Visiting the Good Mood Ambassador Kristina Herodes

What do you think, where is one of the nicest terraces in Estonia and what’s happening there? No, it’s not some fancy café in Noblessner, but the family retreat of a creative soul in Läänemaa – a wooden floor spreading under fir trees and moss, accompanied by a modest living space and sauna. Along with a refreshing swim, a steamy sauna, and deliciously simple food, Postimees journalist and Naistejuttude podcast host Kristina Herodes talked to Tiiu Roosma about creating a home, life and love, work, overwork, and confronting the beauty and pain of all this living. We also took a few pictures with the latest items from TUUB.

A few years ago, I was captivated by your posts featuring a small, simple house and a large terrace in a mossy fir forest. It wasn’t just the house but the whole forest life atmosphere and the story of doing things together – it was truly enchanting! The energy that flowed from those posts was the kind of thing one envies, in a good way. Would you like to share a little about your life in the forest as a journalist and, in modern terms, a mother of a large family?

Actually, everything here is extremely ascetic – a small cabin and only a few necessary things. I don’t even have a mirror here! At first, I didn’t think of it, and then I realized – it’s not even necessary. Really, I don’t comb my hair in the forest, I don’t wear makeup, and I have no idea how I look. And I don’t worry about it. I love it this way. Similarly, I try to stay as far away from screens as possible – although I write here, I don’t aimlessly browse or scroll.

The forest is the center of life, and there’s nothing unnecessary. The flowing shape of the terrace was designed according to the landscape – as naturally as possible, without cutting down trees – each group of trees has its own curve. They still stand there. The little fir saplings that were in the shadow of larger ones were transplanted – now, they’re in every corner here.

It was actually my partner who found this place. Our collaboration is such that he’s great with practical things, able to do, organize, build, and create anything with his hands. In this regard, I’m the assistant. On the other hand, I have the ability to see things that don’t yet exist – how to position the house, how the terrace should flow, how to integrate everything with the landscape. It’s not some special problem-solving – I just see and feel what’s most harmonious, and I never doubt my visions. They always work, and over the years, my partner has learned to trust them too. We love surfing, and that’s how our love for this area slowly grew.

Kristina is wearing our new gray merino wool TUUB with matching leg warmers

How do you fit all these different elements into your life: family life, work as a journalist and team leader, friends, and hobbies like hiking in the mountains? How much of the world do you carry on your shoulders, and how much do you rely on your partner?

I’m quite a passionate and fiery person, and sometimes, not everything I truly love fits into my life! I try to find and keep space for everything I genuinely love, but yes – at times, it’s definitely too much! On the other hand, when the pace reaches its peak and stress goes wild, where some of my friends start to struggle, I get excited. I function excellently under pressure, even in life-threatening situations, I find a way out and calm everyone else down.

I have so many sources of joy – I’m very collaborative and love sharing. My outlook on life is such that I easily see others’ talents – amplify and support them. I guess I’m naturally the kind of initiator-hugger-guide. At the same time, practical things can completely slip my mind, like food – luckily, I have friends who invite me to lunch because I might not think of it at all when I’m engrossed in something interesting.

My balance also heavily relies on my partner, who has all the qualities that I sometimes lack. We joke that I’m like a head in the clouds, overloaded with ideas, while he’s my grounding connection.

“Vääna” – Kristina Herodes

What role does art play in your life? Is painting therapy for you or simply a joy that spills out – or something else entirely? How did Kristina the painter come to be?

This comes from my father, Ott Herodes, who is also an artist. Even as toddlers, we were handed paints, and that’s how it went – visual self-expression has always been for me a pleasure, therapy, fun, and who knows what else. I can’t live without it; it starts pressing from the inside. I always paint in a good mood, and you can immediately feel that in my paintings. As a teenager, I had a rebellious phase – I needed to be stubborn and do the opposite. During that time, my paintings were dark and unbalanced. The same happened when I entered the Estonian Academy of Arts – overflowing ungrounded expressiveness. Now, I think balance, lightness, and expansion are quite important – both for me while creating the paintings and for whoever has them in their room, carrying forward the same effect. I am bold and mischievous, but not dramatic or tragic.

“Fat Auntie” – Kristina Herodes

To prevent the reader from getting too envious, let me ask: what are your weaknesses, and to benefit the reader, how do you deal with them? What do you accept and what do you try to change, and how does that succeed or fail? Your podcast *Naistejutud* has over 300 episodes featuring many different helping professionals and self-development enthusiasts. It’s an immense privilege to have gathered so much life wisdom and taken from each conversation what supports you. Could you share some of the best tips that help you live?

Well, I don’t know if there’s anything to envy! I’m not sure I have any good traits – more like a peculiar nature and a bunch of quirks that I’ve come to accept. Sometimes I don’t know how to rest or take care of myself, to pause, or set boundaries. I also lack the modern ability to multitask – I’d fail a multitasking exam with a zero-minus. I do one thing at a time, with such dedication that the rest of the world stands still. Living like this, I miss out on a lot without even noticing it. For example, gossip or who’s dating whom – I have no clue about those murky lines and can be completely naïve.

Kristina Herodes here wears our soon-to-be-released merino wool turtleneck sweater

I believe I’ve had a lot of luck in life – my intuition is sharp, and the right people easily find me, and I them. Relationships are a beautiful part of life. I’m very loyal and take care of my people well – I’m not at all a scatterbrain as you might expect from someone with high energy.

I ended up on the Naistejutud show when someone canceled on Daki, and I went to help her. I didn’t ask any questions – a friend in need, I’m there, no matter what! It turned out to be pretty fun. The listeners liked it too, and they started asking for Kristinka to come back, so I stayed, and for the last three years, I’ve been hosting the show. It’s shaped into something that reflects me and my passions. It’s a relationship show with lots of romance, personal growth, and healthy life wisdom, at least that’s what I hope it turns out to be. When I get an idea, I don’t doubt it – I’ve invited many guests whom I didn’t know or hadn’t ever met in my life, because my intuition is so strong, and they always lead to valuable conversations, with us being on the same wavelength right away.

At the same time, I trust my intuition, the guest, and the flow – I don’t lead much, I rather sense. I think most listeners can tell that making Naistejutud is pure joy and passion for me, it’s just so much fun! Every episode is an experience for me. I’ve never feared that we’ll run out of interesting people or stories, they keep coming like an endless stream. What moves me especially is the vast number of letters I receive. I feel a strong connection with the listeners – we’re like a community. It’s very common for someone, for example, at the market when I’m buying little Peipsi cucumbers, to recognize me, come up, and share their impressions.

These are such lovely encounters – don’t hesitate to come up, I’m a very simple and down-to-earth person. Not full of myself and no plans to be.

And finally, dear Kristinka – what has drawn you to TUUB for 10 years?

I have a quirk for simplicity when dressing – I love color, but I hate pretentiousness. Self-important design monstrosities that dictate how they should be worn are a no-go for me. Touch is extremely important – if something feels good to touch, I’m willing to engage.

LISTEN to the Naistejuttude podcast HERE

Read more about Kristinka and TUUB HERE

If you want to get to know Kristina even better, check HERE

Under the fir trees with gray merino wool TUUB layered with graphite grey SHORTY