Incredible transformation on a budget! Kari and Mari turned 1960s lakeside cottage into year-round haven

there are many wonderful things at Mari and Kari’s cottage—like the fact that the dogs can roam free and the children visit whenever they want to. And most importantly, the cottage is now their own.

Mari and Kari were familiar with Lake Nerkoonjärvi long before buying their own cottage. They first rented a cottage on one shore, and later secured another on an annual lease across the lake.

“We did dream of having our own cottage. It’s funny that we found this place right next to our last rental,” Kari reminisces now, standing in their own garden.

The main building—a 60-square-meter log house built in 1963—got a sauna cabin next to it in 2021. The rocky shoreline provided a sturdy foundation for the cabin.

This is what the cottage looked like before Mari and Kari’s renovation:

Entrepreneur and property manager Mari Heinonen, steel salesman Kari Majanen, and their children, Viljami and Wilma, along with their partners, enjoy spending time at the cottage in Kihniö, a small town in Finland.

Initially, the cottages in the area seemed quite expensive. However, the one they found was appealing in both price and location—it lies on the side of the evening sun. This discovery also involved one of Mari’s sleepless nights.

“I couldn’t sleep one night and was browsing Tori.net just for fun. Then suddenly, I found this cottage listing, and it caught my eye.

In the morning, Kari also looked at the listing. The sales photo was far from lovely, but the couple decided to go see the cottage.

“It interested us because cottages rarely go up for sale at this lake, and we realized it was right next door. Out of sheer curiosity, we went to take a look.”

They arrived to find a cottage hidden behind trees and an overgrown garden. However, the couple saw through it all: this could become the perfect place for the whole family. It later emerged that Mari’s grandfather was from the same area. The place has become their home lake where their stories intertwine.

The cottage before the renovation:

They were able to save the old log frame and chimney of the cottage.

Once the deal was made, they first drafted a detailed budget they decided to stick to. An imaginative cottage project began to take shape.

The renovation of the main building started immediately after the purchase in February 2019. Due to its poor condition, almost everything in the cottage had to be renewed. They were able to save the old log frame and chimney.

“We knew what we were getting into,” Mari says.

The couple wanted an indoor sauna and a toilet. Kari adds that they also opened up the cottage’s entire roof.

“At the same time, we installed new rafters, which allowed us to replace the small skylights with large windows that let light flood in.”

The cost estimate for renovating the cottage, building the storage, installing water and fiber connections, and constructing the sauna cabin was €60,000. They managed to stay within budget because they did a significant portion of the work themselves.

The couple found logs under the panels; they give the cottage a unified look. The load-bearing beams were cleaned with a grinding disc.

The kitchen table is a multifunctional spot where Mari and Kari dine and work remotely. They’ve collected matching chairs at flea markets.

The tabletop is an old door from Kihniö, cleaned of peeling paint. Kari made the legs, and they commissioned a glass top for it.

Mari and Kari enjoy their own cottage and also work there remotely. It has been going well after installing fiber-optic internet. Working remotely on Fridays makes the cottage weekend feel longer.

By adding a partition wall to the large room, the couple created two separate, adequately sized bedrooms and space at the end for an indoor toilet. The bedroom headboard is Mari’s handiwork. She stretched it over a frame and printed text on its surface to make a pattern, inspired by an old jute sack.

During the renovation, the open fireplace was replaced with a heat-retaining Tiileri fireplace, which is kept warm every day at the cottage. Heating is supported by an air-source heat pump that’s running continuously.

The couple ordered the kitchen cabinets from Ikea and assembled them themselves. The log paneling on the walls was purchased pre-treated with white wax and tinted.

In the main building, the couple renewed the doors, windows, insulation, and every surface. They carried out almost the entire project by themselves, with the help of their children and their partners. Only the plumbing, electrical work, and tiling were outsourced.

Kari and Mari have approached surprises and setbacks with a relaxed attitude, knowing they started from almost zero—despite delays, everything is always progress.

“We had a delay in getting our water connection in order, but we eventually managed to get it before winter set in,” Mari says.

Kari adds that the arrival of the sauna rafters was also delayed from the planned schedule.

“We turned it into a positive by building a new storage to replace the old one during that time. It also has a men’s toilet. We now have an indoor toilet, but in the storage, there’s one that resembles a traditional outhouse,” Kari smiles.

They painted the final topcoat themselves with Tikkurila’s shade TVT 1947. The trim boards were painted with shade TVT Q841.

Mari sewed sauna pillows for the benches using Marimekko towels as material.

They had the sauna stove custom-made by a friend to fit the sauna. It is big enough to heat the entire spacious sauna room.

The couple got the door for the sauna lounge from an old house in Lempäälä. Kari installed sliding barn door rails on it. The old paint surface was left as is but treated with a protective coating to prevent the paint from peeling.

The new wood-burning sauna next to the cottage is usually the one the cottage-goers use. There they wash up with carried water, which is heated in the stove’s water tank.

Kari and Mari made the living room of the sauna cabin light-toned. The old dresser from the 1800s was bought secondhand. The sauna cabin was built from scratch with a budget-sauna mindset. For the interior paneling, they chose slightly second-grade, pre-treated panels.

A sauna cabin was built in 2021 next to the main cottage because the couple wanted a traditional wood-burning outdoor sauna in addition to the indoor sauna. Mari designed the building, and based on that, their son Viljami drew up the final plans. The same building includes a sauna living room where the family’s young adults can stay overnight.

The family doesn’t plan to just rest in the future, either. They’re already planning an extension for the cottage, and the renovators have a few unused ideas ready for it. Next spring, they intend to start construction work that will result in a bay window for the dining area and a home office for remote work.

The family have their own ski tracks that start in the garden and lead onto the cottage lake. Kari maintains them with a snowmobile with a trail groomer. Large snow removal tasks at the cottage are handled with a tractor, and Mari usually wields the shovel and for the smaller ones.

The couple wanted a safe ice swimming hole on the lake so that their dogs and wild animals wouldn’t fall into it. They decided to build a dipping ice hole from a 500-liter chest freezer that Mari found at a recycling center. The mechanism was removed professionally, and Kari sawed off the bottom. Read about the family’s ingenious chest freezer ice hole here.

The size of the wood-burning sauna was determined by the window installed in it, which the couple bought as a mismeasured window. Mari designed the building around the windows. The chest freezer’s closable lid ensures safety and also keeps the ice hole always open.