Niki Brantmark’s dream wardrobe

Niki Brantmark of the popular design blog My Scandinavian Home has created the storage space of dreams. With the help of Elfa’s storage expert Christine Dahlman, Niki has re-structured her home’s storage in different phases. The process happened gradually, room by room, and first up was Niki’s own wardrobe.

By Charlotta Flinkenberg Photo Niki Brantmark

Where we live

The Brantmark family is Niki, 45, her husband Per, daughters Allie, 14, and Liv, almost 14, and Per’s son Albin, 21. They live in a 150-square-metre house by the sea in Malmö. Follow Niki here: @myscandinavianhome www.myscandinavianhome.com

The year that storage was prioritised

Interiors stylist and writer Niki Brantmark runs the popular blog My Scandinavian Home (which also has an impressive 380,000 followers on Instagram) and has been named one of the world’s 10 leading accounts for interiors inspiration by Vogue. She is from London, but moved to Sweden in 2004 and is married to Swede Per. “You Scandinavians always have such clean homes! Maybe that’s because you own fewer things than us Brits. I promised myself that 2022 would be the year I prioritised tidiness and smart storage solutions in our home!”

Niki previously kept her clothes in a cramped little wardrobe sandwiched between her daughters’ bedrooms, one floor down from the master bedroom.

“The wardrobe was completely useless, I couldn’t find what I wanted and used maybe one per cent of my clothes.”

The master bedroom offered no optimal spot to place a wardrobe. With a sloped ceiling, a staircase on one side and a big radiator in the way on the other, it called for expert help.

“We decided to remove the radiator as we weren’t using it anyway. We covered the triangle-shaped hollow formed above the wardrobe with a front, but it can still be used as hidden storage for pillows and duvets and other things that aren’t used much.”

A tailor-made system

On the left-hand side of the wardrobe wire shelves were used, for more airy storage.

“On the whole, life is always changing, and so are the seasons. With this system you can both add and remove parts to suit your needs.”

On the right, mesh baskets for accessories and gliding mesh drawers with Décor drawer fronts were chosen.

Finding lost treasures in the wardrobe

“I was pleasantly surprised to discover clothes I own that I’d forgotten about. It’s easier to put outfits together now with this clear overview. I can happily admit that my style has improved significantly since the wardrobe makeover!”

Bedroom inspiration

An easily surveyable wardrobe

The accessories tray comes in a luxurious, light-grey velvet and fits perfectly in the gliding mesh/wire drawers.

From a sad, cramped spot in a badly organised wardrobe, garments now get to show themselves off, and accessories are easier to find through smart placement.

Fixed dividers on the wire shelves make it simple and easy to keep clothes tidy.

What are you especially pleased with?

“The shelf dividers, which mean that my folded jumpers stay Marie-Kondo neat, without moving around or falling out.”

The gliding pant racks make it easier to find the right trousers.

Flexible system with a make-up area

The make-up mirror is a simple, “click-in-place” model, and can be placed as high or as low as you want.

She goes on excitedly:

“But perhaps above all the right-hand side of the wardrobe, where I got my own make-up mirror and spot to do make-up. Oh, the joy! Here I can finally get some peace while putting myself together. I used to do my make-up in the bathroom, but it’s a shared bathroom and it’s complete Piccadilly Circus in there. It’s so amazing to be able to stand here at my mirror and do myself up in peace and quiet.”

The smart shoe racks can be pulled out and are easily clicked in place between two consoles.

Did you ever change your mind about where the clothes and shoes should go during the assembly process itself?

“Actually, I did! For example, initially I’d thought of having a shoe rack right under my long dresses. But the dresses would brush against my not-always-great-smelling trainers, so it didn’t feel right, and so we removed that shelf.”