The owner of this apartment was faced with a difficult question: to turn the ruined house into a cozy corner or sell it. As a result, it was decided to try on the role of a designer and make old dreams come true.
Our hero today is Natasha Lisakova, fashion editor at GQ magazine. The apartment in which she had to renovate was in such a deplorable condition that the owner could not decide for a long time – should she start renovation work or is it better to sell the property and look for another one? After some thought, Natasha was not afraid to try on the role of a decorative designer.
It is worth noting that the apartment turned out to match the style of its owner – with soft shades, without flashy multi-colored decor.
The apartment was in very poor condition. It was not entirely clear whether to sell it or settle it. The task was to make repairs at minimal cost, because selling it in its “pristine” form was pointless. In this regard, a decision was made: to try to embody the English classics with elements of Provence, so that it would be simple, comfortable and cozy to be inside.
Redevelopment was necessary to increase space. All partitions were dismantled (there were no load-bearing walls inside the apartment) and restored with minor changes. This made it possible to create a dressing room in the bedroom and expand the hallway.
The apartment originally had 2 separate rooms, one of them was narrow and long, so using a wide arch we combined the living room with the kitchen.
The bathroom and toilet were also combined. We connected part of the corridor, and it turned out to be a large bathroom – as much as 6 square meters. The house has gas heating, which was later abandoned and replaced with a water heater.
The height of the ceilings allowed the use of ceiling lighting. Preference was given to Provence style chandeliers with fabric shades. As additional lighting, symmetrically hung sconces were used in the bedroom above the head of the bed and in the living room above the fireplace. Also in the living room are ceiling spotlights in the niche above the bookcase. Ceiling lights were made in the kitchen, as well as a built-in light in the kitchen above the countertop.
It was assumed that all the walls would be painted with the addition of wallpaper. The wallpaper purchased for the bedroom unexpectedly determined the color scheme of the entire apartment. The gray-blue shade became the main color of the walls.
To be honest, a lot of this renovation was determined by a happy coincidence of circumstances. For example, I accidentally came across BN International wallpaper, Elements collection, which perfectly matched the color and texture with the pattern of the boards on the floor. Then the idea came up to use them fragmentarily on the wall with the fireplace. Thus, we managed to avoid monochrome in the interior, and the half-erased print on the wallpaper fit very well into the concept of the future style of the apartment.
All the furniture was bought at IKEA , including the balcony furniture. In this way, it was possible to avoid long waiting times for delivery and installation. Everything was fast, clear and harmonious.
I wanted to add some bright accents to the living room, so there was a curtain in the shape of a British flag, which I purchased from Zara Home. The pillows, also with English Union Jack prints, were purchased in England.
I really wanted to bring a little French country decor into the future interior. I think that the style can be described as classic English with the addition of Provence style decor.
Difficulties arose with the approval of the layout, since the house was built back in 1934 and required an examination of the condition of the structures and a technical report from the State Unitary Enterprise Moszhilniiproekt.
The renovation lasted 5 months. It took one month to wait for the radiator to be welded in order to remove it from the kitchen in order to implement a wide window sill-countertop and install a sink by the window.
Photo before renovation
