Ever since Sebastian Bergström's colour-packed house landed on the House & Garden website, it has inspired admiration and envy in equal measure. It is his colour theory in particular – bold reds and oranges paired with dreamy sky blues – that people are so drawn to.
It’s surprising to learn, then, that Sebastian's house started out as a mostly grey and white space. ‘I realised that colours have a huge impact on me,’ explains Sebastian, who gradually added splashes of paint here and there to inject the flat with a more playful air. Growing in confidence, he soon learnt to trust his ‘gut feeling’. Now when he decorates a room ‘it starts with the colours.’
Here, we breakdown some of the most commonly used paints in this Swedish flat.
In Sebastian's living room, his walls are decidedly neutral whilst colour is brought in through the furnishings. The cabinet is painted in Farrow & Ball's ‘Oval Room Blue’, which Sebastian calls the perfect backdrop for his tomato-red chairs, which are painted in ‘Heat’ by Little Greene.
From another angle, a row of five shelves can be seen. Painted in ‘Lemon Tree’ by Little Greene, they offer a citric relief to some of the punchier colours.
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MAY WE SUGGEST: Sebastian Bergström's tiny flat in Stockholm is a masterclass in combining colours
'I saw a shop in Copenhagen that had a lovely blue on their walls, so I decided to go for a blue hallway after initially painting it rather a boring green,' says Sebastian. 'My family wasn't so sure about the colour, but I trusted my gut feeling and started to paint and have never regretted it. It feels so welcoming now and I get a peaceful sensation every time I walk in the door.' The colour is ‘Misty Dijon’ by the Swedish brand Nordsjö. The chest is painted in 'Sage and Onions' by Little Greene, as is the table in the sitting room.
Sebastian's living room opens into the bedroom, which used to be twice as wide, extending into what is now the kitchen. The walls are painted in ‘Celestial White’ by Little Greene.
In the kitchen, which is connected to the bedroom via an internal window, the shelves are painted in ‘Heat’ by Little Greene, and contain a collection of dishes and pots, including some pieces of blue and white English porcelain. The cabinets are painted in ‘Sudbury Yellow’ by Farrow & Ball.
Sebastian has used a cheerful shade called ‘Vete’ by Auro in the bathroom. He renovated it a few years ago, added panelling to create a softer space.
