A Dated Swedish Caravan (Camper) becomes a Stylish and Cosy Home

Homes come in all shapes and sizes. And today, I'm excited to share Monica Karlstein's caravan. 

Monica is well known in Sweden for her DIY expertise - and recently transformed a dated caravan into a beautiful home from home in which to travel the country and beyond in comfort and style! 

Let's dive in to the before and after renovation: 


It's quite incredible what you can do with a few rolls of Sandberg wallpaper (I love the print we put up in the summer cottage bedroom!), a link of paint and layers of textile, don't you think? 

Tiered hanging baskets offer extra storage where needed, and since they move with the caravan, you can be sure nothing will fall in transit. We use baskets like this on our boat and they are so handy! 

Note how Monica has used strategically placed linen curtains to separate the cabin and sleeping quarters when needed. 


The kitchen fittings have remained unchanged, but a lick of paint has transformed the area into a light and airy space to prepare meals. A row of hooks provide space for tea towels and other small items. 


The dining area now has uber comfy seats for evenings indoors (when the weather isn't behaving), while seatbelts can be used for passengers when in transit. 


Small touches like braided decor and baskets with plants help to make the space feel homely. 


Such a beautiful renovation. And best of all, they'll have a lovely place to stay wherever they go! 

Could you imagine touring Scandinavia in this caravan too? 

You can find more details about this makeover here (in Swedish but nothing that a few pictures and google translate can't solve!). 

I love to see what people can do with tiny spaces and have featured a few other 'homes on wheels' before  including a Swedish couple who turned a Mercedes Sprinter into a campervan and a tiny house built on wheels. Or for tiny home inspiration you might like to discover: dream life on a budget: a tiny home and pottery studio in the woods and a tiny Danish cabin that's big on style

I hope this post has inspired you today!

Kram! 

Niki

Photography by Monica Karlstein, shared with kind permission. 

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This Tiny Swedish Cottage is a Perfect Summer Oasis!

I can never resist a tiny living space - especially when they are this pretty! This cottage is located in Slottsskogskolonien - Sweden's second oldest allotment! It is a mere 19 m2 (204 ft2) but has everything you might need for the weekends and holidays. In the entrance, simple hooks and shelves serve as a makeshift hallway and a dining space is bathed in daylight. Step into the main living room, and an open-plan kitchen and living room offer a place to chill. At night, it's time to climb the ladder to a cosy nest in the rooftop and snuggle up for the night! The owners also have shared access to an onsite communal bathroom. 

At these allotment cottages, the real magic happens outside though. After all, the purpose of them is to provide a garden in the city for those without. The plot provides a place to grow flowers, fruit and vegetables, as well as dine al fresco all summer long surrounded by the sweet scent of lilac! 

Ready to look around? Välkommen! 

High shelves above the windows provide extra storage space for books and other small treasures. 

Built-in seating helps to maximise space - and can also offer more storage underneath. 

Notice how the underside of the table has been painted Klein blue - this seems to be the theme this week (check out Wednesday's Danish home tour!). I love the idea of using paint to bring in the latest trends, it's a sustainable way of keeping your home upon to date! 

A traditional Swedish sofa and two simple wicker chairs ensure a social area in the main living room area, while a little spot under the roof serves as extra storage. 

A simple wooden ladder leads to the sleep loft. 

It took me several goes through these pictures before I noticed the door above! It conceals a storage cupboard. 

I love the use of two-toned wood panelling in the kitchen! Note how this panelling is beaded for a more traditional look. 

How lovely. I could sit in that spot in the garden all weekend, how about you? 

Here's an idea of the layout: 



Glossary: kök - kitchen, stuga - cabin, förråd - storage. 

Speaking of small spaces, Per is headed up to our little cabin this evening, while I travel to Karlshamn in Blekinge (it's a beautiful part of the world which I once covered in this travel guide) for my daughter Liv's swimming gala. Fingers crossed for her - I know she's a little nervous! 

I hope you have some fun plans too! 

In the meantime, I'll leave you with some of these beautiful tours from the small space archive


See you Monday!

Niki

Photography courtesy of Kvarteret Mäkleri - where it is currently for sale! 


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Small spaces: a little summer cottage in the heart of the city

Cycling through Malmö, it's exciting to see all the bright green leaves spring to life on the trees after many months of dormancy. And across town, allotment season has begun! I was amazed to discover that Swedish allotments often have 'kolonistuga' - small inhabitable cottages in which you can live from late spring to early Autumn, providing a country oasis in the heart of the city. Do you have something similar in your country?

This pretty cottage was on the market last year and I was excited to see it snapped up by Hannes Mauritzson (who's apartment I once featured here). Located on 'Slottsskogskolonien' in Gothenburg, which I believe is the same allotment area as Elin Lannsjö's charming allotment, the cottage measures a teeny 27 m2 / 290 f2. Hannes has applied his own signature touch to the little cottage using a lick of paint and vintage touches - while some of the original wood still shines through. Take a quick peek at how it looked when Hannes bought it and then scroll down to see how the pretty cottage looks today! 

