Her dream house had been empty for 25 years

- I fell right away.

I dream of animals and self-sufficiency.

You can say live the country idyll, laughs Ida Karlsson Lalander when she shows us around the villa from 1929.

Waiting for loan

The goal of a desolate house has not been straightforward.

It took a while to get a loan granted because the bank felt hesitant about the house project.

- I can understand that but there is an enormous potential in houses like this.

Ida Karlsson Lalander has previously lived in both an apartment and a house in the country where she moved with her mother when she was ten years old.

She remembers those years with warmth.

- It was so much more fun in the country and you felt so much freer, she says.

"I'm confident"

It is 25 years since someone lived permanently in the house.

The previous owner has used it as a holiday home, but has barely been there, says Ida Karlsson Lalander.

The idea is to keep as much of the house as possible and restore what is needed.

Photo: SVT / Linda Mathillas

The house cost her SEK 800,000 and that included both furniture and furnishings.

What do you say to those who think it is naive to embark on a project like this?

- It will go well.

I'm sure this will be absolutely fantastic and I have people who support me.

I think that the image of you as a young girl not being able to do it yourself is an outdated image.