Finnish designer Maija Puoskari bought an enamoring 1960s home without her partner’s knowledge

Designer Maija Puoskari in her favorite spot in the home’s garden, surrounded by Japanese maples. In summer, the garden feels like a second living room.

A climbing hydrangea ascended up the brick wall of the 1960s row house apartment. Planted when the house was built, it had grown wild, reaching the upstairs bedroom windows and covering the entire facade. This was the first thing designer Maija Puoskari fell in love with in the home.

Next, she noticed the abundant natural light pouring into the home from every direction. Lastly, the garden captured her eye with its well-maintained old perennials and a lovingly tended, expansive peony bed.

The previous owners left the bookshelf behind. It is filled with books on mushrooms, art, and design history. The ‘Vanamo’ floor lamp and ‘Terho’ pendant lights are designed by Maija, while the ‘Lehto’ glass sculptures on top were created by her and Tuukka. The old chairs and table are by Artek.

However, while Maija was already set on making an offer, her partner, Tuukka Tujula, was off fishing in the Swedish Lapland wilderness, far from any mobile signal. Both Maija and Tuukka had been longing to move out of Helsinki’s center to a calmer, more wooded area.

The couple already had loan approval, so with her friend’s support, Maija decided to move forward and make an offer. After all, Tuukka had once driven past the house with her!

Things progressed quickly. The seller had heard how Maija had fallen for the garden, the house’s architecture, and its original wooden ceiling—one the seller had built themself. Preferring not to sell to buyers looking to overhaul the entire interior, the seller chose to pass the home on to Maija’s family of four.

The living room is the heart of Maija’s home, where you can see the fireplace, the original parquet and ceiling, and the cherished garden all at once.

The former owner had acted as the building foreman and personally chosen the ceiling materials—resulting in a knot-free, stunning wooden ceiling. Maija’s ‘Flower Bell’ floor vase is sold by Lokal. The coffee table came from an online marketplace, and the sideboard is from a flea market. The rug is Finarte’s ‘Dyyni’, and the wall is painted with Tikkurila’s V484 ‘Ajopuu’.

Maija and Tuukka had been dreaming of a home like this for a very long time—so long, in fact, that Maija, a self-confessed flea market enthusiast, had stored so many finds in friends’ attics and basements that after moving into a place nearly four times bigger than their old apartment, the only new piece they needed was a sofa. The brothers Bouroullec, famous designers who Maija admires, had fortunately created the ideal one: the green sofa from Ligne Roset became the focal point of the living room, where you can enjoy the garden in summer and the fireplace in winter.

However, Maija rarely lounges on the sofa; she prefers to keep herself busy.

“I absolutely love tinkering, renovating, installing, and especially digging and weeding in the garden,” Maija says. “It’s wonderful to tackle things bit by bit and watch your own work come to fruition.”

The living room and dining area form a single open space with a garden view. Maija has designed the ‘Terho’ pendant lights for Mater. The ‘Ploum’ sofa by Ligne Roset is the only newly piece purchased for the home. The ‘Kukkapuro’ armchairs are old flea market finds that have been reupholstered. The ceiling light is by Le Klint, the coffee table is from an online marketplace, and the vase is Maija’s ‘Flower Bell’.

Spending time in the garden is also one of the favorite pastimes of six-year-old Taimi, who likes to help Maija and discover the bugs and worms of the garden and the nearby forest.

In addition to being a designer, Maija is also a trained florist, so her passion for nature and plants is evident not only in her design work but throughout the greenery in the home and garden. Along with the old peony bed, the garden has a small vegetable patch, multiple Japanese maples, and various work-in-progress projects that might go unnoticed by casual observers but are integral to gardening.

“Gardening isn’t fast-paced work, it requires patience. For instance, we’re currently working on eliminating the flowering raspberry in our garden, so we’ve covered the fence line with landscape fabric and paving stones to prevent it growing there. In a couple of years, I can remove them and start a flower bed. In our hectic world, gardening is grounding and forces you to slow down. I’m usually not great at that.”

