You have two accommodations. How is it that?
– I now live half of my time in Stockholm, where I lived for a hundred years, and half of my time in Båstad since just over a year. As for many others, the pandemic gave me, my wife and children time to think, perspective and increased opportunities to be flexible at work. Through work, I had many events in Båstad. The thoughts here are a little warmer, brighter and calmer. It is also close to Gothenburg, Malmö and Europe when I have lectures.
– I love that it’s a small town, except in the summer when the whole of Sweden moves here. Here is Sweden’s longest sandy beach and it’s great to pretend you’re on the continent. It’s very shallow, and if you’re frozen like me, it’s great to be able to lie down straight in the warm water. Although we don’t live right by the sea, you can see the water from our street.
AT MICAEL DAHLEN’S HOME
Name: Michael Dahlen.
Age: 50 years.
Family: Wife Ingela, 50, children Tyra, 21, and Dante, 19.
Bor: Houses in Stockholm and Båstad.
Make: Professor of well-being, welfare and happiness, author, lecturer.
Current: Participating in “The whole celebrity-Sweden bakes”. Season premiere April 4 on TV4 Play and TV4. Famous faces compete to take home the title Celebrity Home Baker of the Year.
Micael Dahlen, professor of economics at the Stockholm School of Economics. Photo: CLAUDIO BRESCIANI/ TT NEWS AGENCY
Micael Dahlen and his wife Ingela live in the big house. Grown-up children Tyra and Dante each live in a smaller house. The shared patio creates a nice hangout for the whole family. Photo: Private
What made you fall for the house?
– I think it’s so wonderful that there are three houses that share a patio on the plot. It is ideal as we have a 21 year old and a 19 year old whose father has severe separation anxiety. Even when the children were small, my goal was to have it be like the Ewing family in “Dallas”: The children never move out, but into a new wing. This was also good. The children each have their own house where they can be alone, have friends and their families in the future.
How would you describe the houses?
– When we bought the place, the houses were newly built but not fully furnished. They are white and very summery, but they are not summer houses but a year-round residence. We are happy to have accommodation where we can refuel, just be and be together. It’s just the right mix between homely, modern and still decently unpretentious. The houses are not boastful buildings. They feel like home and are easy to settle into.
How would you describe the style?
– My wife and I live in the slightly larger house of 70 square meters. The kitchen and the small living room sit together and have a large glass wall facing the patio that can be opened up. There is a small bedroom and loft with sofa and TV. To have it summery all year round, it’s light tones, which go with beige. We have three sofas, where I can sit, half sit and half lie. It should be comfortable and nice.
Couch cozy. The home has three comfortable sofas where you can sit and lie however you want. Photo: Private
The glass section facing the balcony can be opened and blurs the boundary between inside and outside. Photo: Private
The relatively small houses have large kitchens. Why?
– From growing up, I have with me that you always cook and eat food together. Mom didn’t have much money and when there was a party we ate hamburger stew. Then I had to go to the ice cream truck and buy two or three frozen hamburgers, which we cut into pieces, cooked in two cans of crushed tomatoes and ate with rice. Mom made up that it was luxurious. Today I take the opportunity to fill all the fridges and freezers before the children come downstairs. There is always something to eat here. Both children and especially the daughter love food above all else. She has been cheering for me to be part of “The whole celebrity-Sweden bakes”.
Micael Dahlen’s best home tips:
“Do what you enjoy at home. It’s so easy to underestimate. Home is for you and for the people in your life. It’s great if the home also looks nice on the inside. However, the time we spend outside the facade is quite small if you compare it to the time we spend inside.”
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How did you train for your participation in “Hela kendis-Sverige bakar”?
– I don’t have a very strong relationship with baking and took the opportunity to learn. At home they were a bit ambivalent when I forced them to taste everything. It’s unexpected ingredients and combinations. I think it’s a lot of fun to push boundaries and there will be obvious nods to childhood. I’m quite fond of fast food and can say that I experimented with a French fries cake. It didn’t make it all the way to the TV box.
You are a professor of well-being, welfare and happiness. How do you create happiness at home?
– By being together. It is truly the fundamental and cannot be overestimated, but is easily underestimated. We live with and for each other. We create happiness and well-being together. What I like about baking is that it takes time. It is useful for me who is impatient and does things quickly. The baking brought togetherness when the father stood for a long time in the kitchen and leavened dough for bread. Then I experimented with loose candy. A fun thought, which stopped there.
What is your best purchase?
– A foam Santa pink barrel scooter that can be driven into the house. My lowrider electric moped makes everyone happy when I ride to the beach or the store. Otherwise, it’s the floor sofa in the loft. A plain beige sofa without legs that is so inviting. It calls to you as soon as you get close. The whole family, including two kids, can end up there. It’s not that big, but you can float out of it.
What luxury do you treat yourself to at home?
– We have just bought an infrared sauna with two glass doors that we will place at the back of the house. The idea is that there my wife and I can sit naked outside in nature in the middle of winter and be free in a double sense.
The small plant room is Micael Dahlen’s favorite place in the house.”I love sitting among the plants when it starts to get light in the mornings. And rejoice at a small lemon tree that thrives there too,” he says. Photo: Private
What is at the top of your wish list?
– I have a fantasy that will continue to be, but it is to have a rooftop pool. I don’t know where the imagination comes from. Now we have three small houses with sloping roofs, but maybe you can build a bathtub on the ridge? It would be the talk of the town in Båstad. A “landmark”.
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