Denmark released the environment to hygge, the countrywide pursuit of all factors cozy and pleasurable. A thing of a survival system for Danes in the course of the wintertime months, hygge (pronounced HOO-gah) often includes an abundance of candles, crackling fireplaces, comforting meals and the corporation of near pals.
In Sweden, exactly where the winters are even longer, darker and drearier, the concept is named mys (pronounced mees) — or the adjectival mysigt. And whilst the phrases are extremely identical, Swedish mys refers a lot more pointedly to an ultra-cozy atmosphere.
“Hygge is significantly broader than mys,” mentioned Malin Lindqvist, a Swedish cloth designer who moved to Denmark 7 and a fifty percent years ago. The essence of mys is the sensation of heat, like staying wrapped in a woolen blanket amid lighted candles whilst sipping a steaming mug of tea with a purring cat on your lap.
The ideal metropolis to inventory up on mys-generating provides is Stockholm, and the optimum density of tiny, aptly cozy, unbiased retailers and boutiques can be discovered on the streets around Nytorget, a sq. on the southern island of Sodermalm, far from the city’s bustling central procuring district.
“The feeling I want people today to get is that they’re coming dwelling to me,” reported the proprietor, Anders Widegren, though seated in the again area. Amongst the several covetable objects on exhibit, two particularly mysigt picks have been a copper oil lamp from the Swedish brand Klong (2,749 Swedish kronor, about $324) and a distinctive solid-iron pan for making plattar, slim Swedish pancakes the measurement of a coaster generally served as a chilly-climate evening meal in small stacks with butter and jam (529 kronor).
Younger shoppers will locate mys in their sizing at Beton, a serene children’s shop a block and a 50 percent absent. This is the place to inventory up on corduroy bonnets (170 kronor) and knee socks (65 kronor) in neutral earth tones. In its place of vivid colours and plastic toys, the cabinets are crammed with wood rattles, woolen overalls and soft leggings in muted hues from compact, challenging-to-uncover brands.
“To be exceptional in Stockholm is crucial,” said the proprietor, Petra Gardefjord, who acquired a adhering to providing hand-sewn leather moccasins that she taught herself to make for her very own kids.
Right now, the store, which in October moved to a much larger site on the very same block, shares a variety of small moccasins (now developed in Estonia 460 kronor per pair), as perfectly as woven baby baskets, picture books, pacifiers and a unisex outfits line, referred to as Façade, founded by Ms. Gardefjord and Ulrika Nihlén.
Correct following doorway to Beton, the confectionary store Parlans Konfektyr feels like a very small 1950s tearoom, with its vintage appreciate seat, teak side tables and darkish wood-paneled partitions. Observe as staff, frequently adorably dressed in retro outfits, make candies in the adjacent workshop. Then stock up on sweets, especially buttery caramels in seasonal flavors like saffron, cardamom and cinnamon-apple (120 kronor for 15).
A shorter walk absent, a nondescript doorway qualified prospects into the modest showroom of Carina Seth Andersson, a person of Sweden’s primary designers of ceramics and glass objects. This is the location to nab hand-thrown teapots and uncommon exhibition items (most among 500 kronor and 4,000 kronor). In addition to Ms. Andersson’s well-liked Urna, Ming and Pallo vases in measurements little to more-big, you might also find collectible operates from other noteworthy Swedish designers, like Signe Persson-Melin’s cork-taken care of glass teapot.
But if you buy only one particular thing to up the mys-aspect at dwelling, it have to be a candle. Question Swedes what they associate with mys, and the 1st detail that will come up is candlelight. As the daylight hrs dwindle, it becomes a necessity to locate new sources of heat and mild. And positive, standard votives from Ikea will do wonderful. But there’s a circumstance to be manufactured for splurging on hand-dipped candles from Sthlm Ljusstoperi, where slender tapers arrive in numerous hues, styles and sizes (4-packs from 95 kronor).
On the edge of the neighborhood, a quick wander east, the substantial workshop has an on-web site store in which crates are loaded with colorful candles — in pale pink, lilac, prosperous reds and greens. The store also stocks hand-dipped three-armed candles, a standard Swedish fashion usually employed on unique situations and through Introduction.
These looking for a place to relaxation — and just one previous dose of mys — ought to make a remaining cease at Vina, a wine bar a block from Nytorget with one particular of the coziest atmospheres in the neighborhood.
Stage inside from the cold to the homey room, exactly where tables are topped with flickering candles, and the mismatched vintage décor encourages lingering in excess of a glass of wine or two, most likely a compact plate of charcuterie and cheese, or a warming bowl of saffron-scented fish stew. Outside the house, it could possibly be darkish and drizzling, or crystal clear and chilly, but within, it is nothing but mys.