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We are excited to announce the sale of our rugs fir the first time on Joss and Main – a special sale for the next 72 hours. The rugs that we have curated in our web shop, Scandinavian Made, have these characteristics in common:
They are hand woven by an individual artisan
All the rugs, whether vintage or new, are made in Sweden
They are made with wooden looms
They are exclusively runners of different lengths and widths
They reflect the unique artistic aesthetic of the weaver and are an original piece of art
They have been carefully curated by me (Susan) and Kelly Donovan with our eyes focused on interesting design, use of color, pattern, texture and overall beauty
It’s not always easy to visualize just how a rug may look in your home, especially when you are looking quickly through an assortment of patterns and colors. Here are some tips to find the right Swedish rug from our collection:
1. In an otherwise neutral space, a shot of color, any color, will bring the space to life!
2. Think of these Swedish rugs as works of art and add them to [...]
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We’ve posted before about our affinity for the InSinkErator instant tap. However, the lovely folks at InSinkErator were kind enough to send over another unit and this devotion was taken to new heights immediately upon installation. To clarify, this is the home of a second time new mom, with a newborn and a toddler under the same roof. For the uninitiated, that means the need for lots and lots of purified water, both cold and hot, meals on the table before you can say “I don’t want pasta tonight, mom!” and most importantly, an abundance of coffee. STAT.
The InSinkErator Indulge Instant Water Dispenser has found so many uses in my home and I’d wholeheartedly consider it a must for new parents. Here are just a few uses I’ve found for it just two months in: First and foremost, instant hot water for my beloved Starbucks Via instant coffee any and every time of day. Easy and fast filtered water to drink endlessly and quench my nursing-induced thirst, and a quick filler-up of sippy cups. Readily available boiling water to warm milk for bottles. Instant boiling water for frequent bowls of oatmeal, and pots of aforementioned pasta water. Fast opening of stuck-on [...]
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Everywhere I look, I see small rectangular tile used on backsplashes and upper walls in the kitchen. It’s getting a little bit worrisome to me. It’s worrisome because, having been a kitchen designer since the very late 80s, I have perspective. Perspective helps my clients, and I hope it helps you too.
It started (my professional association with tile) with 4×4 ceramic glazed tiles and pretty fruit and vegetable or flower designs, often seen with corner motifs, sort of that Country Floors look. Definitely gorgeous. Funny, I’m seeing it more and more frequently again and it’s still every bit as beautiful. Like Terracotta flooring, it was very popular, then went away. Now it is returning, at least on the periphery, to fashion again.
Then came 4×4 tumbled marble tile or matte, earthy, or light shades with fancy border tile. Tile was laid on the diagonal as a lower border against the countertop with a thin border tile above with square 4x4s above that (not on the diagonal), all over the backsplash on the diagonal with a square border at the countertop level, or maybe just in the cooktop area.
Later, probably near [...]
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As you’ve no doubt noticed, we’ve recently added the newest member to our family of brands under the Susan Serra Associates umbrella, Scandinavian Made. You’ve heard us talk at length about Scandinavian design and style, as it’s the foundation of not only our heritage but our professional aesthetic as well. Leveraging this passion, we are now bringing the best of authentic Scandinavian handcraft to your home with a carefully curated selection of one-of-a-kind vintage & newly woven rugs, and handcrafted ceramics direct from a select group of Scandinavian artisans. Each of these artisans has never before presented their work in the US, and we are honored and privileged to be the vehicle for their debut on American soil.
Take a peek inside our shop and you’ll be greeted with intricately textured and colored hand woven rugs, rich with a long history of an ancient Scandinavian craft and storied beginnings.
 Vintage Vara Rug
You’ll find delicate, ethereal ceramic work from Bornholm Artisan, Charlotte Thorup, and bold statement pieces Simon Koefoed.
 Charlotte Thorup’s Wall Hanging Tile with Folds
 Simon Koefoed’s Puzzle Bowl
Dynamic texture, complex relief, [...]
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And here is the last, and I hope you’ll agree, the best post of the series on my trip to Kohler’s headquarters at Kohler, Wisconsin. The trip was a visual feast! It was also an actual feast throughout the weekend since my trip was centered around the Kohler Food and Wine Experience – a weekend event (among many all year ’round) that I highly recommend which takes place in October of each year.
The piece de resistance of Kohler Village, to me, is the Kohler Design Center. A three level building of beautiful products and room vignettes in beautiful settings surrounded by fabulous materials, products, accessories and design elements, I want to share some of this gorgeousness with you. Without further ado…here we go (all images have been enthusiastically taken by me)!
