Every room in Riitta's home is decorated with her favorite color: “Everything green calls me”

“I may have shortcomings in many areas, but the gift of combining things is something I was born with. I've always found it easy to see which objects and colors belong together. Our home is in constant flux as I mull over new ideas and keep refining them. I wouldn't know how to live if I couldn't keep rearranging.

I call it building when I arrange and group the objects and artwork in our home to create something intriguing to look at. When you have a huge amount of paintings and stuff, you really have to plan so the final result doesn’t look like a mess.

In the garden of Villa Ketola stands a gazebo whose walls and ceiling are covered with Riitta’s art made from recycled materials.

The green‑toned vases by Kupittaan Savi are a collector’s treasure. “The green and turquoise patterns are incredibly beautiful.”

I have always loved color, but green has probably been my main shade throughout the years. I fell for it in the 1960s through clothing. I had a wonderful pair of green corduroy trousers that felt and looked just like moss. Green is still one of my favorite colors, and I think every shade of it is beautiful. I love pairing it with another favorite—pink—or with just the right purple. I’m also crazy about the combination of green and turquoise.

Even as a child I was interested in drawing and crafting, but despite my art teacher’s encouragement I never applied to art school. Life took me elsewhere and I became a self‑taught artist. Our home, Villa Ketola, has turned into an art destination that we open to the public from time to time. We once welcomed as many as 500 visitors.

The vintage green glass pendant was found a few years ago from a familiar antique dealer in Porvoo. It's one of Riitta’s favorite pieces, even though the lamp no longer works.

The mosaic tabletop is handmade too. “I’m happy to leave my signature visible,” she says.

The painting in the bedroom is Riitta’s own work. “One morning the idea of a woman simply appeared, and I knew right away I wanted to use green in the piece.”

we have green in every room of our home, but especially in the kitchen. It’s funny that even though we’ve lived here for 46 years, I’ve never actually painted the kitchen cabinets green. They have, however, been blue, red, white, turquoise and pink.

Much of what you see in our home is handmade. I paint, knit, sew and craft. I also scour recycling centers, auctions, antique shops and delightfully messy junk sales, then give my finds a makeover. At flea markets my eyes are always drawn to green dishes, cushion covers, fabric scraps, candlesticks, textiles—whatever happens to catch my fancy.

It feels like all things green call me from among the items. Placing green things in hour home is easy, because I know there are already green items here.”

You’ll find Riitta on Instagram as @romulyyli.