We had chosen our new apartment in Switzerland via video calls and sought out a fool-proof blank canvas as an apartment. In the months leading up to our move from our big-city London life, I spent days imagining how I wanted to feel in our new home – connected, relaxed, welcomed. I dreamt of the views out our new window, which would allow me to feel immersed in nature and fully experience seasons and see stars again at night. I hoped that the peace would enable me to become more present for my children. But ultimately, I knew that feeling happy at home would make or break this big move and whether I would be able to settle into this ‘new world’ of rural Swiss life.
Today, a year after the big move to Zug, my once white box of an apartment is successfully fulfilling all the dreams I had back in London. By taking into account ambience, furniture and honouring our family’s story, our apartment is my refuge after a difficult day wading through the challenges of our new life. Here are the steps I took to get there
Creating an Ambience with Lighting
Our ultra-modern Zug apartment, with its non-descript uniform white painted walls, was the complete opposite of the character-filled home back in London, and so I knew the walls, flooring, and lighting were the vital starting point. Add the flat light caused by thick fog in the colder months, and lighting rushed to the top of my priority list.
We arrived greeted by such little overhead lighting that I couldn’t help but wonder how puzzled my spotlight mad family in the UK would feel about such a scenario! But as a long-standing interior enthusiast, I was grateful for the opportunity to curate my lighting for different moods from scratch. I adore lamps and view them as hygge inducing sculptures along with flickering candles and crackling fires.
I started with purchasing a pendant light above my dining table as I saw the opportunity to create a statement and bring some “je ne sais quoi” to my space. After deliberating long and hard between the many exciting options, I eventually chose the oversized Akari pendant from Swiss company Vitra for its paper-moon style glowing aesthetic. Japanese designer Noguchi designed this collection and claimed ‘all you need to start a home is a room, an Akari and a tatami (bed).
My most prized table lamp is a stunner of a second-hand find produced by Porto Romano. This glass wonder is proudly displayed on my kitchen counter as I love to adorn this highly frequented area with beautiful things. Second-hand shops or Brocki’s (short for Brockenstube) can be immensely rewarding when luck strikes as it did here. Zara home is also a treasure trove of beautiful table lamps.
Tip: Utilised lamps in pairs to bring symmetry and balance.
As an avoider of overhead spotlights, I also sought out some good functional solutions to ambient lighting. I like the Foscarini twiggy floor lamp as it throws significant amounts of dimmable light and is very powerful in illuminating a bigger room. I have also utilised low floor uplighters (found at homeloft.ch) to create a soothing evening atmosphere and illuminate art pieces. Ikea has also cleverly continuously upped its ambient lighting game over the years, as Kristin details in her surviving winter article here.
Choosing Furniture: Mix the old with the new
Although we had wished for a blank canvas, we were surprised our apartment literally came without any wardrobes, which we now know is very common in Switzerland. So we took the opportunity to start over and choose excellent storage – after all, we had to cover now even deeper Winters than we had experienced in London! We settled on Ikea’s Pax’ bedroom cupboards, which have to be my most practical wardrobe solutions to date. I designed how they should be configured and got every shoe, bracelet and blazer covered as per the Netflix documentary’ “Home Edit” style! Although our apartment is not huge, we have mentally tripled the space thanks to several of Ikea’s discreet and modular solutions.
Our Tufty-Time modern sofas, which fit perfectly into my last three very different homes, also felt right at home in our Zug apartment. They reminded me that high quality, multifunctional pieces stand the test of time, an essential aspect of my design philosophy. So when it came to choosing a bed for my toddler, I went with a daybed (bought from mylittleroom.ch), which I know will make a great window seat in the living room if he opts for a different bed as a teenager. Less can really be more; hence I try to save up and buy fewer but quality pieces that truly speak to me.
Tip: A daybed is generally a great multitasker- in an office as a guest bed and blends in as a sofa or low lounger.
Tell Your Story
With the practical aspects in place, it was time to have some fun displaying personal touches, which tell our family’s story and help us fuse our culture blend.
The Swiss flag is such a vibrant red, and the country’s folk art is so beautiful that even souvenir shops selling edelweiss tea-towels and Z’nuni bags can bring pleasure to mundane everyday tasks. As I am “Married Swiss”, we have old Swiss clocks and hand-painted family objects which tell of our pasts and root us in our surroundings.
I don’t have a lot of conventional art, but I have taken to framing unusual objects over the years that mean something to me, like my wedding lehenga (Indian wedding costume) – a nod to my culture. I would also like to frame a couple of silk scarves which I don’t wear enough, although they carry great beauty and sentimental value.
Tip: Think out of the box when it comes to what constitutes as art
Bringing the Outdoors in
Absorbing nature was a goal for me; hence much inspiration has been taken from my window view. I have mirrored the lake colour indoors using accent pieces like hand-dyed ‘lake blue’ velvet cushions by Kirsten Hecktermann and tried to reflect the plants and the trees outside by displaying foliage fitting in with the season.
Speaking of seasons, Winter is approaching, and my wooden floors are screaming for warmth. I plan to raid the local interiors store Variakantikum for tactile layers of throws and sheepskins and dream of a rug from local entrepreneur “My Moroccan Rugs” for its plush finishes and ambient colours.
Tip: Reflect the colours you see outside your home through your soft furnishings.
During a year of wavering homesickness, I have been grateful to carve out my sanctuary, which I hope also helps the children feel safe and protected. I organised my home well with versatile storage; hence I have significantly less housework than in London. We now live on one level, and I am definitely more ‘present’ with my children. Swiss nature has truly tranquillised me, and I am grateful to point out different moon phases to my children from the ever-changing nature views I had daydreamed. A photo wall is the final piece that is needed to make my house feel like home. It will feature mountain life, London and India as these places all form part of our journey now arriving in Zug as home.
Books to Inspire Dreamy Interiors
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- Down to Earth Laid-Back interiors for modern living – Lauren Liess
- Timeless Interiors by Axel Vervoordt – Armelle Baron and Christian Sarramon
- Living Beautiful –Athena Calderone
- The Way We Live – Thames and Hudson
Geeta’s Black Book Zug
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- Variantikum Wohnen und Schenken Zug: Smeg kettles, cushions and throws, basically a haven for warmth on the inside
- Scherbengraben Zug: Mud Australia, rare candles and unique napkins. Pleasure in the things you use the most.
- Hans Hassler Boden und Vorhang Zug: Made to measure curtains for a variety of budgets and requirements
- Wunderbox Zug: Since souvenir shops in Switzerland are literally wonderful!
- Brocki Zug: You can find great things whilst supporting a great cause
- www.houseofnovus.com: Interior designers with an affordable approach
- www.my-moroccan-rug.com: Otherwordly beauty and coziness under your feet
- Einzigart Zurich – selected design: A train ride for me to a cool area in Zurich brimming with Einzigartig boutiques!
- Bluemelaube Zug: My favourite florist to buy from in Zug although a stroll around bellefleur is also a feast for the eyes.
- Katrina Phillips Portobello Road London: Since this a London-Zug, meet my favourite interior designer who has a shop in London’s Nottinghill as well as an insightful instagram account. Find tuxedo shirts which crumple into balls, cleansing bonfires, Ethiopian pilgrim forks and more.
- Gert Billing at Galerie Billing Bild, Art framing Baar: Good framing can make an art piece.
- Schwitter garden centre, Inwil: Metres and metres of incredible plants for when Landi does not cut it.
