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Swiss studio Leopold Banchini Architects used natural materials when creating the interior of the Goodbye Horses bar, with the bar, chairs, lights, handrails and changing table all made from a single tree. More
Japanese design principles were combined with Mediterranean materials inside this compact apartment designed by Miriam Barrio Studio in Barcelona, Spain. More
Architecture practice Mirzoyan Studio has renovated an apartment in the historic centre of Kyiv, Ukraine, adding reflective surfaces and built-in oak furniture.
The studio updated the two-bedroom apartment, which is within a Stalinka – a type of building characteristic of the architecture of the Soviet Union under the leadership of Joseph Stalin in the 1930s – to turn it into a rental property.
Mirzoyan Studio renovated the Stalinist-era flat in KyivMirzoyan Studio founder Nastia Mirzoyan explained that the building’s historical character posed certain structural limitations, requiring “careful planning to avoid compromising its integrity”. To create the rental property, Mirzoyan opened up the apartment, which was originally the client’s family home.
“To create a more spacious environment, we decided to merge the living room and kitchen into one common area,” explained Mirzoyan.
A shelving unit divides the kitchen and the living roomThe practice used partition shelves and built-in furniture to seperate the spaces. A wooden shelving unit takes centre stage in the main space, dividing the living room from the kitchen.
The dining table extends out from the shelving unit towards the kitchen. Cabinets and a countertop finished in polished stainless steel are fixed in the primary working nook of the kitchen.
The kitchen cabinets and countertop are finished in polished stainless steelNear the entrance, the team installed a full-height mirrored closet, creating a distinct entryway.
Leftover broken marble was sourced from a local supplier for the flooring of the entryway and the bathroom.
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The studio’s colour choices were influenced by the fact that the apartment is oriented towards the northeast and receives limited natural light.
“We opted for light and warm background colours to counteract this, creating a brighter and more inviting space,” said Mirzoyan.
A mirrored closet is installed in the entrywayThe property is dotted with reflective materials such as mirrors and stainless steel, which were chosen to “enhance the perceived depth and brightness”.
The living room and kitchen are lined with French windows opening into a quiet courtyard.
A warm and light colour palette is used across the apartmentThe use of materials such as wood and terrazzo across the space is a reference to the building’s heritage, aiming to add a “sense of historical continuity”.
Mirzoyan’s design philosophy is focused on striving to create “spaces that blend local history with contemporary elements, balancing eclectic decisions to produce environments that feel both timeless and modern”.
The bathroom floor is covered in broken marbleOwing to the ongoing war in Ukraine, the practice faced significant challenges in completing this project.
“Sometimes builders simply could not come to the site, and sometimes they came and sat in a shelter for hours,” Mirzoyan told Dezeen. “There were times when construction was halted for months, and the project budget was cut in half.”
“This experience has reinforced the importance of practical and durable design solutions that can withstand unpredictable conditions.”
Moreover, Mirzoyan foresees a trend towards “using locally sourced materials and supporting local craftsmen, contributing to the resilience and self-sufficiency of the community”.
Recently, Mirzoyan Studio also completed a hotel bar in Kyiv’s historic Podil neighbourhood.
Elsewhere in the city, Modektura has renovated an apartment featuring a balcony-turned-conservatory and Dihome has created a colourful industrial-style interior for a young couple.
The photography is by Yevhenii Avramenko.
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Studio Pirajean Lees paired oxblood tiles with intricate wooden joinery at the Kioku sushi restaurant and sake bar, within central London’s OWO hotel, to reference the head chef ‘s travels.
Kioku consists of a bar on the ground floor and a restaurant on the top floor of the hotel within the Grade II*-listed Old War Office on Whitehall, which once housed the British government’s military departments.
Pirajean Lees created Kioku, meaning “memory” in Japanese, to capture sushi master Endo Kazutoshi’s recollections of living and working in Japan and Spain.
Kioku bar is located on the ground floor of The OWOLocated on the ground floor of the hotel, the single-room bar is accessed via a door framed with smooth timber joinery informed by the traditional Japanese carpentry technique Sashimono.
Guests are greeted by a bespoke oak reception desk featuring embroidered floral textiles and mesh detailing as well as a light-controlled sake cellar clad with patchwork cork panels.
All of Kioku’s furniture was custom-made by Pirajean Lees, explained studio co-founder James Lees.
