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In pictures: 11 ways to get creative with your Christmas

Houzz.se's Siobhan Lam shares her best tips for breathing fresh Christmas spirit into your home.

Published: 16 December 2016 07:09 CET
In pictures: 11 ways to get creative with your Christmas
How to make a star-garland. Photo: April and the Bear

Christmas is a magical time of the year, but it doesn’t take too much before all the Christmas dinners, mulled wine gatherings, and frenetic shopping makes it an extremely stressful period. Why not take a deep breath and just enjoy the season for what it should be, a time to be creative and spend time with friends and family? Here are some great do-it-yourself tips on how to transform your home into a joyful place to spend the holidays in.

1. Find beauty in the little things

Create a festive feeling with natural materials, such as stripped wood. The shining star below was created by linking together five branches of the same length, then wrapping it in a white string of lights. Simple and very nice.

A perfectly pale interior with Nordic influences

2. Keep it green

Create a simple and natural Christmas feeling in your kitchen by bringing in some green branches to decorate your shelves with. Or go one step further and make your own wreath. Hang it with a wide black and white ribbon, for a wonderfully graphic look.

Kitchen

3. Be creative with the decorations

Christmas tree baubles are a favourite accessory for the simple reason that they can be used virtually anywhere, and instantly brighten up their surroundings. Experiment a little by placing your shiniest gold baubles under a glass dome for a striking display next to the fireplace or on a sideboard. Minimum effort for maximum effect!

Christmas at April and the Bear

4. Let a strong pattern be the focus

This tree pattern has a great impact and is easy to make. Look for some black paper and cut out a variety of tree motifs, then simply stick them on a blank white canvas, or a large white cardboard, for a magical, monochrome look with a festive touch.

A perfectly pale interior with Nordic influences

5. Experiment with string lights

Gather a long string of lights under a glass dome or in a large glass bowl, along with some shiny baubles to capture and refract the light. It creates a shimmering Christmas decoration that will light up the night.

Christmas at April and the Bear

6. Decorate all

When is a tree a Christmas tree? When it is covered in Christmas decorations, of course! Which means that you can go for whatever tree or shrub you can get your hands on, then decorate it with all your heart.

A perfectly pale interior with Nordic influences

7. Make a star-garland

A star-garland might be simple but it's oh so amazing. Cut a simple five-pointed star template out of cardboard or thick paper, and use the template to cut out another 20 to 30 stars in plain white paper. Sew together the stars on a long white thread – boom, you’ve got a beautiful Christmas garland.

Christmas at April and the Bear

9. Branch out

For something so beautiful, this look is surprisingly easy to recreate. On your next outing in the park or the woods, pick some tree branches from the ground and let them dry. Place them in a heavy vase that does not tip and decorate with simple, white stars. Use light decorations though, heavy ones can lead to accidents.

Scandinavian style on a budget in a small city apartment

10. Put the focus on the fun

Pick your favourite animal and put it under a glass dome to create a fun and festive feel. Give it company in the form of candlesticks in similar sizes and cheerful accessories for a playful look. Glass domes can be found at Swedish store Åhléns, among other places.

Scandinavian style on a budget in a small city apartment

11. Create a cheerful wall decoration

Celebrate Christmas in a unique way. This installation has been created by mounting straw hats in the shape of a fir tree, topped with a bright red star. But why stop there? Experiment with other Christmassy accessories such as baubles or glitter for a look that is entirely your own.

Holiday Decor

Get more inspiration in The Local's Homes section

Come see more Nordic lifestyle, design and architecture over at houzz.dk and houzz.se.

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PROPERTY

INTERVIEW: ‘Most foreigners in Sweden don’t know they can get back excess rent’

In Sweden, people subletting apartments are not allowed to charge more in rent than they themselves pay. But foreign subtenants don't always know this. We asked Roland Sjölin, lawyer at the Swedish Tenants' Association, about how to get back excess rent.

