In Honka’s showhouse at Housing Fair, panoramic sliding doors make the scenery part of the interior
Press release 04.07.2013
The modern Honka Lumi show house that Honka is displaying at the fair is a 161m²-log-framed residential house, whose facade is covered in snow-white render. The starting point of the architecture of the house designed for the needs of a family with two children and combining wood, concrete, glass and stone, was the family’s own idea of house with beautiful lines combining different materials.
At its heart is a large living area, which continues seamlessly through sliding glass doors that open onto the sheltered garden. The massive wood frame of the plastered house built of unique, non-settling laminated logs is the not only the load-bearing structure for the house, but also an element of interior design. From a point of view of health, the log frame also maintains good internal air in the house by balancing variations in air humidity.
”The rendered stone surface of the Honka Lumi house is durable and easy to maintain. The massive log frame structure of the wall, however, breathes as wood does. Honka’s insulation-plastered massive wood wall, which studies have found is moisture-safe and energy-efficient, has been developed in co-operation with leading experts at VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland and Tampere University of Technology”, says architect Tanja Rytkönen-Romppanen, Honka’s Vice President, Design and R&D.
The ecology, proximity to nature and individuality of the home key values for the client family
The Honka Lumi house corresponds to the key values of the family that will be moving into it: ecology, proximity to nature and individuality. The Haavisto-Sirén family wanted to build a modern home that would be suitable for the life of a family with children. The master of the house, Ilkka Haavisto, came up with the ideas for the house and was also closely involved in its construction. Wood was chosen as a building material because of its environmental friendliness. Wood is a renewable natural resource, and the natural surface of wood adds warmth to the simple interior.
On the L-shaped ground floor of the house, the heart is the bright open living area comprising the kitchen and dining room and the sheltered back garden that joins onto it. An interesting detail is the large panoramic sliding glass doors downstairs.
”We wanted to build a modern home in which nature is part of the interior. When you are inside, you already feel like you are in the garden before you even step outside,” say the clients, Ilkka Haavisto and Anna Sirén, describing one of the most precious features of their home. The sliding doors that span the whole of the living area unite indoors and outdoors into a single entity, in which there is room for living and for the children to play safely.
From the second floor, where the house’s three bedrooms are located, you can look down on the greenery planted on the roof of the lower floor.
”The harmonious combinations of wood, stone and the green roof of the lower section, which beautifully merges that section into the surrounding nature, create the atmosphere for this house,” says architect Ville Annila, who was in charge of the architectural design of the building.
Scandinavian interior design highlights the clear lines of the architecture
Interior designer Milja Kettula who designed the interior of the Honka Lumi house for the client family describes the house as a modern home understated from an interior design perspective, combining high-quality materials and design furniture, down-to-earth colours and simple shapes. The large window surface areas and the views onto which they open play a big role: nature changing with the seasons is part of the interior. It is not hidden behind curtains.
In the interior walls, massive wood was kept visible. It was treated with colourless UV wood protection. The ceilings are made from white acoustic board. The grey concrete floor downstairs is a good counterpoint to wood and is easy to maintain for a family with children. The well-equipped kitchen situated in the open downstairs area conceals the kitchen appliances and dishes inside handle-free cupboards and drawers.
The grass-covered garden of the Honka Lumi house is bordered by wide flowerbeds and a calming gravel-surface with a stepping stone path. The easy-to-maintain garden that can withstand the games of the family’s six- and four-year-old daughters was designed by landscape designer, Niina Alapeteri. At the bottom of the garden, there is a place reserved for the mistress of the house to plant her own herb and vegetable patch.
