• Perkele Bear sweatshirt in black, worn by Venla leaning on an autumn tram shelter in Helsinki, Very Finnish Problems
  • Perkele Bear sweatshirt in black, worn by Venla leaning on an autumn tram shelter in Helsinki, Very Finnish Problems
  • Perkele Bear sweatshirt in black, worn by Eetu with a thermos cup on an autumn forest trail, Very Finnish Problems
  • Perkele Bear sweatshirt in navy, worn by Juha laughing at a harbour market stall, Very Finnish Problems
  • Perkele Bear sweatshirt in maroon, worn by Joonas at a woodpile beside a red summer cottage, Very Finnish Problems
  • Perkele Bear sweatshirt in light blue, worn by Suvi on a park bench in autumn leaves, Very Finnish Problems
  • Perkele Bear sweatshirt in white, worn by Jaska on a lakeside jetty, Very Finnish Problems
  • Perkele Bear sweatshirt in sport grey, worn by Elina with a morning coffee on a cottage porch, Very Finnish Problems
  • Close-up of the Perkele Bear print on a black sweatshirt, Very Finnish Problems
  • Size guide for this sweatshirt: your chest measured all the way round, then the sweatshirt laid flat, in centimetres and inches, sizes S to 5XL, Very Finnish Problems
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Perkele Bear Finnish Language Sweatshirt

Perkele Bear Finnish Language Sweatshirt

€37,95 EUR
€37,95 EUR
Sale Sold out

Free shipping worldwide, no minimum

Taxes included.
Colour: Black
SizeSize guide
In stock, created to order
Expected delivery
  • EU (Finland)4 to 7 November
  • UK4 to 7 November
  • North America4 to 7 November
  • Free worldwide shipping, no minimum
  • 30 day returns
  • Created to order, never mass produced
  • Machine wash cold, inside out

More Finnish problems

What people buy alongside this one.

The brown bear is Finland's national animal, and it has the right idea about winter. In the north it crawls into a den in October and sleeps until April, which is still the most sensible response to the long dark anyone has come up with. This one has stayed up. He has pulled on a bobble hat and a pair of aviators and boiled his feelings about the season down to a single word.

Perkele is the swear word Finns reach for when ordinary language gives up. It covers the car that won't start at minus 25, the bus that leaves a minute early and the moment you realise nobody switched the sauna on.

As a sweatshirt it does the bear's job without the six months in a hole. Pull it on in October and you may well still be wearing it in April.

Size guide
Size guide for this sweatshirt: your chest measured all the way round, then the sweatshirt laid flat, in centimetres and inches, sizes S to 5XL, Very Finnish Problems

Shipping and returns

Shipping is free to almost everywhere, with no minimum spend and nothing added at checkout.

Your order is made for you, then posted from the print site nearest to you. Most arrive in 7 to 10 days, and you get a tracking link as soon as yours is on its way.

You have 30 days to return it. If the fit is wrong, email joel@veryfinnishproblems.com and we will sort it out. It needs to come back unworn and the return postage is yours. The refund policy has the full details.

Care and materials

Machine wash it cold and inside out, then tumble dry low or hang it up. The print will thank you for it.

The design is printed straight into the fabric (direct to garment, or DTG) rather than pressed on top, so it stays soft and will not crack or peel the way a transfer can. Every item is made to order, so nothing is mass produced and nothing sits in a warehouse waiting for someone to love it.

About Very Finnish Problems

VFP was started by British author Joel Willans, who met his Finnish wife in London and moved with her to Helsinki in 2002. Over the next two decades his observations of Finnish life grew into a community of 1.3 million people worldwide. Every design is inspired by real Finnish life and created by Joel and his team in Helsinki. Joel is also the author of the Very Finnish Problems books, written after many years of living in Finland and still not fully understanding it.

View full details

More Finnish problems

What people buy alongside this one.
  • 5 stars: 9 (100%)
  • 4 stars: 0 (0%)
  • 3 stars: 0 (0%)
  • 2 stars: 0 (0%)
  • 1 star: 0 (0%)
This product has no reviews of its own. The merchant grouped it with related products, so the reviews shown are from across that group.
M
Mika Torvinen

Just what I suspected, perkele

A
Anonymous

What's not to love? It's perfect!!

A
Anonymous

Perfect!

S
Simon

Great quality shirt, cool bear 🐻‍❄️

I
Ilsa Williamson

I love it. Really comfy and love the design.

M
Matti K

Perkele!!! Love the bear. Got lots of comments already

R
Rob S.

My Finnish mate said the shirt is excellent but my pronunciation of perkele is terrible 😂

M
M.L.

Reflects my attitude very well. Now everybody knows what to expect when approaching me.
The Shirt is very comfortable to wear and the print looks great.

J
J

Looks exactly like picture. Very happy

Joel Willans, founder of Very Finnish Problems

Designed in Helsinki by someone who actually lives here

Very Finnish Problems is run by Joel Willans, a British writer who moved to Finland over twenty years ago and never quite got around to leaving. Every design comes out of real Finnish life he's had with his Finnish wife, Anna and their kids, and a community of more than 1.3 million people who know exactly what no niin means.

Read Joel's story