Turns out, the American West is no stranger to the long-beloved Danish philosophy of hygge: the intentional creation of cozy and comfortable, very social surroundings for a well-lived life. As the Oxford English Dictionary describes it: “(from Danish) the quality of being warm and comfortable that gives a feeling of happiness.” Better than running to the dictionary, though, is a conversation with Alexandra Gove and Koen van Renswoude, the founders of Hygge Life in Vail, Colorado.
It all started in Vail, where Gove and van Renswoude first met in 2011. Despite their different upbringings and different cultures — she from Colorado, he from the Netherlands — the pair quickly found a shared desire to pursue a happy, intentional, slow lifestyle. Their mountain-town romance led to a move overseas, where they discovered their own talent for creating hygge environments and experiences.
Back in the States, devoted to each other and their shared passion for the hygge life, the idea for a home goods store was born. They opened the Hygge Life showroom in 2017 in its original Vail Valley location, built around the realization that well-designed, grounded spaces and thoughtful objects could help cultivate that hygge feeling. They have since become nationally recognized experts in this design and lifestyle movement and have, , , goop, , , and more. In 2019, Gove published , which chronicles the couple’s daily practice of hygge and their thoughtful home design practices.
