A textile designer’s bright, airy Swedish summer bolt-hole
%2520(1).jpg)
Cathy Nordström wasn’t going to buy a summer house in Torekov. The tiny Swedish fishing village, on the northwest edge of a peninsula in Skåne in the south of the country, was home to her parents’ summer house, as well as those of “aunts, uncles, cousins and second cousins”. A lifetime of holidays there almost persuaded Cathy, a textile and wallpaper designer, “to rebel” against going down the same route. “And then I got my own family, and the lovely thing about this place is that the kids jump on their bikes in the morning and I barely see them. Or I have, like, eight eleven-year-old boys in my kitchen, starving for lunch. It’s a very social destination, a great summer hangout. So we ended up buying our own.”
In Sweden, with a culture that sees almost all families own summer cabins called sommarstuga no matter their social background, it can be hard to escape the idyll. When she first saw the house three years ago, Cathy was also sceptical of its location at the end of a cul-de-sac and its date of construction in 1978, but her father – who had known previous owners – persuaded her to take a look anyway. She was struck by the size of the place (more than enough to comfortably house all those ravenous eleven-year-olds rampaging around Torekov), and the privacy it offered, too. “Someone, I think, back in the day, wanted to make this feel like a French house, because you walk into this courtyard, and there’s lavender and it’s really secluded. You have this wall surrounding the whole house; no one can peek in.” So, on gut instinct, she took the plunge.
There wasn’t a load to change inside beyond some rejigging of the electrics and heating (insanely located in the ceilings since the 1980s), and replacing the cold tile floor of the main living room with a warmer blonde wood. A wonderful stepped chimney descending from the ceiling to open on two sides was kept in situ, the better to flood the house with warmth in the winter, as well as a happy woodsmoke smell. Even the kitchen remained unaltered beyond a fresh coat of paint. “It’s a really nice, quality kitchen, which I was really happy about because I didn’t want to do a major reno. I wanted to keep as much as possible the way it was.”
Instead, the house offered Cathy a chance to redecorate to the nines; to introduce textures, silhouettes and colours that she might not otherwise have used in her cooler, more considered home in Stockholm. She began by curating a Pinterest board per room, then got to work. Most of the furniture was vintage, found in the bountiful local flea markets – “Only the beds are new,” Cathy explains – and then, as you might expect for a textile designer, she had her chairs, sofas, headboards and various other pieces reupholstered in new materials, including her own.
Central to the scheme was the idea of comfort. In Sweden, where the sun can rise at 3am in the summer, good fabric can be more than just a question of taste. “We have spent nights at friends’ summer houses when the babies were small, and they didn’t have any curtains. You wake up at 4am in someone else's house, and your baby’s wide awake, and you don’t know where to go. So I put a lot of effort into the guestroom; nice and dark and comfortable.”
Cushions were another area in which Cathy refused to compromise, describing herself as “a cushion maniac”. She has different pillows to offer her guests, depending on what sort of consistency they find easiest to sleep on. “I travel with my own cushions,” she explains. “I can sleep on pretty much any mattress, but if the cushion’s synthetic, rock hard, my whole vacation is ruined. I want our guests to sleep really well.”
When it comes to textiles and pattern, Cathy describes her philosophy as “If you're hesitating, go for it.” The William Morris wallpaper in her bedroom was inspired by a scheme she saw in an outpost of Soho House, but much of the rest of the wallpaper and fabric in the house is inspired by creativity closer to home. Cathy names the Swedish textile artists and weavers Märta Måås-Fjetterström and Marianne Richter as major influences, but while she notes that “the DNA of my brand is Swedish”, her design is far from parochial. She collects vintage American quilts, and they adorn many of the beds and sofas of the house. Flat-weave rugs that she designed herself for the floors – “the measurements were so specific” – were woven for her in Jaipur. And elsewhere, she talks about the influence of English cottages in the décor of the sommarstuga.
It can be hard to remember, at times, that she has only been running her namesake brand for two years. She founded Cathy Nordström in 2019 (the decision to produce in Sweden has paid dividends as the global supply chain crisis continues to bite), and has consistently drawn on her own life as inspiration for her design practice. Some of her patterns and prints are based on travel memories, like ‘Lanka’, which was inspired by the plants in the garden of a rented house in Sri Lanka that Cathy stayed in, and ‘Kinondo’, which is named for some friends’ hotel in Kenya.
