Kitchen of the Week: A Restored Early 20th-Century Kitchen on Bornholm
On the Danish island of Bornholm, real estate agents Mads and Nanna Löwe Bruun have carefully restored an early 1900s estate—returning it to a working house with an emphasis on material integrity. Across the interiors, original details were either preserved or rebuilt: panels and moldings reintroduced around each doorway, woodwork finished in traditional linseed oil paint, and walls treated with breathable limewash.
In the kitchen, the approach is both practical and exacting. Cabinetry and trim are painted in muted yellow tones from Linolie & Pigment, giving the room a soft and reflective warmth. Anchored by an ILVE Majestic range, vintage lighting, and a mix of Scandinavian and European pieces, the kitchen is where the project is most fully realized: restored with care and built for everyday use.
Above: The floors were finished with pigmented stain wood oil and four layers of lacquer. The stain is 52 Balmoral Satin Wood Oil from Linolie & Pigment. The chair is the Fritz Hansen Pelagus Lounge Chair.
Nanna is a native Bornholmer who, after twenty years living away from the island, decided to move with her family to this home in Gudhjem, the same town where her grandparents and mother grew up. Nanna and Mads operate their own real estate agency, Löwe Bruun, out of Gudhjem, specializing in properties throughout Bornholm.
Above: The kitchen is brought to life through a considered palette of pale yellows—85 Vintergul and 86 Strandgul from Linolie & Pigment. The walls are painted in limewash.
Above: The wood countertops are finished with Linolie & Pigment’s 52 Balmoral Satin Wood Oil. The bridge faucet was sourced from Devonshire, England. The kitchen baseboards are painted in a contrasting 72 Nærvær.
Above: The cabinet finish, characteristic of linseed oil paint, has a depth that shifts with the light rather than sitting flat on the surface.
Above: The range is a traditional ILVE Majestic Oven.
Above: Open shelving holds a collection of antique Sicilian splatterware. The wall lights are a Harald Notini 1930s design.
Above: Original peg rails were painted in the same shade of yellow.
Above: The dining room features a set of Fritz Hansen Directors Chairs.
Above: Hanging above the kitchen island is an Italian bronze and marbled glass pendant.
Above: A view from the side of the property.
Above: The estate contains a 160-square-meter house with four bedrooms and a single bathroom. The estate is also available as a holiday rental through Landfolk.
For more Scandinavian kitchens, see our posts:
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