The bar features a light-controlled sake cellar”We share a passion for storytelling and an obsession with details, from the way your hand touches the backrest of a chair, to the height of the table,” said the designer.
“From the outset, we knew that the level of attention to detail in the interior had to match that found in the food being served.”
Japanese records can be played on a bespoke turntableThe bar’s floor plan was subtly stepped to provide “elevated views” for each of its intimate seating areas, rather than relegate guests to hidden corners of the room, said Lees.
A wide selection of sake is served at an oversized and curved central bar designed with knobbly timber cladding.
Kioku restaurant is located on the hotel’s rooftopHandcrafted tiles and a gridded carpet finished in oxblood red were used to create the flooring, while deep red dado and natural clay walls also nod to the space’s Spanish influence.
In one corner, a bespoke turntable is positioned for guests to play a selection of Japanese records from Endo’s personal collection.
Bow details were carved into the dining chairsThe Kioku restaurant is contained within a long room on the north side of the hotel’s rooftop, with panoramic views of central London. Entered through timber double doors, the eatery features similar design accents to the bar.
Wooden frames and boxy mirrored “portals” were used to delineate spaces within the main dining area, which includes L-shaped banquettes and oak dining chairs upholstered with Japanese embroidered silk.
The chef’s table was positioned opposite the open kitchenBow details were carved into the chairs to emulate the seating at Endo’s favourite hotel in the city of Yokohama. Subtle versions of the bow motif are echoed downstairs on the bar’s wooden tables.
Pirajean Lees constructed a private dining room with a chef’s table at one end of the restaurant, built above an intimate outdoor cigar terrace that overlooks The OWO’s central courtyard.
Panoramic views of central London can be seen from the main terraceEncased by a curved glass roof, the extension was positioned opposite the open kitchen to allow guests to watch their dishes being prepared. Retractable mesh screens were also fitted for privacy.
The main terrace includes timber dining tables and chairs with Mediterranean-style terracotta and mustard upholstery surrounded by lush plants.
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At the end of the terrace, a historic turret overlooking St James’ Park and Horse Guards Parade features another eight-seat private dining room with soft linen curtains and an oak table illuminated by an oversized rice paper pendant light.
Pirajean Lees chose a striking yellow rug for the circular floor to reference the sun, while the round ceiling was hand-painted with an inky indigo mural by British artist Tess Newall in an ode to the contrasting moon – recognisable motifs found in Japanese mythology.
A historic turret houses another private dining space”We design to create emotional spaces grounded in their story, rather than interiors purely driven by aesthetics,” reflected studio co-founder Clémence Pirajean.
Founded in 2017 by Pirajean and Lees, the studio has applied its eclectic style to various other London projects – from the “timeless” interiors of music venue Koko’s members’ club to a Mayfair restaurant with an Arts and Crafts-style design.
The photography is by Polly Tootal.
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American firms Studio J Jih and Figure have overhauled a historic house in Boston, which now revolves around a sculptural “hairpin” staircase influenced by the twists and turns of mountain roads.
Locally based Studio J Jih and San Francisco studio Figure collaborated on the transformation of the four-storey rowhouse in the city’s South End.
Studio J Jih and Figure have renovated Hairpin HouseThe owner, a Boston native, desired more useable space in the 15-foot-wide (4.6-metre) home, which was only achievable by entirely reorganising the floor plan.
The hefty existing staircase took up a third of the building, so it was removed and redesigned to be more efficient and help define the remaining programme while adhering to Boston’s strict building codes.
A new staircase cuts a diagonal path through the houseThe result is a new white oak staircase that “unspools diagonally through the home” around a 40-foot-high (12-metre) atrium, increasing the useable floor area by 20 per cent.
“Aptly named Hairpin House, the project takes the tight, unpredictable, and ultimately poetic switchback turns of a mountain road as inspiration for the overall renovation – and in particular a new unravelling central stair,” said the team.
Lime plaster was applied to the walls throughout the homeOther rooms were adjusted around this new element so that the most-used ones – like the dining room, living room and primary bedroom – were increased in size while ancillary spaces such as the foyer, powder room and bathroom shrunk.
“We performed a sort of stair gymnastics where each flight was distinct from the others, because of its necessary interface with the unique programmatic and circulatory conditions on each floor,” said James Leng, partner at Figure.
Windows on the south facade were enlarged by 200 per cent to let in more light”Like how a mountain road derives its form from the slope it rests on, this central stair was truly shaped contingently through the pressures of its interior context,” he added.
