The vision was to transform small mews with compromised rooms into a contemporary home with a great feeling of space. This has been achieved by opening up the plan and providing views into other spaces, allowing the full width and length of the house to be experienced. Traces of notslagic beauty of a tropical house were retained, which adds to the character of the house.
Re.Light
The design aspires to curate a light-filled open space with a neutral palette of tactile materials to form sensory warmth and relaxation. The home's sense of calm and tranquillity was created through the use of natural materials, organic textures and a neutral wood colour palette.
Each floor follows a "broken-plan" layout, in which built-in furniture and level changes help to loosely demarcate different areas.
The original deep plan created a dimly lit staircase zone, and to counteract that, the adjacent room walls were removed and replaced with movable louvers and a floating staircase was incorporated to control the light and wind flow through the house while allowing for privacy when required.
Re.Furbish
Existing 30 year old timber parquet floor were given a new lease of life through sanding and re-varnishing. The master bedroom walls were removed, with traces of the the old layout reflected on the floor of the refurbished parquet.
Re.Purpose
The staircase orientation was changed to maximise usable storage space underneath. Solid timber handrails and timber steps were reused as shelving for the entire house.
Re.Cycled
Sawed roadside trees slabs were gifted by an arborist friend. They were retained and used with their natural edge to express the beauty of the natural timber.
Re.Touched
Existing tiled floors were left untouched and overlaid with micro-cement finish to minimise hacking and retiling works. At the same time, this provides a seamless floor finish throughout. Experimentally, brass cut circular pieces were laid on the flooring along the central spine of the house which connects the apartment’s open plan with the bedrooms and living areas.