We are ready, mr Frost!

Tonight it will be frost and almost full moon, so it is time to start with hay and cosy nights at the sheep barn. The sheep and Agnes can during days freely graze at the field and try to find the last green.

I have sheared Alli and Salli - still Suklaa left - and got lots of nice soft wool for fulling something for x-mas present. It is always a bit slow project because I have only my kitchen scissors...

Beside our tractor Valmet there is Tuisku, a Norvegian fjord horse

Laara the Dog was helping me to keep Agnes away from the hay barn where I keep my dried branches - she loves them and would eat my whole winter storage!

The sheep barn got a new layer of dried peat underneath and a thick madress of straws above of it. Agnes approved her new bedroom...

Silent November evening

We have been enjoying many warm, windless days now and decided to burn the branches the sheep had already eaten. It was a beautiful calm evening and the fog started to first appear near our home-forest and then to creep nearer across the fields. 

The sheep were curious but Agnes the Goat was careful and stayed beside Isak. 

It has been so warm that the sheep and Agnes have been able to find grass from the field but soon it is time to start with the dried hay after the first frosty nights. They have waken up early - so when I get up and start to light the oven at the kitchen I can see them wandering in the field, though Agnes has also eaten all my herbs and the green leaves of vegetables.

Although the sheep have high respect on Agnes there is one thing that mother sheep Alli is ready to defend and that is Isak. 

The sun was setting and the old granary had fallen asleep. We have no lamps outside yet except old oil-lamps and lanterns - we light them every evening not to get lost on our way home, to dry-toilet or to the old sauna. And then everyone has his own headlamp...

A glad day at the cemetery...

Over twenty people with their rakes were like colourful umbrellas in the autumn weather gathering leaves into huge piles and chatting over graves this morning. It was the annual cleaning day at our local church-yard. After few hours of work together we could enjoy some sandwiches and coffee at the parish house.

We arranged some pretty heathers and junipers at the graves of Pellas anchestors - next sunday it is the All Saints' Day when people light candles at the graves of their nearest and the cemetery becomes a shining see of lights in the November evening.

August was a pilot and the builder of our house and father's grandfather's grandfather to little Isak August, so Isak was there, too, with his own tiny rake - although more interested in the tractor gathering the leaves.

August's father was taken abroad by the English navy during the Crimean War and never returned home. August as the oldest son had to take resposibility of the household and over 10 sisters and brothers. He had fallen in love with Cecilia as a young man but she would not have him - he had too much to take care of already. So she married another pilot and moved to Utö island, but her husband drowned. August tried again and asked her to marry him - and she said yes. They got two daughters, bought the pilot estate from the king of Russia and began to build a new house for them, our house, in 1870.  

August, Uno and Cecilia. August is here wearing his medal from the tzar of Russia after piloting his ship in the archipelago. Uno was the grandson of August and Cecilia, raised up at Pellas.

The church of Korppoo island is a medieval grey-stone church with special painted decorations on the inner ceiling, originally a catholic church. It has a peaceful atmosphere even if it is in the middle of the centre by the main road. From the grave stones you can read many special names that the sailors and sea-captains in the families brought with them from the seven seas, Atlanta, Oseania...    

Sateenkaaritaikaa

It is said that you shouldn't be aftaid of the dark but the shadows, but I prefer light and colours. Life gives us the dark shades, grey days - life should be nothing but beige. White rooms are for me like touched by the Queen of Winter, frozen to death. Is a white afraid of life? At least sticky fingers. I want to choose life. I am sitting here and developing my ideas about designing. I haven't though found a name for my philosophy yet...

Sanotaan, ettei pimeyttä kannata pelätä vaan varjoja, mutta minä kammoan tummuutta, harmautta, valjuutta, beigeä elämää – ja seinää. Uskon, että ne räsymaton tummat raidat suo meille kyllä elämä itse, mutta varjoja vastaan voi nousta. Valkoinen on taas kuin lumikuningattaren kuolinkosketus – pelkääkö valkoinen elämää? Ainakin tahmatassuja! Haluan tunnustaa väriä. Kehittelen tässä sisustusfilosofiaani, mutta en ole vielä keksinyt sille hienoa nimitystä…

I found soul-mates for example from an English William Morris who had inspired this wall paper of Tapettitehdas - a paper that will decorate our living-room. According to him the beauty in the living and in the whole surrounding was important to the well-being. 