The stair flights were fabricated by hand individually off-site before being assembled into a singular element, connected by a continuous rounded handrail.
The kitchen and dining room on the ground floor are anchored by a travertine islandMaterials throughout the rest of the house were chosen to match or complement the staircase.
White oak and French limestone cover the floors while lime plaster is applied directly onto the brick walls.
The dining area opens onto a bluestone patio enclosed with cedar panelsThe main entrance to the home is on the second of its four floors, where the main living room is also located.
Downstairs, on the ground floor, the open-plan kitchen and dining area are organised around a monolithic island carved from a single piece of travertine – similar to the fireplace on the level above.
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A trio of French doors open onto the bluestone back patio enclosed with cedar panels and enlarged windows continue up this south-oriented facade to bring in the maximum amount of natural light.
“Each was increased in scale by over 200 per cent, creating a rear facade graced with daylight, views and which elegantly blends into the age-old brick of Boston’s historic architecture,” the team said.
Large windows run up the south facadeThe building’s third floor is occupied solely by the primary suite – comprising a bedroom, bathroom and closet – and the uppermost storey accommodates an additional bedroom, bathroom and lounge area.
“A great deal of the joy we found in this project was in the process of shaping it from so many dizzying constraints,” said Leng. “But it also needs to be said that the project could only have been sculpted from the intensely productive collaboration between our two firms.”
The rowhouse is located in the South End of BostonBoston has no shortage of historic brick houses, many of which have undergone significant renovations to make them more suitable for modern living.
Examples include a heritage-listed Victorian home that was extended and updated with minimalist interiors by local architecture studio OverUnder.
The photography is by James Leng.
Project credits:
Design architect: J Jih (principal: J Jih) and Figure (principals: James Leng and Jennifer Ly)Structural engineer: Team EngineeringLandscape design: Pate Landscape ArchitectureGeneral contractor: Evergreen Group CompanyMillworker: Kenyon WoodworkingStair fabricator: Stairworks of BostonPlastering: Trowel Inc. Plastering
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Dutch interior design practice DAB Studio has transformed the kitchen of a family home in Zwaag, the Netherlands, by covering the floors and ceiling in one type of wood and the walls and cabinets in another.
DAB Studio aimed to create a “calm yet soulful” interior with an earthy colour palette made up of tan and neutral shades.
Quarter-sawn Afromosia wood lines the walls and kitchen unitsThe floors and ceiling were covered in hand-scraped oak with a smoked and black-oiled finish, laid in a pattern of side-by-side plank pairs.
Afromosia wood, a tropical hardwood native to west Africa, was applied to the walls and cabinets. The wood was quarter sawn to create a decorative grain pattern and add a sense of playfulness to the interior.
Oak planks were laid in side-by-side pairs on the floors and ceilingDAB Studio co-founders, Lotte and Dennis Bruns, designed the interior to be a space that would balance “feminine and masculine elements” and reflect both of the owners’ design tastes.
According to the duo, the repeating wood choices for the different surfaces give the space a sense of completeness.
Marble worktops extend down the sides of the kitchen units”Per the client’s request, we wanted to merge the feminine and masculine vision of their new home, balancing each other out in one curated space,” the co-founders told Dezeen.
“This allowed us to create unique areas in line with our client’s habits and interests while imbuing the space with a sense of spaciousness and lightness.”
“In order to merge all elements of the design, it felt important to prioritise the theme of consistency,” the duo added.
“For that particular reason, the wood of the floor is repeated on the ceiling, and the wood used for cabinetry is continued into the walls of the room.”
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The centrepiece of the kitchen is the island, which features Afromosia wood cabinet doors and a waterfall countertop made from Arebescato Orobico marble.
Wood cabinets along one kitchen wall were also topped with a marble worktop, which extends down one side to frame the unit.
The studio balanced “masculine and feminine” elements in the interiorDAB Studio added a dining nook below a window, designed to be a space flooded with natural light where the family can gather.
Seating with rounded corners wraps the three walls of the nook. The seating base was covered in the same wood as the interior walls, while the seat and backrest are covered in plush upholstery.
The quarter-sawn Afromosia wood creates a decorative grainAt the centre of the nook, a rectangular table with two blocky legs made from Arebescato Orobico marble contrasts the rounded seating.
“The dining nook is where the family can spend time together, welcome new conversations, and create core memories,” said Lotte and Dennis Bruns.
