A Light-filled Swedish Home in Former Slätthults School

I absolutely love the idea of living in a former a school - or just about any conversion for that matter, how about you? There's something about the buildings past life which makes the building feel extra special, and it often lends itself to beautiful architecture too. 

Having said that, converting a building is not without its difficulties - and the interior design can also be a complex jigsaw puzzle! Especially when there are very large rooms and awkward angles involved, which you so often find with schools.

This beautiful light-filled house in Lerum, West of Gothenburg in Sweden used to be Slätthults school. The house has undergone a meticulous restoration, blending modern comforts with respect for its original architecture and the era in which it was built. The result is a thoughtfully preserved house which marries the present with its historical roots. Wonderful! 

I can just imagine the patter of children's feet as they ran up and down those stairs. And the silence in the classroom as they went about their school day! 

Such a beautiful house! Could you imagine living here? 

I have shown quite a few converted schoolhouses here on my scandinavian home over the years - here are few that are well worth returning to this weekend: 

My friend Louisa's home in a converted school (don't miss the cat at the end!)
A beautiful Finnish family home in a former schoolhouse

I have also featured many other conversions including a former fire station, garage, bar and shop! You might like to pour a coffee and pull up a seat this weekend and explore the entire conversion archive

Have a fabulous few days, and see you Monday!

Trevlig helg! 

Niki

Photography: Peter Pousard, styling: Isabelle Seger for sale via Lundin

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A Swedish City Apartment in a Converted Car Workshop

Do you live in a city? With 56% leading urban lives the chances are high! We all know that high density populations mean rent / house prices can be high, and in many cities new dwellings are carved out from old businesses. Warehouses, factories, bars and even a welding plant have been repurposed into houses, flats and maisonettes - and the history of the building adds an entirely new dimension to the interior. 

In Vasastan, Stockholm an old car workshop has been transformed into a beautiful street level apartment. Great big doors that open out onto the street and polished concrete floors unlock the secret to its past life while a white wood floor, beautiful kitchen and floor to ceiling shelving provide clues for its new life as a contemporary home.  Step this way for the tour! 

When the double doors are closed the frosted glass means only a small amount of light flows through to the living room, something that large mirrors help to counter. 

Contrast in the form of dark blue cabinets add interest to the space. 

Warm wood shelving and concrete floors add an interesting contemporary touch to the space. 

Floor to ceiling wardrobes in the bedroom provide plenty of storage and help to create a clean and contemporary look. I love how grey has been used on the cabinet doors and back door, breaking up the white. 



Floorplan: 


Glossary; vardagsrum - living room, kök - kitchen, sovrum - bedroom, bad rum - bathroom. 

What a really cool urban home! I love the way it's been decorated. 

I wonder how practical having doors open out to the street like this would be in most cities around the world? In Stockholm it could definitely work on a warm summer's day like today, in fact I can already hear the music floating out from the transparent speaker and the buzz of the city life outside. 

Do you think this would work in your city? 

Niki

Photography and floor plan courtesy of Historsika Hem

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A Rundown Schoolhouse Becomes a Swedish Family Home

I absolutely love it when someone takes the time and energy to painstakingly restore a historical house! Even better when they share the step-by-step process online, right? Photographer Lovisa 'Furubo' Andersson and her partner Daniel bought a former schoolhouse in Ölvingstorp, near Kalmar in South East Sweden a few years ago and have been renovating it by hand ever since. Today, the former classroom serves as a spacious and light-filled kitchen and other rooms (such as the gym hall!) have become beautiful living spaces. Here is a selection of truly inspiring before and after pictures of the exterior and kitchen as well as snapshots from some of the other rooms! 

Exterior Before 



Exterior after

The main school house and outhouse had been painted in linseed oil paint 100 years ago, and Lovisa and Daniel felt it deserved the same treatment today! Naturally, there was a lot of other work included in the exterior renovation too. The result is so fresh, yet still in keeping with the original look and feel of the property. 

Kitchen before 

Kitchen after 

Often it's only when you see the before pictures that you can fully understand the sheer amount of work that has gone into a project! Beautiful wood panelling has been installed throughout the house to bring back a romantic old school feel (see my guide to choosing wood panelling here). 

Kitchen units before 


Kitchen units after
Lovisa and Daniel upcycled old materials wherever possible. In the kitchen old wardrobe doors were installed and then painted with linseed oil paint. 

The oven is from Bertazzoni and most of the furniture is secondhand. 

Lovisa made the coffee table by hand. The Viscontea lamp is by Flos. 

I absolutely love this wall lamp - Lovisa bought it from Strömshaga. The rug is from Mio.

A Kyoto lamp from Mio hangs from the ceiling in the bedroom. 

Wood panelling has also been installed in all the bedrooms and hallway, giving the entire home a cohesive look. 

So inspiring!

If you've ever thought about buying a former schoolhouse, perhaps this is just the nudge you needed! 

You can also take a peek at other converted schoolhouses: 


Lovisa and Daniel continue to renovate their house room by room - follow the progress and feel inspired over at @lovisafurubo

By the way, thank you for your patience last week - my family and I had a really lovely time in Åre, Sweden. It was very snowy - a little on the cold side (my toes are still defrosting!), and so relaxing! back in the less snowy south now and all ready to go! Thank you so much for stopping by!

Niki

Photography @lovisafurubo, share with kind permission.

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