Kenya meets Sweden this winter

Two designer families from two different parts of the world are the creative minds behind VÄRMER, a new collection of furniture, textiles, decoration and more that make the winter holidays even greater – wherever you live.
Time to be together
VÄRMER is designed by Kenyan couple Bethan Rayner and Naeem Biviji and Swedish Sarah and Jens Fager. The collection is all about making it easier and more fun to spend time together during a season when we, hopefully, have a bit more time to spare. It’s also a way of exploring how the holidays are spent in two different parts of the world (not that differently, as it turns out).
Indoor cocooning…
In southern Sweden, where Sarah and Jens Fager live, autumn and winter tend to be wet, cold and dark, which isn’t necessarily as rough as it sounds. “We really love the holiday season, cosying up with family and friends, cooking, crafting, and playing games, so the items we’ve designed for VÄRMER are very personal. We’ve created functional objects, with a high design value, made in materials that will last for many years to come”, says Sarah.
… and outdoor festivities
In Kenya you don’t cosy up indoors, quite the opposite. “The whole country stops from the 15th of December until the New Year. It gets hot and avocado and mango come into season. It’s a festive time when everyone hangs out together outdoors”, says Bethan. The products are inspired by their own families’ different ways of celebrating the holidays, and by the Kenyan traditions. “On the whole, our products are about making it easier and more fun to get together. Hopefully people will use them all regardless of the season.”
“We really love the holiday season, cosying up with family and friends, cooking, crafting, and playing games, so the items we’ve designed for VÄRMER are very personal.”
Sarah Fager, Designer
“We really love the holiday season, cosying up with family and friends, cooking, crafting, and playing games, so the items we’ve designed for VÄRMER are very personal.”
Sarah Fager, Designer
We love to see our customers get creative with our products. Go for it! But please note that altering or modifying IKEA products so they can no longer be re-sold or used for their original purpose, means the IKEA commercial guarantees and your right to return the products will be lost.
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