The charming red house sitting on a hilltop doesn’t exactly look new, but it doesn’t look old, either. Its square shape and roof design recall a traditional Finnish wooden house from the post-war era, yet it seems as though this “post-war house” has taken a time machine to the 1800s.
Sitting on the terrace in front of the house, Jonathan Hemming is intimately familiar with every part of it, from the foundation to the heartwood ridge of the roof. The house was completed in 2018, and Jonathan, together with his partner Sini designed and built it themselves.
Home: An eco house, built in 2018 in Mustasaari, Finland, with 4 rooms, an open-plan kitchen, 2 bathrooms, a backyard sauna, and outbuildings for storage, 113 m².
Living here: Sini and Jonathan Hemming together with their children Saga, 9, and Armas, 3.
You step inside through a heated porch. Its semicircular windows lend a slightly churchlike look. The building site was chosen with care—water won’t collect at the top of the hill.
Jonathan Hemming has long been fascinated by eco-friendly construction. Their own home turned out cozy with a natural atmosphere.
Jonathan and Saga relax in front of the house. The solar panels supply power for the needs of a modern lifestyle. The kitchen opens directly onto the terrace.
Jonathan, what parts of the house are new and what parts are old?
The house is entirely new. We couldn’t find an old house to renovate that would suit our needs, so we decided to build an eco-friendly passive house that combines both new and old materials and uses as little energy and water as possible. Most of the timber came from my parents’ forest, and the rest was sourced locally. One example of something old are the exterior windows, made with mouth-blown glass. Old glass refracts light in a lovely way and creates a unique atmosphere.
The outer layer of the windows is old, mouth-blown glass. Otherwise, the windows are new, custom-made, and painted in Bladgrö linseed oil paint. The geraniums overwinter in the cellar.
Old bricks were used for the porch floor. The surface is protected with boiled linseed oil. The walls have a lovely vertical cladding. The old cabinet and chest match the house’s style better than new built-ins. The window trim is still awaiting inspiration.
The beautiful reclaimed panel doors help create the illusion of an old house. The hallway floor is clad in Moroccan cement tiles. The stairs are finished with Uula linseed oil paint in the shade Oras. The mirror came from Pentik.
How would you describe your house?
Our house has many facets. We designed the floor plan much like a Finnish post-war house, with a chimney in the center. There’s a fireplace in the downstairs living area that can heat the entire house. It also warms our domestic water, as well as the underfloor heating pipes in the hallway and bathrooms. The roof shape is reminiscent of a post-war home but angled optimally for solar panels. We chose the exterior siding, color, and windows to harmonize with older houses in the area, drawing inspiration from the nearby Stundars heritage village.
The kitchen was made by a local woodworking shop, M-Wood. The cabinets are painted with tempera paint and the countertop is glued laminated timber. The dark ceiling beams give the room structure and character. The stove is prominently placed in the center of the peninsula.
The retro Smeg fridge stands on its own feet. The ornate platform was originally bought as a coffee table but now serves as a fridge stand. The small brick wall adds more character to the home than its size might suggest.
The large porcelain sink is by Villeroy & Boch, and the faucet is a Facebook flea market find. The open shelves keep the kitchen light and airy. Paneled walls make it easy to hide electrical wiring.
What made you want to use recycled materials?
That’s easy to answer: our planet’s resources are already being overused. We consume too much. By choosing reclaimed bricks and old windows, for instance, we gave a new life to perfectly usable materials.
We’ve built interior walls with old bricks, keeping their future reuse in mind when we chose the mortar. Modern mortar contains cement that’s hard to remove once it sets, but we used traditional clay mortar. Because there’s no cement in clay mortar, it can be easily knocked off the bricks. We also used clay to plaster the interior walls.
Downstairs, everyone gathers around the dining table. The table was purchased at a flea market. The modern rattan chairs are from Ikea. The wide spruce plank floor, supplied by Danin Kelolattiat, has a soap finish.
The coziest corner of the kitchen features an old wooden bench. The exterior walls are a generous 70 cm thick, offering excellent insulation and a perfect windowsill seat. Jonathan’s parents found the little shelf at an auction. The rustic daybed came from the home of Jonathan’s mother’s uncle. The walls are plastered with clay and painted with tempera.
The painting is by Kyösti Linna. It appeals to Jonathan and Sini because the artist is Jonathan’s childhood friend and they love the colors. The fireplace heats the house and provides hot water in winter. It’s made by the Swedish company Kakelugnspannan.
Wood has traditionally been used, for example, in shingle roofs. What type of wood is your roof made from?
Our roof is built with pine heartwood, the densest part of the log. Wood roofs were common in Finland before tile and sheet metal took over. We enhanced the roof’s weather resistance by applying tar. Because of the wooden roof, our chimney is taller than usual.
The everyday living area offers plenty of space. The playful coffee table from Ikea has been painted with leftover paints. The upstairs ended up with a high living room somewhat by accident, when the solar panels dictated a 45-degree roof angle.
The walls in the children’s room are painted in the 18 maj 70 shade by Av Jord. The old drop-front desk was already blueberry blue when purchased, and it matches beautifully with the parents’ bedroom. The rag rug is a flea market find.
The wallpaper in the children’s room is Lemur Blue Multi by Holden Decor. Armas and Saga still share this room. They’ll get more space when the downstairs office moves to a new outbuilding.
The second floor has an atmosphere reminiscent of an old villa. The wallpaper is Flora by Boråstapeter.
The parents sleep under a sloped ceiling. Sini and Jonathan’s bedroom is painted in Sinnerstensblå by Ovolin, and the linen curtains are from Ikea. The balcony is accessible directly from the bedroom.
A beautiful old cupboard provides clothes storage, and there’s extra storage behind the curtain. The bedroom walls and ceiling are made of the same material.
The upstairs bathroom, next to the living area, is like its own little cottage. Above it, there’s a loft. The house was designed so that one day, when the children have moved out, the second floor can be left unheated.
The star of the upstairs bathroom is the curved shower wall. The Separett eco toilet separates waste and is odorless.
The shower corner is beautifully finished with light-catching mosaic tiles. The charming interior window brings natural light into the bathroom. The vanity is from Ikea.
