Scan Magazine | Special Theme | Christmas Gifts from Sweden – Our Top Tips
Above: The new hemp rug collections Arctic, Archipelago and Field are inspired by nature. The new soft hemp rugs come in colours like dark mint, granite and yellow.
Timeless patterns from Sweden The family-run design company Brita Sweden is well known for plastic rugs in graphic patterns, but nature plays a vital part in its current autumn collection. The latest addition includes hemp and wool rugs inspired by Swedish mountains, fields, forests and the archipelago.
“People go trekking in the mountains and cook food from scratch. It’s not just in interior design – it’s a whole lifestyle.”
By Ellinor Thunberg | Photos: Brita Sweden
The new autumn colours range from minty green to rusty orange, golden yellow and beyond. “We take inspiration from colour trends but have our favourites too,” says Harrie. Their favourite? “Yellow!” the sisters say in unison.
The two sisters, Monica Harrie and Pia Gabrielsson, are passionate about textiles and have been creating patterns since their childhood, along with their mother, Margaretha Eriksson, who has also been a part of Brita Sweden from the start. Today, they co-own the company and collaborate on new designs and collections. “A new design can start with seeing a pebble in the street outside the office or beautiful colour combinations on a building,” says Gabrielsson, and Harrie adds that Paris is a favourite source of inspiration. They go quite often, thanks to design fairs such as Maison et Objet. Inspired by nature The Brita Sweden ranges include blankets, bedding, pillows, natural fibre
rugs and signature plastic rugs. When exploring new materials recently, the designers fell for wool and hemp. “Hemp rugs are really interesting and ours are unique thanks to the colourful patterns,” says Gabrielsson. Both hemp and wool are soft, very energy efficient to produce and bring pattern designs to life in a charmingly imperfect way. “Our typical style is very graphic, but when we weave the patterns into a natural material it turns out a little less perfect. It’s slightly warped, but very beautiful,” Gabrielsson says. With names such as Arctic, Archipelago, Canyon and Pine, the new rugs are spot on the latest Scandinavian trend. “We have a longing for natural materials right now,” says Harrie, and her sister adds:
Below: Plastic rugs are made in Sweden. The plastic rug Confect (below) is new for 2015.
70 | Issue 82 | November 2015
Timeless design for your home
Trends aside, they always opt for a classic look and timeless patterns. “In fact, one of our first designs, the zigzag pattern Gunnel, still works very well today,” Gabrielsson says. Sustainability is a core value, embedded in everything from quality, materials and production to the actual pattern. “We want to create designs that you can grow old with,” Harrie says.
For more information, please visit: www.britasweden.se