I was just made aware of Superfront, founded by Swedish Mick Born, Sander Aarts, Monica Born and Lars Lundsjö, which is no less than an AWESOME new IKEA-pimping concept.

Superfront makes custom legs, fronts and pulls for your Pax, Factum and Bestå furniture. And I have to say, with these elements, you can make your IKEA furniture look like a million bucks!

This is a really personal post. Don't do those very often, but for some reason, I wanted to get down on "paper", what's happened the past 2,5 years, and why it did.

I have a lot on my plate, and I have to say, I'm extremely thankful for it. The past 2,5 years, since I stopped being a full time blogger, and startet working for Fargerike, has been a crazy whirlwind experience. I started working there December 2010, where I got a huge budget (is probably average compared to other companies, but still, HUGE for me), and a boss (Linda Frid) that really believed in me. I was full of ideas and plans, and she almost always said "Sure! That sounds like a great idea!". And I was like, what?? She said yes?? WOHOO!! (I have gotten quite a few no's as well, but I don't dwell on those ;)) And that's how we got our Trend!-collection, started collaborating with huge wallpaper brands, introduced Color of the Year, and also, our collaboration with Grand Hotel, Oslo. I have two more projects on my list that I want to set into action, and I think they're extremely exciting!! Hopefully, I'll get to present them here in a few months (fingers crossed!!)

I have grown immensely these years, and shudder when I see some of the first projects I did. At the time, I thought they were great, now, not so much. A friend of mine recently said, "and that's probably how the rest of the professionals saw them at that time too. I totally had not thought in that direction. At all. And was like, OH NO! Then stopped thinking about it again. What's in the past is in the past. Stepping into this industry really has been a super experience, and I've gotten such a warm welcome. That part still amazes me. How nice everyone's been. Everyone from our agents, distributors and brands, agencies, other companies, and not to mention, the press. And more lately, from female power women from all kinds of industries here in Norway. Major support that feels so important.

I've always been passionate about colors, and first started experimenting when I was five. It begun with clothes, and at the age of 14/15, i started gaining interest in interiors. My mothers home was the first project. Although she's probably my biggest fan, she never thought I was creative. She wanted me to get a university degree, my father wanted me to go to Parsons to be a designer. I listened to my mom, and started studying Pedagogy, Sociology and Informatics at the University of Oslo. And have never been more unhappy. I gained weight (which has seriously never happened before, I have never (before or after) been able to gain weight). Have always been super stable. I also got acne. However, the sociology and pedagogy are important to me today, and I'm happy I chose the path I did. Otherwise, I probably wouldn't be here, in the job I have. Or maybe I would?

My former job, was as an Onsite Manager (with insourced staff) working towards the IT industry. It gave me incredible insight to negotiations, leadership and business. I use what I learned there, every single day. I also use what I learned while working at McDonalds every single day as well. To me, that was the perfect first job when I was 16. I learned to be efficient, to compete, and to make 12 hamburgers in 2 minutes. A-W-E-S-O-M-E! I still remember the feeling of putting on ketchup, mustard, onion and pickles on all 12 burgers before the grill opened as such a rush. My first "real" job was also in the IT-industry, during the IT boom in 1999. That was also a huge learning curve for me, where I learned a lot about what can happen if you have too much money (as a company), how to keep focus, and I worked with some extremely dedicated people, that are still excelling in their fields. I startet out as a secretary, and had a blast structuring all the contracts and customer registry. Continued into web controlling, and from there, as a project manager.

In other words, my path has been strange, but at one point, and I remember it clearly, I made a decision, and that decision was that I wanted to work with what I've always been passionate about, colors and interiors. That moment happened while I was at home with my second daughter, Stella. I think it subconsciously happened sooner, when I was at home with my first daughter, Indie. I sat down, thought about my current job, and realized, although this job is fun, and fulfills a lot of what I want in a job, I want more. I want to work with what I'm passionate about! Scandinavian design from a maximalistic point of view was my main focus here on the blog at the time, and that involves both color, patterns, Scandinavian Design&Interiors. And that focus is what lead me to the headhunter that picked me up for Fargerike (where I currently work as Creative Director). My combo of knowledge about colors&interiors, combined with business and marketing understanding, the background from the University, interest in social media and web competence, led to me not having any competitors for the role. No one could match my combination of skills. The headhunter shook his head, and said; this job was made for you?!?! And I looked at him, and realized, I couldn't agree more. And that's how it all started.

Today, I still have to pinch myself, that I get to do what I love the most every single day; I play with colors! At work, with my home, and with how I dress.  

..does most certainly not stay in Milan!

I was in Milan during the furniture/design fair (Saloni), and it really was an inspirational trip! Met LOADS of interesting and inspirational people, forgot to fotograph anything but furniture and came home bursting with new ideas. Definitely a successful trip!

For part 1 of my report from Milan, click HERE. (The subjects are colors, geometric shapes, the Wingback Chair and interesting surfaces)

So, as you know, We've just purchased my grandparents home, and it has a super cozy cottage look, with brown timber and blue windows and shutters. 

Steven Meisel did this shoot for US Vogue Living (now folded), back in 2008. This was very far from the Norwegian market at the time, but we're getting there. The eclectic approach to combining patterns and colors is ridiculously refreshing. LOVE!