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House Tour: An Attic Apartment in Paris

7 Feb

No matter how bad (or good) the apartment, it always sounds a bit more tolerable and chic when it’s in Paris.  Such is the case with this tiny, but stylish attic apartment in Paris.

Formerly a service space, the owners broke down many of the walls, created a sliding partition in the living room and used a white and gray color palette with some bright colors here and there to create a feeling of openness and spaciousness.  

You can see that this apartment is longer than it is wide.  I kind of like these weird windows, don’t you?  It’s a small space, sure, but the slightly sloped roof and the placement of the windows creates a more dynamic feeling than you’d find in small, box studios.

kitchen and dining room

 Arne Jacobsen Series 7 Chairs pictured, in red.

dining room

the bedroom

This compact sofa in taupe is by Antonio Citterio. I bet you’ll never guess who made the chairs…

the living room

The workspace, and the living room pictured above, are where the owners exercised a bit more creativity in their decor.  More seating was created by building a banquet onto the wall. 

workspace

via Marie Claire Maison

Photography by Nicolas Matheus

So what do you guys think about this Parisian apartment?

What I Love…

20 Jan

… the Tenbosch House in Brussels.  This gorgeous B & B was renovated by architect Patrice Lemeret and redesigned/decorated by Michael Penneman and Catharina Eklof.

It’s an absolutely exquisite space, don’t you think?

bedroom at the tenbosch house

Photo by Serge Anton.

via Yatzer.

House Tour: Una Pasteleria, Ahora Un Duplex

19 Jan

Today’s house tour comes c/o of Nuevo Estilo.   And while it is a beautiful duplex in the Spanish city of Bilbao, the best part about this home is that it used to be a bakery.

It’s been rebuilt, remodeled, and renovated by owner and interior designer, Mikel Larringa.  This lovely duplex features a lot of its original interior structure from its glory days as a bakery, namely wooden beams, huge factory windows and load-bearing pillars.  You put that together with an open floor-plan, stark-white walls and a mix of mid-century modern pieces and boldly decorated textiles, and you’ve got a gorgeous loft with a slightly eccentric style.

Really love how this looks like it used to be a factory.  The roman shades on the windows diffuse bright sunlight and create a great ambiance, while giant patterned rugs add color and personality.  In the living room is a Noguchi Coffee Table, a contemporary sofa and a Louis XIV armchair.

el salon

Here’s  another view of the living room.  The stairs lead up to the loft bedroom.

el salon

el salon

In the dining area are a set of white Eames DAW chairs.  The table is by Paul Ziarsolo.  These cute mini globe pendant lights are by Dab.  I think I would have preferred bigger lights at such a large dining table, but it’s obvious the place isn’t lacking in natural light.

area de comedor

Another thing I love is the collection of art and sculpture; it’s apparent that Larrinage is passionate about collecting.

la entrada

Chocolate, gray, black and white create a sense of calm in this loft bedroom.

el dormitorio

Plenty of art in the bedroom too.  Cite Lounge Chair is by Jean Prouve and the painting shown above the Chinese Buffet is of Paul Ziarsolo by Pedro Goiriena.

el dormitorio

More pictures and information available here.

This home was featured in July 2011 issue of Nuevo Estilo.

House Tour: A Barcelona Loft

10 Jan

Again, with these amazing homes in Spain.  I really think it’s time I pack my bags and learn some Spanish.

Today we’re touring a Barcelona loft that was featured in last month’s issue of NY Times- you can read the article here.  It’s the home of one lucky brit, James Welsh, who moved to the city in 2006, after “falling in love with its energy.”

He found this gorgeous, huge, 1300 sq. ft. loft in El Poblenou,  and hired Ylab Architectos to make it livable.  The result was an open, minimalist loft with a neutral color palette and lots of great modern pieces.

the living room

another view of the living room

The dining room and kitchen are lovely and bright, with concrete floors, lots of Eames DSW Chairs in white and a chunky wood dining room table.

the dining room

The kitchen is amazing…especially the tile floors.  Love that touch of traditional pattern in this ultra modern loft.

the kitchen

View the rest of the home here.

All photos by Lorenzo Nencioni.

