probably hang a big antique chandelier in one of the main rooms. My taste is probably typical modern Scandinavian with a touch of French romance.

What are your favourite Scandinavian brands for the home and why?

ML. I am not sure where to start and I could go on and on with name dropping when it comes to designers because throughout the past century so many incredible designs have come from Scandinavia, but I would like to mention three. I really like Hay and Hay market. I love their home accessories and the J110 chair and the DLM side table. When it comes to classic pieces I have to say Hans J Wegner, he just had an incredible way of designing with wood – the wishbone chair is one of my all time favourite chairs. I am currently dreaming of starting to collect dinnerware from Royal Copenhagen – I just love the “Blue Elements” pattern. And last, although it might sound strange after the previous names, I would like to mention Ikea – I can’t help it but I really like their design. Some of it is a bit too quirky or out there for me, and some of it might not be as durable, but when you are a student with a budget of £500 they really are life savers.

What is your top tip for achieving a successful Scandinavian-inspired home interior?

ML. First of all, it is very difficult to say: “THIS is Scandinavian style”. There are of course a huge variation amongst the Scandinavian homes and many different individual styles. But I would say there are a couple of things that are typical.

1. White and bright – on walls, textiles, floors. Scandinavians love their white and light, the more the better. Many people choose not to have curtains in order to let as much light in as possible.

2. Declutter. Although Scandinavians are often spoilt when it comes to the size of their homes in comparison to standard English houses, we still want it to look as spacious as possible. Sleek lines and simplicity are keywords when looking for furniture as well as putting things away and only displaying a few favourite items.

3. Invest in good design. Find out what you love, what your style is (this isn’t as easy as one might think) and then invest in some good quality pieces. A friend of mine living in Copenhagen collected one Eames chair (white with wood legs) every year for 6 years until she had a full set for her dining table. Meanwhile she would put pillows on the floor when we were having dinner parties etc at her house and we would all sit on the floor. She would rather have one chair she loved than six she didn’t really like. Now good design doesn’t necessarily equal high cost. There is a lot of design classics on eBay (watch out for fakes though) and there are also new designs in excellent quality available.

4. Use natural materials. Invest in sustainable high quality materials such as wool, linen, and cotton instead of acrylic and polyester. Solid wood instead of laminate or plywood.

5. Did I mention white?

---

A selection of Nordic Bliss products are available in the Design Sheppard Shop where you will find a handpicked list of interior products personally curated by me. Whether you’re looking for a gift for the design lover in your life or a treat for yourself, hopefully you’ll be inspired by my collection. See below for my selection and simply hover over each product to see pricing info or to make a purchase.