Thomas Uhrskov became well-known in Denmark when, as a ski guide in the early 2000s, he graced Danish TV screens, bringing the joy of skiing into living rooms. You might remember him best slaloming down snow-covered mountains, while guiding viewers about skiing with his deep, velvety voice. In recent years, Thomas Uhrskov and his family have been engaged in what they themselves call Denmark's largest DIY project. They are now nearly finished with a concrete summer house, constructed among marram grass and beach sand just 300 meters from the North Sea.

2,5 Years and 20 Pourings Later

"You need to have a lot of time in your calendar if you want to build something similar," Thomas Uhrskov says with a smile. He candidly shares that he had anticipated a construction period of one year, but the project has extended longer.

Once you begin to understand the size and ambition of the project of casting your own house, you gain respect for the family's undertaking. They have managed 90% of the construction themselves and now know all about how concrete works.

The summer house is cast in-situ, meaning the concrete was poured at the site. Thomas Uhrskov rented large formworks in hard, black plastic, which were set up before each pouring. He quickly got on a first-name basis with Jørn from IBF Hanstholm, who delivered much of the concrete with a concrete pump. After the liquid concrete was poured into the forms, it was vibrated and cured, after which the form was removed. This process was repeated about 20 times to build the house that now stands finished in Klitmøller.

"When we returned the formworks after 1.5 years of building, we were charged a fee for wear and tear on the forms," Thomas Uhrskov says with a twinkle in his eye, adding, "It shows they were well used."

Love for Concrete

It's no coincidence that the summer house had to be made of concrete. Thomas Uhrskov and his wife, Helle Schjønning, who is also the author of the book "Bare Beton" (Just Concrete), have a great love for concrete.

Concrete allows one to be as creative as one can imagine. Helle Schjønning exploited this when she designed the family's summer house. The house has an H-shaped floor plan because it was the most optimal layout with minimal corridors and wasted space. The full extent of creativity with concrete is also evident in the fact that the house has 24 corners. The concrete house feels anything but square and, with its many corners, it has a good dose of charm and personality. As a first-time guest stepping inside, you feel compelled to inspect the entire house immediately to get an overview. In this way, Helle Schjønning has created a concrete house that encourages exploration and discovery around each corner.

A Story in Every Square Meter

Everywhere in the house, you can find stories. The concrete forever holds the small tales of the family's recent 2.5 years of concrete pouring and their dream of completing the house. When asked about the pattern on the edge of the kitchen counter, Thomas Uhrskov explains that the kitchen counter got its patterned edge because he thought he could lay plastic in the formwork.

"I didn't know the plastic would create this pattern until we were about to cast the kitchen counter. But we think it has turned out very beautiful and uniform along the edge of the counter."

Thomas Uhrskov does not hide the fact that he and his family were novices when it came to concrete casting. In the floor, which is also made of concrete, you can find a stripe with fewer stones in the surface than the rest of the floor. He explains that the concrete reveals how one has worked during the pouring.

"Right there, I paused with the screed, and it meant that some of the stones in the concrete were pushed further down." The whole house is full of stories from the building process, and so much effort and love have been put into the house that Thomas Uhrskov says they could never sell it.

It's in the Details

The concrete house is a well-executed example that concrete can be made light and warm if used correctly. Colors, skylights, and slim custom-sized doors have been some of the elements in Thomas Uhrskov and Helle Schjønning's recipe for a concrete house that feels architecturally light and homely.

Thomas Uhrskov and his wife Helle Schjønning have combined the raw concrete with colors to soften the concrete. Therefore, the shower walls in the house's two bathrooms are in colored glass. The same applies in the kitchen, where Thomas Uhrskov, leaning against the kitchen island, tells that it is his wife who should be credited for the kitchen countertop's warm peach color.

"Helle had a good point in that the light from the round skylight above the kitchen island should be reflected down in a warm color, which is spread throughout the room."

To make the house's external expression lighter, the family chose doors that are narrower than the standard dimensions doors are usually made to. Thomas Uhrskov demonstrates that the narrow width is no hindrance to using the door in one of the house's rooms, from which he steps directly out into the salty air of the North Sea.

"When we were looking for windows and doors for the house, we found out that the doors had to be made specifically for our project, whether we chose standard sizes or not. Therefore, we chose them to be narrower to achieve a more elegant expression."

Skylights in the house ensure that the house feels light when moving indoors. In most rooms, there is a view of the sky through the windows in the ceiling, which also serves to emphasize the house's placement amidst nature and the beach environment.

Concrete Obliges

Another reason Thomas Uhrskov and his family chose concrete as the material for their house is the long durability of concrete. But at the same time, he believes that building in concrete comes with an obligation.

"When you build in concrete, you have an obligation to build as interestingly or excitingly or beautifully as you want the house to stand for more than 100 years, because that's how long it will last."

There is hardly anyone who, after a visit to the new concrete house in Klitmøller, would dare claim that Thomas Uhrskov does not live up to this obligation. For with creativity, concrete, and countless work hours, the family has at the same time created a house that is interesting, beautiful, and exciting.