Each bedroom has its own color scheme. The color palette of the parents’ bedroom comprises a brownish peach and rowan red. The wall is painted with Cover Story’s 022 ‘Evelyn’. The embroidered cushion is an heirloom from Maija’s grandmother. The art poster is by Reeta Ek. The wall lamp is ‘Lampe Gras 214’ by DCW Éditions.

Maija had painted the Werner West Hugging Chair a while ago, and now it fits perfectly in the bedroom’s color scheme. The embroidered cushion is an heirloom from Maija’s grandmother.

Architecture from the 1960s and ’70s appeals to both Maija and Tuukka. The large windows, clean lines, and thoughtful use of materials provide a perfect backdrop for decorating and everyday living.

In interior design, proportions are key, and they often come together well when you choose furniture from the same era as the house. Maija is particular about colors, carefully building a cohesive palette for each space. The wooden ceilings and floors in the shared areas are highlighted by light, sandy-hued walls, which offer a neutral background for her pieces but feel warmer than stark white.

There’s more room for color in the bedrooms. The children picked their own room colors, while the parents’ bedroom palette centers on a brownish peach and rowan red.

A view from the upstairs landing into the kitchen, which is still awaiting renovation. It was last updated in the 1980s and was the only section that had been renovated in the home.

Maija’s love for Japan is evident in the kitchen, not just in its style but also in the placemats of the dining table. The table was discovered in the home’s basement, where it had once served as a mangling surface. Tributes to the family’s favorite pastimes—forest hiking and mushroom foraging—can be found throughout the home.

The Artek shelves hold an assortment of treasures, including a bird-shaped sugar bowl given by a friend living in Japan.

The nature-loving designer has her own workspace in the basement, where she can lay out unfinished ceramics and upcoming exhibition pieces without overtaking the whole house for work. Tuukka also uses the space for tying fishing flies on winter evenings.

At the time of the interview, Maija and Tuukka were preparing a new exhibition called Puhdetyö (“Pastime”) in the basement—a yearly event they organize with friends in conjunction with Helsinki Design Week. As part of the exhibition process, they spent a summer weekend on an island with two other designer couples, and the creative work continues at home. This way of working is exactly what Maija enjoys the most because it merges nature, design, and friendship.

The striking wooden wardrobe in the hallway is original. During the renovation, the old accordion door was oiled, and black oak handles were installed on the cabinets.

The original glass in the door was ochre-colored but shattered when a sudden draft slammed the door shut. After much searching, the couple found this green bottle-bottom glass in Sweden. The coat rack is by Vitra.

The whole family is passionate about mushroom picking and hiking, and Tuukka and Tatu are also avid fishermen. Throughout the house, on windowsills and bookshelves, there are rounded stones collected from the shores of the Arctic Ocean. The family typically spends their autumn weekends in the forest, but now they can also grab mushrooms for dinner in the nearby woods on their way home.

“I dream of hosting large gatherings. The kind where Tuukka and I could prepare dishes from the gifts of the forest and savor good food with a group of friends.”

Despite the renovation, the floor, ceiling, and staircase were left in their original state; they are perfect as they are. The ‘Kangasmetsä’ textile piece is Maija’s own design, and the bench is by Artek.

Sunlight streams from the airy stairwell window down to the lower level.

The bookshelf in Taimi’s room once belonged to Maija’s grandmother and has been in the family for a long time. For Taimi, the main priority is having a place for all her treasures in her room. The Moomin house is on loan from a friend’s friend, whose architect father built it for his daughter. The wall is painted with Cover Story’s LB5 ‘Edith’.

Taimi’s shelf overflows with precious treasures from forest adventures and family trips to Norway. Maija’s ‘Nuppu’ cup on the bedside table serves as Taimi’s water glass.

The bathroom and sauna were renovated before moving in, as part of a plumbing overhaul. Preserving the original mood was the top priority. A Japanese-inspired wooden mat now sits atop the tiled bench.

The row house apartment in Helsinki spans 158 square meters.

The lucky clover is one of Maija’s favorite plants. The wicker plant stand is a gift from a friend.