Before & After: An Old Swedish Croft Becomes a Charming Summer Cottage

It's so easy to become 'home blind', don't you think? I find it's only when I come back from holiday or a time away that I see the changes that need to the made to our house (cue - flying about rearranging furniture and adjusting things before we've even unpacked!). That's why I marvelled at the transformation of this Swedish croft. 

Built in the 1900 as a place to house the elderly members of the family and farm workers, the property on Torsö island, lake Vänern has now fallen into the hands of wedding photographer Johanna Carlsson and her husband Vicktor and their dogs Nalle and Doris. Despite growing up with the croft, Johanna had a keen idea of how she wanted the interior to look - and the pair have been renovating it little by little to transform it into a beautiful cottage in which while away the summer. Here are a few pictures (including some before and after):  

The outside has been given a refresh, while keeping the quintessentially Swedish red and white facade intact. 

A porch area doubles up as a sunroom in which to enjoy 'fika' and meals bathed in natural light. 

Kitchen before

Kitchen after

Simple updates such as a new handmade worktop and longer linen curtains have helped to bring this kitchen up to date while maintaining the relaxed traditional feel. 

Sitting room before

Mix and match furniture has its charm, but it's not always the most practical or comfortable. 

Sitting room after

Johanna and Viktor updated the room using wallpaper from Boråstapeter and then furnished it with a comfy sofa (as modelled by Doris) and a handmade table with rustic charm. 

Bedroom before

The pair sleep in what was formerly a children's bedroom with bunkbeds.

I spy stickers - can I get a show of hands for anyone who has spent hours trying to get rid of the residue from doors, beds and other furniture in a children's room? I was scrubbing away on Allie's door just the other week. Mind you, stickers are at least better than slime, there's an outright ban on that stuff in our home! 

Bedroom after

It's hard to imagine that this delightful space is the same room! 

Tulippa wallpaper Boråstapeter adds character to the bedroom while a bedskirt gives the space a traditional touch. 

Outhouse before

Outhouse after

An outhouse on the grounds, previously used for storage, was cleared out and repainted - creating a perfect place for midsummer gatherings.

A simple outdoor shower means the couple can wash under the open-sky and make the most of the long summer days! 

Such a charming summer cottage, don't you think? 

If you'd to keep up to date with Johanna's latest renovation projects, follow along over at @torptokig. 

As you know by the sheer number of pretty red and white Swedish summer cottages I've been featuring lately, I'm not quite ready to let go of summer just yet. But as we near mid-September the autumn feeling is in the air and I'm going to have to concede that summer is over! I'm looking forward to sharing some Scandinavian city apartments with you next week! Stay tuned! 

Before I head off for the weekend, I also wanted to share with you, that as a London girl (who's been living in Sweden for over 18 years), it was with a heavy heart that I heard the news about Queen Elizabeth II yesterday. Her Majesty was a truly remarkable person who has always been there throughout our lives. I particularly admired her professionalism and commitment to duty but also how warm and personable she was, with a wonderful sense of humour. In the words of Paddington Bear: Thank you Ma'am, for everything. 

Wishing you all a lovely weekend, 

Stor kram

Niki

Photography courtesy of Johanna Carlsson, shared with kind permission. 

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An Abandoned Property Becomes a Beautiful Swedish Country Home

Do you ever walk / drive passed a dilapidated house and dream about transforming it into a beautiful home? I definitely have - I was even close to dropping a note in a mailbox once to see if the owners would sell! But for Lisa and her fiancé Gusten and daughter Lilly this wasn't necessary as the property was already in the family, it just needed a huge amount of tender loving care! Here's Lisa to pick up the thread, and tell us all about the renovation of her beautiful house in the forests of Småland, Southern Sweden in her own words: 

"The house has been in my fiancés family since it was built in 1912. His grandmother's cousins used to live here so she spent a lot of time here as a child. When the old man who lived alone in the house died, my Father-in-law bought the house (and the surrounding forest) and my fiancé started to dream about renovating the house some day."

Exterior before

"When we met, he took me to see the house one June. It had been abandoned several years before, the paint was cracking, and it was in need of a great deal of love and work! 

Exterior after

"As soon as I walked inside, I fell in love with the old floors, original double doors, large rooms, fireplaces, porch and big garden. We were only in our early twenties, but we started to discuss buying the house some day."

Porch before

"In the fall of 2016, we applied a small loan and were able to buy the house. We had just finished our studies and recently started working. We hadn't had the time or means to save any money, so we needed to work with what we had, which meant do everything ourselves."

Porch after

"We started working on the house on the weekends, but quickly realised it would take up all of our spare time, so we started to work on it every evening after work too. We'd stay until sunset, head back home for the night, go to work, before returning the following evening. We spent every weekend, evening and holiday working on it. We also saved as much money as we could - which meant no fancy cars, no vacations abroad -everything we had went into the renovation."  

