Brasilia Apartment | StudioMadera

Renovation of a 160m2 apartment in the Guindalera neighbourhood of Madrid for an urban couple.

One of the main needs of the owners was to have a large open space for socialising, to be able to host their guests in different areas of the home, such as the kitchen, dining room and living area. They also needed a work area, a guest bedroom and bathroom, and a main private area that had a dressing room and a bathroom with a freestanding bathtub and shower, resembling a spa-like space where they could relax.

The original state of the apartment had a typical layout of flats from the 1960s in Madrid, very compartmentalised, with a long hallway and a service entrance to a kitchen area disconnected from the living and dining area. On the other hand, it was not characterised by having any decorative features to maintain or highlight in the final design proposal.

When undertaking the renovation, we distributed the private spaces on the sides of the apartment, leaving a large central space for the social area. In this way, we were able to bring the natural light from the windows on the main façade into the flat, promoting better lighting and natural ventilation.

Although the residence has a considerable-sized outdoor terrace, it was also important to be able to create a space like an interior garden/patio, as the owners are plant lovers. The idea was to be able to locate this green space where it could be visually accessed from any point in the social area, thus creating an important focal point inside the home.

Access to the main private space is through a flush door with the oak wood panelling that covers the dining room wall and continues to surround the hall area. The access is through the dressing room, which articulates this main rest area, with the bathroom open to it on one side, and the bedroom on the other, which can be isolated by sliding doors with fluted glass, which let natural light pass from the bedroom to the dressing room, when it is closed.

The work area is set back, it is not closed, but we proposed a curtain-like separator to integrate or privatize this space. This ecru-colored curtain, from the VESCOM brand, has technical acoustic characteristics, which allow noise to be muffled. It also allows the open space to be compartmentalized, blurring the boundaries between the different areas, and contributing to creating a more intimate atmosphere in the space dedicated to the dining room.

Between the living area and the dining area we kept the exposed concrete structure, giving the space an aesthetic with a certain industrial air. Taking this aspect into account, we used finishes with a more sober and robust palette, such as Ceppo di Gre stone tiles, which is a natural blue-grey stone that also brings elegance and sophistication to the space; dark grey panelling, and the enveloping texture offered by the application of natural clay on the walls, which also from a technical point of view, taking into account that the heating installation is central, the clay helps us to regulate the humidity and temperature inside the home. While on the other hand, the oak wood used on floors and walls contrasts its warmth with the environment.

Next to the living area, being the area of ​​the apartment that receives the greatest amount of natural light, is the kitchen, which is the nerve centre of the home, and at the same time the most interactive area. The central island and the bench area with a round table stand out, this can also serve as a comfortable work area. From the window of this cosy corner you can enjoy the best views of the outside, and it is where the first rays of the day's sun filter through.

The furniture was custom designed, also based on the needs of our clients, such as the shelves as display cases for the vinyls, since both are passionate about music. They were made of oak wood and solid stained oak wood for the dining table, complementing the interior design and aesthetics of the home.