Renny and Johanna Harlin found a second home on the island where Renny has spent summers since he was a baby: “A dream come true”

Which one of these could be Villa Harlin? As our boat approaches the island of Tammio, we can see smooth rocks, red boathouses, and behind them, yellow log houses scattered here and there. Johanna and Renny Harlin’s house turns out to be the one that has just been painted.

The new standing seam metal roof gleams, and the weather hasn’t yet worn down the pristine white siding. At the back of the yard, a sauna is under construction, and the terrace awaits railings. The log house, built in the 1860s and expanded in 1904, is the main building of an old fisherman’s farm. It has been renovated for future generations and is cozy inside even when it’s freezing outside. The rooms have a maritime feel, as almost every window opens to a view of the Gulf of Finland. Interior designer Sanna Siik-Keskisarja has helped the family in designing the interiors and kitchen.

Renny, Coco, and Johanna Harlin have already gotten to enjoy their time together on the island that Renny first visited as a one-year-old. The family’s cockapoo dog, Myy, faithfully follows them to their adventures. The photo is from the Harlins’ home album.

Tammio is located off the coast of Hamina. The island has been inhabited since the mid-1500s. Nowadays, Tammio has only one year-round resident; the others are summer residents. The village milieu has remained largely unchanged, and the shore is colored not only by yellow houses but also by red boathouses.

The approximately 120-square-meter log house by the sea has new horizontal cladding and paint, as well as an impressive siding. Before the renovation, the house was divided into two smaller houses.

Renny, what is your relationship with Tammio?

Our family has had a summer place on the island since my mother’s childhood, and I have spent my summers in Tammio from my first year of life. In Tammio, under the guidance of my parents and beloved, now late uncles and aunts, I learned to fish and sail, light a campfire, carve bark boats and identify birds, as well as enjoy moments of reading and creating my own stories and drawings while the rain pattered on the roof.

Those years also consisted of playing on deserted islands, picking bilberries, washing jeans with a root brush on wave-swept rocks, evenings by the light of a storm lantern, early mornings with seagulls screeching, fish soup and smoked Baltic herring, waiting for the mail boat, and finding chocolates and salty licorice in a package from the mainland. Genuine moments of happiness. The closeness and safety of family.

As a teenager, I got my own boat and became the youngest in Finland to pass the coastal skipper exam at 15, and I began traveling between Tammio and Helsinki by sea on my own.

The heart of the vacation home is the large living room, whose spaciousness is emphasized by the removed intermediate floor between the ground floor and the attic. The kitchen was designed by Sanna Siik-Keskisarja, and the kitchen fittings were provided by the Finnish kitchen design store, Novart. Its light blue hue is reminiscent of the sea waves outside the window. The original floor is painted plank. The rug is from Anno.

The kitchen is designed specifically for cooking, not just reheating food, as the Harlins are enthusiastic cooks. The stoneware sink is from Lapetek, the faucet from Tapwell.

How did your relationship change as you became an adult?

When I was a little over twenty and headed out into the world in pursuit of my dreams, the visits became shorter, but I have always visited the island in the summer, even if sometimes the visit was by helicopter and lasted only a few hours. I have lived in Hollywood, New York, Miami, and China for decades and worked in dozens of different countries, but my heart belongs to Tammio.

I have returned to the island in my mind when the pressure has piled up on my shoulders and I have longed for comfort and happiness. There is no place in the world I love with the same affection and authenticity. I couldn’t imagine life with my family without Tammio.

An old-fashioned wood stove was built in the corner of the living room. However, the adjacent gas stove by Kaasuvalo is the one usually used for cooking.

Johanna, what thoughts does Tammio evoke in you?

When we first came to Finland as a couple, Renny introduced me to Tammio, and I immediately fell in love with the island. It reminded me of my favorite childhood book series, Astrid Lindgren’s Seacrow Island, and it felt like time stood still. We will most likely always live abroad, but our roots remain in Finland. Tammio has become our shared refuge.

The dining table by Rivièra Maison is from Millan putiikki. The chairs are from Ikea, and the display cabinet is from Novart.

Renny, what shared memories have you created?

Johanna’s first visit to the island was great, and the fact that she genuinely fell in love with Tammio and its rugged lifestyle was the final confirmation for me that we were meant to be together and would create a wonderful life on the island.

We have experienced Tammio in rain and sunshine, in the summer heat and when the cold wind and rain have whipped the landscape. We have cooked delicacies, enjoyed the warmth of the sauna, swum in the sea, and roamed the forest. We have also made boat trips to islands where there’s no other people around and you can lie in the sun without a stitch of clothing.

The fisherman’s farm, renovated for our growing family, is a dream come true. When the main building was still in poor condition, we sat inside with wool socks on and dreamed in our shared Tammio diary about how we would fix everything and honor the house. Following the renovation work together has been inspiring and exciting.

