Inside Joanna Laajisto’s home: A showcase of subtle elegance

When a professional oversees the entire project, even the smallest detail is purposeful and meticulously refined. Timeless, soft, yet minimalist and modern – this is the home of interior architect and designer Joanna Laajisto and photographer Mikko Ryhänen in Helsinki’s Töölö district.

“THIS IS A POSITIVE plumbing renovation story and a prime example of how such a renovation can be handled well”, Joanna Laajisto answers when asked about the recent completed surface renovation of her, spouse Mikko Ryhänen’s and their now teenage daughters home in the Töölö district, Helsinki.

In just over ten years, a lot has happened in the apartment and the lives of its residents. What started as a home for a family with toddlers now accommodates parents and their teenage children, who make use of the storage, cooking, and bathroom spaces.

There was no need to touch Joanna’s previously designed room layout, but it was obvious that the family needed more storage space. Since ecology and recycling are at the core of all Joanna’s spatial design work, same values were also followed in the renovation of her own home. Everything that could be obtained was either stored or recycled.

“In the end we got both extra space and more storage space doing relatively minor changes, for example by moving one interior wall.”

SINCE JOANNA AND Mikko knew a long time in advance the housing company’s upcoming plumbing renovation, Joanna’s careful planning work with smooth and close cooperation with the renovation company enabled all the family’s wishes and needs to be fulfilled. For example, storage furniture previously located in the flat’s common areas was recycled into the daughter’s bedrooms, while also new storage furniture was installed. Some of the fixed bookshelves were also demolished. At the same time the bathroom was expanded to give space for one more toilet bowl.

The 100-square-metre flat, which covers four rooms and a kitchen, is located on the fifth floor of the housing building from the late 1920s. Windows facing three different directions make the premises bright all year round. Natural light was a particularly important criterion for Joanna and Mikko when they were looking for a new home more than ten years ago. At the same time, there were also hopes for a balcony and a bathtub.

The home’s surfaces and color scheme were also updated during the plumbing renovation. The end result is serene and cozy.

Even back then, the flat was thoroughly renovated. Now it was time to upgrade not only the bath and toilet facilities, but also the other surfaces of home. For example, Joanna’s custom-made kitchen fixtures were updated with new furniture doors.

“Soft-light cabinet doors, a new floor-to-ceiling tiled rustic wall, a wonderfully warm wooden floor and original mouldings steeled in light grey make the space even cozier than before.”

EVERYTHING ORIGINAL, such as mouldings and connecting doors, was preserved or restored when the family moved in. In the current surface update, they were all painted grey to add a soft edge to the premises. The old fixed bookcase was dismantled to make the dining area more spacious. The floor-to-ceiling and custom-made storage closets were added to the living room. They were painted with the same tone of grey as the mouldings and connecting doors of the home.

“Since we had previously preserved and only painted the original wood floor of the flat, it was possible to install new floor on top the old one. In this way, all pipe drafts could be hidden in the structures under the new plank floor. With such proactive planning the flat does not have a single enclosure or pinch,” Joanna says.

The interior of Joanna and Mikko’s home relies on natural materials. Their furniture is allowed to have a patina as well.

The new parquet floor is a beautiful Punos designed by Joanna for Timberwise. As with Studio Joanna Laajisto’s design, Joanna and Mikko’s home is trusted and relies on natural materials: wood, stone, metal, ceramics, wool, glass and linen. Home furniture can have patina on the one hand and modern functionality on the other.

• Read also: The modern leisure home of Joanna Laajisto and Mikko Ryhänen invites to unwind >

JOANNA LAAJISTO IS known as a designer who masters the use of softly extinguished colors. Even in her own home with its light atmosphere, the rare color spots are subdued and folded: cocoa brown on the bedding, a touch of blue on the flower vase or a signal green lamp on the bookcase. The interior is also characterized by the graceful and graphic lightning fixtures, often laced in black.

“The balance of the whole is created by many things, for example, the fact that the ceiling color of the premises is darker than the shade of the walls. At the time of renovation, I was also designing a color palette for Milieu. So I was able to try the shades right at my own home. I ended up with a greenish Elusive Green on the ceiling and Afternoon White on the walls. For me balance means not only material choices, but also the composition of things and, for example, lighting. The space must feel good, while being practical and looking beautiful,” Joanna says.

See also:

• Joanna Laajisto’s designs >
• Asun Homes vol. 6 bookazine >

Text: Jaana Sarkki Images: Mikko Ryhänen

Featured products may not be available worldwide. This story was originally published in the Asun magazine’s issue 5/2023.