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    Nivek Remas renovates founder's home to serve as its office space

    Toronto studio Nivek Remas has renovated its founder’s home to create an office for the studio based on changes in working conditions due to the coronavirus pandemic.

    Early in 2020, the Canadian interior design studio led by Kevin Chan and Samer Shaath was poised to lease new office space for its expanding business. However, these plans were halted by pandemic restrictions.
    Nivek Remas renovated one of its founder’s home for the studio officesThroughout the lockdowns that impacted Canadians and the subsequent work-from-home standards, the office sought ways to work together in the future, without going to an office full-time.
    “[We] quickly recognized the shift in what defines an office and the culture that was evolving from those blurred lines,” Nivek Remas’ Kevin Chan told Dezeen.
    The home was converted to have spaces for work and leisureThe duo decided to renovate one of their homes to serve as an office for the young firm, which was established in 2016.

    The new studio was completed in 2021 and is located in an area of Toronto called Cabbagetown, just east of the city centre.
    The studio plays into the work-from-home trendIt occupies 1,250 square feet (116 square metres) of a standalone house in a residential neighbourhood.
    The completed studio has a main office area, conference rooms, as well a kitchen and a dining nook.
    The ground floor has eight workstationsVisitors enter the office along a green hallway accented with glass wall sconces. By the entrance, there is a powder room and a coat closet.
    The ground floor has eight workstations laid in an open-concept configuration. Most of the furniture is black, including the desktops and chairs.
    The space functions as a workstation for the interior design studioAt the front of the house, a kitchenette and breakfast nook look out onto the street. The designers used a darker palette of greens and olive tones in the kitchenette area to contrast the workstations, which are painted white and filled with light and plants.
    An open staircase leads to the upper floor, where the team included a new conference room that offers some privacy from the main work area. It includes a long table and a couch, for more informal gatherings.
    Dark greens were used for some walls and detailsOther amenities of this home-and-office combination include a gym and bike storage for commuters located in the basement.
    The founders of Nivek Remas said that although the new office space helps collaboration, they balance out the time spent there with remote work.

    Ten tranquil garden studios designed for work and play

    The studio said that it has embraced a fully hybrid model and that the office space allows for “creative gathering”.
    “We see this as our studio for at least another five years or until we outgrow the space,” Chan said. “It’s a true representation of our studio work and ethos but also a true representation of the times and how casually defined offices are now.
    “Corporate offices are trying to become more WFH and more casual with coffee bars, and table tennis or gaming break out areas, but we’re approaching it from the other direction and making a residential space more studio,” he added.

    Many architects and designers embraced the work-from-home trend, building out new spaces for themselves during the pandemic.
    Other examples include a coastal Maine cabin that 30X40 Design Workshop completed as its office, and the Beverly Hills home of Gerhard Heusch, who built himself an underground office using concrete.
    The photography is by Scott Norsworthy.
    Project credits:Interior design: Nivek RemasConstruction: Shape Building GroupMillwork: Ell-Rod Architectural Millwork

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    Ten tranquil garden studios designed for work and play

    As the start of summer in the northern hemisphere promises warmer days and longer evenings, our latest lookbook features 10 garden studios that provide extra space for work or relaxation.

    For homes with large gardens, a small studio can be a practical way to create a separate hideaway for working from home – which has become commonplace in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic – or simply to retreat to for privacy.
    From a timber-clad prefabricated cabin in Spain to architects’ self-designed home offices in London and the US, we round up 10 garden studios as the summer season begins.
    This is the latest in our lookbooks series, which provides visual inspiration from Dezeen’s archive. For more inspiration see previous lookbooks including green living rooms, mezzanine-level bedrooms and winding staircases.
    Photo is by ImagenSubliminalTini, Spain, by Delavegacanolasso

