Tapio and Arja Anttila, who have lived in their home for 13 years, have done their yard for a long time and with love. There you can find a suitable sitting area for all moments of the day.
The loft-like house has a spacious atmosphere. The living room is flooded with light from the windows that open onto the living yard along the entire length of the wall. The terrace continues the interior of the home, forming a summer living room in the yard.
“The home was built in a year, but the garden has been made for a decade. We have shoveled hundreds of hours of soil and gravel and yet the yard always lives and changes its shape. If nothing else, Arja will move the plants if they have grown too close to each other,” describes Tapio.
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Definitely trees
The design of the garden started with the trees to be kept on the plot. It was clear to Anttiloi that Finnish plants, such as pine, rowan, spruce and maple, are suitable for a Finnish yard. Trees provide protection, height and dimension.
“We wanted to preserve the yard’s large pine and mountain ash, under which wild sedge grows. Arja made sure that no trees were damaged during the construction phase.”
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Originally, the terrace was built parallel to the walls of the house, from which the yard opened up like a viewing garden.
Thirteen years ago, designer Tapio Anttila and interior architect Arja Anttila carried moving boxes to their new home. Lofthenkinen talo was born as a design project in collaboration with architect Hannu Tika. The home functions as Anttila design’s product testing and as a test laboratory, but it is above all a home. In the foreground are the own brand Filtti lounge chair and Aski containers as a coffee table.
The corridor next to the sauna has been used effectively as a space for cooling off and a fireplace. In the foreground is the Woodism table designed by Anttila and the Piena lounge chair. The fireplace rack is a sleek, metal MixRack. There is a terrace area behind the windows, where you can cool off from the sauna if necessary.
Outside the sauna and the corridor that serves as a cooling area, there is a terrace area bordered by plantations of dwarf mountain pines. It is nice to step into this place to cool off from the heat of the sauna. The chair and stool are Anttila’s newest garden furniture collection.
The house is L-shaped and it is placed on the plot as close as possible to the edge of the road, so that there is a sheltered and as large as possible recreation yard on the inner courtyard side of the plot. The couple has designed the garden’s structures and lines together.
“Our thoughts were to continue the linearity that suits the house, with a fine impression of Japanese modesty and Nordic calmness,” says Tapio.
In a few places, as a contrast to the straight lines, you can see meandering and curved shapes. The impression is serene in terms of shapes and atmosphere. A couple of years ago, the extended terrace was stepped into separate room-like spaces.
“We use the terrace area for dining, as soon as the weather permits. We have a place for breakfast, a place for dinner, for the evening sunset and just to hang out. The yard is made for living, and the terrace is an extension of the home,” says Arja.
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In addition to wood and vegetation, stone is used as the yard’s material. Some of the stones were found on the land of the plot. Stones have been rolled into edges, as a cover, as a sculptural element. “I was spinning the slate stones alone when I couldn’t wait for Tapio to come home,” says Arja.
Oven-fresh prototypes of outdoor furniture from our own collection are being tested on the terrace. There are seating groups here and there, so that you can find a pleasant place to hang out in any weather. “The furniture is not in our established places. When Tapio goes on a golf tour, I move the furniture to the places I like,” Arja says and laughs.
A couple of years ago, the couple started thinking about expanding the terrace. Soon they were already carrying deck boards. The dwarf mountain pines, which had already grown to size, were allowed to stay to green up the terrace area, which was built a step lower than the originally built terraces. The new terrace, built on a different level, forms its own spatial area. On one level, the impression could have been a huge stage dance arena, but now the stepped terrace is naturally landscaped into the yard and divided into room-like spaces.
The plot is bordered on one side by a cut spruce fence. In the planting area in front of it, among other things, cone-shaped white oak, mountain rowan and German gorse swords grow. The ferns have found a rock to rest on their own.
In the yard, e.g. aho strawberry works as a border plant.
The bouquet, collected from my own garden, contains giant fold leaf, lavender and starflower. These plants are also proven cut flowers.
The spaciousness can be seen in Anttiloi’s yard in beautiful and well-thought-out arrangements and seating areas.
The story has been published in Deko on 5/24.
Source: kotiliesi.fi
