House Made to Be a Home

In recent years, society has focused more and more attention on the period between active working age and old age (or the “Third Age”). This book reports the results of an experiential home research project in which inhabitant-based information on housing experiences was gathered in order to help housing designers and planners make their products feel “homier”. What is the relationship between housing and experiences of home? What makes housing feel “homey”? What things are necessary in an apartment to make it a real home?The data consist of group discussions which took place in South Ostrobothnia, Finland. The most crucial factors in homey housing proved to be human relationships and the sense of independence in life management. Home functionality, aesthetics, the role of building, movables and culture, as well as the influence of nature and the environment, are also shown to be key elements of homeyness.The concluding chapter differentiates four discourses of housing and ageing. Home is understood as building and possessions, but it can also have emotional content: it is about memories and feelings. Furthermore, it is seen as interaction between the self and surroundings and as a complicated concept of multiple homes varying in time and space.