Please see MORE images on my pinterest board, “Kohler’s Design Center”, and follow me!
I was so excited and wanted to take as many shots as I could that I did not stop to take note of each and every fixture, fitting or designer’s name. If you have questions, please ask and I’ll get the information to you!
Below, a stunning interplay of warm [...]
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The best part of my trip to Kohler’s headquarters in Kohler, Wisconsin a couple of months back at the invitation of Kohler, was to visit the Kohler Design Center (how could I have said that without four “Kohler’s” in the sentence??) A beautiful brick building in which all of Kohlers brands are showcased, it is a place that will take a design aficianado hours and hours to go through. There is something for everyone.
First, there were selections from Kohler’s furniture brands such as Baker and McGuire…
There was a display of stunning Ann Sacks tile and down the road, a tile store with the complete line
 But here’s what I REALLY came to see, below….and which did not disappoint. In fact, it made me see, as I learned about Kohler through the factory tour as well as discussions with Kohler designers, the incredible depth of design talent, commitment to design, and breadth of style that Kohler embraces and has embraced for decades.
DID YOU KNOW that for nearly 40 years Kohler has offered [...]
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My weekend at Kohler, Wisconsin, at Kohler’s gracious invitation, included attendance at a tempting array of food and wine related events of my choice. As I said in my previous post, I would go back to the Kohler Food and Wine Experience in a heartbeat. The vibe was fun, stimulating, insightful…and quite tasty. From beginning to end, all of my experiences, every one, were sincerely, and very solidly, positive. But first, a bit about the historic American Club Resort. (this season’s winter image below)
A Forbes Five-Star Resort Hotel and AAA Five Diamond Resort Hotel, the American Club Resort was founded by Walter J. Kohler, Sr., originally to provide rooms for immigrant workers who were employed at Kohler. A Tudor style building and interiors, the wood paneled hallways and public spaces lend an air of history and traditional design that is at once comfortable and inviting. The rooms? The word “divine” comes to mind. The bathrooms? Perfect…or certainly, near perfect if one wants to quibble (not me.) But, the weekend (an annual event in October) centered around food and wine, so here’s a little taste (pun intended-image from the seminar on baking with [...]
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“Heat without boundaries”, the holy grail for cooks, chefs, heater-uppers … Thermador introduces a new cooktop with revolutionary natural mapping technology. What is that and what does it mean?
Imagine the following: you are sauteeing ingredients for Thanksgiving stuffing-let’s say onions, celery, and sausage (I’ll also add apple chuncks in mine) in a large pan. Another spot on the cooktop is needed to cook the fresh cranberry sauce. Don’t forget the turkey stock – the stock pot needs a place too.
At different times of the cooking process each piece of cookware needs to be the center of attention, maybe moved to the front or off to the side to simmer or have more intense heat. The ability to move cookware around a cooktop at will is flexibility and freedom for any kind or type of cook. It’s what you can do with the new Thermador Freedom Induction cooktop
I saw this technology first hand at IMM Cologne, Germany, last year, and thought it would be quite awhile before we saw this technology in the US. This is big news, as this Thermador cooktop is the first cooktop with [...]
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Bornholm is such a special place. It is at once simple yet dramatic, heavily textured yet clean, colorful yet sometimes viewed in neutrals for as far as the eye can see. It’s where one side of my family tree is documented, so far, to the mid 1800s, having been born on Bornholm. Funny, the other side of my family tree is documented to the very early 1800s far away from Bornholm, also in Denmark, in Jutland, the largest piece of land one thinks of when one thinks of Denmark.
I went to Bornholm, then to Copenhagen in late August, alone, in search of artisans for my and my daughter’s new brand, Scandinavian Made, a webshop of artisans’ works that are made in Scandinavia, by the artisan, whose works are available in the US exclusively in our webshop.
I drove around Bornholm, often losing my way and not caring, and found the most amazing artisans! The landscape is incredible, the people are friendly and the food is, to me, amazing!! I’ve been to Bornholm before, and it always refreshes my spirit. Here are images of Bornholm in late summer, perfect for this cold winter’s day. All images taken by me.
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We’re thinking about living a healthy life (again) now that New Year’s Day will be here shortly. Can a kitchen be designed that actively contributes to, and encourages, healthy eating? I’m not (entirely) sure, but here’s how I would approach the design, plus a few tips on healthy eating.
