10 years ago I was a design manager for a leading retailer, working on the launch of their catalogue shop. I worked with a creative design agency on the in store design and between us we created a section that was a few shades of grey with oak furniture. It was quite revolutionary at the time with many eyebrows raised. The directors hated it, the store managers hated it and it was swiftly removed and replaced with a “safer” bright pink. Fast forward a few years and we have ditched magnolia choosing a battle ship grey home instead. Let’s just say, we knew back then that grey was cool – we just needed to convince more people!
Sainsbury’s Home have launched a new collection of homewares with a real Scandi feel called Helsinki, mostly in a fashionable grey with yellow/mustard tones; a combination that works so well (who also knew that we would all have yellow in our homes!) I am so proud to have been asked to work with them to share the mid century vibes and how well they work alongside vintage as well as in a modern setting.
I chose some really fab pieces including this 12 piece dinner set called Helsinki Geo. It has textured circles within the design; the bowls even have this texture on the outside which makes them feel more premium. Our current dinnerware is plain white which can be mixed with these if I get more guests around!
I have teamed them up with vintage stainless steel napkin rings, Hornsea salt and pepper pots and a West German vase showing you that you can mix modern with old.
I could not resist this planter, loving it’s 1960s Sputnik vibes. It is not part of the Helsinki range but hey, who cares! It was really bright when I took the photo (first proper day of spring!) so the colours are so vibrant in this photo but it is pretty bright in reality. The ceramic planter can be removed from the wooden stand too.
It works perfectly in our bright family space alongside bright orange and green.
They have a range of cushions in the same tones with circles on to match the overall theme. They are slightly too modern for my vintage sofa but I love how they look on my 1950s chair.
We have so many mugs that we really do not need any more but the Helsinki textured grey and mustard mugs have made me throw out our rubbish ones! They are a lovely size too (they have larger ones too) as I am not a fan of huge cups of lemon water!
I also chose a set of matching towels (now gifted to my mum for her guest room which is grey and yellow!) and the black metal basket with the idea that you could either store the smaller towels in them or create a guest pack with hand cream and shampoo in for your visitors.
I am sure you will agree that these are really nice pieces which are also a great price. You can shop the range here but ideally go to store to see it all in the flesh as there are tins, storage jars, larger ceramics, lamp shades and more. I also have got some candles which I will share in a separate blog post.
This is a brand collaboration with Sainsbury’s Home. All items have been gifted but chosen by me as I love them! Read my full disclaimer for more info.
