Before / After. how to modernize a 1970s apartment

There is no doubt that 1970s housing has real potential. Studio Castille proves it with this renovation. In the beginning. 104 m² in its original condition with carpet, salmon wallpaper, kitchen equipped with faux rustic furniture, electrical and plumbing no longer up to standard… But lots of light and a large balcony. “Our clients, a couple with a child, wanted to make it a modern, family-friendly, functional and charming apartment,” explains Mathilde Abel, co-founder of Studio Castille with France Lepoutre. That’s why we renovated everything and did deep work, moving the kitchen into the living room, creating a bathroom in the original kitchen, setting up an office in one of the bedrooms… And above all, we made sure to round the corners to bring sensuality, lighten the spaces to let the light circulate… » Tour accompanied by

The entrance

“This entrance, which serves the living room, the office, and also opens to the hallway leading to the bedrooms and bathroom, is simple but effective and sets the tone for the apartment. Indeed, the architectural project is designed around curves and arches. The entrance therefore offers a view of the various arched doorways which are made to measure. We also decided to leave the entrance to the living room open, we replaced the glass doors leading to the living room with an arch. The large, very heavy original cabinet was replaced with a more modest wooden cabinet that replicates the kitchen cabinet. The floor, the beautiful parquet flooring we installed throughout the apartment, also adds simplicity and softness. »

The rest

“The goal was to combine the living room, the dining room, and especially the kitchen, which originally occupied a separate room, in this living room. Therefore, we changed everything and especially gained 4 m² of space by reducing the original kitchen and one of the bedrooms next to the living room, which became an office. The buildings of the 1970s have few load-bearing walls. therefore, we can easily move the partitions (which we did not hesitate to do to rebuild the whole thing without revolutionizing everything). The kitchen is located along a section of the living room wall, to the left as you come from the entrance, where the lounge area used to be. It is framed by two storage columns. The large island, in which we placed the cooking plates, helps to demarcate the area from the dining room. The latter includes a large table with chairs. The idea was that we could fully enjoy the view from the terrace, both from the kitchen and while sitting at the table. On the living room side, on the other side of these spaces, we have thought specifically about storage. We created a very decorative personal library with niches and cabinets in the lower part. In this library unit, we have hidden a cabinet with doors that fit on the sides, and which allows you to store small appliances and everything that would be unsightly in the kitchen. This allows you to declutter the space while leaving the everyday “stuff” very accessible. And this system does not interfere with traffic in any way. In this living room, the tones are neutral and the wood is very present for a calming effect. »

The bathroom

“Moving the kitchen into the living room, this room naturally became a new bathroom. Our clients absolutely wanted to keep the bathroom. The space being quite large, we were able to install a large storage room that serves as a laundry room, as the washing machine is hidden inside. This tub is very light and we added warmth by using wood to cover the storage under the sink. For tiling, we chose large slabs in the 80 x 80 format, which limit the joints and give the impression of clarity. »

Child’s room

“This nursery is the only room where we let a little loose in terms of colors and wallpaper. It is located in front of the bathroom. At first there was a very busy antique cabinet. We refined it by using natural wood on which we placed verdigris patterns that create small waves and that resemble arches and arched doorways. We also installed a very poetic poster inspired by the forest. »

Master bedroom

“A wonderful bed bridge was installed in this room. We obviously blew it. This allowed us to restore a small area and create a large dressing room with wooden doors to the bed. We obviously brought everything back to the taste of the owners, with light, natural tones. This bedroom perfectly illustrates the request of our clients who really wanted to break the linear and straight aspect of this apartment to bring back the roundness and softness. There was also a small bathroom nearby that wasn’t very attractive, so we completely rebuilt it to make it more practical and pleasant. We replaced the tub with a shower, installed a wood block under the sink, installed stone-style tiles that tend to be beige, and chose brass faucets. Everything is brighter and more functional. »

Studio Castile. studiocastille.fr: