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Architecture and design studio The DHaus Company has overhauled The Bull and Last pub in north London, adding boutique hotel rooms and a pair of Japanese-inspired duplex flats. More
Talo Studios has renovated a house in Montreal that’s almost 100 years old, drawing on Scandinavian and Japanese influences for the interiors. More
Curved oak kitchen cabinetry is among the new additions to a 25-year-old, half-dome dwelling in the Catskills partially renovated by American studio DAAM. More
The furnishings and finishes in this London home, designed by interiors studio House of Grey, were chosen for the health of its occupants as well as the health of the planet.Set in Highgate, London, the three-storey townhouse features custom timber furniture, a carbon-absorbing bathroom finish and a mattress made using natural, biodegradable latex.
The living room is painted a deep sage green
According to House of Grey, the design of the interior, with its palette of natural colours and soft textures, was guided by “circular salutogenic design principles”.
This means it hopes to cut out waste and pollution, as a way of working towards a circular economic system. Salutogesis, meanwhile, refers to a medical approach focused on facilitating health rather than simply fighting sickness and disease.
A clay plaster wall finish by Clayworks features in the WC
In keeping with this, each material and resource the studio has used was researched for its impact on human and ecological health while in production, in use and once it has been discarded.
“We are no longer simply finding design solutions, our work is now focused on eliminating the problem altogether,” said the studio’s founder Louisa Grey.
“We have evolved to a place where we choose to work with materials and resources that are good for human health and have a positive ‘cradle to cradle’ impact on the planet.”
A plush white sofa anchors the living room
Finding herself unable to source “beautiful, contemporary” furniture made using sustainable manufacturing processes and natural materials, Grey commissioned artists and makers such as British furniture designer Sebastian Cox to produce bespoke pieces for the project.
“I can never really find what I’m looking for, so at House of Grey we have started creating things for ourselves and for people that feel there is an inherent lack of choice when it comes to finding interior pieces with integrity that represent both their style and values,” she said.
A custom wardrobe was designed by Sebastian Cox
Cox’s pieces include a master bed with matching side tables, as well as a wardrobe and vanity unit made from materials such as ebonised oak and blackened ash, which the designer claims are able to moderate humidity and improve indoor air quality.
The wardrobe interiors are made from cedar wood– a natural pesticide that can repel moths.
Plaster walls of Jaffa Roofhouse imbue apartment with history and warmth
“Thought-through details such as these culminate in an ongoing contentment in a space that improves human health with day-to-day use,” said the studio.
The master bed features green velvet upholstery
The bedding and mattress were supplied by UK manufacturer NaturalMat and, according to the brand, are made entirely from biodegradable materials.
The master bed is upholstered using coconut husk fibres, also known as coir, which are coated in natural latex to create a springy padding.
The mattress by NaturalMat is made using natural and biodegradable materials
The bedroom also features natural lime paint by German brand Bauwerk in a colour that was developed in collaboration with House of Grey as part of a new collection that will launch later this month.
It is made using a variety of natural bases including clay, stone, chalk, slate and limestone, and coloured using natural pigments such as ochre.
Inbuilt shelving offers extra storage space
“This natural lime paint provides a healthy alternative to widely available, chemical-based paints,” said the studio.
“It is free of toxins and volatile organic compounds (VOCs), allowing your walls to breathe when combined with other natural building materials such as clay.”
The bathroom walls are finished in Tadelakt
The bathroom walls are made from a lime-based plaster surface called Tadelakt, which is waterproofed using a soap solution.
Traditionally found in Moroccan architecture, it releases 80 per cent less CO2 during its production than similar cement-based finishes and most CO2 that is generated gets re-absorbed by the lime as it cures.
The sink is made of natural plaster made from sand and unfired clay
The bath and sink consist of a natural plaster made from sands, unfired clays, pigments and minerals, while in the toilet House of Grey used a two-tone clay plaster wall finish by Clayworks in the shades Moon Tonal and Buff.
According to the brand, the natural clay has zero VOC emissions, low embodied carbon and is entirely recyclable.
Gitai Architects has recently renovated an apartment in Israel, covering its walls in plaster to give the space a natural tactility.
Similarly, Spacon & X drew on natural materials and plants to imbue Noma’s burger-focused spinoff POPL with a warm and relaxed atmosphere.
Photography is by Michael Sinclair.
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Continuing our yearly review, Dezeen has selected the top 10 home interiors of 2020 – including a rustic home in rural France and a multicoloured Tokyo apartment.
MA House, France, by Timothee Mercier
This dwelling, which architect Timothee Mercier built for his parents, is meant to be aesthetically harmonious with the rural landscape of Vaucluse, France.
