How to Make a Small Apartment Feel Like a Boutique Hotel, Milan 45sqm/484sqft

Never Too Small

Head to https://rayon.design/r/nts_navigli_template to explore the floorplan we recreated for Simone’s apartment and experience Rayon for yourself.  After eight years designing luxury hotels, designer Simone Mongini transformed a small rundown apartment in Milan into a bright and highly considered home of his own. Seeing potential in its dual-aspect windows and generous terrace, Mongini removed the central corridor, moved the kitchen to the heart of the apartment and reduced the bedroom to create more space for living. Integrated storage and custom furniture make the compact footprint work harder, from a low-profile kitchen that blends into the living room to a rotating metal unit that doubles as a TV stand, bookcase and room divider. Raised floors and full-height glazing connect the living area to the terrace, while mirrored surfaces and glass cabinetry enhance the sense of space.   How I Live Small Ep. 20 Owner: Simone Mongini https://www.instagram.com/che_cif_acciamo_qui/   Mongini Graphics Design https://www.monginigraphics.me/  https://www.instagram.com/monginigraphics/   00:00-01:14 Introduction  01:14-01:50 Location  01:50-03:13 Floor Plan 03:13-04:47 Entrance 04:47-07:17 Kitchen  07:17-08:56 Office 08:56-11:51 Living Area 11:51-14:10 Dining Area 14:10-16:17 Terrace 16:17-20:43 Bedroom 20:43-23:02 Bathroom 23:02-23:58 Conclusion  See how this apartment was transformed and floor plan from inside https://www.nevertoosmall.com/post/luxury-hotel-designer-transforms-his-45sqm-484sqft-milan-apartment  #smallapartment #architecture #interiordesign   Produced by New Mac Video Agency Creator: Colin Chee Producer: Lindsay Barnard Director: Nam Tran Director & Cinematographer: Sebby T Editor: Sebby T  Music: Artlist.io Sojourn by Sam Rankin cinnamonrolls Out of Flux, Bluebell by WOOLFSON Summer Ends Today by Kicktracks The Release by Walz Old Cat by Ziggy Waiting for Tonight by Jimit Lusso Calma E Volutta by Bottega Baltazar Bring on The by Walz Waterfalls by Aves ourcoffeetime by Out of Flux  Light Love by Paper Planes  Share your projects with us- https://www.nevertoosmall.com/submissions Subscribe to our newsletter- https://www.nevertoosmall.com/subscribe  Check out our store- https://www.nts-store.com Website- https://www.nevertoosmall.com Instagram-  https://www.instagram.com/nvtsmall Facebook- https://www.facebook.com/nvtsmall

Transcript

00:04I remember everyone else running away during the viewing when I saw this

00:08apartment. Intimidated by its poor condition, but I think I saw the diamond

00:15in the rough. With the terrace and a dual exposure the apartment felt full of

00:22endless potential to me from the very first start.

00:27My name is Simone Mongini. I'm a designer and founder of Mongini Graphics Design here

00:33in Milan. Every object in this home is here for a reason. It carries some

00:41significance to me and that's what makes the space feel warm and personal

00:46rather than just curated. After eight years in London designing five stars

00:53hotels, I approach every space like an elegant hotel room. Every element has to

00:59be well thought out, integrated and infused with a sense of luxury. I'd much rather

01:06live in a compact well-designed space that feels like a permanent holiday suite

01:11than in a large cold home.

01:15I live in Milan's Navigli district, which is a former industrial area along the

01:21canals. Now one of the most vibrant neighborhoods in the city. I lived here

01:30for about three years now, together with my partner. His two dogs Snoopy and Brian. We

01:36call it Brianino because he's the tiniest one. He rents the flat next door, which make us

01:43probably the best neighbors in Milan. And honestly, it works perfectly. I already knew

01:51most of the changes I wanted to make. For example, remove the structural wall to open

01:56up the large glazing and move the kitchen to the center of the apartment.

02:07This episode is brought to you by Rayon Design. We used Rayon to recreate the floor plan for Simone's

02:13apartment, revealing how relocating the kitchen to the center of the apartment

02:17transforms the layout, creating a more open, generous and flexible home. Careful furniture

02:23placement helps define each area of the open plan home, creating distinct zones while

02:28maintaining a natural sense of flow. Rayon is a browser-based design tool built for

02:33interior designers, where the drawing, the data and the people share one file. You can

02:38quickly test layouts, new furniture, refine plans and explore ideas in real time, making

02:43it easy to experiment, adjust and refine things as you go. Floor plans, schedules and documentation

02:49all live together in one streamlined workspace. Rayon also integrates AI tools directly into

02:54the workflow, while presentation boards, schedules and documentation layouts can all be assembled

02:59in one connected workspace. Want to explore Rayon yourself? You can jump into the floor plan

03:05we made for this episode or create your free Rayon account today. Links in the description.