Below, a Blanco sink
SINK AREA
Design in two sinks including one prep sink to encourage easy access for prepping fruits and veggies Have colanders near the sink to drain fresh fruits/veggies Have a cutting board near the sink and/or trash for prep work Add a filtered cold water tap to encourage you and your family to drink water Keep the salad spinner nearby
COOKING APPLIANCES & METHODS
Have steam baskets or a portable steamer easily accessible to encourage cooking steamed vegetables Alternatively, design a steam oven into the kitchen to cook vegetables, meat and fish in a healthy manner Add a grill pan to the cooktop, a portable electric grill, or design a built in grill into a new kitchen as a tasty, healthy, cooking method Have on hand an electric rotisserie or a built in rotisserie in the wall or oven for [...]
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The height of the backsplash, the space between the countertop and the bottom of the wall cabinets, is often left as an afterthought by many kitchen designers and homeowners. It’s rare in my experience that the client expresses an opinion about the backsplash height. However, If the height of the backsplash is not considered carefully, comfort and function could very well be at risk and affect one’s lifestyle in the kitchen – for a very long time.
Below, a backsplash height calculated for a variety of issues: a concealed microwave, height of the client, function and display.
Just this morning, I received a question from a fellow kitchen designer. I wrote back an answer and realized that the answer was good information for a blog post.
Hi Susan,
In discussions with my design team I am questioning the distance between the counter top and the bottom of the wall cabinets. Two of my designers, who have over 75 + years of experience feel strongly that “custom design” should be a distance of 15” to maybe 16.5”
I, on the other hand , being 6’3” tall feel that anything less than 18” (or with a [...]
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I’ve been thinking quite a bit about decorating the kitchen for Christmas, and that does not mean that it has to be this big, ambitious, undertaking. Chances are you already have nearly all the “ornaments” that you need on hand to do the job.
 Prior to decorating my own kitchen for Christmas (disclaimer, we moved to this home 3 years ago and have not yet renovated the kitchen so it’s definitely not “me”) I was a guest on Martha Stewart radio on Monday, December 2nd to talk about this very topic. So, let’s get on with the ideas!
Around the same time, I had a lovely offer from Balsam Hill, retailer of artificial Christmas trees to use some of their products in my home. Of course, since the kitchen is usually the poor step sister in terms of Christmas decorating, I thought it was a great topic to share. Here we go!
1. Frame a kitchen window with greens and twinkling lights – or a huge, oversized wreath!
2. Change out dining chair seat cushions, placements and other easily changeable [...]
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I had the pleasure of visiting Cosentino’s headquarters, the parent company of Silestone, in Spain about 6 weeks ago. We toured Barcelona, we dined, we traveled to Almeria, we learned – I was a part of a small group invited to have a well rounded introduction to two fantastic areas of Spain and to have a multi-layered understanding of Cosentino’s breadth of products.
Of course, we all know Silestone as the original engineered stone material for kitchen countertops, a market focus the company has always had and which remains the centerpiece of Cosentino’s efforts. To that end, Silestone continues to introduce interesting, eco-friendly, and highly durable materials into the kitchen and bath marketplace.
That’s a general, and brief, overview, with more details to come. But, I did want to start talking about this trip by showing you some great images of a kitchen that I toured, preserved from the early part of the 20th century. The apartment building in which the kitchen is situated was designed by the amazing Antoni Gaudi called Casa Mila.
Below, the pretty incredible apartment building, designed by Antoni Gaudi…wow!
Below, images of the apartment. But first…I thought it [...]
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As part of the fabulous Blog Tour 2011 group, founded by Veronika Miller of the equally fabulous Modenus.com website, our trip to Decorex, part of the London Design Festival, was simply fantastic, end of story. The creativity and innovation was such a joy to experience. Another type of joy was to see the way that classics, that is, materials or design, were updated to create a new aesthetic, a new definition of classic as well as modern. THAT experience = inspiration.
Here are some kitchen design elements that I found interesting at Decorex.
Below, cabinetry by Woodstock – who doesn’t love that name? Of course, the star is the fresh color, but I love the function too and the height of this taller cabinet.
Below, also from Woodstock, the cool mix of light and dark neutrals. Notice, too, the subtlety of the rounded moldings. Love. Backsplash and styling – needs some love…
Below, gorgeous Dominic-Schuster mirror – could be a backsplash or wall area maybe? For pantry doors? Yummy! [...]
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I had the distinct pleasure and privilege of visiting Kohler at their campus in none other than: Kohler, Wisconsin at their invitation. To see and feel the heartbeat of this great American brand was a professional goal fulfilled. 
John Michael Kohler was 10 years old when his family came to the US from Austria and settled on a farm near St. Paul, Minnesota. At age 18, he moved to Chicago and became a traveling salesman