Sielunveljiä kyllä löytyy kuten englantilainen William Morris. Hän perusti hengenheimolaisineen Arts and Crafts –liikkeen, jossa käsityötaiteella korostettiin kauneuden tärkeyttä niin kotona kuin puutarhassa. Samaa virtaa löytyy ruotsalaispari Karin ja Carl Larssonin kodista. 

Haluan kertoa värein. Mietin auringonkiertoa, huoneiden kokoa ja tarkoitusta, kun piirrän hahmotelmiani rakennustelineiden keskellä. Kuistilla olkoon ikuinen kesä. Eteinen saa olla lämmin ja valoisa rutistus: Ihanaa kun tulit! 

In kitchen it is adviced sometimes to use the colours of nature and food. At our home the old kitchen cabinet made by a local craftsman decided the colours used. Kitchen walls will be covered by this rustic country-style wall paper by Tapettitehdas.

Keittiön ruuanlaiton paletti löytyy vanhoista kaapistoista, jotka saavat palata seisomasijoilleen. Vihreä kamari henkii luonnon rauhaa, ja siniseen uneen on turvallista nukahtaa. Siellä missä viipyilee pohjoisen hämärä ja iltahetki, tuodaan aurinkoa. Päiväkirkkaat huoneet kestävät viileämpiä sävyjä. Missä uhkun burgundinpunaista ja hehkun oranssia? Piirrän ja mietin.

Ennen vanhojen tapettiriekaleiden peittämistä puukuitulevyillä kurkimme kerrosten väliin ja ammennamme rohkeutta koreista väreistä. Luotsitilalla oli ollut varaa paperoida tiuhaan uusia tuulia. 

Before covering the walls with wood fibreboards we were inspired by the old wall papers on the walls. You could see from the many layers that the ancient pilot estate owners had afforded a new wall paper quite often. 

This is the most special of the old ones, a knight on his horse. Does anyone recognize it?

Me annamme Williamin köynnösten kiertyä salin seinille Morris & Co:n 150-vuotisjuhlankin kunniaksi kotimaisilla vuodilla. Hengittävät ja paperiset tapetit on jyskytelty painolaatoilla vanhojen koneiden voimin. Muuten aiomme tarttua suteihin ja kuvioida itse. 

The wooden fibreboards had to be painted first - here with a bit burgundy red - then papered  (makulatuuripaperi) and the gaps between the boards especially. Then the paper could be painted or the wall-paper set on it. We used an old-fashioned wall-paper paste that you mix yourself, the most eco-friendly and healthy choice.

An old way to immitate the marble wall was to splatter 2-3 colours of paint with a bunch of sticks. Here I have tried on our utility room walls - on rosa bottom with a dark red, black and white. Other rooms we are planning to decorate with stencil paintings. 

Helpoin on roiskemaalaus tiukalla ranteella ja vanhalla luudanpalalla. Sablonit kopioidaan ja vuollaan kalvoille, ja kuvion osat töpsötellään väri kerrallaan. Kalvoja siirretään liitumerkkien ja luotilangan apuja seuraten kattolistalta kohti lattia. Mutta mitä kirjoittaisin kattoon, ja olisiko ruutulattialla hauska hyppiä?

http://www.clg.se/start.aspx - Carl Larssons home museum in Sweden

http://www.morrissociety.org/ - about William Morris in England

http://www.tapettitehdas.fi/ - Finnish traditional wall papers

Kekri celebrations

Leena Lepakko!

We have been celebrating the Kekri in our family since the children were small, combaining the old Finnish Kekri traditions and adding something borrowed from the American Halloween. The Kekri was celebrated in the end of the harvest season when all the crop was stored and the peasants had some time to relax and get together.

It was also believed that the spirits were moving and all kind of magic was used to protect the cattle and people. A so called Kekri pukki, a person dressed as a goat made load visits to the neighbours - a role model to the Finnish Santa Claus...

This year it was our first Kekri at our new home and the first year we had real pumpkins, by a gardener Iris here. From the pumpkin we made a lantern by the door and from what we found inside we made roasted seeds and a pumpkin pie served with ice-cream. It was so delicious that I think we shall make some more next weekend...

Pumpkin was baked first in the oven.

The best is always doing together: planning, making, baking and then gathering around the table with the family, good food and some funny games.

Saarelaisia - Islanders...