Inside there’s whitewashed walls and just a smattering of rustic furnishings, which Mercier either found in Parisian flea markets or had custom made.
“I decided early-on to infuse the house with the monastic qualities of its surroundings,” he told Dezeen. “[The house] had to be a spectacle, but a discrete one.”
Find out more about MA House ›
House V, Slovakia, by Martin Skoček
Bricks salvaged from the ruins of an 80-year-old property now line the interior of House V, which is situated in the Slovakian capital of Bratislava.
The time-worn bricks cover walls in the living room, bedroom and even the master bathroom, where a freestanding tub has been placed beneath the peak of the home’s pitched roof.
Find out more about House V ›
EGR Apartment, Ukraine, by Ater Architects
To open up the constricted floor plan of this Kyiv apartment, Ater Architects demolished partition walls and replaced them with cobalt-blue curtains.
The curtains – and the pink grouting between the kitchen tiles – offer a shock of colour amongst the otherwise monotone interior, which has white-painted walls running throughout.
Find out more about the EGR Apartment ›
Edinburgh apartment, UK, by Luke and Joanne McClelland
Having lived in a poky London flat for eight years, architects Joanne and Luke McClelland set about making the rooms inside their Edinburgh apartment as bright and spacious as possible.
The pair painted surfaces white, widened doorways to let in more sunlight and opened up the kitchen to include a dining area. Commenters were particularly impressed with the high-end look of the kitchen’s wooden cabinetry, which was actually sourced from IKEA.
Find out more about the Edinburgh apartment ›
Imperfect Residence, Hong Kong, by NC Design & Architecture
Naturally flawed materials feature inside this Hong Kong apartment, which draws on the values of wabi-sabi – a Japanese philosophy that encourages finding beauty in imperfection and transience.
Jagged offcuts of marble have been set into the floor, while oxidised copper has been used to make custom lights or decorative panels. Beige plaster also gives the walls a slightly uneven surface finish.
Find out more about Imperfect Residence ›
Kew Residence, Australia, by John Wardle
Commenters loved the personal feel of architect John Wardle’s Melbourne home, which he decided to revamp after his three children grew up and moved out.
At the heart of the plan is now a “cocoon”-like study where Wardle displays books and ceramic ornaments that he’s collected over the years. The architect also made sure that his favourite type of wood, Victorian ash, was used for all of the home’s joinery.
Find out more about Kew Residence ›
Urban Cabin, Italy, by Francesca Perani
A daybed that doubles up as a storage box and a wardrobe that hides a washing machine are some of the handy space-saving elements that feature inside this tiny guest cabin, which occupies the porch of a home in Bergamo.
Architect Francesca Perani made the unusual decision to line the 25-square-metre interior with OSB – a material she had previously only seen used on construction sites.
“I love its textural irregularity, random organic composure and recycled properties,” she explained.
Find out more about Urban Cabin ›
Nagatachō Apartment, Japan, by Adam Nathaniel Furman
Tasked with turning this lack-lustre Tokyo apartment into “a place of happiness, joy and lightness”, designer Adam Nathaniel Furman applied vivid, food-inspired colours to its interior.
The kitchen has watermelon-green floors, while the dining area has lilac carpet that looks like icing. “Zesty” lemon-yellow taps and milky orange tiles also appear in the bathroom.
“The colour scheme became a matter of choosing ingredients for a beautifully calibrated visual feast,” Furman explained.
Find out more about the Nagatachō Apartment ›
Flat House, UK, by Practice Architecture
Prefabricated panels made from hempcrete – a mixture of hemp and lime – were used to construct the structural shell of this zero-carbon house in Cambridgeshire.
Practice Architecture left these panels exposed on the interior to create warm, textured surfaces. Wooden furnishings and an assortment of woven rugs further amplify the home’s cosy feel.
Find out more about Flat House ›
Casa A690, Mexico, by Delfino Lozano
Architect Delfino Lozano fashioned what he describes as a “Mexiterrean” aesthetic for this 1970s property in Zapopan.
Lozano says that whilst the home’s architecture is traditionally Mexican, the interiors appear more Mediterranean because of his use of “simple and pure” materials. Almost every room boasts plain, white-painted walls and built-in wooden furniture.
Find out more about Casa A690 ›
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Design pair Michael Godmer and Catherine Lavallée created a sequence of meditative, beige-tone spaces in the partial renovation of this home in Montreal. Résidence Esplanade is situated in Mile End, a trendy area of Montreal host to various eateries, coffee bars and vintage stores.
The property was originally built as two separate apartments, but five years ago was converted into the two-floor house it stands as today.
