study tour: finland

it's been weeks, but i really did not want to neglect sharing photos from our time in Finland.
i loved Helsinki - the russian influence with the architecture was stunning.







Ole Victor, glass designer/teacher + tour guide extrodinaire


we had a private tour of Iittala...
'Iittala continues to be a major driving force of Scandinavian design with legendary designers Kaj Franck (1911-1989) and Alvar Aalto (1898-1976) as the cornerstones for the brand. Iittala objects are design essentials stripped to their core; the pure union of function, form and quality that demonstrates our core philosophy of lasting everyday design AGAINST THROWAWAYISM.' - from their site

cup handles made of scraps from zippers
the Aalto vase comes in more sizes and colours then you can imagine.
a couple years ago they started to commission a few select young artists/designers to do more contemporary line called "5KULMAA". ceramic dish designed by Heini Riitahuhta.

a really nice thing about actually going to the Arabia factory is buying seconds straight from the source