What Happens When the Sauna Becomes a Ritual Most Nightjar owners are experiencing regular sauna use for the first time. They are new to the practice. There's no inherited habit, no childhood memory of stepping into a traditional sauna to draw from. The sauna arrives, it gets fired up for...
The Art of Doing Nothing Want to get better at doing nothing? Get in the sauna. That's it. That's the whole article. But since most people reading this can't help themselves — keep going. Ernest Hemingway once wrote about Michigan that it was "the best place in the world to...
How to Sauna as a Family: A Guide for Younger Kids Picture two little girls, ages 3 and 5, giggling and running around outside in their swimsuits while the temperature sits below zero. No complaints. No rushing back inside. Just pure, uninhibited joy — completely free and easy in the...
Brooklyn, Underneath the Williamsburg Bridge Colin from Superior Sauna called and said there was a unique opportunity in New York City — was I interested? That's one of those questions where the answer has to be yes. Saying no would be like turning down a great adventure. The Nightjar Travel...
Why Nightjar? When I first fell in love with sauna, I became consumed with learning everything I could about it. I wanted to understand not just how to build one, but what made the experience truly authentic. That journey led me to meet Sami, to travel to Finland, and ultimately,...
Reflections from The Great Northern Sauna Village 2026 We pushed through a West Michigan snowstorm on Tuesday to make it to Minneapolis for The Great Northern Sauna Village. The weather matched the mood we'd find when we arrived. An Unusual Backdrop Minneapolis felt heavy. We arrived late Tuesday and set...
Wood-Fired vs. Electric Sauna: Understanding What Really Matters When choosing between a wood-fired and electric sauna, the decision isn't just about picking a heat source—it's about choosing an experience. Most people shopping for a sauna think about temperature, size, maybe aesthetics. But if someone asks a Finn? They'll ask about...
The Sauna Is Not Political: One of the Last Sacred Spaces There's something you need to understand about the sauna: it's not political. It's not written on the wall. There's no sign at the door. But it's understood—the way certain things are just known in spaces that matter. The sauna...
Why Nightjar Outdoor Saunas Have Open Floors (And Why You Don't Need To Mind The Gap) We've built over 50 saunas now, and one of the most common questions I get is about floor design. "Should I seal my sauna floor? Won't heat escape through the gaps?" Let me explain...
The Social Heart of Finnish Sauna: Why Americans Are Just Starting To Figure it out I was told to show up at Marti's house around eight. Marti is Sami's uncle, and we were meeting up with Sami's cousins and his brother for an evening sauna in Tampere. By the time...
Does My Sauna Need Insulation? It's one of the most common questions we hear at Nightjar: "Do I really need insulation in my sauna?" The short answer is yes—most saunas absolutely need proper insulation. But like everything we do, the full answer is a bit more nuanced and worth understanding...
The Smaller Sauna: Why I Finally Said Yes Last week, we delivered a sauna that I'd been resisting for two years. Let me back up. Since starting Nightjar in March of 2023, I had a consistent answer whenever someone asked for a smaller sauna: No. I didn't say it to...
From Death to Life: Getting the Deal Done at 1175 Burton SE I was in the hunt for a bigger space. Nightjar had been doubling in size, and our current shop was at capacity. I spent weeks looking at different available buildings across Grand Rapids—scrolling through listings, driving past properties,...
Final Touches - Your Sauna Is Almost Ready Let's set up delivery for next week! We're in the final stretch. Your sauna is now in finishing stages—the team is installing lighting, mounting benches, placing the heater, completing trim work, and attending to all the small details that separate "good enough"...
Sometimes I Say Yes Before I Know How Six months ago, Jason from Coya was putting together an event for the Grand Rapids YPO at the Ada Hotel. Coya does serious work in life coaching and optimization—professional sports teams, business leaders, people building better lives through wellness tools and sustainable...
From Cold Fingers to Cold Confidence: How Thermal Therapy Transformed My Wife's Raynaud's My wife used to complain about being cold nearly every day in the winter. "My fingers are freezing," she'd announce, even when we were inside with the heat cranked to 72 degrees. "My toes are completely numb."...