03:14You know, in hotels, you have these transitional spaces which are really well designed and this

03:20takes inspiration from hotel concepts. I added this really nice marble threshold on the floor

03:27just to highlight the transition between the outside and the inside. It's been all very integrated.

03:34You have lots of space for, for example, coat hooks on this side. I have space for my shoes.

03:43So I wanted to have a mirror hanging on the door, but I also had to make space for the

03:49peak hole.

03:50Whoever did this made a great job cutting it very precise to measure. So that, you know, helps

03:57creating this kind of depth effect in the room. Above, I had this kind of dead space

04:03I didn't really know what to do. I came up with this shelving system. I can store my books

04:09and it's all very well integrated into the entrance. On this side, I had the problem,

04:17you know, this problem. So I had this handle in the middle of the opening. So I came up with

04:23this

04:25solution. So having two doors, this allowed me to have this kind of shelf where, you know, you come in,

04:32you just throw your keys. It's really handy. Despite it looks compact, there's plenty of storage space.

04:39I have the Wi-Fi router, intercom. It's a very compact, but spacious detail.

04:49First of all, I didn't want a full, like bulky tower, which is classical of a typical kitchen.

04:55So I decided to split the fridge and the freezer. I put one on each end so they keep this

05:01low look.

05:02And then we have this microwave oven combined. This is another practical storage bit.

05:09And then we have a dishwasher. We have the bins, which is really spacious.

05:17The freezer on this side. So it all helps keeping this like furniture look like, keeping it all very low

05:25level.

05:29When I thought about my kitchen, I didn't want to have a traditional kitchen with upper cabinets.

05:34So what I decided is to remove all of it and just have a one long display shelf where I

05:42can put items

05:42on top. It looks more like a living room style rather than traditional kitchen.

05:49I went for not too colorful materials. So for the top and for the backsplash as well,

05:56I chose this really, really thin, I think it's like six millimeters ceramic top,

06:01which runs through all the way up with this nice streetlight that kind of helps giving light to the kitchen.

06:10I still wanted to have a little bit more drama to the space. So what I decided is to having

06:15a dark

06:16finish for the front doors. All these three materials, I think they kind of complement together really well.

06:25For the cooker, I went for this integrated hood from Bora brand because, you know,

06:31I didn't want to have the big extractor on top of the hob. So this model has everything integrated.

06:37You can swap colors. So you can, you know, change your colors based on your mood. If you feel happy,

06:44you have yellow.

06:49To keep the look of the kitchen minimal, I came up with this feature wall. It's a library. It's,

06:56it's like an aesthetic thing, but also he has his function because I'm storing everything I need when I'm cooking.

07:07So when it's closed off, it really looks like, you know, like a proper architectural piece inside this apartment.

07:19This is my working station, my office. It's where I spend most of the time in my, during the week.

07:27And the whole inspiration of this piece was from, you know, those nice workspaces you normally find in boutique hotels.

07:35I didn't want the desk to disappear. I wanted it to make it a feature out of it.

07:40I went for this dark color, which picks up on the kitchen. I think it's kind of similar.

07:46But then, you know, having this dark finish, it creates this strong presence in the room.

07:51There is also this hidden section, which is in the middle of the desk, and you can just open up

07:57this

07:58area and you have space for everything you need while working. So when you close it off,

08:05it's really kind of neat because you don't see anything.

08:10On the wall, I have timber, which picks up the same detail as we saw before in the entrance.

08:16It's kind of the same fluted, ripped detail. Having also a mirror just in front of you when you're working,

08:24it works because it gives you the sense of the space. Even if you're staring at the wall,

08:30it actually looks like it's deeper and the apartment is bigger. So it works really well, I think.

08:37One of my favorite pieces of this apartment, it's this lamp, which is from Floss. Oops, I just turned it

08:44on.

08:45If you just press it and it goes on. You can just, you know, pull it up and down,

08:51rotate it. I think it's a nice one.

09:04This is the living room, which takes the center space of the entire apartment.

09:11I have to say this one, it's what I called Libreria Rotante.

09:17And it's one, another of my favorite pieces in this flat. And it's basically a metal unit,

09:24which acts as a TV stand, as well as a shelving system and a playful room divider as well. You

09:32can either watch the TV from the sofa or you can watch the TV from the table as well. It's

09:37kind of a

09:38surprise effect of this home. The left pole actually hides all the cables. So you have one cable running

09:46down to the Sonos speaker. So I have some music going on, on the first shelf. And then the other

09:53cable runs down to the TV. This TV, which I owned previously, luckily fit perfectly into the space.