House Tour: A Colorful, Modern Georgia Townhouse

25 Nov

Georgian townhouses usually conjure up images of family heirloom rugs, gilded window frames, and lots of 18th and 19th century furniture upholstered in damask.  But that isn’t the case with this gorgeous 3-sttory townhouse in London’s De Beauvoir Town.   The lines are clean and contemporary, the furniture is modern and the art is bold and fun.

living room

Another view of the living room reveals a fireplace with clean modern lines and a concrete frame, plus lots of fun toys for little children!

another view of the living room

A pink runner lines the stairs, while an Eames Hang It All and pieces by Danish-modern furniture designer, Kai Kristiansen, furnish the hallway.

hallway

Don’t you just LOVE a yellow kitchen?

kitchen

I am really in love with the brightness and modernity of this dining room, aren’t you?  A marble-topped Saarinen Tulip Table is surrounded by Eames DCM chairs.  And while a vintage chandelier adds a touch of sparkle, I’m thinking a Giogali Chandelier would look just as sparkly.

the dining room

This bright, yet cozy, bedroom is a mix of vintage and modern pieces.

bedroom

The doors of this wardrobe are painted with a high-gloss green lacquer, which, again, love. And look at that… an Eames RAR Rocker.  These people have great taste!

the children's bedroom

I always love spaces like these because they take the best of midcentury modern and contemporary design, and make it livable with bright colors and clean lines.  It’s not too retro, not too beige, not too aesthetically-boring.

More pictures available at House to Home.

Photos by Tim Cook.

House Tour: An Arne Jacobsen Buff Lives Here

16 Nov

Let’s just say that Hans Emami feels about Jacobsen the same way I feel about Ray + Charles Eames; elated and enthused.

Anywho, a whole catalog of Arne Jacobsen designs finds itself at home in this lovely apartment belonging to Hans Emami.  For so much Jacobsen, you’d think it’d have a too-retro feel, as some apartments are wont to do, but no.  This apartment is homey, down-to-Earth and borders on slightly eclectic.

living room

In addition to his two Jacobsen Swan chairs, Emami has also has a bright orange Egg Chair in his living room.

living room (another view)

Orange Panton S Chairs I like…the bear rug, not so much.  Well, I’d like it more it were sans head.

sitting room

Shown here in the dining room are Jacobsen’s Ant Chairs (aka Series 7), with his Egg Dining Room Table…

dining

A glass backsplash, open shelving and black cabinets lend a restaurant-feel to this smallish kitchen.

restaurant-style kitchen

Not sure how I feel about the bedroom being so adjacent to the dining room…

bedroom

This home was featured in a 2009 issue of Skona Hem.

All photos by Fredrick Sweger.

House Tour: A Mid-Century Loft Grows in Brooklyn

9 Nov

Lofts and big-open houses with homey appeal and splashes of mid-century modern are my absolute favorite; they have a timeless look to them and they’re usually chock-full of mid-modern goodies.  

Such is the case with this Brooklyn pad featured in New York Times, owned by Laurie Lieberman, an architect, and her fancy doctor husband, Edward Telzack (you can’t make this stuff up, folks).

the living room

 Lieberman punched out part of this paneled wall in the living room (love!) and replaced it with a countertop.  And get this…the panels above the countertop slide closed.  Apparently, she wanted to paint these panels white, but I’m glad she didn’t; hello, they’re gorgeous!

dining room

Blond wood dining room set is by Haywood-Wakefield…I’m not really a fan of blond wood.

dining room + foyer

A view of the kitchen that opens up onto a cute little patio.

kitchen

 Scandinavian furniture with retro-print textiles are in keeping with the simple, mid-century modern-esque style of this loft…

master bedroom

This home was featured in New York Times, visit for more pictures and more info on this home’s renovations.

All photography by Trevor Tondro.

House Tour: An Open House on La Maddalena

2 Nov

La Maddalena, an island off the coast of Sardinia on the Tyrrhenian Sea, is your typical Sardinian fare…which means I want to go to there!

