HOUSE ON A HILL
Pirinen Salo Oy
ARCHITECTS
Pirinen Salo Oy
LEAD ARCHITECT
Anni-Helena Ruotsala and Teemu Pirinen
ELECTRICAL INSTALLATION
Mavela Oy
GLASS CONSTRUCTION
Savon Lasituote Oy
HVAC
Seppona Oy / Seppo Niemi
FIREPLACE
Harri Tervo, Hemparts Oy
TEXTILES
Design Maarit Magga
FLOORING
Sika Finland Oy
CONSTRUCTOR
Harri Tervo And Inaritalot Oy
ELECTRICAL ENGINEER
Tino Ravelin, Sähköpalvelu Seppo Tuovinen Oy
CONSTRUCTION ENGINEER
Inaritalot Oy
HVAC ENGINEER
Lvi-suunnittelu Jouni Kurki, Jouni Kurki
SHOWER PANEL
Tapwell Oy
PHOTOGRAPHS
Marc Goodwin | Archmospheres
AREA
125 m²
YEAR
2024
LOCATION
Inari, Finland
CATEGORY
Houses
English description provided by the architects.
The design had two main goals: to fully embrace the magnificent view of Lake Inari in the north, and to be affordable.
To keep costs down, I arranged all the essential spaces as tightly as possible around a double height living area. With what was left of our bank loan, we managed to build 50 square meters of living space.
I'm originally from a small town in central Finland, and sometimes I get a bit homesick.
To help with that, I gave the house the shape of a shabby old barn—typical of the Savo region where I grew up.
To make it feel even more special, I made the barn look like it had already been expanded, rather poorly.
Since shabbiness is a central theme of the design, I added some intentional quirks: the two chimneys on the gable roof are different heights, and the facades are clad in simple, untreated spruce boards that will weather unevenly over time, slowly turning grey.
A local house factory built the foundation, wall elements, and roof. We hired a builder from our village to finish the rest.
The gable-end window was crafted by a local carpenter, and our friends at Savon Lasituote Oy (check out their Lucia Smart line) gave us a great deal on the glass elements.
When we began construction, war had just broken out in Ukraine, and we were still in the midst of the COVID pandemic.
Together, they pushed material prices up by nearly 30%. To stay within budget, my wife and I decided to switch the interior cladding to OSB board.
To balance that, we opted for pure white seamless polyurethane flooring throughout the house, to keep the space light and clean.
Spatially, the house is very straightforward. From the entrance, you can see the large red brick fireplace and, beyond it, the gable-end window.
The bedrooms are located on the eastern side of the living area, with the master bedroom and en-suite tucked into the southern end.
The doors to the kids' rooms and my wife's study (which also looks out over the lake) are cleverly hidden among the kitchen cabinets.
The entire kitchen can be concealed behind sliding doors—perfect for when we're too tired to tidy up.
We're still in the process of turning this house into a home, but it turns out that shabbiness, as a design principle, suits a family with four kids just fine.
