REPORTAGE

The plywood dream in Innervik

It started out as just another construction project. Carpenter Alexander Brinkman bought a plot a plot of land just outside Innervik with the intention of building a house to sell. But when he met Lydia Broström, the project took a new direction. What was meant to be a sales project instead became their shared home.

The plywood house!

Alexander had already poured a slab on the plot, and with a certain symbolism you might read into it that it would also become their common foundation. That's when Alexander and Julia met and it quickly became a project together.

For almost a year they built in their spare time, and as a carpenter it was natural that Alexander took the building shifts. Evenings and weekends were spent erecting walls, studding, sawing, nailing and everything that goes with it. They got help with the electricity and plumbing, but did the rest themselves.

- "It's hard work, but it's also a lot of fun to build yourself. You get a different relationship with the house when you do most of it yourself," says Alexander.

In the spring of 2020, the family moved to the newly built house and shortly afterwards, their son Ralf was born, and the house could start living its own life together with the family.

The most eye-catching feature of the house is the walls. Instead of plaster, they chose to clad everything in plastered, knot-free plywood. Corners and joints are straight, i.e. sawn at an angle, so that the surfaces meet without visible end grain.

- It takes longer but makes a big difference. The fit is better and the entire wall surface has a cleaner look," says Alexander.

Lydia was hesitant at first but has since changed her mind completely.

- "Now I can't imagine anything else. It gives a warmth that makes the whole house.

Once the house was finished, the next phase began: filling it with furniture and instead of buying something that might not feel quite right, they went back to the drawing board. Together, they designed a dining table, coffee table, TV stand and bedside table - all with exact measurements to fit the rooms. The garage has been used as a carpentry workshop.

- We both like doing it. It's almost meditative to stand there and work together," says Lydia.

She has always had an interest in interior design. As a child, she redecorated her home until her father gave up. Today she mixes new with flea market finds and furniture carpentry.

- "It's all about the feeling. "If an object sticks in my mind after a round of flea markets, then I know it's going home with me, and if it feels right, it's easier to find its place in the home," she says.

Even outside, they have built bit by bit. Two porches, a large terrace, a fireplace and a new fence have been built over the years. The rest of the impressions and communal areas are left to the forest and fields.

- We have wanted to let it take time. Then it becomes more natural," says Alexander.

One of the porches became a favorite - a place to go in when the weather is worse. The patio is large, but for Alexander and Lydia it's about constantly extending the outdoor environment and creating more places to be.

- "We want to spend a lot of time outside, so it's important that the yard is connected. The outdoor environment is very nice today, and we have created a good common thread. It shouldn't be cluttered, but fit in, and the stone slabs we've laid outside break it up nicely.

At the same time, Alexander notes that it's difficult to build a house that has an immediate soul.

- "That's something you appreciate about old houses - creaking floors and walls that lean a little. It takes time for a new house to get the same homely feeling, but Lydia has helped to make it a really nice home. Her choices have been so nice, and it's fun that we think so much alike - most of the time, he adds smiling.

And being a carpenter has its advantages, of course. The cost is lower, even though building a house is never free.

- You get different benefits in different jobs. For me, this is one. But it's important to be realistic, not to make happy calculations and certainly not to compromise on quality.

Five years after moving in, things are still happening in the building. Right now they are sketching a headboard for their son Ralf's room. After that, there will be more solutions outside, and perhaps, at some point in the future, a new house.

- "We like to dream and create. This house is right for us now, but it doesn't have to be our last," says Lydia.

Text: Daniel Bergeman

Photo: Jonas Westling