The colour beige has been applied throughout Résidence Esplanade
Much of the property’s unique decor details were eliminated during the renovation works. Its new owner, a young professional who collects furniture and works of art, tasked Michael Godmer and Catherine Lavallée with designing a slightly more distinctive interior.
“We wanted to add identity to the house’s soul,” Godmer told Dezeen.
Michael Godmer and Mathieu Turgeon renovate their Montreal design studio and home
He and Lavallée have, for now, overhauled the home’s upstairs landing, study and one of its bedrooms – the rest of the rooms will be worked on at a later date.
Walls in the bedroom have been loosely limewashed
The three revamped areas have been completed in various shades of beige, a colour that the design pair says is “reminiscent of the soft winter light” that they saw on the first day they visited Résidence Esplanade.
In the bedroom, walls have been loosely rendered with lime paint that leaves behind an eggshell-coloured finish.
A tall wardrobe inlaid with cane panels has been set towards the rear of the room, while a white-oak sideboard has been set beneath the window so that the owner can display personal trinkets or ornaments.
In the corner of the room is also a blush-pink slouch chair.
In the study, a work desk has been set into a niche in the wall
Limewashed surfaces continue into the home’s study. An oak work desk has been built within a niche in the wall, accompanied by a simple black tub chair and a spherical pendant lamp that dangles from the ceiling.
Textural interest is added by the corrugated panelling that has been set at the back of the niche.
Finally, fluted glass doors with buttermilk-coloured framing have been fitted in front of each of the rooms on the first floor.
The back wall of the niche is corrugated
Godmer and Lavallée say they plan to apply a similarly calming aesthetic throughout the rest of the home when they start the second phase of the renovation.
“We are also looking at adding a mezzanine and a rooftop terrace for [the owner] to enjoy summer days having views of Mont-Royal mountain,” added Godmer.
Fluted glass doors have been installed on the home’s first floor
Résidence Esplanade is one of several homes that Michael Godmer has designed in his home city of Montreal. Others include Elmwood Residence, a Victorian-era townhouse in the Outremont neighbourhood which Godmer updated by creating a sequence of monochromatic living spaces.
Earlier this year, Godmer also made over the Montreal home that he shares with his partner, Mathieu Turgeon and their two poodles. Inside, it boasts fresh white walls and an array of wooden fixtures and furnishings.
Photography is courtesy of Catherine Lavallée.
Project credits:
Design: Michael Godmer and Catherine LavalléeConstruction: Frédéric LalondeCabinetmaking: Il Fabrique
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Black walls, built-in raw concrete furniture and a fish pond in a lightwell define Lost House, a residential project designed by David Adjaye in London’s King’s Cross, which has recently come on the market.Royal Gold Medal-winner Adjaye, the founder of Adjaye Associates, designed Lost House in 2004.
Top: the swimming pool. Above: a central lightwell holds a fish pond
The house has come back on the market recently, granting an opportunity to see the interiors of one of the architect’s early residential works in detail.
Original features have been preserved, including an all-green sunken cinema room and a water gardens in planted courtyards that double as lightwells.
A courtyard garden in a lightwell
Hidden behind an unassuming brick facade in an alleyway, Lost House was formerly a delivery yard complete with a loading platform.
Adjaye Associates turned the concrete loading platform into a plinth for an upper-level swimming pool with black-painted sides next to the pink-walled main bedroom.
The ground floor is an open plan living space
On the ground floor, there is a large open plan living, dining and kitchen area with a double-height ceiling.
The sunken conversation pit with a cinema room-style projector, complete with zesty lime walls, built-in bookshelves and wide sofas, is off to one side.
Raw concrete countertops are part of the kitchen
Three tall, glass-walled lightwells stretch up to the black-painted timber eaves of the roof, bringing natural daylight down into the room instead of windows.
In the centre of the living area is a lightwell filled with a fishpond.
A sunken conversation pit is entirely bright green
The square courtyards in the lightwells are planted with tropical greenery. At the back, next to the kitchen, the courtyard features wooden decking around clusters of circular concrete benches inset with the same grey pebbles that surround them.
The black chipboard walls, ceiling and exposed timber beams are reflected in the shiny black resin floor.
Concrete benches in the courtyard garden
Adding to the industrial look are the thick concrete elements of the built-in kitchen, which forms a continuous countertop and splashback.
Ten key projects by RIBA Royal Gold Medal winner David Adjaye
A concrete element continues from the kitchen to the living area, were it forms a low bench upholstered in black leather cushions.
Black walls and floors around the pool and bathroom
Steps lead to the raised ground floor, where the old loading bay plinth supports the lap pool. Black stone tiles surround the pool, which is part of the master bathroom for the main bedroom.