    Architecture studio Delavegacanolasso created a modular, prefabricated cabin called Tini that can be inserted into a garden and used as a peaceful home office.
    Clad in poplar OSB panels, Tini’s interior provides space for minimal furniture, including geometric desks and glowing table lamps framed by floor-to-ceiling panoramic windows.
    Find out more about Tini ›
    Photo is by French+TyeGarden room, UK, by Alexander Owen Architecture
    Yellow Valchromat MDF and birch plywood line the walls of this London garden room by Alexander Owen Architecture, which is defined by internal timber cladding.
    The small building offers a place to entertain guests while it is also used as a minimal home office during the week, featuring a built-in desk designed with the same wood as its boxy cupboards and alcoves.
    Find out more about this garden room ›
    Photo is by Gillian HayeWriter’s Studio, UK, by WT Architecture
    Designed to create the “sense of being almost outdoors”, Scottish firm WT Architecture added a glass writer’s studio to the garden of a Victorian villa in Edinburgh.
    Inside, the space was curated to provide an uncluttered working environment defined by serene blue accents and a petite wood-burner that nod to the idea of a peaceful retreat.
    A minimal wooden desk cantilevers over the studio’s lower wall, which is located next to a raised plinth that creates additional seating.
    Find out more about this writer’s studio ›
    Photo is by Rafael SoldiShed-O-Vation, USA, by Best Practice Architecture
    Best Practice Architecture transformed a storage shed into a backyard studio at a house in Seattle after the pandemic prompted increased working from home.
    Called Shed-O-Vation, the project features its original wooden black siding that mirrors the black synthetic rubber used to cover the floors and a portion of the walls inside.
    There is space for both working and exercising, with both a built-in green desk and a designated area to hang bikes.
    Find out more about Shed-O-Vation ›
    Photo is by Trent BellLong Studio, USA, by 30X40 Design Workshop
    30X40 Design Workshop founder Eric Reinholdt placed a barn-style home office on the grounds of his residence on Mount Desert Island, off the coast of New England in America.
    The interiors of the Douglas fir-lined architects’ studio are designed to be flexible, with an Ergonofis sit-stand desk and space for tables that can be moved around according to the day’s work.
    A gabled roof frames the space, which includes cosy loft-like platforms that can be accessed by ladders.
    Find out more about Long Studio ›
    Photo is by Simon KennedyGreenhouse extension, UK, by McCloy + Muchemwa
    A formerly dilapidated garage in Norwich, England, was transformed into a timber-framed greenhouse extension by architecture studio McCloy + Muchemwa.
    Designed to accommodate DIY and other hobbies during national lockdowns, the “orangery” has polycarbonate cladding and houses various amenities including a workbench and storage for power tools.
    The eye-catching orange framework that lines the extension’s exterior is repeated in its interior details such as a bright orange clock and table legs.
    Find out more about this extension ›
    Photo is by Chris SnookThe Light Shed, UK, by Richard John Andrews
    London-based architect Richard John Andrews designed the Light Shed to house his own studio, with black corrugated fibreglass cladding and a gabled roof.
    Built in just 21 days, the volume’s interior opens out onto Andrews’ garden with sliding doors that reveal space for two to three people to work below a utilitarian shelving unit.
    “The studio aims to create a flexible approach to work and play, flipping its function to become an entertaining space for summer gatherings and more intimate functions,” explained the architect.
    Find out more about The Light Shed ›
    Photo is by Andreas BuchbergerThe Enchanted Shed, Austria, by Sue Architekten
    A trapdoor leads visitors to a writer’s studio and playroom in The Enchanted Shed, a black-timber converted 1930s outhouse designed for a property near Vienna.
    Arranged over two storeys, the upstairs gable is glazed to provide treetop views, which mirror the varnished grey fir ceilings and walls. Spotlights illuminate the shed’s interior throughout, creating a tranquil hideaway for working or relaxing.
    Find out more about The Enchanted Shed ›
    Photo is by Tim Van de VeldeGarden Room, Belgium, by Indra Janda
    Simply called the Garden Room, this small building was designed by architect Indra Janda for the garden of her parents’ house in northern Belgium.
    Scale-like shapes formed from translucent polycarbonate shingles clad the volume and create playful shadows that are reflected in its interior. The furniture in the space includes a deep-red butterfly chair and a wooden table.
    “The material is semi-transparent, which is nice in summer and winter, and gives a totally different feeling from day to night,” Janda said of the structure’s statement cladding.
    Find out more about Garden Room ›
    Photo is by Wai Ming NgCork Study, UK, by Surmon Weston
    Local architecture office Surmon Weston created a cork-clad shared workspace for a musician and a seamstress in the garden of their north London home.
    The cubic structure features birch plywood furniture that cantilevers off the walls and forms twin desks for the couple, which are framed by playfully colour-coded chairs.
    A skylight throws natural light on the interior, diminishing the boundary between inside and outside space.
    Find out more about Cork Study ›
    This is the latest in our series of lookbooks providing curated visual inspiration from Dezeen’s image archive. For more inspiration see previous lookbooks showcasing basement conversions, open-plan studies and residential interiors illuminated by skylights.

