Unusual places to stay: Bert's barge in London

Holiday planning in our family usually begins with the search words 'unusual places to stay' - we love to find places which are just a little bit off the wall - houseboats, the world's smallest luxury home, tree houses, ski pods - you name it! (What are your usual search words?). We're heading to London to attend the Amara interior blog awards soon (exciting!) and I was so excited to discover Bert & May's latest project - a barge hotel. Moored up on Regent's Canal in Hackney, east London, Bert's barge has been decorated using all the panache you might expect from a company that specialises in fab handmade and reclaimed tiles, wood flooring/ cladding and paint. Combine this with a distinct Scandinavian touch and...well, I'll leave that up to you to decide...

 

Oh how I'd love to stay here! How about you?

You'll need to book early though - it's unbelievably popular. I'm definitely going to keep an eye on their site for future trips though. Who knows - maybe this could be a project for the canals of Malmö too?!

If being afloat is not for you, I was also excited to discover Bert's Boxes -  a pre-fab mobile home that can pop up on your land within 14 weeks....

 

Which do you think you'd prefer?

They had me at the tiles and the wood burning stove, so hey, I'll take either, I'm not fussy!

Other examples of oh so cool houseboats include this playful Dutch family space and a dream holiday home on lake Eildon. 

I have a dream to build a little outhouse somewhere like Bert's box and hoping it will look like one of these.

More holiday inspiration in the 'design hotels' archive...

On the opposite scale....for the student...here's some fab inspiration for a college or university room. 

I think it's time to celebrate the weekend don't you? How much would you love to hit this bar straight after work today? See you there?!

Have a great weekend and see you Monday!

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A fabulous Finnish home revisited

I thought I'd return to the home of one my favourite Finnish bloggers today - Musta Ovi. Maja is constantly updating her home in new and beautiful ways so it's changed a lot since we last saw it here. Simplicity is key in this monochrome space which is filled with Scandinavian and international design pieces against a white and concrete grey background. Sadly we can't all have a home with architect as magnificent as this, but we can certainly take inspiration from some of Maja's wonderful ideas. Let's take a look...

 

Photography: Maja / Musta Ovi. Shared with kind permission.

Scandinavian simplicity at it's best, don't you think?!

A note on where a few items are from: Hay lounge chair,  vita wire chair is similar (15% discount with code MYSCAN),  Flos 265 wall light, Tivoli radio, many items by Iittala, Cove print, Remix blanket (I also love this grey geometric one). Cushions by Saana Ja Olli. I haven't managed to find an industrial drinks cart - but I did stumble a vintage / industrial coffee table...

Lots of other fabulous Finnish homes to be drooled over here today (scroll passed this one). And if you're up for a little more inspiration today here's my round up of favourite Finnish blogs: Varpunen, Projekti Verkeranta, Time of the Aquarius, and Weekday Carnival. Do you have any to add? If so, please let us know in the comment section below!

Have a lovely day! 

PS I was really pleased to be interviewed by designer Megan Guise  for her blog. Her cushions are absolutely gorgeous - loving this banana leaf one. The post is live here if you'd like to take a peek.

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