Today’s house tour features the work of French architect Jean-Paul Arrivetz who, after a heart attack and a friend’s ‘fluke,’ decided to build this simple, modern abode on the island of La Maddalena.  This achingly beautiful villa is simple, and open and has amazing views (amazing!) of the cliffs of Bonifacio.  There are only windows where there would be walls and there’s a really even flow/balance between indoor and outdoor spaces…

Shown here is the lounge with a simple gray sofa and a white coffee table, adjacent an extended fireplace.  Sliding doors (also a bad 90s movie…) made of glass separate this space from the patio.

image via marie claire maison, photo by vincent leroux

I just love these textures; the thatched roof of the patio, the rough white brick of the side wall and the wood planks.  On the patio, are one of my favorite mid-century modern chairs- the Verner Panton S Chair, in black and yellow, for a touch of color and modernity.

image via marie claire maison, photo by vincent leroux

The kitchen efficient kitchen opens up onto the patio and features two small refrigerators that don’t obstruct the views of the cliffs of Bonifacio:

image via marie claire maison, photo by vincent leroux

This bath tub is made of black resin and I want it:

image via marie claire maison, photo by vincent leroux

The bedroom opens up onto a terrace, still with magnificent views.  (I’m noticing a theme here.)

I’m thinking that sliding glass doors was an ingenious move on Arrivetz’s part because, while they provide the protection that regular walls and doors do, nothing feels closed off; the space really does feel open.

image via marie claire maison, photo by vincent leroux

I wonder if I can rent this on airbnb.com?

This home appeared in the Sept./Oct. issue of Marie Claire Maison.

All photography by Vincent Leroux.

House Tour: The Hemeroscopium House

19 Oct

That sounds very sexy, doesn’t it?  Hemeroscopium, Greek for “where the sun sets,” is, in fact, a very sexy house.  It’s a superstructure, literally a really big house, that plays with balance.  To the naked eye, it would seem that the placement of large concrete beams atop one another indicates that the architect, Anton Garcia- Abril, is also really bad at Jenga.  But that’s just not the case:

image via archinect

Garcia-Abril built this home, located in Madrid, in 2009, and construction lasted only 7 days (while planning took 3 years).  But really, enough about the amazing architecture, visit Archinect if you want more information/pictures of that.

I want to look at gorgeous mid-century modern, contemporary furniture, and the stunning interior design!

Like a lot of these glass + concrete homes, the planning is left open like a blank canvas. In the living room, you’ll notice that makeshift room dividers were created out of gray forscurit curtains.

There’s are pieces by Le Corbusier and Eileen Gray, including the LC2 Chairs and Gray’s Adjustable Side Table.  In the background, a silver Arco lamp juts into the space.

via nuevo estilo

A closeup of Le Corbusier’s LC4 chair and a sculpture by Manolo Valdes.

via nuevo estilo

Shown here are a grand piano (an homage to Garcia-Abril’s father who’s a composer) and Mies van der Rohe’s Barcelona Leather Daybed.  In the background is the sitting room with Le Corbusier’s LC1 chairs (The guy loves him some Le Corbusier) and a sculpture by Eduardo Chillida.

via nuevo estilo

via nuevo estilo

The eat-in kitchen is rather quaint and homey, isn’t it?  The furniture is by Formica…

via nuevo estilo

The bedroom and bathrooms are also rather quaint and homey (as they should be, really).  If the bedroom looks like something out of Ikea…well, that’s because the furniture is from Ikea.  The lamp is by Ptolemy.

via nuevo estilo

via nuevo estilo

This house was featured in Nuevo Estilo, issue #99.

House Tour: A Modern Beach House w/ a View

12 Oct

…in Spain, no less.

Located on the pebbly beach of Costa Brava, in Cadaques, this modern house is causing some serious envy (again).   This two-story house is actually a Summer home for designer Marta Esteve, who also decorated and designed the house.  The color palette and textures are natural -with sandy browns, creamy whites and a few ocean blue accents thrown in- to reflect what else; the beautiful beach that surrounds the home.   And to create true seamlessness between indoor and outdoor spaces (which is what you when you live on the beach, duh),  large glass windows were used.

And while the house itself is a classic, two-story glass + steel concoction, the feeling within — one of casual, comfortable beachiness- makes it a home.

A jute area rug echoes the pebbly patio just beyond the glass doors, while a contemporary lamp, butterfly chair, and table add a chic, modern touch.

living room

perfect picnic area

A view from the stairwell reveals a white modular sofa and a dramatically-arched floor lamp.

the living room

Nothing spectacular about the kitchen, but I happen to really like the gray tile floors and gray concrete walls.  And oh look!  Eames DAW Chairs with a chunky wooden table…I’m into that.

the kitchen

another view of the kitchen

Here’s the master bedroom with plush beds and beach views… Esteve also designed the headboard.

bedroom

Home featured in Mi Casta Revista.

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