10:01So it almost looks like it's been designed for this width. It just fits perfectly.

10:09So this one, it's like a pharmacy thing. So you open it up, I have paracetamol,

10:16all everything you need for, you know, when you're sick.

10:20So coffee table is a mirrored piece from Hay and the pouf is from Missoni. And originally didn't,

10:28I wasn't thinking about putting it together, but they fit really nicely. So they, it kind of looks

10:33like one item, even if they are two separate brands. This is a candy box. It's a candy box. I

10:40have like

10:40this, you know, edible bracelets for parties. I was thinking about having a sofa bed in this space,

10:49because of course, when you have a small apartment, you always tend to go for multifunctional

10:55solutions. But then I just decided to have a normal, proper sofa that does its function

11:01and does it well. I decided to install two automated venetium lines on the outside

11:09and as well as an automated awning. So these two pieces really help keeping the flat cool when

11:16it's so hot in Milan during the summer. For the floors, I wanted open air vibe to the space. So

11:25I, first of all, I raised the interior level because originally it was a little bit lower than the

11:30outside part. So by raising the floor and adding this glazing, it kind of helped creating this feeling

11:38of an open space rather than two different separate spaces. It was a major renovation because this,

11:44of course, wasn't here originally, but it completely transformed the way this apartment looked.

11:57This is a corner dedicated to the dining space. It kind of feels separated from the flat because

12:04it has its own kind of niche in the flat. One of the things I like about this dining era,

12:11it's this

12:11table which I custom built. I purchased this kind of terrazzo marble style from a marble shop just around

12:20the corner here in Milan, Rigomarmi. And for the base, I ordered it on, I think, on Etsy's website.

12:26So I just ordered all these things, put it together and created this table. The chairs, they come from

12:32a vintage shop in my town. So lighting-wise, I wasn't sure about what to have because I didn't

12:41want to have something too, you know, imposing, too large. So I went for this flower pot pendant

12:48and it falls right in the middle of the table. It kind of creates this circular focal point in this

12:54corner. To kind of continue with this kind of vintage style, I decided to install these moldings on

13:02the lower level of the wall, continue with this art collection from my grandmother.

13:11I created this wall kind of like a backdrop for the table.

13:16We have another storage corner here next to the table. What do I store in here? Glasses.

13:24Medicine and pharmacy bit in here as well. If you feel sick, you can open up this wardrobe and you

13:31have,

13:31you know, two options. You can either have some paracetamol or a glass of wine.

13:37And then a shelving kind of display on this side.

13:48I just decided to have this kind of sculptural table in the corner

13:53to hide this sort of spotlight I have on the back of it.

13:59So another major thing I decided to do in this flat was installing these beams because I wanted the

14:06flat to look more like a loft kind of vibe rather than a flat ceiling. And also it draws your

14:11eye

14:12towards the terrace. So it kind of guides your eyes to the outside. So we go to the terrace now.

14:27This is the terrace. It's my favorite part of my home because it can be, it can have multiple

14:34functions. Normally I have dinners with friends. It can host up to eight to ten people. Luckily,

14:41this piece of marble on this balustrade was already here. So I was, you know, kind of lucky

14:47because it matched what I already had in mind for the table. So same slab of marble we used inside,

14:54but with a sort of custom-made iron base.

15:00One of the things I first imagined when I saw this flat was having a lot of plants outside.

15:06All these plants which are hanging with this custom-made iron system. That was another trick

15:14because having the plants outside the balustrade, it kind of helps extending the depth of this terrace.

15:22You can see these really thin mirror panels, which helps reflecting the view,

15:27reflecting the plants, reflecting what's outside. I think they add a nice touch.

15:34Two-seater sofa because it's really, really comfy and it fits this corner quite well.

15:40We also have a nice little side table, which is from Cave Home. It's made out of a polished ceramic,

15:47which I think is a really cool material for the exterior. And in this corner, we actually have the

15:54heat pump for hot and cold water. So it's all well hidden inside this cabinet.

16:03We have an automated awning on top and you can close it off with your phone. So you just press

16:09this

16:09and it closes off.

16:18We have this little narrow corridor, which kind of separates the living space with the bedroom space.

16:26And it's all well hidden by this pocket sliding door to hide completely the wall away and making it look

16:35like it's the whole wall moving because it's actually a full height. We also have this little

16:41baby here on the wall. It's a, it's a kind of, it's a sort of night light. So when you

16:48wake up at night,

16:49you don't wake up everybody and it kind of guides you to, to the fridge if you want to drink

16:54something,

16:55if you are thirsty.

