The gift that became unique kitchen decor
When Anna-Kristina Van Craen was to renovate the kitchen in her inherited house, she wanted to honor the memory of her parents and highlight the history of the house. After some searching she found Everstyle in Karlstad and then all the pieces fell into place. The father’s 60th birthday present would have a permanent place in the heart of the house.
THE PIG IN A POKE HOUSE
Anna-Kristina’s family had been Swedes abroad, living in different countries for many years. In Sweden there was a summer cottage, in the areas around Kalmar where they enjoyed themselves. After all these years abroad, her father searched for housing in Sweden and happened to get a tip about a house in the same area. The only decision basis for the purchase was photos and facts that good friends sent on, among other things, fax. The house was bought unseen, they simply got a chance to buy the pig in the bag, without having seen it in reality. Once in place several months later, they could see that it had been an extremely successful house purchase. The house became a special place for all family members.
Anna-Karin says: – Long after my mother and also my beloved father passed away, I inherited the house as the only child. We decided to sell the house we already had and chose to move to the “pig in the bag” instead. A decision we did not regret! The idea was to stay in and make renovations in due course, but a water damage in the kitchen quickly made it a sharp location.
For her father’s 60th birthday in 1999, Anna-Kristina had ordered a painting by the local artist Anders Wolke. When the birthday happened in December, there was a fresh ink drawing of the house from the best side in winter garb. When the kitchen was to be renovated, she somehow wanted to highlight the history of the house – and the image of the house that is so strongly associated with the memory of a beloved father.
Prior to the renovation, artist Anders Wolke was re-engaged to balance the original drawing to the wall format. It was a long process with many trips where I sometimes wondered if it would all be good. The founder of Everstyle, the designer and artist, Bibbi Evermark, adapted Wolke’s high-resolution ink drawing for technical production. The tile wall, which is set in brick joints, became 5.2 meters in size and sits all over the workbench and fireplace!
– I’m just so happy with that the result! Now I am satisfied and it is one of my ways to pay tribute to mine dad. He probably thought it was too expensive, a little landlord as he was, but Mom had said it was just right, she who liked class and finesse.
And class it was!
