Swell in Sweden

Charlotte resident and Swell Décor principal designer Angie Persson shares her vacation home—a beautifully designed space that provides a welcome summer retreat when her family travels to Båstad each year.

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Written By Bek Mitchell-Kidd
Architect Kristofer Swahn 
Construction Roger Johansson, BE Partner
Interiors Angie Persson, Swell Décor
Photography Laura Sumrak

Come with us, Peachy readers, to the shores of Båstad, a small seaside village on the west coast of Sweden, approximately 1.5 hours from Copenhagen, Denmark, and one hour from Malmö, Sweden.

Charlotte-based interior designer and Båstad homeowner, Angie Persson, says, “It’s a very quaint small town that was originally a fishing village. Today, it is a popular summer destination for Swedes and tourists. In the summer, it is most known for the Swedish tennis tournament, Nordea Open, every July, which brings in prominent tennis players like Serena Williams and Rafael Nadal.”

The harbor area has many restaurants, and the nearby town center offers great shopping and activities. The Perssons’ home is located just off the main street in the center of Båstad and is a five-minute walk to the harbor.

Go with the Flow

The home was constructed in the late 1800s, with the family doing a full renovation in 2019. The main house is approximately 2,500 square feet, with three bedrooms and 3.5 baths. The guest house is an open floor plan with two twin beds, a sitting area, kitchenette and bathroom, and is approximately 650 square feet.  

The first floor living space of the main house also includes an open floor plan, which accesses the backyard via retractable doors in the kitchen, dissolving any barrier between inside and out. The main level also has a mudroom, bedroom, bathroom and powder room. Upstairs is the primary bedroom ensuite, and another bedroom and bathroom.

The majority of houses built around the same time are positioned right on the street, which offers a unique setup for the backyard—close to town, but with a large and private space and an oasis of trees.

Swedish Style

The home must function for the family of four who travels from Charlotte to Båstad every summer. Angie says, “Throughout my life I have had the opportunity to travel all over the world, and it has shaped my design aesthetic. For the last 20 years, spending my summers in Sweden, I have learned to embrace how things can be done ‘another way.’ My Southern roots are undeniable in my personality; however, my love for Scandinavian culture and design are evident in my approach to interior design.”

Angie describes the style of the home as a juxtaposition of antiques and modern features. It is simultaneously comfortable and functional yet layered with textures and sophistication.

The main house is mostly neutral with pops of color, which Angie introduces via pillows, art and accent pieces. She explains, “I love texture, so I tend to buy more textural elements versus colorful things. The colors I do have are on the softer side. I like a touch of pink and in the summers, I line the windowsills with soft pink geraniums. I have only seen this color in Sweden—it is basically blush.”

Light + Dark

The kitchen is low in profile but high in style, and one of the few spaces where Angie changed the floorplan from the original layout during the renovation.

“We were lucky that we already had lots of windows, but during the renovation we changed the floorplan slightly to accommodate a larger open plan kitchen and added a retractable glass door that opens to give us an indoor/outdoor kitchen.”

The family often leaves the doors open all day, allowing natural light to flood the house. The light works in unison with the black cabinetry, brightening the space and highlighting the mix of natural elements. “I wanted a black kitchen because it is modern yet nostalgic,” says Angie. Anders (Angie’s husband) gravitates toward a “modern Scandinavian” aesthetic, whereas Angie loves the Swedish Gustavian period, which she blends with ease throughout the design.

Summer Living

In the context of the house, the living room is large, and also serves as the indoor dining space, requiring Angie to create multipurpose seating vignettes. “I decided to divide the space into two seating areas. If we are entertaining, we need lots of space for people to sit and put drinks down. The long rectangular table (cocktail table) is a bench I can pull up to the dining table and use as extra seating when needed or as a cocktail table when not in use as a seat.”

Pool + Guest House

Wanting to bring a little Americana to Sweden, Angie decorated the guest house in more of a Nantucket style. “I hung an antique American flag above the sofa that I found, and it does not have all 50 stars,” says Angie.

Angie also used Schumacher wallpaper. While the pattern is bold with flora and whimsy, the color palette gives a nod to nautical style, which works well in the guest house.

Like the main house kitchen, the pool house has a “modern Scandinavian” vibe, made even more notable by the contrast to the backdrop of the guest house’s stone and cement plaster exterior.

The family added a pool a few years ago, and the area is covered so they can continue to entertain even if it is raining, Angie says, “We have many friends in Båstad, so our summers are full of parties and get-togethers. Swedes have lots of vacation time from their jobs, so most people are off in July, and we can have fun any day of the week. We do not have to wait for get-togethers on the weekends—sometimes we cannot keep up!”

On quieter nights, the family often has pre-dinner drinks in the pool space. There is a sitting area, a kitchenette/bar and a jacuzzi. Angie says, “We are extremely lucky to have this much of a backyard in the center of town. That was a huge selling point for us when we purchased the house. Our pool is heated and made with tiles, not a common practice in the US, and I think it is so pretty.”

Creating a Summer Legacy

“Our kids spend a lot of time biking, playing with Swedish kids and crabbing in the harbor. Båstad is a very wholesome, safe place that we feel so fortunate to have and share with our kids. We hope they will continue to treasure this place for many years to come, and when we are long gone,” concludes Angie.