I once visited Helsinki in November and was greeted with a sign that said "Nobody in their right mind would come to Helsinki in November. Except you, you badass. Welcome". It's since been hailed as one of the greatest tourism posters ever made! With temperatures hovering around 3 - 4 degrees Celsius in Helsinki this week, they certainly have a point. But there's also a certain beauty to Finland in wintertime, especially if you travel a little further afield. Maiju Saha, husband Janne and three children Paavo (12), Aina (7) and Theo (3) moved to a house in Vaasa on the south west coast of Finland two years ago. Dating back to 1941, Maiju has transformed the house into a beautiful oasis with deep green, blue and grey accents, while ensuring the original features remain intact. The result is a calm, cosy home and a perfect base from which to explore the city, nearby Kvarken archipelago and forests as well as experience the Northern Lights!
I love this window nook; it looks so cosy and is a great way to capitalise on extra space so that the dining area doesn't take up too much space. The beautiful lamp over the table is a le Klint.
Maiju designed the kitchen herself and got it built by a local carpenter. The cabinets have been painted in NCS S7005-G20Y and the walls in Tikkurila 'Merino'.
The dining area has been painted in Jotun 'Tidløs'. The table is from Finnish firm Peltola Oy and the chairs are a mix of Ton Banana chairs and the Nattavaara chair from Jotex (which only appear to be available in black now).
But my eyes are on that daybed (which Maiju built herself) - what a perfect little spot to chill!
Source a similar vintage rattan side table here* (I love this plant stand* but since it's vintage, there's only one. Hurry if you're keen!)
Maiju has painted the living room in Farrow & Ball 'Old White' and used neutral accents and a large rattan rug (this one is similar) which adds a load of depth and texture to the space.
If you are as taken by Maiju's lovely home as much as I am, you might want to follow her delightful instagram @maiju_saw and blog Maiju Saw. Her DIY and ikea hacks are great (can you spot the ikea hack in this tour? You'll find the answer and step by step here - it's translated into English at the bottom of the post).
It'd be rude not to share a few other Finnish home tours with you today:
This post has really got me in the mood for a trip to Finland, I hope an opportunity crops up soon! Have you ever been?
Hauskaa päivan jatkoa! (I hope this means 'have a nice day' in Finnish!).
Niki
Photography: Maiju Saha, shared with kind permission
Relax shoulders and sigh......... what a beautiful home. x Rebecca x
ReplyDeleteHappy you love this as much as I do - it really is a beautiful home!
DeleteI love what they did in the dining area with the molding on the walls and the little shelf above it. Such a brilliant idea - I would love to recreate it
ReplyDeleteI hadn’t spotted that - so clever!
DeleteI thought, as soon as I saw the blue cabinet that it's an Ivar and I was right! Ikea would be proud of me. :-)
ReplyDeleteBeautiful home and the floors make my heart sing.
I am fascinating by Finnish, the words seem quite long and all those accents! Neither of which are terribly different from those in my mother tongue but I wonder what you, Niki, as an English born + bred human, think of Finnish?
Impressed you got it! It was pretty well disguised! I’m always completely stumped by Finnish, it’s so different from the other Nordic languages. All those vowels in a row!!
DeletePlease don't disable the right click. For those of us who rely on text to speech functions it really does make it hard to use your website.
ReplyDeleteI’m really sorry, I’ve had some serious problems with people replicating my blog by cutting and pasting content. I’ll investigate to see if there is away yo prevent cutting and pasting while still allowing text to speech. Thank you for the input.
DeleteThanks Niki.
DeleteSimple yet tastefully decorated cozy home.
ReplyDeleteI visited Finland in July. It is a
beautiful country...tried to learn few words in Finnish but
most people speak English fluently.
Finland is wonderful! Yes, I found the same - and most words were translated into Swedish too which I found helpful. Happy you enjoyed your visit!
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