What a perfect place to tend to blooms, maybe grow a few veg, sip rosé and sleep over the summer, don't you think? His faithful four-legged friend Charlie certainly looks content! 

And just in case the Swedish weather gods aren't playing nicely (fair chance!) - there's always the wood burning stove too! 

Would you like to see more allotment cottages today? I've featured quite a few in the past: 


I hope these lovely spaces have filled you with inspiration today. 

Niki

Photography / credits: Hannes Mauritzson - shared with kind permission

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Tiny Homes: A Dream Holiday Cabin in Latvia becomes a Reality


Originally from Latvia, Ilze Upatniece and Gunars Upatnieks have lived in Berlin for ten years. They have long harboured a dream to own a house in Latvia as a place to return to for vacations with their children.  Three years ago, their dream became a reality when they found a plot of land near Saulkrasti on the east coast of the Gulf of Riga. Read on to find out more about the build and see pictures of the fabulous holiday cabin they've created! 

What was the plot of land like before you started?
It was a forest plot which meant we had to do everything from scratch. The electricity was already connected but we had to arrange water and sewage as well as countless other things! 

What was your vision? 
Originally, we wanted to build a larger house, but soon understood that with two full-time jobs on the side of Europe and two young children, a prefab tiny home was perhaps a better idea. For inspiration, I spent half my life on Pinterest, reading different interior blogs and following numerous cabin and tiny homeowners on instagram.

Who did you work with for the prefab cabin?
We chose a small, young, local company in Latvia to help us develop the idea of having three tiny houses connected to one another via terrace. 

(The cabin as built through My Cabin in Latvia - also available in the USA).

What is the idea for having three different houses connected? 
My husband is an orchestral musician, so it was important for us to have enough space for practising his double bass. So, we decided on a 'living house', a 'sleeping house' and a 'sauna house'. Despite working with a prefab, we made a lot of personal changes including adding a triangular window, installing a second toilet and upgrading to higher quality materials.

How long did it take to build? 
Altogether it took over a year. I think evert building project has critical moments. Ours was no different. But looking back, we can say that we learned a lot, met great people along the way and are really happy with the result! 

The result is beautiful, it would look equally in place in Scandinavia, would you say there are similarities between Scandinavian and Latvian design?
In my point of view, Latvian design has developed in a very exciting direction. It has many similarities with Scandinavian design, for example, minimalist and clean shapes, and also the choice of material such as wood, glass, linen etc. At the same time, Latvian history also brings in other tones - the close existence with various eastern nations during the Soviet period, or Latvian folklore and the tradition of pagan mythology, which is relatively actively lived here. 

How big is the cabin, and can you tell us about the layout? 
Our 'living house' is about 25 m2. It has a well-equipped kitchen with all modern convinces. In the bathroom we have walk-in shower, washing machine, washing machine and a water filtration system. Furthermore, we have a living room area with floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the garden and forest. There's also a sleep loft one rate kitchen. 

Our 'sleeping house' is 15 m2 and has a bed, wardrobe and guest WC with washbasin as well as a second sleep loft. 

Our Finnish sauna with a woodburning stove is about 12 m2. 

Can you tell us about the interior design and the inspiration behind it? 
We wanted to keep the design simple and functional. Most of the furniture is custom made from solid wood and was made by regional carpenters. Since we sometimes spend as much as 6 weeks at a time at the cabin and like to cook together with family and friends, a well-equipped kitchen was important. 

We used a lot of natural materials, natural colours but since we rent the cabin on Airbnb we were also keen for the furnishings to be resilient and not too expensive, so we have also bought furniture from IKEA, Jysk and H&M Home

Can you tell us more about the garden?
Since our plot is 2300 m2 and we like to do outdoor sports together, my husband said 'let's build a beach volleyball court'! So we did! We also added a basketball court and hot tub. Then the small terrace grew to 170m2 and our garden was made! We planted hedges and foliage as well as many grasses that like to grow in forested coastal areas. We also plan to grow fruit and vegetables. 

What are you most happy with? 
Although building the cabin became a bit too challenging at times, w are super happy with how everything turned out, it's our little paradise! We love the secluded beach and watching deer roaming the garden. We also love our summer evenings on the terrace, playing games together and cooking. For us, it's the opportunity to slow down from our fast-paced life in the city and enjoy moments together as a family in a conscious way. We hope that through our vacations at Cabin Jūrada, our children will also call Latvia home.

What a lovely project - and such a beautiful result too! Id' happily wile away my summer here, how about you? 

In case you're tempted, you can rent Jūrada on Airbnb here - and see more pictures at @cabin_jurada.

I was fascinated to hear about the garden as I'm starting to plan our tiny cabin surroundings soon, no easy feat! I'm now thinking we need to add a few fun things - even if it's just an outdoor table tennis! 

Looking for more inspriation? See more cabins and tiny homes in the archive. 

Happy mid week friends - half way there! 

Niki

Photography courtesy of Cabin Jūrada


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