Other designs come from family or her favourite artists. ‘Marianne’ is named for Richter, the weaver, while ‘Florence’ is a tribute to Cathy’s grandmother. “I inherited a chair from her, and she had chosen this fabric back in the 60s, which I loved and I was like, ‘I would have chosen this fabric today.’ So I did a version of that design now and updated it.” After we speak, Cathy emails a long list of Swedish designers who inspire her: Måås-Fjetterström and Richter, but also Vicke Lindstrand, Astrid Sampe, Elsa Gullberg and Barbro Nilsson. She also loves the work of Arthur Percy, Anna-Lisa Thomson, Sonia Delauney and Raoul Dufy, and “many of the Russian avant-garde artist in the 1920s. Many of these designers worked in different media; ceramics, textiles and sometimes furniture. It feels like it was a very experimental and exciting time to work.”
Cathy’s most recent undertaking is a collaboration with Nina Litchfield on six cushions, sparked by a meeting over Instagram. The two met over the social network and “connected over design and motherhood and friendship”, Cathy says. When the discussion turned to a possible collaboration, Cathy leapt at the chance. “In the UK, you guys are much better at doing these kinds of things. You collaborate; Ben Pentreath has an illustrator doing the pop-up in his shop and this illustrator draws in the space on the window. You do these small pop-up things. In Sweden, it's a bit flat. So I welcomed the collaboration because I just think they’re so fun.” The results are a series of playful, vibrant cushions; doubtless there will be many more in the future. After all, Cathy announces,“you can't have too many blankets or quilts.”
Anne Nyblaeus1/15The fireplace was already in the house, and was “definitely one of the reasons we fell in love with the house,” says Cathy. It’s a focal point in the house, especially in the autumn and at Christmas. The side table is an antique Swedish half-moon table. The floor was re-laid in massive oak planks from Baseco Floors. “With the room being so long and big,” Cathy explains, “we ordered extra-long and wide planks.”
%2520(1).jpg)
Anne Nyblaeus2/15The green sofa was an engagement gift from Cathy’s parents-in-law. She moved it from Stockholm to Torekov and had it upholstered in linen fabric from Swedish brand Astrid. The chequered sofa is a flea market buy, upholstered in Romo fabric. The two chairs on the right are rare new pieces in the house, bought online from Ellos.
Cathy had a series of striped cotton dhurries made for the house, as many of the rooms were big and she couldn’t find rugs in the right measurements. The rattan lamps are vintage finds from a Dutch seller on Etsy. The shades are from Pooky.
Anne Nyblaeus3/15Both of the chairs are purchased online, on a second-hand site. “They are a quality brand called Englesson” Cathy says, “so I knew I purchased good stuff. I then had them upholstered in my own Spotty linen fabric in the Dove Blue colour.” The art is all a mix of antiques and flea market finds, as is the newspaper holder.
The chest of drawers is purchased from an online auction site called Auctionet (“Pretty much 80 per cent of the house is from this site,” Cathy notes).
On the chest of drawers is a traditional Swedish candlestick, whose best examples Cathy says can be found in the Dalarna of Sweden, “often labelled Svensk Hemslöjd. I found one at a flea market and managed to hunt down an identical on an online auction. Svensk Hemslöjd was founded in 1899 by Lilli Zuckerman to celebrate, promote and preserve Swedish craft. Google it – so much lovely work and history.”
Anne Nyblaeus4/15The chairs are traditional Swedish Leksand chairs; Cathy had them painted in her favourite red colour and upholstered in her ‘Faye’ fabric in Indigo. The lamp is from a small local Swedish interior design shop called Blue Window Interior.
The dresser is vintage, bought online at Bukowskis. Cathy stores all the family’s kitchen linen, extra plates and bowls in here. “On top I have some Swedish pottery from Rörstrand, inherited from my great grandmother. She was born and raised at Rörstrand Castle in central Stockholm. From 1726–1926, the castle functioned as one of Sweden’s most distinguished porcelain factories. Fun fact!”