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    Alexander Owen Architecture wraps London house extension in two types of marble

    Alexander Owen Architecture has added a marble-clad extension and garden room to this Victorian mid-terrace in East Dulwich, London, to accommodate a home office and a well-stocked bar.The owners, a couple with three young sons, wanted a place to entertain and ample space to spend time together as a family.

    Top image: the garden room houses a bar and home office. Above: the kitchen extension looks out at the garden and annexe
    In response to the brief, the architects created a single-storey rear extension that adds 13.3 square metres and accommodates an open-plan kitchen, utility room and toilet, plus a 16-square-metre annexe that serves as a work and social space.
    Separated by a paved garden, the facade of the extension and garden room are clad in two types of precision-cut marble – a lighter version with hazier veining called Arabescato and a dark grey Bardiglio marble with a more structured finish.

    Alexander Owen Architecture clad the kitchen extension in different kinds of marble

    “We wanted to create a holistic flow to the house and garden and a certain mimicry between the extension and garden room as new interventions,” Richard Bridges and James Webster, founders of Alexander Owen Architecture, told Dezeen.
    “The marble cladding on the extension and garden room has been designed to have similar cut lines and panel formations but the arrangement of the two marble types is reversed.”

    The marble is cut so that it wraps seamlessly around the glazing frames
    The marble has been mitred around the doors and windows and digitally cut to create precise, 90-degree junctions between the individual slabs. This allows the cladding and the cut lines to seamlessly wrap themselves around the glazing frames.
    “The wider site context provides an abundance of trees and greenery, which as the day progresses cast an ever-changing array of light and shadow across the site,” said the architects, who both previously worked at Foster + Partners.
    “The final selection of marble was informed by this layering of dappled light on top of the veining, colouration and movement inherent to each type.”

    The kitchen is finished with stainless steel worktops
    A set of sliding doors with Accoya wood frames opens the kitchen and dining space up to the outside, while the garden room is glazed with a set of bi-folding windows and a pivoting door.
    Alexander Owen Architecture chose robust, low-maintenance surfaces for the kitchen extension, including a poured concrete floor, stainless steel island unit, shot-blasted pewter brick walls and a timber ceiling.

    Pewter brick walls are contrasted with timber ceilings
    “Each material was selected based on how it would sit against the other materials and its ability to sit in an almost ‘raw’ state – the very engineered precision and sheen of the stainless steel and geometric texture of the pewter blocks versus the natural, organic strength of the marble and warmth of the timber,” Bridges and Webster explained.
    “The palette tries to create a very calming balance between the organic and the engineered.”

    Dallas Pierce Quintero arranges small London home around four courtyards

    The steel island unit also incorporates a bench seat for the dining area while a linear skylight lets in sunshine from above.
    The same black, wire-cut bricks that pave the garden are used on the floor of the annexe to create a seamless connection between indoors and outdoors. In the garden room, walls are clad in yellow Valchromat MDF and birch ply, as are the built-in desk, bar and storage cupboards.

    The garden room offers a “grown-up” space for entertaining
    According to the architects, who established their studio in 2013, the home’s layout is carefully divided into various zones tailored to the family’s daily routine.
    The utility room and toilet are located in the mid-section of the property so that the kitchen and garden room at the back can function as a peaceful, “grown-up” area that can be kept tidy for dinners with friends.

    It also houses a home office
    “The rest of the house can effectively be shut off, with the utility space playing a key role in storage,” said Bridges and Webster. “The family snug in the front part of the house means the owners can read books and listen to music on their record player while their children can watch TV or play in the other end of the space.”
    The garden room serves as a home office during the week and helps the couple maintain a boundary between work and family life. It also has an expansive bar that can be used for small gatherings.

    Bar seating runs along the bi-folding windows
    According to Alexander Owen Architecture, there has been a marked increase in clients wanting to create an office space in their home.
    “We have had a lot of interest in garden rooms since the start of the pandemic, with some new clients even prioritising this ahead of developing the main house due to the need for home working, schooling and simply more space,” explained the architects.
    “It’s undeniable the impact that the last 12 months have had, not only on how much time we spend in our homes but on how we use them as live-work accommodation.”
    Covid-19 has forced companies around the world to embrace remote working, with many predicting that working from home will be here to stay long after the virus has been brought under control. Last month Dezeen rounded up 10 products to improve your home-office setup.
    Contractors for this project were Create Bespoke and photography is by French+Tye.

