New Build of Private House, North of Stockholm

The client asked for a big family house for children to grow up in that could also host all the relatives for dinner and harbor friends in need. The site is on a beautiful hill with unspoiled nature by the seaside in an old fashionable suburb of Stockholm.

By using a cross-shaped plan to organize the program we managed to divide the program into service, social and private areas, yet keep them near to each other. The cross also creates outdoor spaces that vary in character. There is a welcoming entrance yard, a sheltered place for morning coffee, a garden with sun all day and a backyard towards the north for storage of garden tools and wood. When moving around this big villa you pass different sequences as the facade changes its character. Windows vary in size from small apertures toward the north and the neighbors, larger openings toward the east and a totally glazed facade toward the southwest to gain the warmth of the sun.

The house is vertically connected in the middle of the cross by a staircase gallery in three stories, contributing to passive ventilation. On the entrance floor the cross holds a service area with a garage and kitchen entrance in one extension, and the main entrance, a large social kitchen and a big living room in the other extension. On the second floor the extensions hold a service area with laundry and guest rooms in the first extension, children’s bedrooms with a playing area in the second, and a master bedroom with bath and dressing in the third. On the third floor there is a relaxation area with a sauna and a roof terrace with views of the water.

Only durable materials are used such as brick, concrete, oak and copper that will gain a patina with age. The facades are treated differently to accentuate the different characters of the outdoor spaces.