Kitchen before

"We did everything we could ourselves: changed the windows, renovated the wood on the exterior, changed the water pipes, put in a new bathroom, kitchen etc. We had to learn everything from scratch - I'd never even painted an item of furniture before! We also received a lot of help from family."

Kitchen after

"We renovated in this way for two and a half years, the last nine months of which I was pregnant with our first child. I was painting the house when my waters broke!" 

Sitting room before 

Sitting room after

"It was very  important to us for every detail to reflect the age of the house, while ensuring a modern standard of living. We chose windows in wood - which were specially made to look like the old ones. We restored the fireplaces and renovated and painted the porch in linseed oil so it would last a lifetime." 

Bedroom before 

Bedroom after

"I would describe our style as a mix of Swedish country with touches of mansion glamour. We decorate with lot of second hand furniture and I like to invest a little more in accessories and paintings that will last a lifetime - instead of needing to replace them in the near future. Sustainability is key."

Lilly's bedroom 

"My fiancé and I and our three-month-old daughter moved in to the house in the spring of 2019. It wasn't ready but it was in liveable condition." 

Bathroom before

Even though we've lived here for quite a few years now, the house still isn't finished. We have a lot of projects left - for example, there's a lot of work left to do on the garden, and we need to renovate the outhouses. We see this house as a lifetime project. It's our dream home and the place we're looking forward to raising our children. 

Bathroom after

Thank you so much for sharing your story, Lisa! Truly inspiring! 

It feels all the more special looking at the pictures, knowing that so much work has gone into it. 

For more information about Lisa's country home and to follow her latest projects, head over to  @faggemala1912. 

Would you like to see a few other inspiring renovation projects today? Check out: 

A dated property is restored to a dream Swedish country home

A rundown croft becomes an idyllic Swedish summer cottage

A Swedish country house is restored to its former glory

Are you tempted to take on a project like this? Or perhaps you already have? I'd love to hear about your experience below! 

Niki

Photography and words courtesy of @faggemala1912

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Tiny Cabin Update: Panelling, Wood floors & Our Cosy Bed Nook

Disclosure: Norrlands Trä have kindly agreed to collaborate with us on this project

Things are taking shape in our little cabin at a rapid pace, so I felt it was time for an update!

Here's the lowdown and a few snapshots - plus I'm looking for some advice on the mattress situation further down the post (looking at you van owners!), please feel free to share your tips in the comment section and ask any questions!

Wall and ceiling panels

As you know, we were adamant about having panelling as we felt it would be a great way to create a relaxed coastal cabin feel. Are you a fan too? 

Having researched the various different styles of panelling - from contemporary to traditional we settled on the more modern Borstad Slätspont in white S0502-Y from Swedish brand Norrlands Trä. 

The wall and ceiling panelling gave the cabin an instant lift and feels contemporary yet coastal, smart yet relaxed - I love it when a plan comes together! 

Wood floor

The day I took the above picture it was freezing outside, and I couldn't help thinking how 'cold' the cabin felt with the concrete foundation. So, I quickly got to work on finding a wood floor.

We decided on the primed parquet pine floor in ultra protect white, also from Norrlands Trä. Light pine is a classic choice for Swedish summer cottages as it has a pared back, understated feel yet still has that wonderful softness and warmth. 

Side note: Pine is soft, which means it can be dented / marked quite easily. If you do go for this type of flooring, it's something you ned to bear in mind. We figured that wood is a living, breathing material which changes with time, and we'd embrace any marks the family make! Having said that, we'll be laying rugs in 'high flow' spots such as the kitchen, living room and dining area to protect the floor and add that all important hygge! 

After: 

I love that you can clearly see the grain and knots in the wood, it really helps to draw nature indoors and adds texture and depth to the space. 

The bed nook

In our plans, we included a nook for a 160 cm bed (with more space bunks in the loft). Since the cabin is small (30 m2 / 322 sq ft) it would also need to double up as storage without compromising on aesthetics (you know me!). Below is how the space looked during the build (while being surveyed by Per!):

This is how it looked once the panelling, floor and railings went in:

And finally, The bed nook

I did a ton of research into 160 cm beds with front storage but couldn't find anything! So, in the end we designed a wall-mounted bed platform with central legs and two VERY long pull-out drawers on wheels (see below). Leftover panels were used for the fronts for a seamless look. 

And we finally had a bed! 

Sidenote: we're working on the air circulation -most likely, we'll drill holes in the base and also add a special air circulator layer under the mattress (without this, bacteria can build up and a mattress can quickly become mouldy underneath). This still a work in progress though, so tips are very welcome! 

In the meantime, we're so looking forward to sleeping and hanging out right here. So excited!

I hope you enjoyed this update! Please do give me a shout below if you have any questions. 

I'm so looking forward to sharing other areas of the cabin with you soon. 

Wishing you a trevlig helg! (lovely weekend!), 

Niki 

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