“The asymmetrical built-in banquette seating feels inviting with its round edges, and adds a dynamic feel to the space.”
The dining nook sits below a windowDecorative items and free-standing furniture were introduced to the interior to add more rounded elements, including a Wiggle Chair by Frank Gehry.
Elsewhere in the Netherlands, Francois Verhoeven Architects has created a bungalow clad in vertical timber slats and Julia van Beuningen added a plywood staircase to a barn conversion.
The photography is by Daniëlle Siobhán.
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The interior of London’s most recent Aesop store in Marylebone was organised to reference a bookshop and features bespoke timber cabinetry by furniture designer Sebastian Cox.
Skincare brand Aesop’s in-house design team created the concept for the Marylebone store, which recently relocated from its original home in the London neighbourhood to Marylebone High Street.
The Marylebone store features piles of green booksThe team took “material references” from the British Library on Euston Road and attempted to emulate the layout of traditional bookshops by choosing warm timbers and towering piles of pale green books to decorate the interior.
Divided into a main shop and an area for personal skin consultations, the L-shaped store features handmade cabinetry by Cox throughout.
Olivier Cousy added frescos to the ceiling troughsThe shelving is defined by gently rounded edges, which Cox crafted from lime-washed oak and stained with linseed oil to enhance the timber’s warm appearance.
He designed the cabinetry with flexible joinery that would allow the furniture to be disassembled and transferred elsewhere if needed.
Sebastian Cox designed timber cabinetry throughout the interiorOversized rattan lampshades were also chosen for the main shop area, which displays uniform rows of Aesop products and includes large, metallic communal sinks built into the timber cabinetry.
The store’s also features ceiling troughs with custom-made geometric frescos by artist Olivier Cousy.
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Cousy was informed by Marylebone’s many green squares when painting the designs, which are geometric arrangements of autumnal colours – compositions that take cues from expressionist artist Paul Klee’s 1922 work Tower in Orange and Green.
“Architecturally, our design method is to connect to the context of the locale, weaving ourselves into its fabric,” said Aesop chief customer officer Suzanne Santos.
Wooden sinks characterise the skin consultation areaIn the skin consultation area, a sandy-hued, floor-to-ceiling curtain can be pulled to give customers privacy while geometric timber sinks were built into the space’s cabinetry.
Known for its array of stores that pay homage to their individual locations, Aesop’s other outlets include a branch in London’s Piccadilly Arcade with marble fixtures that filmmaker Luca Guadagnino designed to reference the area’s jewellery boutiques, and a Cambridge store by British studio JamesPlumb with hemp and bulrush accents that nod to the nearby River Cam.
The photography is by Alixe Lay.
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New York studios Starling Architecture and Emily Lindberg Design have renovated a Brooklyn townhouse for a young family, combining two units into a single home and unifying them through the use of white oak.
The Carroll Gardens Townhouse was previously laid out as a two-family dwelling, but the owners needed more room for their growing kids, so decided to connect the units.
White oak acts as a unifying element throughout the renovated townhouseStarling Architecture and Emily Lindberg Design were initially briefed to convert and cosmetically upgrade the townhouse, and add spaces such as a mud room, work-from-home and living areas, and a large dining room.
Once the project was underway, the scope expanded to include a complete overhaul of the layout, a new staircase, an extensive millwork package, and the replacement of the furniture and artwork.
A large dining area was created to accommodate group gatherings”Aside from giving everyone a little more space to work, live and grow, we also quickly focused on bringing in more light and connection between the various levels,” said Starling Architecture founder Ian Starling.
Spanning five storeys, the building has a total living area of 3,700 square feet (344 square metres), with four bedrooms and four-and-a-half bathrooms.
Oak millwork continues in the kitchen, which was relocated from the centre of the houseRearranging the program involved moving the second-floor kitchen from the centre of the plan to the south facade, where it received much more light.
The dining room occupies the adjacent space, enveloped in European white oak panels that extend from a long built-in bench seat, across the ceiling, and down to a slatted screen in front of the stairs.
Cool hues offset the warm oak flooring throughout the home, including in the lounge areaA walnut table with rounded corners provides enough space for hosting friends and extended family.
White oak is continued on the staircase across all levels and the flooring throughout, to a corridor and the mudroom, powder room, office and wet bar at garden level.
Oak panels define a corridor at garden level”All wood for the house was sourced from the same mill in Belgium, where they custom fabricated and finished it to our exact specifications,” said Starling.
