Handbook for an old garden

Many of us love old houses, the atmosphere they give you, the secrets and questions they hide and pose: What did the house look like originally? Has it always been here? Who has lived here before me?

Sweden has a unique treasure trove of archived material that can tell us so much about our houses and their inhabitants throughout history. This is by no means limited to castles and manor houses. There is also a lot to tell about our country houses, detached houses, city apartments and suburban villas. You just need to know where to look.

In this book, architectural historian Erika Åberg wants to take us by the hand and tell us how we can find the history of our houses, and how we can best utilize different buildings and their annual rings. She does this by telling inspiring stories, guiding us to different archives and showing us how to best interpret a building, exterior and interior.

There are plenty of in-depth examples from the TV program of the same name, but it’s a book that stands on its own, with solid advice on building styles through the ages, building conservation and restoration tips.

Swedish Grace is a term coined by contemporaries to denote neoclassical Swedish design from the 1910s and 1920s.

The most representative buildings from this era, such as the Stockholm City Library by Gunnar Asplund, the Resurrection Chapel by Sigurd Lewerentz and the Stockholm Concert Hall by Ivar Tengbom, are all world-famous, and most of what was built during the period is among the most highly regarded architecture in Sweden.

In this anthology, specialists from Sweden as well as other countries discuss different perspectives on Swedish Grace and show aspects that are still relevant today.

“Exterior Renovation” is the third book in the series – Building Maintenance in Practice.

All stages of an exterior renovation are described in detail. Roofs, chimneys, walls, windows, doors, foundations, extensions, lighting and more are covered, based on old Swedish building traditions. The traditional materials and craft methods are presented.

It also shows the ways to restore the exterior of an old house, but also appropriate solutions for how to raise the technical standard of a house, without doing violence to the cultural-historical value.

“Interior Renovation” is the fourth book in the series – Building Care in Practice. The book is about the houses inside, why they look the way they do, about the tradition behind it, about the craftsmanship and last but not least about how to renovate so that these qualities do not disappear.

It deals with carpentry profiles, fittings, floors, ceilings and walls, stairs, kitchens and kitchen fittings, sanitary facilities, electricity and lighting in a way that shows that the old is an asset rather than an obstacle when living in the house.

The book, which focuses on houses from the 18th to the 20th century, also shows appropriate compromises, as the old inevitably clashes with the modern.