Could this be Finland’s most beautiful neighborhood? Step inside 4 wooden homes in Turku’s enchanting Port Arthur

1. The sea captain’s home turned into a gentle, playful retreat

The first owner of this wooden home, now over a hundred years old, was a sea captain, and it currently belongs to hairdresser Minna Rajala.

The home has everything Minna dreamed of: a wonderful location, enough space, and the warmth of an old house. She decorated the apartment with bright colors and art.

“I really love the old doors, windows, and wooden floor, the tiled stove, and the hood and bread oven, which are no longer in use but so beautiful that I didn’t want to remove them,” Minna says.

A two-story wooden home on the edge of Turku’s Port Arthur wooden housing area, built in 1910.

Minna loves different shades of green. The Tikkurila J442 Mentoli color chosen for the kitchen was perfect from the start. More color comes from Hakola’s Pinna chairs, Minna’s upcycled wooden chairs, a large new rug, and subtle decorative details.

In Minna’s home, the vintage look is front and center. The wood-burning stove in the kitchen is no longer used, but Minna felt it was too beautiful to remove.

2. Renovating a colorful wooden home was a learning experience

The entrepreneur behind the Maanantaimalli jewelry line and Turku’s second-hand store Maanantaimarket, Matleena Töhönen lives here with her family in an apartment dating back to 1896. Its renovation was an eye-opening experience.

“I trusted the process, but I wouldn’t have believed the result could be this beautiful,” Matleena says.

Port Arthur is familiar territory for Matleena. Her family’s home is in a wooden building from 1896. The largest cooperative unit was created by joining two smaller apartments.

Matleena enjoys having a home where the family can gather together and host guests. “We don’t hole up in our own corners; we hang out in the same space. Sometimes the children continue sleeping on the wooden sofa in the kitchen while we parents start making breakfast,” Matleena says. The wooden sofa was originally built next door in Kakola but was found on the Tori marketplace.

When they bought the place, parts of the kitchen cabinets were missing, and a small heater had replaced the original wood-burning stove. A mason installed a new wood-burning stove.

3. A dream home was found next door

There would be space for a new project, thought longtime Port Arthur residents Sandra Hildén and Jockum Lundsten. They discovered their ideal new home right on the other side of the wall, when their neighbor offered to sell it to them.

“The courtyard of the wooden house is the home’s second heart, and many of our neighbors are also friends,” Sandra says.

Sandra and Jockum enthusiastically spruce up their tiny patio. On the other side of the yard is a planter box that yielded 30 zucchinis from just two seedlings.

Originally, the home consisted of two single-room units with wood-burning stoves, combined in the late 1980s and early 1990s to better suit modern needs. A rag rug on the staircase is a classic look in wooden house neighborhoods. All surfaces are painted with Virtasen Maalitehdas products. The bulletin board is from Granit.

An old cabinet from Jockum’s family fits under the ceiling height of over three meters (about 10 ft.). The Artek 91 table was found on a Facebook flea market. The tablecloth is by Marimekko, and the chairs are from Veke.

4. The paper merchant’s house is a Port Arthur landmark

This striking stone-and-wood home is one of Port Arthur’s top eye-catchers. It was commissioned by paper merchant Saarento and designed in 1912 by agronomist Karl Johan Sahlberg, one of the most prolific architects of Turku’s Art Nouveau era. Nearly one-fifth of Port Arthur’s buildings were his handiwork.

The house has precisely the sort of soulfulness Riika and Mikko Isoviita were hoping for in a home.

Agronomist Karl Johan Sahlberg designed 35 buildings in Turku’s Port Arthur area, including the Isoviita family’s home. This small wooden Art Nouveau apartment building was commissioned by merchant Saarento, whose paper shop once occupied the ground-floor commercial space.

Mikko and Riika fell for the efficient use of space and the option to expand. Over the years, they have furnished it gradually, layering pieces in a thoughtful way. A crystal chandelier inherited from Mikko’s grandmother graces the living room ceiling. The rug was purchased secondhand. Their bookshelf is by String, and the leather sofa is Natuzzi. The children’s colorful artwork hangs on the wall.

You can see beautiful, classic Art Nouveau details even in the stairwell, inspired by Finland’s native plants.