Published: 18 April 2024 15:19 CEST
Updated: 21 April 2024 08:12 CEST
INTERVIEW: 'Most foreigners in Sweden don't know they can get back excess rent'

More and more of the people asking the Swedish Tenants’ Association, Hyresgästföreningen in Swedish, for help with excess rent are foreigners, Sjölin told The Local in an interview.

“The problem is that if you’re coming from another country, and you’re subletting an apartment, you’re probably not familiar with the rules in Sweden, because in other countries, it might be okay to overcharge your tenants.” 

He said that clients from India in particular seeking help from the association were now “very common”. 

“Many people come here to work as engineers in the IT sector and then have to rent somewhere,” he said, adding that as a group Indians appeared to be “very aware of their rights.”

Sweden’s rental sector is heavily regulated, with first hand contracts negotiated between landlords and the Tenants’ Association, and the rent that can be charged for second-hand contracts limited to only a small fraction above what the first-hand renter pays. 

“You’re not allowed to make any profit subletting an apartment in Sweden,” Sjölin explains. “You can only charge the subletting tenant the same rent as you [the first-hand tenant] are paying to your landlord, and then you can add the costs for internet and electricity, and perhaps a parking lot, if that is included.” 

Tenants’ Association lawyer Roland Sjölin. Photo: supplied.

You can also add a påslag or “markup”, if you are renting out the apartment fully furnished, but this cannot exceed more than 15 percent of the rent. 

That doesn’t mean that most landlords follow the law. The competition for rental apartments, especially in Stockholm, is so intense, that unscrupulous sublet landlords often try to get away with charging well over the legal amount, charging what is known in Sweden as ockerhyra, or “excess rent” and hoping that their tenants are too desperate to complain.  

What many foreigners do not realise is that even after the rental period is over, they can still get back any excess rent they have paid by applying to the Rental Board or Hyresnämnden, which functions like a court judging rental disputes. 

“If you have the evidence then it’s fairly easy,” Sjölin said. “I get a new case every second week on repayment of unfair rent, and I think that I win most of them.” 

“Nowadays, you can get paid back excess rent up to 24 months back in time, so people tend to get more money,” he added. “In some cases, they can get 200,000 kronor. In other cases, perhaps it’s only 30,000 kronor or 60,000 kronor. It depends on how long you have rented the apartment, and how excessive the rent you’ve been paying has been.”

The first step is to establish what would have been a fair rent, either by asking your landlord what they themselves pay directly or by checking with the Tenants’ Association.

“Because we negotiate most rents in Sweden, we normally know what the firsthand rent is,” Sjölin explained.

Then you need to collect together your evidence.

“It’s a good thing to have a written contract and also papers from your bank showing that you paid rent every month, and perhaps photographs of the apartment, so the rental board can get an idea of the apartment you were renting and what would be a fair rent, and also the termination for the contract so you can show the court how long you’ve been living in the apartment.” 

But Sjölin underlined that since Sweden has free burden of evidence, none of this is essential. 

“Even if you’ve been paying in cash, if you have witnesses who can testify what you were paying each month, you still have a chance of getting your money back. It’s a bit more tricky, but I’ve won two cases like that this year.” 

People in Sweden, he explained, tend to wait until the rental period is over before seeking to get paid back excess rent rather than challenging their landlord while they are still living in the apartment. 

“You don’t have any legal protection for your home for the first two years, so if you bring the matter up with the person you’re renting the apartment from you risk losing your contract and having to move out, so most people wait until they’re supposed to move anyway,” he said.

If you apply to the rental board for a refund close to the day you move out, you can then make your landlord pay back all excess rent paid in the 24 months leading up to the date you contacted the rental board.

If you are a member of the Tenants’ Association, you can contact them and ask for help with your application, but there are also specialist companies, like Orimlig Hyra AB who will buy your case off you and give you a refund within 48 hours, saving you a long wait in exchange for a cut of the money reclaimed. 

Sjölin said that the rental board normally took about 8 months to come to a judgement, but that if the person with the first hand contract appeals, that could extend the waiting time by between six months and a year.

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