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    Project #13 is an office for Studio Wills + Architects that doubles up as a home

    Studio Wills + Architects has reconfigured an apartment in Serangoon, Singapore so that it accommodates the studio’s own office and a snug home for its founder.The home and office, which Studio Wills + Architects has named Project #13, is shortlisted in the small interior category of this year’s Dezeen Awards. It measures 64 square metres and takes over a 30-year-old apartment inside one of Singapore’s public housing blocks.
    Throughout the day it functions as a workspace, while in the evenings it serves as a home to the studio’s founder, William Ng.

    The office is on the left-hand side of the apartment

    “The design really started just as two distinct and autonomous spaces under one roof that can be used independently and/or interchangeably,” Ng told Dezeen.
    “One part eventually evolved as a home for me, as it minimises time spent commuting between work.”

    At the rear of the office is a tiled bathroom
    Although there wasn’t an abundance of space in the apartment, Ng and his studio first decided to section off part of the floor plan and turn it into a foyer.
    “It creates a ‘buffer zone’ between the public and private domains, and at the same time enables two separate entry points, allowing the spaces within to operate independently,” explained the studio.

    The foyer leads through into the right-hand side of the apartment, which includes a relaxed break-out area
    A door to the left of the foyer leads through the studio’s office, at the centre of which are two long work desks for staff.
    Set to the side of the room is a tall wooden volume that is integrated with storage and a tea-making station. There’s additionally a couple of shelving units for presenting architectural models.
    Towards the rear of the office is a kitchenette and a bathroom – complete with a shower – that is entirely clad with square blue-grey tiles.

    A wooden volume with in-built stairs leads to a mezzanine level
    During office hours, staff can spill over into the right-hand side of the apartment to work.
    It plays host to a relaxing lounge dressed with a plush, cream-coloured chaise longue and a lantern-style lamp that emits a warm glow.

    Up on the mezzanine, there is a contemplative tea room
    There’s another tall wooden volume, inbuilt with stairs that lead up to a mezzanine-level tea room where staff can escape for “quiet and contemplation”.
    They can also get a bird’s-eye-view of the office through an opening that has been inserted in the wall up here.
    Beyond the volume, there is an additional table and set of chairs which are used for meetings and another toilet.

    A wall opening by the tea room provides elevated views over the office
    These turn into domestic spaces for Ng after staff leave. Dinner can be enjoyed at the meeting table, the break-out area becomes a living room and the tea room serves as sleeping quarters once the seat cushions are replaced with a roll-out bed.
    Directly beneath the mezzanine there is also built-in storage for Ng’s clothes and dressing room.

    On the other side of the wooden volume is a meeting room, which can also serve as a dining area
    Ng told Dezeen that having work and home so closely interlinked has been particularly useful during the coronavirus pandemic when there have been national lockdowns, more commonly referred to as “circuit breakers” in Singapore.

    KCC Design creates monochrome office for own studio in former factory space

    “Before the circuit breaker, home was felt to be more within an office, but during the circuit breaker, it felt more like an office in the home; this was probably because the boundaries between the two shift and change with use,” he explained.
    “The dining/meeting room was a space for zoom meetings without interference from adjacent spaces; also, the foyer became a space where food deliveries and material samples could be left with no physical contact.”

    At night, the tea room transforms into a bedroom
    Studio Wills + Architects’ Project #13 is one of five small interiors shortlisted in the 2020 Dezeen Awards. Others include Single Person, a design gallery in Shanghai that’s designed to resemble a cave, and Smart Zendo, a family home in Hong Kong that’s fitted with voice-activated technology and space-saving furniture.
    Photography is by Khoo Guo Jie and Finbarr Fallon.
    Project credits:
    Architect: Studio Wills + ArchitectDesign team: Ng William, Kho KeguangC&S engineer: CAGA Consultants PteFitting-out contractor: Sin Hiap Chuan Wood WorksGeneral contractor: Wah Sheng Construction Pte

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    Eight home offices with stylish set-ups for remote working

    The rise of coronavirus means a growing number of people are required to work remotely from their homes. Dezeen has selected eight inspiring home offices, including one that’s lined entirely with plywood and another that’s hidden inside an artichoke-shaped room. A Room in the Garden, UK, by Studio Ben Allen An artichoke-shaped garden room in […] More