There have been almost 200 years of tradition for public saunas in Helsinki. In 1907, there were 49 public saunas and spas in the city, but their popularity declined as people began to install bathing and sauna facilities in their own homes.

In recent decades, this old tradition has become increasingly popular and fashionable as a new cultural habit. Nowadays, there are around 10 public saunas in Helsinki, and this is one of the newest. 

This design project consists of the spatial design of the entire area and the sauna spaces. The main challenge of this project was to follow the old tradition of public saunas in the city and create a modest, relaxing sauna complex that welcomes everybody.

The café-restaurant features heated industrial concrete floors, graphite grey walls, and red tiles on the kitchen side. We removed the dropped ceiling, and the ceiling was painted black. The sauna area’s walls are covered with dark tiles, while the floor tiles are light yellowish-grey. The sauna bench is designed with a high structure to ensure both high-quality steam and sufficient air volume, even when many people are present.

The apartment block is designed by Sauerbruch Hutton Architects.

This wooden house is situated on a quiet hill in the suburban area of Japan. It features a one-story L-shaped design that harmonises with the landscape, creating a bright and airy living and dining area with high ceilings.

Large sliding windows and a covered veranda open up to a courtyard garden with a bamboo grove, ensuring privacy while inviting nature inside. The kitchen, dining, and living room are centrally located, making it the heart of the home where the family gathers. The living room includes a cozy wood-burning fireplace. Next to the living room, a Japanese-style tatami room is separated by sliding doors, serving as an extension of the living space or as a guest room.

A detached office room is connected to the residence by a roof, offering a sheltered space that also serves as a visual gateway to the home.

This office space for an institution is located in a backyard building in the heart of Helsinki.

Renovating the old 1878 building has been a challenging task. We combined two rooms by opening the wall between them, allowing light from the north windows to illuminate both spaces more effectively. We used authentic materials such as lime walls and solid wooden floors throughout.

Additionally, we specially designed custom furniture, including bookshelves, wall cabinets, and kitchen cabinets. The main lighting element for the meeting room was also designed and produced by us, featuring a stainless steel frame and sandblasted glass, which adds both functionality and a unique touch to the space.

The former barn and storage building was transformed into a summer residence with an atelier space, kitchen and dining room, and three sleeping areas. The skylights provide soft light to the atelier space, while horizontal forest windows offer a wide panoramic view of the surroundings. The heat-storing fireplace was specifically designed by architect Heikki Hyytiäinen.

All the ceilings in the newly built rooms are covered with sawn untreated boarding. Using untreated wood allows you to enjoy a natural aroma and a unique atmosphere. The walls are insulated with Ecowool, made from recycled paper, and covered with plywood. The plywood is painted with transparent Osmo color oil wax with a hint of white pigment, which has kept it in excellent condition. All the floors are made of wooden floorboards, also painted with transparent Osmo colour floor oil wax. All the rooms are built without any baseboards.

The terrace areas at the end of the building are covered with roofs, creating long horizontal shadows and protecting the terrace from rain and snow. The terrace is open on both sides of the building, allowing for views to the lakeside as well as morning and evening sun.

KOTI – The home experience was one of the events in Helsinki Design Week 2005. Several active designers have been selected to carry out this project to individualize city homes. Pekka Harni and Yuka Takahashi have made an interior design through a concept of Modern Scandinavian style spiced with Japanese cultural influence. The goal was to create wholeness in interior design by “complete applied artworks”

Many original design objects by Pekka Harni and Yuka Takahashi, including furniture, lighting objects, printed textiles, ceramic objects and etc. can be seen in this interior. *

This exhibition has shown several new prototypes and also many products produced by leading design companies such as Arabia Finland, Marimekko, and Satira.

* Divan “Chaise lounge” designed by Simo Heikkilä /Periferia Design.
Floor lamp “NIO” designed by Timo Pitkänen.
Carpets designed by Ritva Puotila / WOODNOTES

The renovation of an old atelier in the heart of Helsinki aimed to create a new kitchen, bathroom, and sleeping area above the existing space.

The main focus was given to finding a compact and elegant solution that would fit this old environment. The fact that the entrance to this space is located 72 cm above the floor level provided a spatially challenging starting point for the design. 

Another challenge was finding a suitable solution for the sleeping balcony, as the total room height was just 320 cm. As a result, these challenges led to the creation of a unique interior space that is not only functional and space-saving but also fascinating.