All new, from top to bottom

My customer was considering turning her investment flat into her own home. It was looking really drab and uninviting and was in need of total surface renovation. My challenge was to find the materials and colors, furniture and lightning fixtures to make it inviting. The walls were repainted and new wallpapers installed. The flooring was changed in all rooms. Ceiling was repainted and all light fixtures changed. All fixed furniture as also all free standing ones were changed. All new!
The renovation took time but now, eventually, my customer is happily living in this beautiful flat.

Everything in living room changed. The atmosphere is calm and inviting. The wallpaper was found from Marimekko. In the living room there was a cupboard which was of little use. As television is rarely an improvement to your home decor so I decided to use the cupboard. A new television and electricity outlet was installed inside the cupboard and the surfaces were covered with the same
wallpaper as elsewhere in the living room but on negative colors. Now it functions perfectly. Television is hidden when not used and when used, it adds to home decor in positive way.








 

Bedroom changed drastically. It was dark and old fashioned. Now it is light and soft, place to relax after work. New sliding doors were installed under the window that now allow more efficient use of space.

Before:

After:

Bathroom was dark and had lived through its best days. Everything was renewed. New furniture was custom made to fit the space perfectly and new color scheme makes the bathroom look fresh.

Before:

After:

Kitchen was bleak. The form of the space did not allow for much change but still I made it more functional. I turned the wash basin to other side of the corner as well as the dishwasher. This allowed easier access to fridge and new apothecary cupboard whilst providing an even table top next to them. Also emptying dishwasher got easier as the cupboards for plates and glasses are just above the machine. And the tiling on the wall gives space character as it opens directly to living room.

Before:

After renovation

After renovation

Finally proper storage room(s)

When life is full and busy, storage space is eventually full and even fuller. Often it is not only due to busy life style but that the storing needs have changed over time but no action has been taken. The result is over flowing shelves and cabinets (and floors).

I got an assignment to think over two storage rooms. One is for all the general storing plus it should hold washing and drying machines etc, recycling and also work as entrance to yard. The other space is for parents' clothes etc and should be equally distributed.

The first space needed to be decluttered. The couple went through a considerable amount of files and boxes and recycled and binned a lot. According to their needs I planned a new order in the storage space which held enough space for everything they needed and even left space for walking through the space.

The second space had an additional challenge with steeply lowering ceiling. It was a dark space which also needed more light to be useful. The family also wanted to retain an existing cabinet in the space. Once again the first step was to look through all the boxes in the space and decide if their content was still needed. Then it was decided whether they should be stored here or in the other space. Once this process was ready I designed a shelving system on both sides for her and him which held enough and right type of storage space for both.

In the end the two storage spaces look much much better and more importantly are easy and efficient to use!

Upstairs:

         

              
Downstairs:

 Second Space

         


 

Goodbye bathtub, wellcome sauna

A family had been longing for a sauna for a while but did not have available space. As years passed it became evident that children had outgrown the bath stage and the bathtub was no longer in use.
A bathtub takes up asurprisingly big space especially if it is integrated. That meant that there is enough space in their existing bathroom for a sauna.

With careful planning the space now looks as if the sauna had always been there. The cabinet had to be taken away, but now there is even more storage space in mirror cabinet which was installed on top of existing mirror. The laundry baskets were integrated in the sauna structure so that the space under the benches has now built in laundry baskets. Sauna itself is big enough to have two adults and one child enjoying the heat at one time.                                                   

                           

Bathroom before

Bathroom before

New curtains, help!

I have found that buying curtains in Luxembourg is not easy. There is not that much where to choose, Nordic taste is sometimes different than what is available and just when you finally found the perfect fabric...the cost is way over your budget. One does not have the time to search. One does not want to make them. One does not want to think the whole thing but still the room would look so much nicer with proper curtains.

My clever customer asked me for help. According to her wishes I scouted maybe 20 different options that would work in her home (compared to hundreds in the showroom). Then we visited the shop together to see the fabrics "live" and I helped her with all the sewing details etc and she placed the order. It took only a month from the day I visited her to the moment she had new beautiful curtains perfecting her home.

So why not ask for help with curtains!

Small change, big effect

Sometimes a change in one place leads to a change in another. I have earlier presented a bedroom make over. That change left a need to find a new storage solution for some papers, letters, albums etc. A space in front of window was a little bit underused even though it was the first view one sees when entering home.
Together with the client we found a furniture originally meant for television to have all the required elements. It was not too high, just the right length and it allowed vacuuming under. Now it holds all the important mementos behind doors and ties together other dark colors used in living room (sorry, did not take photo of the whole room, my fault...)

                                                               

Before the change

Teenager and school boy rooms

Time flies and rooms should change with the age of their occupants. I got an assignment to update a girly room into a teenage room and a play room to be a school boy's room. Providing both rooms with proper working places was first priority but close behind were that hobbies should be visible in the rooms.

The daughter is a keen dancer and therefore one good sized mirror was attached to the wall and the space in front of it was kept open. A new wardrobe system was designed to service all storage purposes: clothes, toys, books etc. The idea was to have a storage space that would blend into the wall, be discreet and calm. All the interior shelving was designed specifically for her purposes.

Son hoped that in his room football would be visible. But at the same time it should be done so that the room would last time. Also the room should have plenty of open floor space for games, plays and gymnastic training.
A challenge in the room was that it is under the sloping roof, how to use the height so that you do not loose the opportunities it offers but still that the room is cosy and not a chapel. A powdery green wallpaper with net graphics is attached to wall/ceiling which brings football goal in mind and gives solidness into the otherwise light room. The idea behind subdued color scheme was that toys will bring color to the room. Furniture is deliberately scarce and light to give room for play and for future needs and changes.