Tradition reimagined at the Dinesen Country Home

I shared a peek inside Danish timber specialist Dinesen’s Copenhagen showroom last summer, but did you know that it also has a countryside base – and that you can stay there? Originally the private home of the Dinesen family, it occupies a 19th-century thatched longhouse set amid meadows and forests beside the company’s manufacturing facility in Jels, southern Jutland. It was first converted into an event space and guesthouse in 2004 by architect Jørgen Overby, who restored its historical proportions and period details, and it has now evolved once again thanks to Mathias Mentze and Alexander Ottenstein of design studio Mentze Ottenstein.

The Copenhagen-based duo wanted to celebrate the house’s past and present by blending traditional and contemporary elements with a touch of the unexpected. The result is a space that’s both timeless and current – a showcase of Dinesen’s DNA and the building’s long heritage that nevertheless remains open to future alterations.

As you’d expect, wood takes centre stage. It appears in numerous iterations, with white-soaped Douglas-fir floors, rough wall boards and darker walnut and pear accents highlighting its beauty and versatility as a material.

Colour also plays a significant role. In place of the previous all-white palette, Mentze Ottenstein used a range of nature-inspired hues that transition from light and airy to moody and cocooning. “We wanted the rooms to unfold like chapters in a story,” they explain. “We maintained a consistent colour for door frames and ceiling beams while introducing a gradient from brighter colours to cosier tones.”

The kitchen, for example, is painted in a soft green that reflects the rural surroundings. Other rooms are decorated in a warm ochre, while the darker hues of the library create a cosseting refuge. In the living room, gentle beige walls and a muddy-brown ceiling lend an intimate feel without making the space overly gloomy.

Another key aspect of Mentze Ottenstein’s vision was making the space feel like an authentic home rather than a contrived showroom. The furniture and accessories are a major part of this, with the minimalist lines of John Pawson’s Dinesen furniture collection sitting alongside bespoke items and time-worn antiques.

“This dialogue between the old and the new gives the house a sense of life and continuity,” the duo say. “In the past, people lived with heirlooms passed down from generation to generation – objects with meaning tied to them, more than just aesthetic value. We believe that the narrative – the stories these objects carry – is important.”

Many of the pieces are custom-made, often in collaboration with artists and other designers. The ash cabinetry and oak bedside tables were designed by Mentze Ottenstein and crafted by local artisans, with finishing oil giving them a warm amber tone. Dotted here and there are walnut and pear bowls, designed by Peter Møller Rasmussen and Christian Vennerstrøm and hand-turned by carpenters in Georgia, who also created the knobs and cupboard hooks used throughout the house. There are also bespoke chairs by RønholtKurz, glassware by Alexander Kirkeby, and a series of lamps created in partnership with glass artist Nina Nørgaard.

Much of Mentze Ottenstein’s additions centred on bringing back a sense of identity and place. Several bedrooms, for instance, feature a contemporary take on the alcove beds that would have been present in most country houses in the region. One is also decorated with hand-printed wallpaper, designed around leaves found in the grounds and made using a traditional copper printing press, linseed-oil paint and Hahnemühle cotton paper.

All in all, the redesigned house is a wonderful balance between past and present, heritage and innovation, history and modernity. It’s considered, characterful and at times surprising, and it’s deeply rooted in its setting – exactly the kind of restoration I like to see.

The Dinesen Country Home is open by invitation, with some availability for public bookings on selected dates. Find out more here.

All photography by Monica Grue Steffensen, courtesy of Dinesen