Two stone sinks sit on a concrete shelf below mirrored cabinets. A wet-room style shower allows the residents to wash before and after swimming.
The master bedroom is entirely pink
This bathroom connects directly to the back of the master suite, which has a separate toilet and a long corridor connecting to the stairs. The bedroom is decorated all pink to contrast with the ink-black interiors
A second bedroom is located on this floor, with a third bedroom located up on the first floor that is currently being used as a home office.
An upstairs room is a work from home office
David Adjaye founded Adjaye Associates in 2000 and began his career designing high-end residential projects in north London such as Lost House. Other notable all-black houses by the studio include Dirty House and Sunken House.
Photography is courtesy of United Kingdom Sotheby’s International Realty.
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US studio S3 Architecture worked with luxury carmaker Aston Martin’s architectural design service to create Sylvan Rock, an angular black-cedar home in Hudson Valley, New York.With building works set to start in early 2021, Sylvan Rock by S3 Architecture will be the first property to be fully realised under Aston Martin’s Automotive Galleries and Lairs service, which launched last year.
The form of Sylvan Rock house will mimic jagged rock formations nearby
The service sees the carmaker team up with architecture practices across the world to design bespoke spaces where its clients can show off their most cherished motors.
Sylvan Rock will be situated two hours away from Manhattan, hidden amongst a 55-acre plot of forested land in Hudson Valley that will allow inhabitants to “reconnect with nature”.
Luxury cars will be displayed in a glass gallery-style room
A sweeping driveway that spans 2,000 feet (609 metres) will lead up to the front door of the house. The facade will be composed of expansive panels of glazing and blackened cedar.
Its dark metal roof will be faceted to emulate the jagged shape of surrounding rock formations, at one point dramatically dipping downwards to form a covered entryway.
The house will also include a subterranean office
“When designing, we always let the land speak first and respond to it,” said Christopher Dierig, partner at S3 Architecture.
“It’s as if the home is born of and launching from the landscape. The resulting design blends our modernist aesthetic with the privacy and context of the rural location to create a unique luxury experience.”
Parquet flooring and dark-wood joinery will feature throughout living spaces on the ground floor
Cars will be displayed in a subterranean gallery-style room that’s completely enclosed by panels of glass.
It will look through to a wine lounge where bottles are kept in floor-to-ceiling latticed shelves that subtly nod to the intersecting lines seen in Aston Martin’s logo.
Lounge areas will overlook the green landscape
At this level there will also be an office where the inhabitants can escape to do work without interruption. It will feature a huge window that offers an up-close glimpse of the craggy rocks outdoors.
From here guests can head upstairs to the ground floor where there will be a kitchen, cosy den, dining room, formal sitting area and an array of other shared living spaces that look out across the home’s decked pool area and verdant landscape.
Other rooms will have views of the home’s pool
Aston Martin – which will be responsible for the home’s interiors – imagines each room to be finished with parquet flooring and rich chocolate-brown storage cabinetry.
Marble-topped tables and plush, leather-trimmed soft furnishings will further enhance the opulent feel of the home.
The first-floor master bedroom will cantilever towards the Catskill mountains
Elevated views across the treetops and towards the nearby Catskill Mountains will be available up in the first-floor master bedroom, which will cantilever over the house’s ground floor.
Aston Martin launches architectural service to design homes focused around your car
“Our architecture and design team was immediately in sync with the Aston Martin design team, both emphasizing clean lines and the luxury of natural materials and textures,” the studio’s partner, Doug Maxwell, told Dezeen.
“Working with them we evolved our creative process to view the residence in a similar way as designing an Aston Martin car – by designing in 360 degrees, where no specific angle or facade took precedence or dominates.”
Sylvan Rock will also include three pods where guests can stay
The grounds of Sylvan Rock will additionally accommodate three gabled guest pods that will stagger down a grassy embankment towards a pond.
They will enable visiting friends and family to have a sense of privacy when they come to stay but, when not in use, can alternatively serve as a health and fitness space or a quiet area for homeschooling.
There will also be a small produce garden where fruit and vegetables can be grown, as well as a pitched-roof treehouse where inhabitants or guests can choose to spend a night under the stars, closer to the site’s wildlife.
There will also be a treehouse on site
Aston Martin’s Automotive Galleries and Lairs service is not the brand’s first venture outside of carmaking. Last year it unveiled its inaugural motorcycle model, AMB 001, which features a 180-horsepower turbocharged engine and a carbon-fibre body.
Images are by S3 Architecture, courtesy of Corcoran Country Living.
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