The First Karelia on Bayview Avenue. 1960.
Karelia Studio on Bayview Avenue.
My sister Gundega , I and a Swedish friend Solveig Westman, decided to form a company. Solveig was a hairdresser and operated Swedish Beauty Studio at 729 Bayview Avenue, just south of Eglinton Avenue, beside the Norwegian Ski Shop. There was a waiting area and a large window facing the street. This became the home of the first Karelia Studio location.
We searched for a name. We wanted to be associated with Finland, however we did not want to call it Finland house or anything similar. We wanted a name that had some recognition and a name that was not too difficult to pronounce. Solveig suggested Karelia, as recognized in Sibeliu's Karelia Suite. We agreed that it was the right name. I later learned that Karelia has a deep significance for the Finnish people. The Winter War was bravely fought there and even later I found out that Armi Ratia, the founder of Marimekko, was born in Karelia.
At the time I was working for John B.Parkin Architects at the corner of Don Mills road and York Mills Road. this was not too far from Bayview and Eglinton and every lunch hour I would drive over, while eating my lunch in the car, to see what new correspondence or samples might have arrived. One particularly exciting day wa when the mail delivered samples of a beautiful line of textiles designed by Timo Sarpaneva called "The Karelia Line". We displayed some things in the window and hoped for some customers.
My sister, who was practicing dentistry, decided that she was not in a position to contribute to this young, fledging business. She recouped her $ 2000.00 investment by having some built- in seating made fort her by a young Swedish, former policeman, cabinetmaker Bjørn Edmark, who then became a partner in Karelia Studio Limited.