17:00So this is my bedroom. I designed it to be slightly smaller than it was original because I wanted to

17:07give more space to the living area. But I tried to design it to feel a little bit luxurious thanks

17:15to

17:15the wardrobe look and, you know, keeping all the same palette. So this unit, it's kind of a storage

17:24unit. It's a whole mirror solid block. I put mirror either on the front and on the side, just to

17:30make it

17:31look like a solid piece of glass. I have gardening items. I have some shoes, all the cleaning appliances.

17:39I have my Dyson. It's only 13 centimeters deep. So really, that's all you need in a small home. And

17:47when you close it off, it kind of completely disappears from the space. And it also helps

17:53increasing the room size because it's a whole mirrored floor to ceiling.

17:59So wardrobe, I think it was one of the first thing I imagined when I designed my bedroom.

18:04I wanted it to feel that it doesn't close or didn't close off the space too much.

18:11I think, you know, it's not for everyone because you need to be very tidy if you have this type

18:17of

18:17wardrobe. But fortunately, I am. So it works for me, but I know maybe it's not for everyone.

18:24Having these glass doors, it really makes the room feel bigger because it doesn't close off the space.

18:30So because the wardrobe is so close to the bathroom door, I had to reduce its depth. I think it's

18:36only 40.

18:37I managed to install this kind of front hanging system. I think also it helps creating this kind of boutique

18:44look.

18:47We have more storage here. So, you know, you always have to think about where to put your stuff when

18:53you live in a small home. And this is a very huge space to store maybe Christmas things or something

19:01else. Or you have the duvet for the winter. So that's a huge extra space to take advantage of.

19:09To keep on going with this hotel inspired concept, you have your bed, you have your armchair and a

19:16little side table on the side. That kind of helps creating this hotel vibe. That's my CD collection.

19:26I've been collecting them since I was maybe 10 or nine. So there's plenty of CDs up there. I don't

19:33even know how many, but yeah, they come from my childhood. These two niches were actually here

19:41originally. I just kind of cleaned the line up, added some timber shelves. I wanted to make it more

19:47special rather than a typical shelving unit. So I've added these strip lights at the back to make it

19:53feel more special. So we have more shelving here and the bottom shelf actually functions as a nightstand

20:03on this side without taking up too much space.

20:08So we also have a movie theater in this room. It's just like a Samsung projector, which works

20:14really well. And this is pulled by this little metal shelf I built. So it's nice and clean.

20:21On this side of the bed, we don't have a space for a proper nightstand. So I came up with

20:27this

20:27little tiny shelving unit, which is freestanding. So it's floor to ceiling.

20:34And you have, you know, space for books, space for phone charger. It just does its function, basically.

20:45I went for an ensuite bathroom just to make it connected to the bedroom and it helps feeling

20:52more luxurious. I chose a sliding pocket door just to save space. And part of this design was

21:01to have some open shelving because I didn't really know where to put all my towels. So I think that's

21:07a pretty neat solution. First of all, I've designed this built-in wardrobe to hide the washing machine

21:15and all the products. So I went for this Antonio Lupi sink, which I think my inspiration was mainly those

21:27gallery-like bathrooms you often see on magazines and AD. And I think it fits really well in this tiny

21:35space.

21:37I wanted to try to make the room feel bigger. So I went for this full size mirror on this

21:43wall and you have

21:46some hidden lights at the back.

21:50I had to build this wall out to incorporate all the plumbing systems. So basically I managed to

21:55have this shelf on top and I use it for my products, for everything you need on a daily basis.

22:03Something that is not really Italian approved, if you know what I mean. I don't have a bidet,

22:08which is normally found in Italian flats, but I went for a Japanese toilet instead,

22:14which is this baby here. It saves space, you don't have to have two items, it's just really compact.

22:21For the shower I wanted to increase the size because originally it was really really tiny.

22:28So I made it larger, I installed this kind of nice textured tile just on this wall to make it

22:35a feature.

22:36We have a tiny spotlight, if you want to turn it on.

22:42That's it.

22:44I think one of the interesting items here, it looks like a spotlight, but it's actually not,

22:51because when you turn on the water, the water comes out from the fixture itself.

22:55So it looks like a spotlight when it's off, but in reality it's a rain shower.

23:04I've always lived in small homes, whether in Italy or in London.

23:08In London it was more driven by rental prices of course, but here it's a completely conscious choice.

23:17Access to me is anything that doesn't add real value, function or meaning.

23:23And every object in this home is here for a reason.

23:26It carries some significance to me and that's what makes the space feel warm and personal,

23:32rather than just curate it.

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