“We knew we wanted a country romance style ensemble with influences from as far as a Caribbean-style beach house,” Johanna says. The living room has a open intermediate floor similar to the main room. The display cabinet and armchair are from Cobello, the coffee table by Rivièra Maison from Millan putiikki.

How long did you dream of having your own house in Tammio?

As an adult, it became clear to me that I wanted to either build a house on our old villa plot or find a new place. My dream was a family estate that I had known since my childhood. In Tammio, such estates come up for sale once in a generation at most, but as luck would have it, this place with its outbuildings and woodlots came up for sale when there were no more successors.

What makes the place even more unique is that my mother Liisa’s best friend lived in the house when they were little girls, and I had heard many stories about the house. When we started the renovation, we agreed not to touch the doorsills. They have worn a great deal from the thousands of steps that have been pressed upon them. I get an incredible feeling of happiness when I see Johanna stepping on the same thresholds as my mother once did, not to mention when Coco Liisa Maria crawled over those same thresholds last summer.

On the end wall of the living room, the horizontal logs change into impressive vertical paneling. This solution was chosen because the logs had rotted in that spot. The old wooden floor has been sanded and varnished. The sofa and display cabinet are from Cobello, the vase from Iittala, and the cut flowers from Myyrkukka.

Did you have any other wishes on how this charming log house would be renovated?

We wanted to honor traditions and create a yard that blends into the historical environment. There is a warm and homely atmosphere inside, but the furniture and decorative items will surprise many visitors. Only imagination is the limit when we design the details, and nothing holds us back from combining the old and modern as we please. Many of our trips abroad give their own flavor to the atmosphere, too.

The logs were exposed from under the paneling installed later and cleaned with crushed glass blasting. The ceiling is original and painted white. The parents’ bed is custom-made by a carpenter, and its bed textiles are from Anno. Coco’s own bed is from Oz Baby. The canopy, textiles, painting, and toys are from Lil Decor.

Johanna, are you satisfied with the result?

The result is better than I dared to hope, although there are still details to refine. We wanted a fresh yet cozy color scheme that is also timeless and stylish. The kitchen is the heart of the house, as cooking is a social event for us, in which even the youngest family members can participate. The fixed benches by the window are a particularly successful solution. Our carpenter is a true craftsman, and every detail is like a jewel.

Johanna, how has the collaboration with the interior designer gone?

Working with Sanna has been really smooth, even though the design was mostly done remotely. Sanna took our wishes into account and on the other hand presented us with creative and functional ideas. Building on the island was not a problem for example for Novart, who supplied the kitchen. Renny thinks the result is so delicious that you could eat it.

The old iron stove that was in bad shape was replaced by this fireplace. You can light a fire in it in the morning and watch it directly from the bed.

Renny, what kind of life do you lead in Tammio?

To me, Tammio means rest, relaxation, and enjoying the fruits of our labor. In the morning, we don’t get up until Coco is ready for the new day. We take a short walk to the shore to listen to the cries of the seagulls and observe the weather. We make breakfast, and there’s no rush to dress or wash before enjoying our coffee and morning treats. We do what we feel like. We admire the happiness of life and the importance of being close together. We don’t watch the clock or television, and our phones are forgotten somewhere in the pockets of other pants.

If the day is full of sunshine and inspiration strikes, we might go on a boat trip or into the forest with Myy and Coco. If it happens to be a rainy day, we enjoy the patter by the fireplace, play with Coco, read good books, or immerse ourselves in one of our favorite hobbies, cooking. We heat the sauna just like other the other summer residents and go to bed quite early in the evening. The sea air and complete relaxation make the mind and body languid.

The paint on the original doors was sanded off to reveal the oldest layer of paint. The stairs lead to the guest loft. During the renovation, a large amount of wartime correspondence was found in the attic.

Renny, what is most important to you in Tammio and Villa Harlin?

Tammio opens the door to a different world than the one we otherwise live in. The warm granite rocks under our bare feet, the water lapping against the side of our boat, the wind at the tops of the pines, and the scent of the summer meadow create a harmony that is difficult to put into words but fills the soul and body as soon as you step onto the island’s shore.

The world is constantly in motion and undergoing change. In Tammio, simple little tasks become the core components of our life. Villa Harlin purely represents us, our shared preferences, and our love for nature, the sea, historical traditions, and our dreams for the future.

The Harlins’ summer home is the main building of the fisherman’s farm, built in the 1860s and expanded in 1904. “Although the island primarily has no running water or electricity, we wanted to bring these comforts to the house so that we can stay here comfortably regardless of the season,” Johanna says.

The Harlins’ summer residence in Tammio, Hamina, is 120 square meters in size.