Post: #1

So, I bought an apartment, 3-rooms reasonably close to central Copenhagen. Right now, I'm scraping off the wall-paper to get it ready to paint - and fuck me, that's a pain in the ass.

I still haven't decided on a color for afterwards. It's Denmark, so it gets really dark in the winter. Most Danes prefer white and quite light colors because there isn't much sunlight for a lot of the year - stupid North Atlantic weather. Think the opposite of California or Southern Europe.

That said, I want to choose something that will make the pad lady-friendly, without being overtly flamboyant, gay or any of that. Stylewise I'm pretty conservative - if I make a statement, it's usually subtle and in the details. Also helps that whatever I do makes the place easy to resell...

Anyone have any good ideas or know where I could go for inspiration? The next 6 months I'm going to spend perfecting the crib...

Post: #2

Tillykke med lejligheden!

I'm nowhere near being an expert on interior decoration, but here goes -

Consider painting most of the walls white, with one wall of a different colour in each room. Something like a gray-blue or an earthy gray could work well if you want understated. Or you can go bold with a blood red or similar since it's just on one wall.

Consider getting big mirrors. Girls love mirrors and they really improve light and add a sense of space. Give a lot of thought to the lighting and how you distribute the lights. Half the battle is getting the lighting right. You'll want to be able to dim the lighting at night and be able to get it really bright on those dark winter mornings.

Pick up some interior decoration books for specific ideas or look at decorating blogs. Decide what overall style you want to go for and stick to it. As for making it lady friendly the most important aspects are comfort and showing your personality. Some nice sofas should take care of the comfort aspect; knick knacks, posters or art can make for nice conversation starters.

There's a ton of resources out there and you might as well just copy things you've seen that you like. Also ask your girlfriends for specific tips; they'll love giving advice.

Problem with decorating is that it's so dependent on the layout of the flat along with your individual style that it's hard to give any general tips.

Finally, before committing to a colour get a sample and put a little on the wall before going with it. Can look very different once up on the wall from how it looks on the swatch.