Under starry skies: the Koivisto family’s enchanting smoke-sauna christmas
For Tiina and Kari Koivisto’s family, Christmas is the best time of the year. They spend Christmas Eve at their cottage. On Christmas Eve morning, the inviting smoke from their smoke sauna drifts out of its slightly open door.
The line between the frosty sky and the ice is barely visible. Emerging from the shimmering snow, a skier approaches the yard. She is Tiina and Kari Koivisto’s youngest Miina, and she effortlessly covers the distance on her skis.
Tiina and Kari lay a covering of spruce branches in front of the smoke sauna steps. Then, with the whole family pitching in, they hang rosy-cheeked apples on the branches of the Christmas tree. It’s time to settle into a peaceful Christmas at the cottage.
The Koivisto family’s cottage site has a long history. Before the striking charcoal-black building appeared on the plot, there was an old pink cottage. Kari’s parents purchased the property back in 1965. You could only stay in the pink cottage during the summer. Even extensive renovations wouldn’t have made that old lady practical or functional. Tiina and Kari decided to build a new cottage in its place.
“Tiina found the design for her dream cottage in a Swedish interior design magazine. However, the final look came together by combining the best parts of different catalogs,” Kari says.
Here, the peace of Christmas is truly unbroken.
Kari planned how the spaces would function and took measurements. The building permit drawings were made by municipal building director Jarkko Kivioja. After that, the plans ended up on the drawing board at Peuratalot. The cottage’s long side was built facing the lake, ensuring a perfect view from the living areas. Functional bathroom and sauna facilities were also key in the design.
“An indoor sauna and a shower make cottage life easier for Miina, who actively skis and trains. The smoke sauna that Kari built is wonderful,” Tiina says.
“You just can’t rush the heating process,” Kari adds.
Relatives and friends pitched in during the construction project. Professionals were brought in for electrical and plumbing work. The cottage logs arrived on-site in September, and by the following Midsummer, the cottage was ready to be lived in.
“Throughout those eight months, there was never a shortage of work. All our free time went into construction. Luckily, we’ve almost forgotten how many beads of sweat were shed,” Kari says with a smile.
They reached quick agreement on the choice of materials. Tiina made the interior design decisions and didn’t want to bring mismatched items from the old cottage or home. Each piece in the cottage is carefully selected, and only precisely chosen furniture and objects make it inside.
Building the cottage was a huge effort for the family and the volunteers, and it took up all our free time.
For Christmas, the spruce wreaths are hung on the doors well in advance, but the Christmas tree only comes indoors on the evening before Christmas Eve.
“Christmas is the best time of the entire year. At the cottage, I start savoring it in the fall when the nights grow darker. Of course, the Christmas lights are ‘winter lights’ until I can start calling them Christmas lights,” Tiina says.
On Christmas Eve morning, the aroma of ham rouses any late sleepers. Rice porridge is enjoyed from red-and-white bowls by candlelight. There’s always one almond (or sometimes two!) hidden in the porridge. Any holiday rush winds down by noon.
“We listen to the traditional declaration of Christmas peace together. That’s when we drink mulled wine and savor cottage-baked ginger cookies, cheese, and chocolate. The crackling fire in the fireplace radiates warmth all around it,” Tiina says.
Heating the smoke sauna is a ritual of its own. The welcoming smoke drifts from the slightly open door early on Christmas Eve morning. The unhurried nature of the heating process brings a sense of well-being. Kari doesn’t consider it hard work—he savors every moment.
“After lighting the fire, I add more wood every 45 minutes, three times. It’s not a big task, especially when the reward is the gentlest, most enjoyable steam,” the sauna master says.
Christmas is the best time of the whole year.
As dusk settles in the early evening, they take a dip in the hot tub and relax in the sauna. Often, they’ll go again once the stars come out. The perfect silence surrounding them completes the mood. The festive meal is enjoyed without hurry. Afterward, the family, in their wool socks, rustles open their gifts.
On Christmas morning, the footprints in the yard show a hare has visited. As usual, moose tracks appear on the cottage road. The ice on the lake extends as far as the eye can see.
“Here, the Christmas peace is completely undisturbed,” Tiina and Kari say.
