This one-room apartment probably can’t boast about having an unusual or designer interior. The renovation is simple, and the furniture is pretty basic, meeting the needs of its owner—a woman living alone, without a husband, kids, or pets.
But the unique layout of the apartment is definitely worth noticing.
From the single room, you can step outside and find yourself in a private little courtyard, where you can have breakfast in the fresh air, grow some veggies (there’s a small garden), sunbathe when the weather’s good—all of this is possible for the residents on the first floor of this five-story building.
A bit of background: The apartment is in a Swedish town called Nacka, which is a suburb of Stockholm, with a population of just over 100,000 people. The current owner has been living in this apartment since 2019. She bought it with a mortgage after her divorce.
The building where the apartment is located was built in 1971. All the first-floor residents have their own personal courtyards—they can enter their homes either through the main entrance or through their private courtyard.
Let’s start our tour in the kitchen. We’ll save the terrace for last 🙂
This room has an unusual layout, but the owner came up with a clever way to deal with the awkward bump: she placed a narrow display cabinet for dishes and hung a TV (which, by the way, is a rare thing for Scandinavian apartments).
The kitchen set is from IKEA.
A shelf separates the kitchen from the hallway, where household appliances are stored. One interesting detail: they removed the solid partition between the upper and lower cabinets to let in as much sunlight as possible.
Part of the kitchen space was “eaten up” by the bathroom—the room was originally a bit smaller, but the previous owners did a light renovation and expanded the bathroom.
And here’s the living room (which also serves as the bedroom). The owner didn’t want to choose between a bed and a sofa, so she found room for both—she just picked the most compact options.
It’s simple, but it works. She had to give up on large wardrobes and bulky furniture to avoid crowding the small space.
Check out the modest workspace! If needed, the table and chair can be stored away in the closet (there’s a spacious wardrobe in the hallway for clothes and household stuff).
In the summer, the door to the courtyard is almost always open. Fresh air flows through the house, making it easy to go without an A/C.
The size of the terrace courtyard is comparable to the size of the single room. There’s quite a lot here! Even a grill is ready—for when guests come over.
The waterproof fabric above has several functions. It protects from sudden rain and the scorching sun and adds a bit more privacy.
Last summer, the owner tried growing vegetables and greens on her terrace. And it worked!
The small harvest is more than enough for one person—there’s always fresh greens for salads.
Here’s how the courtyard looks from the street. And that’s the end of our tour of this Swedish apartment.
