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Houzz Tour: A City Flat is Cleverly Personalised for its Owners
A newly retired couple asked a designer to showcase their art and furniture and shape the space to suit their lifestyle
With their retirement approaching, this Parisian couple decided to leave the French capital for Lyon, where they’d acquired a 100 sq m flat in a beautiful neighbourhood a stone’s throw from the Tête d’Or park. After they’d lived in their new home for a while to get a feel for it, they contacted architect Emmanuelle Houel on Houzz, having seen examples of her projects on her profile and in articles on Houzz France. They asked her for a space tailored perfectly to their needs.
Before This large Lyon flat is located in a building that faces east-west and is blessed with windows to both the street and the courtyard.
It was already in fairly good condition, but after living here for a few months, the owners had some quibbles with the layout. “The original flat had a classic layout. It was highly partitioned with a very dark central core which led to the bedrooms. The living room, which was half swallowed by the dining room, seemed too narrow to them, and the kitchen was small and too far away,” Emmanuelle says.
It was already in fairly good condition, but after living here for a few months, the owners had some quibbles with the layout. “The original flat had a classic layout. It was highly partitioned with a very dark central core which led to the bedrooms. The living room, which was half swallowed by the dining room, seemed too narrow to them, and the kitchen was small and too far away,” Emmanuelle says.
After Close to retirement and having worked in decorative furniture sales, the owners had years of experience and wanted to indulge themselves with a well-organised and personalised flat.
It was important to them to have lots of light, as well as a bedroom and a bathroom each. They also wanted a larger, warm and welcoming living space and an office that could double as a spare room for guests. They already had clear preferences in terms of furniture, artwork and colours, and understandably wanted to highlight them.
It was important to them to have lots of light, as well as a bedroom and a bathroom each. They also wanted a larger, warm and welcoming living space and an office that could double as a spare room for guests. They already had clear preferences in terms of furniture, artwork and colours, and understandably wanted to highlight them.
The newly opened up central space now houses the dining room, which flows into the adjoining living room and the kitchen at the entrance.
The new dining room is proudly and dramatically on display, visible right from the entrance. This bold layout caters to the couple’s request for a cosy place to gather together at the centre of the home.
The flooring in the dining room picks up on the pattern of the marble tiles at the entrance, with their beige, brown, black and white palette. However, the dining room finish is actually Coretec vinyl tile. “It’s a thin material with an integrated cork underlay, which is resistant and organic, and helps prevent unevenness,” Emmanuelle says.
Walls painted in Oval Room Blue, Farrow & Ball.
Walls painted in Oval Room Blue, Farrow & Ball.
“We have brought the dining room closer to the kitchen and not the other way around,” Emmanuelle says of what she sees as an overused solution of moving the kitchen into the living room.
The existing kitchen was tidy and functional, so there were no plans to change it. The couple only updated the colour palette (no photo is available of the new kitchen, but you can see some of the new palette in the previous image).
“My clients trusted me,” Emmanuelle says. She was able to make them understand that the transition to a white and wood kitchen would be more in keeping with the general feel of the flat. This also meant she was able to keep the costs down, as she’s also a kitchen designer, so she purchased directly from Italian brand Record Cucine.
“My clients trusted me,” Emmanuelle says. She was able to make them understand that the transition to a white and wood kitchen would be more in keeping with the general feel of the flat. This also meant she was able to keep the costs down, as she’s also a kitchen designer, so she purchased directly from Italian brand Record Cucine.
Emmanuelle is fond of colour, and selected a rich shade for this openwork partition between the living and dining rooms. Nevertheless, she took care to “first reshape the spaces, before enriching them with colours to highlight certain areas and produce general coherence”.
A splash of yellow announces the living room.
Now, the living room flourishes on its own. The yellow at its entrance is picked up by bright curtains. A bookcase, which the couple had already owned, now adorns an entire section of the wall.
The living area now feels much more relaxed.
Emmanuelle replaced the white sofa with a blue one to create continuity with the dining area. She also reupholstered the couple’s existing daybed.
“The owners’ paintings – especially the one hanging behind the sofa – helped me compose the colour palette,” she adds.
“The owners’ paintings – especially the one hanging behind the sofa – helped me compose the colour palette,” she adds.
This other opening was widened to create a comfortable passageway to the dining room and to allow natural light in throughout the day.
On the other side, a glass wall separates the office/spare bedroom from the dining room.
The lacquered metal divider was custom-made with a combination of fluted and regular glass panes. “It offers privacy while still letting light in,” Emmanuelle says.
A strip of wall painted in the same blue as the dining room draws a connection to the rest of the flat.
Behind the dining table is one of the large cupboards that replaced the original storage units.
A pocket door – also glazed, to let light through – leads to the sleeping area.
A pocket door – also glazed, to let light through – leads to the sleeping area.
The pocket door opens onto a hallway which serves the man’s bedroom at one end (seen here) and the woman’s at the other. Their respective bathrooms are in the centre.
The man wanted a blue-and-wood colour scheme in his bathroom. The original washbasin cabinet was used here.
His favourite painting looked dull against the original mouse-grey background. Emmanuelle’s designer’s intuition led her to this anthracite headboard wall, which enhances the painting.
At the foot of the bed is a wardrobe Emmanuelle designed to fit perfectly into the space.
The woman preferred to leave her headboard white to make the artwork overhead stand out.
The woman quickly fell in love with this mix of jungle print and wood tiles for her bathroom. “You can afford to be more eccentric in a small space you don’t spend all your time in,” Emmanuelle says.
Rather than rewriting the flat from a blank page, Emmanuelle took the risk of adapting to the existing space in a tailor-made project that fully respects her clients’ wishes.
No wonder they left such a complimentary review. “We asked Emmanuelle to renovate our flat. Despite the challenges of the first lockdown, she carried out the project she had developed for us, which emphasised the brightness of the space and has made it very pleasant to live in. She highlighted our paintings and favourite objects. We are fully satisfied with the result and have no regrets about having placed our full trust in her.”
Tell us…
Which clever ideas would you take from this apartment transformation? Share your thoughts in the Comments.
No wonder they left such a complimentary review. “We asked Emmanuelle to renovate our flat. Despite the challenges of the first lockdown, she carried out the project she had developed for us, which emphasised the brightness of the space and has made it very pleasant to live in. She highlighted our paintings and favourite objects. We are fully satisfied with the result and have no regrets about having placed our full trust in her.”
Tell us…
Which clever ideas would you take from this apartment transformation? Share your thoughts in the Comments.
Who lives here? A couple in their sixties
Location In the 6th arrondissement of Lyon, France
Property A flat on the fifth floor of a 1950s building
Size Three bedrooms and two bathrooms; 100 sq m
Project duration Six months
Completion date September 2020
Budget €90,000, including around €50,000 for the work and €40,000 for custom-made furniture (storage, kitchen, glass wall)
Designer Emmanuelle Houel of Renow
Photos by Renow