For me, it means a lot to have an apartment and turn it into my own kind of home. This became tangible when I experienced a great change in life and lived in a temporary apartment for almost a year.

I was incredibly lucky. I found my future home in the same building where I work. A Lumo rental apartment became vacant upstairs from Hakola Shop and Hakola Studio last spring. And not just any rental apartment.

It was also clear to me that in my current life situation, I want to rent. I've never seen anything strange in renting anyway. Quite the contrary.

Immediately after I first entered the apartment, I knew I had come home. I had been skeptical, I admit. I laughed that I could not live in my workplace, when I am inclined to work all the time anyway. These thoughts evaporated as the apartment’s light, atmosphere and incredibly good floorplan captivated me.

It was also clear to me that in my current life situation, I want to rent. I've never seen anything strange in renting anyway. Quite the contrary. You don't always have to own everything, and rental housing easily allows you to live in a home that you wouldn't otherwise be able to afford.

After the renovation had already begun, I was told that if I was really quick, I could still affect the materials in the apartment. I only had a few days. The matter was made easier by the fact that I had planned the renovation of a similar apartment a few floors down one year prior. In addition, I already have a fairly certain taste in interior decoration, so I was able to make decisions quickly.

I was finally able to fulfill my wildest dreams of a colourful and completely unique decor. There would not be a single white wall in the apartment, but all the more blue, green and graphic black and white stripes. Even for the cupboards in the kitchen, I chose a light blue colour. The boys were allowed to choose a green in their room, which they said was poison green.

In the midst of the hottest of July, my sons and I finally got to move into our new home. Now, after a couple of months, things have gradually found their proper places – even the paintings have already made their way onto the walls.

It's important to me that the decor of a home is made up of both old and new, and that the things that end up at home have their own story to tell. My decor is made up of things that have been with me for a long time, which have many memories associated with them. Some of the furniture are Hakola prototypes that have never ended up in production. Others, in turn, are currently in product development and are being tested in my home. I have also made a lot of finds in vintage stores or Facebook flea markets.

In my opinion, decor should never be over-considered. A home made of perfectly matching colours and furniture is often impersonal. Beloved furniture and objects that have long travelled with me bring the right edge to the decor and make an apartment a home, even if they don't perfectly fit into a colour palette. That's why I always recommend that you consider when buying something new; could the old one still be repaired? Let's not forget that a little patina brings cosiness too.

And so I want to encourage people in every way to live their own unique lives, and to decorate their homes on the same principle. It has been gratifying to note how all the time spent at home during the corona pandemic has contributed to restoring joy and colours to interior decoration. However, colourful does not always mean wild and restless decor. Colourful decor can also be very harmonious. In my own home, I have noticed how important colours are. I get a huge amount of energy from them, and blue, in particular, has a very calming effect in my home.

I sincerely hope that everyone will find the courage to make their home completely their own – regardless of what others think.