Farmhouse Christmas

A house that sat empty for 35 years stopped Salla in her tracks: “I was only thinking about how to make it mine”

Salla and her family gave the abandoned farmhouse a second chance. At Christmas, aesthetics come first, just as they do on every other day of the year. “If you get your hands on a 175‑year‑old house, don’t ruin it” is Salla’s guiding principle.

Author Laura Sychold

Images Mikko Kaaresmaa

December 10, 2025Lue suomeksi

It’s December in the late 1980s. The teenage Salla Kaunisto quickens her pace as she walks past the abandoned farmstead on the village’s main street. The big house’s dark windows seem to follow her. Salla’s imagination races. What secrets might the house be hiding?

Home: The Yli‑Parma house in Kokemäki, built in 1850: 8 rooms + kitchen + entrance hall + WC + bathroom; 350 m² (3,770 square feet).

Living here: Salla Kaunisto with her family and the dogs Deyna and Elli, who moved to Finland from Greece.

Follow on social media: @old_house_design

Forty years later, the kitchen’s wood‑burning range spreads its cozy warmth, and the home is getting ready for Christmas. That teenage girl has grown into a woman who, together with her family, saved that very farmhouse from final ruin.

Originally coated in red ochre, the house received new exterior cladding, which was painted gray. The original windows were painstakingly restored at the Satakunta prison workshop, so you can still admire the view through the mouth‑blown glass. The decorative pieces above the windows were crafted by a carpenter following the old model.

A straw goat from Salla’s childhood home adorns the front porch table. The coat rack came with the house, and the clown marionette on top was found in a suitcase up in the attic. The wallpaper is William Morris’s Strawberry Thief.

Salla fetched the hallway sofa after three ferry rides out in the Kustavi archipelago, from a woman who donated it. The sturdy staircase to the upper floor was made by Salla’s father’s cousin. The wallpaper is a now‑discontinued pattern from Pihlgren & Ritola. Deyna on the sofa; Elli is in the kitchen with Salla.

The family’s youngest, Venla, admires the unusually small Christmas tree set into a glass bottle. The ornaments were bought at Tokmanni. The house’s beautiful double doors are original; Salla sanded and repainted them. Salla purchased the striking piano in Pori.

“Old houses and interior design have been my passion for as long as I can remember. Buying a house wasn’t on the agenda in 2003, but the urge to explore this one—a place I’d known for years—was strong. When my interior design studies covered building styles from different eras, I dared to approach the owner. He grabbed a massive iron key from a hook and set off to show me around,” Salla recalls.

The big farmhouse had stood unoccupied for 35 years, so stepping inside was nerve‑racking. The excitement deflated a bit when the first thing Salla saw was a kitchen done up in ’60s style. But then the owner opened the salon’s double doors—and there was no going back.

The trim sets off the Grandecon Peacock Garden wallpaper. The showy gold‑colored frames are a key part of Salla’s style. A functionalist‑era stove became a classic tiled masonry heater once it received a “crown” from another stove. The iron chandeliers were bought from Festrent in Pori; they once hung in the lobby of Hotel Presidentti in Helsinki. The sofas were purchased from a furniture store.

”“At that moment the salon was filled with old apothecary fittings in storage, but I just stood in the middle of the floor, marveling and breathing.””

Opulent frames are Salla’s weakness. The old tapestry comes from a French castle. Salla has been collecting blue‑and‑white Arabia porcelain since she was young.

“The size and height of the salon completely swept me away. The owner told me more about the house afterward, but I didn’t hear a thing. I was only thinking about how to make it mine. I went back the same evening to make an offer,” Salla says.

”When the kids come home from school, they no longer bat an eye even if the house has changed its look.”

During the years‑long renovation the house has literally been gone through from floor to ceiling. During the salon’s floor remodel, attention was drawn to odd strike marks visible on the planks. According to a story Salla heard, they came from the spurs on the boots of soldiers who lodged in the house during the war years while they danced.

Salla finds joy in creating beauty—whether it’s entire rooms or the small details of a table setting. The black dishes on the festive table were once bought in Sicily.

Salla has made great finds at Festrent, which sells furniture, among other things, decommissioned from hotels. The striking china cabinets and what are likely former hotel stainless‑steel cloches came from there.

Nutcrackers have been collected on trips—and a few from Finland too. The light fixture is DIY; the table is from a flea market. Several old clocks appear throughout the home as decorative pieces.

“One guiding principle is important to me: if you get your hands on a 175‑year‑old house, don’t ruin it. That’s why we’ve tried to choose only breathable materials here. The exposed log walls haven’t been painted either. That doesn’t mean the surfaces haven’t been renewed many times. I’m a restless decorator, always juggling a thousand things. Furniture is in constant motion at our place. When the kids come home from school, they no longer bat an eye even if the house has changed its look over the course of the day,” Salla says with a laugh.

Salla received the grand piano as a gift for her 50th birthday. The Chinese porcelain lamp is from the Tori marketplace. Salla customized the unusual cake stand, a €20 find from an event rental company.

Silk fabric sourced from a thrift shop adds luster to the table setting. Footed bowls with ornate ornaments serve as the centerpiece. The blue dinner plates are from Ikea; the glasses from Villeroy & Boch. The beautifully darkened plank ceiling was uncovered during the renovation beneath torn lining paper. The chandelier is a flea‑market find.

The bed is placed crosswise so the tall headboard won’t block the window. Salla’s father’s cousin built the canopy from leftover material from the staircase balustrade. The crocheted bedspread is from a thrift shop.

Salla has a knack for spotting beauty even in cast‑offs. She brings the same philosophy to Christmas.

“Aesthetics come first here. On most Christmases there are around twenty of us at the table. That’s plenty to prepare, so we lighten the workload by buying some things—like traditional casseroles—ready‑made. I’d rather focus on presentation, pulling out vintage Arabia dishes, grand ham platters, and cloth napkins. A beautifully set meal tastes better to everyone,” Salla says.

For a Christmas tea, the decorations include large cones brought years ago from southern France and wooden beakers with green sprigs found at the Finnish Red Cross’s thrift store. Tea is enjoyed from Arabia’s Ali‑series cups. The china cabinet, originally from an old parsonage, was bought from an acquaintance.

The big cabinet in Venla’s room was made by Salla using recycled materials. The dollhouse belonged to Salla’s late mother and is very dear to her.

The farmhouse interior is rich and saturated with color. Salla says the style is a bit over the top, so there’s no need to go overboard at Christmas. Subtle white poinsettias, brass candelabras gathered over the years from flea markets, and handmade wreaths are her favorites.

Salla has strict criteria for decorating the Christmas tree. Ornaments aren’t tossed here and there; the decorations are placed in a balanced, harmonious way.

Christmas twilight settles over the yard. At the farmhouse, everyone soon gathers around the shared festive table. In the glow of the chandeliers, happy chatter and laughter fill the air. The big house is no longer empty.

Design & Decoration Vintage Colorful Interior Old Houses Homes Christmas Christmas Interior

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A house that sat empty for 35 years stopped Salla in her tracks: “I was only thinking about how to make it mine”

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