Living on an island and in the archipelago behind two ferries and among warm, special islanders is something different. People here are helpful and our social life has never been richer. We don't need to watch soap-operas - this is reality without tv: garden-parties, markets, dinners, get-togethers.. And the Event of the Week, visiting the local grocery's on Saturday! 

Kaivo on jäässä, rakentajat liukastelevat pihapoluilla ja pikku-Valmetista puuttuu etuhaarukka. Tarvitaan soraa, traktorinlavaa, sähkömiestä ja kaivinkone. Hyvät neuvot ovat kultaa kalliimpia! Kaikkea löytyy – ja myös hauskoja, lämpimiä, metkoja ihmisiä. Miten ne kaikki ovat tänne samalla saarelle rantautuneet? Alamme päästä siitä kärryille, emmekä enää tarvitse saippuaoopperaa. Elämä on täynnä tosia juonenkäänteitä, puutarhajuhlia, kellarimyyjäisiä ja saaristolaispäivällisiä. Lauantain kauppareissu kirkolle on Tapahtuma. Sosiaalinen elämämme on saavuttanut täällä kliimaksinsa. Emme tiedä, mihin yhdistystouhuun intoutuisimme tai miten kaikki kiinnostavat kansalaisopiston kurssit mahtuisivat kalenteriimme. Elokuviin pääsee onneksi vain kerran kahdessa viikossa. Samaa taikinanjuurtakin olevia on kuten se yksi: kun esittelin itseni, hän kertoi olevansa Herra Sämpylä! Selviä sukulaissieluja siis.

60 years ago Rumar was a lively village and people visited each other often. They had all kinds of courses in handicraft like in this photo, mangled their laundry together with a huge mangle of Pellas - that we found at our attic - cooked potato flour, had weddings. They had this special habit of baking dried sweet bread: the down side was for the ladies and the upper swinging side for the men...

Vielä kuusikymmentä vuotta sitten täällä kylälläkin tavattiin. Tapanista Nuuttiin kyläiltiin talosta toiseen. Ompeluseurassa syntyi sukanvarsia, ja marttojen käsityökursseilla lampunvarjostimia. Korppuja leivottiin etukäteen tarjottaviksi. Niiden alapuoli oli varattu naisväelle ja keinuva yläpuoli miesväelle. Tai sitten kokoonnuttiin mankeloimaan, keittämään perunajauhoja ja viettämään häitä. Nyt koitamme kyläyhdistyksessä keksiä uusia kohtaamisia juhannussalon ja venerannan lisäksi. Niitä voisivat olla laskiaismäki, elosoitto tai kekrikekkerit. On tärkeää tavata, tulla tutuksi, tukea ja toimitella.

During the midsummer at the end of June the whole village meets by the may pole which is then decorated and put up by the men. We listen to the guitars and accordions, sing and dance around the pole.

Now we are trying to find new ways to meet each other here in our village. Our own hide-away of the village is Skorvlot Island with a pilot cabin and place for cheerful picnics. It is located on old sea route that already the vikings used, nowadays a museum route.

Miten muuten tietäisimme, että katto on suorassa, ellei oma-aloitteinen saarelainen sinne olisi kiivennyt vatupassi hampaissa? Miten katto ylipäätään olisi valmis ellei sinne kesällä olisi tiukan paikan tullen ja rakennusaikataulun pettäessä kiivennyt useampikin avulias? Vanhan talon peruskorjaaja tarvitsee monenlaista sellaista tekijää ja tavaraa, jota ei löydy kataloogista. Sellaisia löytyy vain ihmisiä kohtaamalla, jutustelemalla ja pyytämällä apua. Sitten kun joku pyytää meiltä, tiedämme kuuluvamme Saarelaisiin.

Enjoying the harvest

Were our sheep too generous with their gifts to our garden? We are getting carrots that really earn their name.

Hello,  honey!

So yesterday they were honoured to become our evening dinner, a minestrone soup... We have got very fond of the yellow carrots because they seem to keep well in the cellar all winter - originally the carrots were yellow, so in the Middle Ages nobody had yet seen an orange one... (Sorry, a historian on the loose!)

Our favourite kitchen machine is this vehicle that I found from a local flee market with one euro. It does not need any electricity, it is functional and the result is beautiful.

Carrots, potatoes, celeriac, parsnip, onions - our mostly used vegetables - and some Hungarian pasta, a suvenier from a trip, and voilà, a minestrone with some honey bread!

There is nothing better than a soup on a chilly evening with a mist landing on the fields - and a warm fire on the stove.