00:03I like my home to be open to the people I love. My primary goal was to open up the
00:10space and let in as much natural light as possible. I really wanted to be able to
00:17see the entire space at a single glance. The inspiration comes from traditional
00:24Japanese styles and Scandinavian design emphasizing light wood, diffused light and
00:30open spaces. I was my own clients. It was truly a pleasure but also a bit of a
00:37challenge at the same time.
00:44I'm Julianne Garcia, an interior designer in Paris and the founder of the design
00:50studio Maison Insula. The apartment is located in the 19th arrondissement of
00:56Paris. The building is located in a quiet small cobbled passageway which make the
01:03street especially quiet. At the end of the passage a flight of stairs leads
01:09directly to the Butchoumont Park. There is a bar just downstairs where all the
01:15neighbors gather, especially on Friday nights. The building was built around 1966.
01:24Before I bought the place, the sellers had done a small renovation and the drainage
01:30pipe from the upstairs toilet was completely exposed and in the middle of
01:35the kitchen. The apartment has three large windows and one smaller one which is
01:42quite a rare advantage. We started by tearing down all the walls in the space.
01:48We hid the remaining pipe with a soundproofed pillar that also defines the kitchen area.
01:55We decided to move the bathroom to the darkest corner beside the bedroom.
02:04The apartment is 25 square meters. Right beside the door, the custom closet holds the electrical storage
02:13and perfectly fits IKEA boxes and other cleaning supplies. The living room is placed right next to the kitchen
02:22and because we designed the kitchen around the central pillar, we couldn't really choose how big the living room was.
02:30I searched for a few months until I found this second hand sofa that fit into the space and fold
02:37out to become a twin bed.
02:40Underneath it holds my entire books collection which I had to make a lot smaller when I move into this
02:47place.
02:48Below the kitchen counter, we created a shelf that can be accessed from both sides.
02:54I use it for my collection of candles and cooking books. Since I use them so much, I can recognize
03:01them
03:02from the back when I'm in the kitchen. My robust thick plants act like a partition between the space.
03:09It clearly loved living here because it was grown so much.
03:14My favorite piece in this room is the sideboard that belongs to my grandparents.
03:19It has a surprising amount of storage and sits above the floor so it doesn't appear bulky.
03:25I have loved it since I was a little kid.
03:29This is the spot where I usually walk from and I love having a view of the sky.
03:36The kitchen is small but functional. As someone who loves cooking, I couldn't imagine living in a place
03:43where the kitchen felt like an afterthought. I didn't want it to blend in or look discreet.
03:50For the cabinet countertop and backsplash, we used a matte black resin that can be easily cleaned
03:57and fixed if it gets any dense. We paired it with second hand's terrazzo tiles that I searched from Le
04:06Boncoin.
04:07I knew I would need a lot of surface area for cooking and a large oven with four stoves.
04:14So I prioritized that over having a microwave and dishwasher. Not having a dishwasher allowed me
04:21to hide a washing machine behind one of the cabinets door. Sogy screens, which are wooden frames with rice paper,
04:29directly influence this glass partition. It feels open but it still preserves privacy.
04:36We used some of the space by the entrance to place a custom cabinet that holds a small fridge,
04:44a wine cellar and a large dried goods pantry. Many people told me that black wouldn't be smart if I
04:52wanted
04:53to create a light flooded apartment. But I think I proved them wrong. The new solid oak parquet flooring
05:01were made from the wood scraps when making typical herringbone and is used throughout the common area
05:08of the apartment. In order to put the bathroom in the corner of the apartment,
05:13we decided to create a platform to hide all the pipes. These steps also mark the boundary
05:19to the more private spaces.
05:24Around the bed, we installed a combination of IKEA pieces that we framed out with wood.
05:32The mirrored closet doors give the illusion of a large space while making the storage mass disappear.
05:39The bed is second-hand and also has storage underneath. A friend of mine made this beautiful floor-to-ceiling
05:48curtain that act as a door and can be drawn to completely darken the room when it's time to sleep.
05:55The bathroom is located directly off the bedroom. It is accessed through a sliding pocket door which is the
06:03only door in the entire apartment. I chose a simple floating cabinet with storage as well as a floating
06:10toilet. On one of the corner we placed the water heater. On the other we placed a roomy walk in
06:18shower
06:18with a glass door that makes the space feel larger. I've actually found that by opening the mirrored closet
06:25door in the bedroom and sliding the vanity mirror I can see myself from the back. I found that designing
06:33small spaces is often much more fun for me. Especially because I enjoy diving into every little details.
06:41Imagining where each object should be placed based on the client habits and needs is something I truly enjoy.
07:03I'll see you in the next episode.
07:03One more time.
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