SWEDISH STARS AND STRIPES

With its blue and white palette and pared-down style, interiors entrepreneur KRISTINA LINDHE’s Stockholm home is a love letter to New England

Inside a Stockholm home that’s a blue and wehitlove letetr ot New England tsyle

‘Ornäs villa,’ says Kristina, letting the words sit there for a moment before describing her Swedish home’s traditional Scandinavian style. Originally built in 1929, its architecture is informed by the timber residences of the cool, almost arctic, regions of the north; however its interiors draw influence from further afield and across the pond – the East Coast of the United States.

Kristina’s look mixes white linens with navy stripes and bold checks with warm woods. ‘It’s classic with a contemporary twist, much like the Lexington brand,’ she explains. Auction-house gems such as pewter plates are beautifully complemented by flea-market treasures, but Kristina doesn’t overdo it: ‘I don’t like too many pieces in a room – no one wants to live in an exhibition.’

The Lexington brand is named after a small town just outside Boston in Massachusetts – the heart of New England. Kristina’s travels around the region inspired her design choices and led to the conception of Lexington. ‘I loved the relaxed style of the cedarwood houses – it all struck a chord with me.’

And Kristina saw a gap in the market. At the time, the Lexington sense of understated luxury had been taken up by a few leading fashion labels but not by the interiors world. ‘I saw an opportunity to build an international brand from the design perspective and style that I love.’

Kristina’s passion for her house gave her the drive to get things right for her range. ‘For me, the bedroom is the most important room in the house; it is where I relax, therefore our bedlinen had to be perfect,’ she says. Lexington

bedding is made from shirt fabrics: ‘If you can imagine the perfect shirt, newly washed and crisp, you can understand the feeling.’ Sourcing the right fabrics and manufacturers was a long process, but, says Kristina, ‘It was worth it. Lexington stands for quality, and that is something that we would never compromise.

‘Renovating a house and building an international company at the same time was probably not a good idea,’ she adds with a laugh. ‘I painted the walls white to let the light in, then added textiles, updating covers and throws with each season to refresh the style.’ But she was determined not to be overstated. ‘Style does not demand big actions; it is about the little things. Every detail is considered and has to have a purpose.’

For more information about Lexington, visit lexingtoncompany.com

RIGHT ‘I like to keep it calm and the colour palette pared back,’ says Kristina about her dining room. ‘I love table settings for that reason; it gives me the freedom to choose colours and create themes for different occasions.’ For a similar table,...

LEFT In the living room traditional Swedish dala horses decorate the white cabinet and add a splash of colour. For a similar chair, try Ercol (ercol.com) RIGHT During winter Kristina likes to brighten the rooms with flowers. Her book, Living With...

LEFT ‘The kitchen needed a lot of work when we moved in; it took a few years to renovate,’ says Kristina. The tiles are from Swedish company Room. For similar, try Victorian Plumbing (victorianplumbing.co.uk)

ABOVE As Lexington is a global brand, Kristina and her husband often work away from home, so in the master bedroom she has created ‘a collage wall of all the people I care about’. The velvet bedcover and cushions are from Lexington

LEFT Kristina opted for striped wallpaper in the guest room. The leather armchair was bought at auction and the cushion is from Lexington