Inside Sophia Roe’s chic Copenhagen apartment​

In our series on interiors, we ask designers and tastemakers to open the doors of their most-loved spaces, sharing the stories, inspirations and favorite pieces within it. Here, designer, stylist and content creator SOPHIA ROE invites us into the dining room of her central Copenhagen apartment, as she unveils the tableware collaboration she has created with her mother, Louise Roe Andersen. By KATIE BERRINGTON

Acreative coming together of minds has shaped Sophia Roe’s apartment in Frederiksberg, Copenhagen. As a stylist and designer, her fashion credentials have given her an acute understanding of “how pieces work on their own, and the stories they can tell when put together”. This is the collaborative approach she takes when curating her interiors and is somewhat symbolic of her relationship with her partner, the photographer Philip Messmann – who, incidentally, shot PORTER’s recent Gillian Anderson cover story. He also works in fashion, and studied architecture for a while. “This all has an impact on how we choose to live, and what to surround ourselves with,” Roe says. “We both [need to] find every corner a bit picturesque.”

The previous owner of their historic apartment in Denmark’s capital-city center lived there for more than 60 years. “Maybe this says something about where we live; it is a place where you immediately feel at home,” says Roe. “We live on the top floor, meaning we get quite a lot of daylight in. I’m very appreciative of that, especially during the long winters. To be able to see the sky brings bliss and clarity to the mind.”

The couple combined their furniture when they moved in. “I quite like to have a mix of both our worlds, so I don’t really mind mixing my furniture with my partner’s,” shares Roe. “Philip has an incredible eye for interiors. Our mix of chairs really shows how it all goes together.”

An artistic eye runs in Roe’s family. Her mother is the interior designer Louise Roe Andersen – of eponymous homeware brand Louise Roe – with whom she has collaborated on a handcrafted tableware collection, bringing her signature style of amalgamating modern and traditional to create heirloom-worthy pieces. “My mother is as creative and curious as I am, and she cared for the home we grew up in. That inspired me for sure.”

The room that brings Roe the most joy is the dining space, “because this is where we spend the most time with the people we love,” she says. “We’re always cooking, ending up with late dinners and blasting out records. It is around the table where interesting conversations arise and new perspectives or friendships are made. When seated around the table, a moment of nowness occurs and no one but the people around the table are in focus, enjoying a home-cooked meal. It feels precious in modern days.” The Louise Roe dining table is the centerpiece: “It almost feels made for this space – it gathers everything around it,” she says of her mother’s design. “It sets the tone. This is a room not just to walk through; it is a place where you stay.”

Roe gets lots of her own influences from books and by traveling. “I am fortunate to be able to travel so much because of what I do, finding inspiration everywhere I go, and through everyone I meet.” When it comes to the design references in her style, she talks of her heritage: some are Scandinavian, particularly in the color palette she prefers (“I find my mind pretty colorful, so I like to balance it with a muted palate for everything outside it”). “But, really, I am much more French,” she continues. “I am a bit of a collector, which is unlike Scandi cleanness. I have a lot of affection for the items in my home and always love the stories that go with them. The same rules go for my closet. I mix vintage with contemporary and bold with fragile. I always find pleasure in looking at fabrics that complement each other and create a new story together.”

When adding to the aesthetic narrative of her space, she likes to look for pieces that re-shape the room – “either with its geometry or a material that tells a story”.

“For me, I find new things tasteful all the time,” says Roe of the complexity of trying to pin down ‘taste’. “I always strive to educate my eye by seeing things through a new perspective – with new references or a new knowledge. Nevertheless, there is no doubt that my taste in interiors is reflected by an aesthetic I’ve always felt drawn towards in fashion and photography. I like to [abide] by the following rule: only if it draws me into a universe; making me feel, dream or aspire. Sustainability is about buying less but buying right, so I tend to go with timeless or personal.”

This rule is true of her most-loved pieces in the apartment. First, the dining table designed by her mother. Then, a vintage version of the striped, sculptural ‘Shogun’ lamp by Artemide. Roe and Messman have the same birthday, so “instead of buying a gift for each other, we buy a gift for us, and our home. This year, it was the lamp, which goes perfectly with my new tableware collection”. And, lastly, “my piano, which I don’t get to play as often as I would like. I’ve always enjoyed classical music. When I do play, it takes me back to my childhood and playing it for hours on end.”