“All of the panels were CNC cut, so we were able to specify exact panel sizes based on as-built dimensions and each panel was divided into equal veneer widths.”
A mud room was created as part of the renovation scopeThe earthy tones of the wood helped to guide the remaining decor choices, which include cool blue undertones offset by family-friendly materials like purple slate and clay brick.
Cork lines the office space, while the children’s playroom in the cellar features brighter colours without feeling too juvenile.
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“With a new layout overall, the clients were in an ‘out with old in with the new’ mentality, going forward with some bold splashes of color along the way,” said Starling.
“There is a purity about much of the palette, working with organic texture and form rather than applied pattern,” added Lindberg.
Cork covers the walls in a room used as an officeStarling Architecture is based in Brooklyn, while Emily Lindberg Design has a presence in both New York City and Providence, Rhode Island.
The two studios previously collaborated on a similar project for friends of the Carroll Gardens Townhouse owners, who recommended them for this job.
Brighter colours are introduced in the children’s playroom, located in the cellarBrooklyn’s townhouses are in high demand, and new owners waste no time in renovating these historic buildings to meet their needs.
Recently completed examples include a property on Warren Street, for which Studio Vural used Kyoto merchant houses as a reference point, and a home in Park Slope that was designed to meet Passive House standards.
The photography is by Eric Petschek.
Project credits:
Architecture: Starling ArchitectureInterior design: Emily Lindberg DesignContractor: Euro Art ConstructionWood surfaces: Madera Surfaces
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An oak “skin” wraps the interior of living spaces at this apartment in Mexico City, renovated by locally based Esrawe Studio.
The two-bedroom Loma Residence in the neighbourhood of Lomas de Chapultepec faces sunset views over the forest, so Esrawe Studio reconfigured the layout to optimise this orientation.
The Loma Residence was reconfigured so that living spaces could enjoy west-facing vistas and lightWalls and partitions were removed to create a more open living and dining space, where low furniture is arranged so as not to obstruct the vista or prevent the golden-hour light from reaching far into the apartment.
To deal with a column and create separation from the rest of the apartment in a single gesture, the studio wrapped the structural element in oak and extended low consoles from both sides — forming a cross shape.
Oak panels wrap a structural column and extend out to form low consoles”Its sculptural expression triggers the operative relationship of the space, defining the leading gesture of the project, and becoming the element that houses books, vinyl records, and a space for a turntable,” said Esrawe Studio, which was founded by Héctor Esrawe.
Storage cabinets at the same height are continued along a nearby wall, forming part of a much larger expanse of millwork that extends to the ceiling and wraps around the living room.
A granite island sits in the centre of the minimalist kitchen”The oak wood skin that runs through the space embraces the perimeter of the apartment,” the studio said. “This same skin integrates all doors and entrances to the service areas, creating a visual, warm, and tactile continuity that travels all the way to the master bedroom.”
The kitchen can also be hidden from the living area by sliding partitions in the same material.
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When open, these operable panels sit flush within the millwork, which curves in on both sides to also conceal the refrigerator and the access to the pantry, linen closet and wine cellar.
In the centre of the kitchen sits a green-toned granite island that incorporates four gas burners, and the sink faces a long window that frames the verdant landscape.
Oak wraps the perimeter of the apartment and continues into the bedroomsSurfaces that aren’t oak are marble, to “provide the space with a sober and contemporary atmosphere” according to the design team.
The exception is the guest bathroom, which is lined in green quartizite and features a sculptural Tikal marble washbasin designed by EWE Studio — founded by Esrawe with gallerist and curator Age Salajõe, and designer Manuel Bañó to promote Mexico’s craft heritage.
EWE Studio designed a sculptural Tikal marble washbasin for the guest bathroomEsrawe Studio was named Interiors Studio of the Year at the 2020 Dezeen Awards, and operates from a converted dancehall with an “honest industrial aesthetic” in the Mexican capital.
The studio’s completed interior projects have ranged from a glossy bar at the city’s Auditorio Nacional to a restaurant informed by Samurai armour and Kanji characters.
The photography is by Fabián Martinez.
Project credits:
Interior design and furniture: Esrawe StudioCreative direction: Héctor EsraweDesign team: Ángel Campos, Javier García-Rivera, Raúl Araiza, Jair Rocha, Viviana Contreras.Visualizations: Madián Alvarado
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