A modest cottage: “The lack of electricity and running water soothes the mind”

Back in the city, water comes from the tap, and you can turn on the lights with the flick of a switch. In the evenings, you often watch something on a screen—big or small—or head out for a hobby.

Lotta Ypyä and Miikka Saari have a completely different lifestyle at their cottage. That’s precisely what Lotta loves most about it: a perfect counterbalance to city living. Here, they’re close to nature, free from schedules, rush, and screens.

“The cottage is small and modest, but all the more charming. We don’t have electricity and even bring our drinking water from the city,” Lotta says.

Built in the 1970s, the log cottage is 25 square meters in size. The gas stove and gas fridge are outside on the porch, as are the kitchen supplies.

The cottage is a traditional, small, red building. The couple are planning to expand the terrace.

The cottage’s modest nature doesn’t bother the young couple, as they spend their days outside. Accustomed to camping, Miikka says he really appreciates the indoor space.

“Compared to a tent, this is practically luxury. For me, a cottage has always represented a certain simplicity that takes you back to basics,” Miikka notes.

This is the Helsinki-based couple’s first summer at their own cottage. They had tested their cottage life stamina a few times at a relative’s electricity-free place, where they happily spent their time in the sauna, chopping wood, and exploring the surroundings. Three years ago, they began dreaming of having a place of their own.

“At the same time, we wondered if we’d be too restless to stay in one place. Until then, we’d spent our vacations camping in a new location each night,” Miikka says.

At Lotta and Miikka’s cottage, life revolves around the outdoors. Miikka grills in the garden while Lotta washes dishes at a cozy outdoor washing station, and their son Aale goes back and forth between mom and dad.

The cottage is located in Mikkeli, Finland, on the shore of Lake Rauhajärvi.

Nearly the entire day is spent outdoors.

But the seed of cottage fever had been planted. Lotta found their current cottage online, and its nearly 4,000-square-meter plot and reasonable price caught their attention.

“It was a beautiful, sunny September day when we came to view it. Walking along the shore of Lake Rauhajärvi, I thought, wow, this place is absolutely amazing. We looked beyond the overgrown trees and worn-out buildings and saw a place full of possibilities,” Miikka recalls.

They made an offer the next day, and the deal was closed that same September.

Lotta believes that the lack of electricity and water slows you down and soothes the mind.

“Working with your hands is also a great way to counterbalance the everyday grind,” she says.

Their hands had plenty to do right from the start, as the couple began their cottage life by cutting down trees and clearing the shoreline to reveal the lake. In the fall, Miikka did some woodwork by himself and with friends, and Lotta used a chainsaw for the first time in her life.

“I got into using a lightweight battery-powered saw and many other tools as well. A pole pruner is a wonderful tool,” Lotta says.

Miikka’s first project was building a new outhouse. As a housewarming gift, the couple received leftover materials from Miikka’s brother’s construction company, and together the brothers built the frame in a single day.

The couple have furnished the cottage with secondhand finds from Tori. They envision converting the current cottage into a guesthouse one day and building a larger house. “We have building rights for nearly a hundred square meters,” Lotta says.

Cottage life is soothing.

During the winter, Miikka spent more time at the cottage than Lotta, as Aale still being in diapers made winter cottage life pretty challenging. When Miikka hosted his friend’s bachelor party at the cottage in winter, about ten guys fit comfortably on the floors to sleep. In January, he organized an ice-fishing get-together for friends.

“Many of them have families, so everyone had to be home by evening. Still, they were all excited to escape Helsinki for a bit to chop some wood and fish.”

The previous owner had used a gas heater in the cottage, but it generated so much moisture that the windows kept fogging up.

“Our clothes ended up smelling a bit stale. We suspected that the gas heater, along with poor ventilation, was to blame. So one weekend, we installed a wood-burning stove and added vents to improve airflow. We also replaced the interior ceiling,” Lotta explains.

The family plan to build a kitchen in the living area of the cottage later on, and they’ve already obtained an almost-new set of kitchen cabinets.

Lotta and Miikka sanded down the cottage’s log walls, which used to be very dark.

The cottage interior was initially quite pine-heavy, but Lotta and Miikka didn’t want to follow the paint-it-all-white trend. One weekend, while Aale was staying with a babysitter overnight, they sanded the log walls and the floor. Lotta’s mother and uncle, who's a painter, volunteered to handle the painting of the floor. What used to be the kitchen nook was converted into a sleeping alcove.

You can find plenty of good items for free or cheaply on Facebook groups and online secondhand stores.

“We paid 50 euros for a barely used gas stove. Eventually, we’ll integrate it into the kitchen counter, but for now we’re cooking outdoors on an old gas range. It already has a spot planned in the summer kitchen we’ll build later,” Miikka says.

The cottage items are stored, now and in the future, on a practical open shelf where everything is immediately visible.

The dishes are kept conveniently on display.

The cottage yard has a guest cabin, a storage shed, a woodshed, a lakeside shed, and an outhouse.

The cottage’s old sauna offers great steams, and the family uses it daily. They don’t always wait until evening, either.

“We often carry the firewood and water to the sauna in the evening, and in the morning, Lotta starts heating it up. I often enjoy my morning coffee on the sauna benches. It’s wonderful,” Miikka praises.

They plan to renovate the sauna later, as an unsightly plastic mat was once laid over the old plank floor. They’re also considering converting the lakeside shed, which has a fireplace, into a sauna.

They have plenty of other projects in mind, too. The roof needs replacing, and they want solar power and a fridge. Lotta adds that the simplicity wouldn’t be an issue if it were just the two of them—the real challenge is managing Aale’s daily needs at the cottage.

“I admit that after a weekend at the cottage, I also appreciate being able to simply turn on the tap for warm water,” she says.

“We often carry the firewood and water to the sauna in the evening, and in the morning, Lotta starts heating it up,” Miikka says.

When Lotta and Miikka were looking for a cottage, they dreamed of a place by the water. However, it seemed out of reach given their budget. The cottage they found caught their eye because the photos in the listing highlighted its best features.

Two-year-old Aale also comes along to the cottage. The road leading there winds through the forest down to the lake.

As the summer season began, Lotta and Miikka decided to either invest in a solar panel or a mosquito trap. They went with the latter, since the area in front of the cottage was teeming with mosquitoes, especially in the evenings.

“I’ve spent more than half my life in Ylivieska, which is full of mosquitoes, so they don’t bother me much, but Lotta and Aale get big welts,” Miikka explains.

Besides all the projects, Miikka enjoys lying in the hammock reading or taking a nap with Aale. Lotta admits she struggles when things are unfinished, but she recognizes that renovating the cottage is a ten-year endeavor.

“I’m always in work mode. When Aale goes to bed, I start raking and weeding in the garden.”

The previous owner kept fishing nets in the lakeside shed and even boiled them clean there. One day, they might convert the shed into a sauna.

The 90-year-old seller was pleased that a young family bought the cottage.

Miikka, Lotta, and Aale love spending time outdoors. “It’s wonderful that Aale gets to grow into a cottage-goer right from babyhood.”