%2520(1).jpg)
Anne Nyblaeus5/15In the kitchen, Cathy removed the dated tiles and replaced them with tongue-and-groove paneling. The kitchen was a cold grey, and – as grey is Cathy’s “least favourite colour of all time” – she repainted it a warm white, NCS 1002-Y25R.
The rug is a traditional Swedish rag rug called a “trasmatta”. “They are almost always woven in stripes in pastel colours,” Cathy explains, “and are very often seen in Swedish summer houses.”
Anne Nyblaeus6/15The table is from Swedish brand Garbo Interiors; Cathy had it painted in ‘Railings’ from Farrow & Ball. The chairs are second-hand, upholstered in Cathy’s ‘Barbro’ pattern, in Dove Blue.
The painting is a flea market find. “I bought because I loved the colours and the girl in the painting reminded me of my mother as a young girl.”
Anne Nyblaeus7/15The chairs were bought second-hand. The curtains and cushions are all Cathy Nordström. An Indian Kantha quilt acts as a bedspread. The other quilts are from Cathy’s collection of antique American quilts.
Anne Nyblaeus8/15This side table is another online auction find that Cathy painted soft yellow. “I fell in love with the quirky shape and paws at the bottom of the legs. So fun and full of character. Who make these kind of tables today?” The drapes are Cathy Nordström ‘Florence’ in Indigo on natural linen.
Anne Nyblaeus9/15In Cathy’s bedroom, the wallpaper is William Morris. “I pinned a picture with a bedroom from, I think, Soho House Barcelona and knew I wanted to use that wallpaper one day.” The headboard is her own ‘Gingham’ in Lemon. “It complements it so well, and I just love spending time here.”
The chest of drawers yet another flea market find. The quilt is an antique American quilt. “This is one of my favourites; it’s super soft and delicate so it has to be treated gently.”
The throw cushions are in Cathy’s ‘Spotty’ fabric in Sage. The lamps are hand-painted by Vicke Lindstrand for “another iconic Swedish ceramic factory, Upsala-Ekeby. Vicke is one of my absolute favourite Swedish designers. The shades are, again, Pooky.”
Anne Nyblaeus10/15The blinds are repurposed curtains Cathy bought from a woman on Facebook Marketplace. They were in mint condition and she had them made into blinds instead of curtains.
The quilt is yet another beautiful antique American quilt. The cushions are Cathy Nordström and the rug is one of the Indian cotton dhurries Cathy had made for this room. The white bamboo side table is vintage, from Swedish brand Dux. “I am on the hunt for another one,” Cathy says.
Anne Nyblaeus11/15The pink and white quilt is one of Cathy’s antique American quilts. “This one is over 100 years old and in mint condition. I love how there often is an embroidered signature by the quilter in a corner of the quilt.” Underneath the quilt is a Kantha quilt from India.
The cushions are all Cathy Nordström. The table is, like the large armchairs in the living room, bought second-hand from Blocket, and from the same brand, Englesson. Cathy painted it in ‘Calke Green’ from Farrow & Ball.
Anne Nyblaeus12/15The headboard of the bed is upholstered in Cathy Nordström’s ‘Marianne’ in Green. The walls are in ‘Setting Plaster’ from Farrow & Ball.
This quilt is a block-printed Indian quilt. “Super soft and cozy,” says Cathy. “My kids love them. I found the cotton dhurrie on Etsy, from India. But I know it’s a total rip off of Salvesen Graham’s wool rug.”
Anne Nyblaeus13/15Cathy had the mirror made for the house. The tiles are from Swedish brand Stiltje. The console is painted in ‘Stone Blue’ from Farrow & Ball. The whole thing, including the marble top, is from Swedish brand Qvesarum. The wall sconces are designed by Swedish prince and design icon Sigvard Bernadotte for Ifö in the mid-20th century. “They are ceramic and bright yellow and I love them,” Cathy says.
Anne Nyblaeus14/15Cathy Nordström founded her eponymous textile brand in 2019, with a focus on local Swedish craft and production. Many of her designs are inspired by her own travels, visual influences, family and friends.
Anne Nyblaeus15/15The house was white when Cathy bought it, but the upper half of the exterior was red and the doors and windows were “that same cold grey”. She painted the whole house white instead, and chose a lovely pastel blue for the doors and windows.
