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THE SWEDISH HAVE A SAYING, ingen ko på isen, which roughly translates to “there’s no cow
on the ice”. While that doesn’t seem like a sentiment Aussies would normally get behind, what it
essentially means is, “No worries”. And it was with this attitude that store owner Libby Helinski,
41, along with husband Matt, 40, and daughters Jessica, 15, and Lucy, 11, left behind the
Swedish town of Skellefteå to settle on the New South Wales east coast. The family had spent
a year in Sweden for Matt’s work, and during that time they all fell in love with the Nordic way of
life. “We loved the lifestyle, the environment and the whole concept of the Swedish summer
cabin, so on our return in 2014, we opened our lifestyle store Pappa Sven, which was our way
of bringing some of the things we really loved to Newcastle and sharing our experience with the
community,” Libby says. It’s a move that’s been well received. There’s so much interest, in fact,
that the family’s Aussie-cum-Swedish summer cabin is regularly booked out on Airbnb. “It’s A
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MEET LIBBY HELINSKI
owner of Nordic lifestyle store Pappa
Sven, who also owns a lovingly curated
Swedish summer cabin in this thriving
Novocastrian suburb.
“To me, Cooks Hill is the heart of Newcastle.
I love the tree-lined streets and easy access to
the harbour, the beach, shops and restaurants...
there’s a real sense of community here.”
LOVING