Beware of Me Well!

Heaven help me! Five cases for building preservation. Göran Gudmunsson. 351 pages

How did it happen that a dilapidated barn, an abandoned cottage, a poorly renovated manor, an uninhabitable military residence, and a foul-smelling apartment in the city were given new life and their soul back? Where did one start? How did one know where to look? And what was skipped?

Göran Gudmundsson's new large book is a goldmine for anyone who loves old houses with tradition and feeling. Here he tells the story of five comprehensive renovation projects with very different conditions. With great expertise, he describes the entire process – before, during, and after – and shows in detail how to go about finding traces of the old, searching for renovation materials, coloring, and wallpapering. And not least how to relate to the different choices available. For how should one really think about original colors and old building materials – if one is also going to live in the house? Is there a right or wrong?

Many believe that building preservation is not for them. I want to change that. I want to show that EVERYONE – not just owners of old houses but also those who have an older apartment, who want to convert an abandoned economic building into a vacation home, or are simply generally interested in the environment and recycling – can find inspiration in the old way of building and decorating. For if you choose to build new with old methods and with used materials, you also get the soul as a bonus.