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<\/a>Mj\u00f6lk<\/a> — a difficult name to pronounce (with an umlaut and all) but a gem among Toronto design and furniture galleries. Headed by husband and wife duo John Baker and Juli Daoust,\u00a0Mj\u00f6lk features designers from Scandinavia and Japan. The couple live with their two children above the shop, in a century-old heritage building in The Junction. Forefront experts on all things modern, Juli and John also run a popular blog called Kitka<\/a>. To gain more insight, we chatted with Mj\u00f6lk co-owner John Baker about the characteristics of Scandinavian design and how they might apply to our own Canadian landscape.<\/p>\nTip #2: Design with winter weather in mind.\u00a0<\/b>\u201c[Mj\u00f6lk] is an argument for Scandinavian design as a Canadian aesthetic \u2014 especially Ontario in particular, because we have a similar climate. In Canada, we suffer from colonialism. We came as a colony and created British-style homes. I like to describe them as \u2018oppressive\u2019 because when you see Victorian homes in their pure state they\u2019re very dark, narrow, full of rooms, with little light. These homes really aren\u2019t relevant for our winters. We can look to Scandinavia for inspiration \u2014 they\u2019ve had thousands of years to evolve this aesthetic, to make the most of their environment.\u201d<\/p>\n Tip #3: Combat the winter blues with the Danish concept of hygge.\u00a0<\/b>\u201cHygge doesn\u2019t exactly translate well into English. It\u2019s not just coziness, it\u2019s atmospheric. Hygge has an intangible quality \u2014 like getting together and using candlelight. I\u2019ve never been to a place that uses more candlelight than Scandinavia. It\u2019s really is about embracing the darkness, rather than working against it by using bright lights.\u201d<\/p>\n Tip #5: Invest in a timeless, three-seater sofa.\u00a0<\/b>\u201cThe sofa is a foundational piece of furniture. It\u2019s something you use so often. I know when we moved into our place, we were surrounded by boxes. We ordered a pizza, sat down on the sofa and ate. You move everything else away to make room for the sofa \u2014 it adds comfort. I would never suggest for someone to buy a big sectional, even if they had the space. A three-seater sofa allows you to have different types of optional seating, like a lounge chair or a daybed. You can get a lot more out of these individual pieces of furniture. As a society, we\u2019re really caught up with adding, with having finished rooms. I don\u2019t think people should rush too much. You just need white walls, a light wood floor and a sofa.\u201d<\/p>\n Tip #6: Prints can liven up your living space.\u00a0<\/b>\u201cMany people associate Scandinavian design with a Finnish company called Marimekko \u2014 but few understand the significance of the design. Floral motifs are very traditional in Scandinavia because it represents the promise of spring. There\u2019s always a natural element to the prints, they\u2019re never from technology.\u201d<\/p>\n Tip #7: Go easy on the accessories.\u00a0<\/b>\u201cA very high quality blanket is something you can have for decades. A 100% wool blanket is the best because wool doesn\u2019t take on odours, and doesn\u2019t absorb and water or spills. You don\u2019t even have to wash it very often. Also, ambient lighting with a dimmer switch. I like keeping my lights low \u2014 almost unbearably low \u2014 I think that creates a really nice atmosphere.\u201d<\/p>\n Tip #8: Cut the clutter — all of it.\u00a0<\/b>\u201cTry to avoid purchasing things \u2014 and if you\u2019re moving into a new place, get rid of as much as possible. The best way to eliminate clutter is to see it. We place too much emphasis on storing things away and get accustomed to hiding our clutter. When you can see your mess, it\u2019ll drive you crazy and you\u2019ll want to throw it out. You can\u2019t be tied to possessions \u2014 these things exist to serve you, they shouldn\u2019t imprison you. I think a lot of people get overburdened by their stuff. Clutter is a very North American problem that speaks to the disposability of this country. People should probably spend an uncomfortable amount of money on certain items. It should be uncomfortable because you should feel it \u2014 that\u2019s what\u2019s going to make you hold on to it longer and take care of it.<\/p>\n If you can go to a big box store and buy most of the things for your home, there\u2019s a huge problem there. We can buy anything we want on credit cards right now, and that\u2019s never happened before. That\u2019s something that\u2019s very \u2018now\u2019 \u2014 we think we should be able to buy a sofa the day we start looking for one. That\u2019s never happened! That expectation never existed. You always thought about what you were buying and it took years for some people to save up for a single piece of furniture. We\u2019re very in the moment, and people have clutter because they\u2019re buying disposable things.\u201d<\/p>\n Tip #9: Look for inspiration in unexpected places.\u00a0<\/b>\u201cMy favourite designers are Alvar Aalto, from Finland, and B\u00f8rge Mogensen, from Denmark. Aalto was very brave and very brilliant. He took a design and brought it to its most simplest form. One of his most famous designs is a three legged stool. It\u2019s so simple but if you change anything, even by a millimetre, it throws off the design completely. Mogensen was \u00a0also a very driven designer. He\u2019s mid-century, and very true to material. He did very little teak furniture, he wanted to stay true to the native woods in Denmark. This was novel at the time \u2014 most people wanted exotic woods and materials. He was a profoundly brilliant designer who inspired many others after him. For inspiration, we go to Scandinavia once or twice a year. It can strike anywhere \u2014 at friend\u2019s house, in a hotel lobby, a restaurant \u2014 you take an element of that experience and recreate it at home.\u201d<\/p>\n![\"john\"](\"https:\/\/www.livabl.com\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/john-1024x905.jpg\")
<\/a>Tip #1: Focus on natural materials. <\/b>\u00a0\u201cA lot of Scandinavian architecture and design is inspired by landscape, and being true to natural materials \u2014 wood, leather, wool, fur. There\u2019s a brightness associated with it as well. Scandinavians have dark winters, so they try to combat that by using pale floors and white walls to keep it clean and pragmatic, but warm.\u201d<\/p>\n![\"DSC_6360\"](\"https:\/\/www.livabl.com\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/DSC_6360-1024x639.jpg\")
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<\/a>Tip #4: Use building materials, textiles and ambient lighting to create warmth.\u00a0<\/b>\u201cI think a wood floor is the foundation of a warm space. Primitive materials like fur, sheepskin and wool are common. But creating warmth isn\u2019t rocket science, it\u2019s more difficult to create intimacy. But in any space \u2014 if you dim the lights, light some candles and have blankets, you can create the feeling. Lighting is quite significant for Scandinavians \u2014 I think they\u2019re one of the biggest innovators for lighting in the world. I always say that lighting and carpet are the two things that people probably spend the least amount of money on, but are perhaps the most significant ways to make a room look complete. Even if you have amazing furniture, there\u2019s always something missing if you don\u2019t get those two elements right.\u201d<\/p>\n![\"DSC_6359\"](\"https:\/\/www.livabl.com\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/DSC_6359-1024x682.jpg\")
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