Finns obsess with steaming through sauna, MDI couple designs award-winning sauna

Finns are very vocal of their ritual and obsession on steaming through sauna. On the other hand, Bill Hanley and his wife, Heli Mesiniemi recently designed and built a sauna on their property in Somesville.

Groups of Finns usually huddle outside on wooden benches, feeling the steam rising from their bodies, drinking beer, while relaxing. This is the conclusion of their ritual at the Kotiharjun Sauna via Trip Advisor, which is a wood-heated sauna built in 1928 for local factory workers.

According to the National Geographic, Finns would usually take their sauna experience to the next level. In the country of 5.4 million people, there are allegedly some 3.3 million saunas at homes, offices, airport lounges, and even parliament. Many Finns most probably find sauna a form of relaxation. But more than a way to soothe sore bodies, they find it a sacred tradition that dates back thousands of years. "It's an essential part of our everyday life," stated Jussi Niemela of the Finnish Sauna Society.

The ritual is also preserved by Bill Hanley and his wife, Heli Mesiniemi, as they designed and built a sauna on their property in Somesville. "The sauna reminded us about slowing down, being in the moment," Hanley stated. He also added, "It wasn't about instant gratification."

The sauna room can manage six people. This room is heated with a Finnish wood stove. In designing their sauna, the pair reportedly had two main issues. First is that they wanted privacy and they didn't want smoke from the heating stove to directly affect their neighbors. The couple managed to pull off a solution as the site of the structure is placed in a wooded area at the back of their narrow and deep house lot, as reported by The Ellsworth American.

The construction of the couple's sauna began in August and they first used the sauna at Christmastime. "The idea is you're outside and enclosed," Hanley claimed. He went on by stating, "You feel the wind, you feel the snow."

Meanwhile, the modern saunas are heated by electricity. But the couple chose their sauna to be wood-heated as they claimed that the "quality" of the heat is different as they described it as "enveloping" and "sweeter" than electric heat. Moreover, Finns believe that heating using wood also contributes to the ritual experience of a sauna preserves Finland's tradition.