Pinewood, glass and postcard views: Step inside a breathtaking Finnish Lapland sanctuary

When she’s not at home in Helsinki running Siréne Studio – an Instagram-based curated platform giving new life to carefully sourced vintage and secondhand jackets – Johanna Sirén escapes to the hushed landscapes of Finnish Lapland, where the entrepreneur and Vogue Scandinavia alum owns a striking holiday home peppered with postcard-perfect views.

“It really is quite a magical place. It feels like you’re in a different country when you go up to Lapland,” she muses. “The view is incredibly calming. Even now, every time I’m there, I still catch myself thinking – how can a place like this be real?”

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With a friend’s family, Sirén’s family acquired a patch of land in Levi – a quaint village known as home to the largest ski resort in the country – where they built their dream retreat from the ground up, completing it in 2023. “My husband has always wanted a place in Lapland, but I warmed up to the idea a bit later,” Sirén says. During the pandemic, the two families spent extended times at rented cabins up north, which sparked the idea of creating something of their own.

To design the home, the families tapped architect Marko Simsiö. Sirén, a self-described design aficionado who has “always loved beautiful things” and “could have been an interior designer in another life”, was closely involved in the process from start to finish. Mirroring the endless forests enveloping the house – and to infuse it with a cottage feel – pinewood became the primary material for the sculptural exterior, framed by sweeping windows overlooking the breathtaking scenery.

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“Lapland is inspiring in itself, so we wanted the space to harmonise with it – to bring the outdoors in,” explains Sirén, noting that she spent ample time browsing Pinterest and was particularly drawn to the work of one of her favourites, architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe. “The materials, the light, and the atmosphere were all chosen to reflect the surrounding nature. That’s also why there’s so much window surface – so it really feels like the landscape flows inside.”

Spread across three floors and just shy of 300 square metres, the home, comprising six bedrooms and a lounge area on each level, was designed to generously accommodate both families and their children – while also allowing space for “a bit of peace and quiet.” Sharing similar tastes, the owners curated the sleek and neutral-toned interiors together, which Sirén describes as “nature-inspired and Scandinavian,” with an abundance of wood crafted into clean lines. “​​It felt like the harmonious, light, and minimalist interior really brought the surrounding nature to the forefront – like it gave it a better stage to shine,” she explains.

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Sirén initially set out to style the space exclusively with Finnish design, though she ultimately incorporated a mix of international pieces as well. Cutting through the home like a fresh breeze blowing over the fjell is an elegant, pared-back mood punctuated by sculptural shapes – like the living room’s eye-catching Skanno pendant lamps and the crisp white, chunky tufted sofa, its cloud-like silhouette reminiscent of Mario Bellini’s iconic ‘Camaleonda’. Soft hues carry through to the streamlined, custom pale-wood Puustelli kitchen, anchored by a sprawling island crafted from Dekton.

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“We had to think the interior through a bit, since the living room and kitchen are one open space – and with a bunch of people around, we wanted to make sure everyone could hang out comfortably in the living area too,” Sirén says. “We mostly went by measurements – not really based on specific brands.” She notes, however, that there was one label she knew she wanted to include: Finnish brand Tebian, which also features in her Helsinki home. Its oak dining table crowns the living area, while its nightstands furnish the bedrooms.

The end result came together just as Sirén had envisioned. “I have to say, it turned out pretty much perfect,” she says with a smile. “As soon as you step in [the house], you slip into this completely different mood.”