All is calm

The owner of this chic apartment decorates for Christmas with a traditional yet minimalist aesthetic in mind

Tradition meets modern minimalism in a chic city apartment

MEET + GREET Pernille Baastrup Jakobsen, 32 (IT marketing consultant).

One of the pleasures of Christmas is the chance to revisit the past, retelling old family stories, sharing memories of people and times long ago, and digging out all those festive ornaments you’d almost forgotten about, some of them years, perhaps even generations, old.

This sense of the past meeting the present is something Pernille Baastrup Jakobsen loves to express in her home each Christmas. At this time of year, you’ll find her 96-square-metre apartment in Copenhagen softly scented with a mixture of aromas, from aniseed to orange, and the airy, white rooms carefully dressed with just a few simple, modern ornaments. However, Pernille has a way of integrating traditional Christmas decorations into her decor that feels both timeless and contemporary.

“Christmas, to me, has always been connected to traditions,” Pernille says. “I spend Christmas in my parents’ home, with my two brothers, in a small village in Jutland, and it’s a completely family-orientated occasion.

“We all gather before the 23rd of December, when we celebrate my brother’s birthday. The house is full of people and it’s quite informal.

It’s a great time to see old friends and catch up with lots of family members.”

In contrast to her parents’ home, Pernille’s festive style is very simple: just candles and a few decorations throughout. However, a real Christmas tree is absolutely essential, complete with beautiful old decorations inherited from her grandmother.

“I love using my grandmother’s things as they can beautifully complement my own, much simpler decorations,” says Pernille, who favours a clean, minimalist aesthetic.

Presents wrapped in white paper and royal blue ribbon have been piled on the floor, and glasses holding single old-fashioned hyacinth bulbs form little tableaux with modern prints. Potted mini pine trees or branches of foliage bring festive cheer to each room, standing out against the white walls, pale wood floors and furnishings in muted shades of blue. Slender white candles placed around the apartment also add a touch of Christmas magic.

The black table from Danish brand Hay has been decorated for a Christmas dinner with friends in pure white and silver, and a collection of Lyngby vases have been filled with red berries and small fir branches gathered from the woods near her parents’ home.

“I would rather decorate my table with a couple of large cones from the woods than run around the shops for the latest decorations,” says Pernille. “It is a pleasure to find things myself, and I’m probably repeating some of the things I have seen throughout my childhood Christmases.” The glasses on the table are antique, and a fir cone placed on each plate completes the look.

The month of December is spent visiting Christmas markets, making trips to Jutland to gather fir and pine cones, and enjoying evenings with friends that are filled with laughter and the spirit of Christmas.

“I love Christmas in its traditional form, but I don’t like my home to be completely transformed,” says Pernille. “To me, it’s a great pleasure to decorate for Christmas and show my guests that I celebrate it, but it is also important to be true to the character of each room. I like to use a bit of red and a lot of white and decorate very much in the old-fashioned style, but without it taking over entirely.”

Rather than having hallways, each room in Pernille’s apartment leads into another, which creates a beautiful feeling of lightness and space, and allows a view from one end of the home to the other. The Christmas tree is positioned so it can be seen from almost every room, but its simple decoration prevents it from overpowering the space.

“Something old and something new, injected with the DNA of an old-fashioned Christmas” is how Pernille describes her festive style. We think ‘old, new and a little bit of blue’ is a pretty great way to live all year round. •

BLISS BALLS Blend together 250g pitted dates, 2 Tbsp cocoa, ¼ cup rolled oats and 1 Tbsp rum. Mix in ⅓ cup finely chopped walnuts. Roll mixture into balls. Melt ½ cup dark chocolate pieces then dip bliss balls in chocolate and roll in desiccated coconut. Place on baking paper and leave to set. Store in an airtight container in the fridge. MAKES 15

DINING Pernille’s minimal style gets a bit of a shake-up at Christmas time, as she introduces decorations in the form of fir cones, candles and heirloom Christmas decorations. Her modern dining table and chairs are contrasted by a traditional tree hung with her grandmother’s ornaments.

LIVING The home features a cool theme of royal blue and white with plenty of natural timber. Christmas brings a chance to add warmth with more natural foliage, glowing candles and spiced aromas. STYLE TIP Opt for two or three larger Christmas decorations instead of lots of small ones – the effect is still festive but cuts down on clutter.

WHITE CHRISTMAS TODDY Heat 300ml elderflower cordial syrup, 500ml water, 1 Tbsp grated fresh ginger, 1 vanilla bean, split and seeds scraped, in a saucepan until hot. Pour into a jug, add slices of orange and 1 star anise and serve. SERVES 4

BEDROOM The bedroom has a view through to the dining room and beyond. The large modern wreath, which Pernille made, links to the foliage in the other rooms and to the little fronds she has used to decorate her Christmas presents. The bedspread and rug are from the Danish shop Hay and the teak chest of drawers is an heirloom.

STYLE TIP Make your own simple wreath using branches from your garden. YOU WILL NEED: strong wire, thin wire for tying, wire cutters and pliable branches such as fir or eucalyptus. STEPS: Make a circle of wire to your desired size. Tie the branches around the circle with thinner pieces of wire. You could also tie baubles or other ornaments amid the foliage.