Houzz Tour: A Studio Converts Into a Two-Room Apartment
Boat-building techniques inspired this innovative and compact vacation home
This small studio in the Italian Riviera hadn’t been renovated since it was built in the sixties. The owners, a retired couple of sailing enthusiasts, wanted to give it a revamp and add a separate bedroom area. Genoese architecture firm Llabb rose to the challenge, turning to solutions developed for the boat-building industry in order to balance elegance and functionality. The result was a “cabin” bedroom under a mezzanine with a second double bed.
Before
Originally the studio was a single, messy open space randomly punctuated by furniture and two retractable beds, as pictured here.
Originally the studio was a single, messy open space randomly punctuated by furniture and two retractable beds, as pictured here.
A curtain separated the main space from a bunk bed in a niche. This offered additional accommodation for guests, especially the couple’s adult daughter, who joins her parents at the seaside now and then.
The clients’ priority was to reorganise the 376 square feet (35 square metres) of floor space into a living area and a space for sleeping.
See how 5 rooms accommodate in 1 unit
The clients’ priority was to reorganise the 376 square feet (35 square metres) of floor space into a living area and a space for sleeping.
See how 5 rooms accommodate in 1 unit
After
“The clients wanted a bedroom separated from the living area,” architect Federico Robbiano says. “Their initial idea was to move the bathroom into the niche where the bunk bed had stood, but local building codes made this impossible. Having studied the original layout, we came up with another solution: A small ‘boat cabin room’ dominated by a mezzanine where the grandchildren could sleep in future.”
“The clients wanted a bedroom separated from the living area,” architect Federico Robbiano says. “Their initial idea was to move the bathroom into the niche where the bunk bed had stood, but local building codes made this impossible. Having studied the original layout, we came up with another solution: A small ‘boat cabin room’ dominated by a mezzanine where the grandchildren could sleep in future.”
The wall unit, located on the right side of the drawing above, runs through the entire room from the entryway to the living area. A shallower wall in the entryway features a small utility room, as well as a storage space for beach chairs, among other things. It continues with a small dressing room/closet, and ends in the living room, which is overlooked by the unit’s two-level sleeping area.
Do you know how to read a floor plan?
Do you know how to read a floor plan?
The solution to this space puzzle had to be tailor-made: Not only did it have to fit down to the millimetre, but it also had to be planned out perfectly to suit the owners’ needs. To make this happen, Llabb not only designed but also built this unit themselves.
This young architecture firm stands out for its “learning-by-doing” approach: From their earliest jobs, they have made custom, turnkey solutions themselves and they’ve built up solid carpentry skills along the way. This ace up their sleeve proves particularly useful when convincing clients to invest in a big renovation, as they can save on the labor of additional specialists.
Robbiano tells us, “The clients realised the true value of the project, and therefore decided to invest more money. At the same time, however, we reduced costs by doing the work ourselves and so we stuck closely to the original project.”
This young architecture firm stands out for its “learning-by-doing” approach: From their earliest jobs, they have made custom, turnkey solutions themselves and they’ve built up solid carpentry skills along the way. This ace up their sleeve proves particularly useful when convincing clients to invest in a big renovation, as they can save on the labor of additional specialists.
Robbiano tells us, “The clients realised the true value of the project, and therefore decided to invest more money. At the same time, however, we reduced costs by doing the work ourselves and so we stuck closely to the original project.”
The wall’s load-bearing structure is made of marine plywood, with MDF panels by Abet Laminati. The colour palette, made up of white and turquoise, is a visual metaphor that recalls the stratified colours of sky and sea.
To mark the transition between the two, a wooden strip emulates a waterline. It is a common thread in the space, accompanying the visitor’s gaze from the entryway to the kitchen.
For the floor, they choose a ⅗-inch-thick (15-millimetre-thick) laminate produced by the German brand Woodstock.
To mark the transition between the two, a wooden strip emulates a waterline. It is a common thread in the space, accompanying the visitor’s gaze from the entryway to the kitchen.
For the floor, they choose a ⅗-inch-thick (15-millimetre-thick) laminate produced by the German brand Woodstock.
The closet’s two large doors in fact lead to the main bedroom. Like a boat cabin, this space contains only essentials: A double bed and minimal storage space.
The wooden framework provides structural support. The ceiling is about 6¼ to 6½ feet (1.9–2 meters), making it possible to both stand up straight and move around the room comfortably. Opening the doors at night ensures adequate ventilation.
The wooden framework provides structural support. The ceiling is about 6¼ to 6½ feet (1.9–2 meters), making it possible to both stand up straight and move around the room comfortably. Opening the doors at night ensures adequate ventilation.
At one end of the wall, just behind the couch, are two sets of steps. These lead to the mezzanine, which is occupied almost entirely by a second double bed.
Take a look at these inventive mezzanine designs
Take a look at these inventive mezzanine designs
This rendering represents a cross-section of the home. It shows the setup of the bedroom and mezzanine and the staircase design.
The ceiling here is only 38 inches (96 centimetres) high. Next to the bed, two small windows open up to let light and air into the space.
Some might say this is an unusual solution, but it was driven completely by pragmatic considerations. These two bedrooms show what’s possible when you depart from standard bedroom measurements.
This is a solution to a challenge faced by more and more clients and architects in Italy and around the world. “When you focus on the client’s needs and create a hierarchy of his/her priorities, you can always find the right solution,” Robbiano says. “In our case, the choice to have a beautiful, functional, spacious and airy living area turned the bedroom into an ancillary space, suitable only for sleeping.
“When I was discussing this project with other professionals, they claimed that it wouldn’t be possible to breathe in such an environment. But that’s not a problem if the doors are kept open in the evening. The advantage is that the living and sleeping environments are now visually separated.”
Some might say this is an unusual solution, but it was driven completely by pragmatic considerations. These two bedrooms show what’s possible when you depart from standard bedroom measurements.
This is a solution to a challenge faced by more and more clients and architects in Italy and around the world. “When you focus on the client’s needs and create a hierarchy of his/her priorities, you can always find the right solution,” Robbiano says. “In our case, the choice to have a beautiful, functional, spacious and airy living area turned the bedroom into an ancillary space, suitable only for sleeping.
“When I was discussing this project with other professionals, they claimed that it wouldn’t be possible to breathe in such an environment. But that’s not a problem if the doors are kept open in the evening. The advantage is that the living and sleeping environments are now visually separated.”
Located next to the window, the kitchen is at the end of the “waterline” path. For the sake of budget, they chose Ikea cabinets for the lower units, embellished with the custom-made backsplash, shelves and countertop. The shape of the shelves gives the kitchen furniture a subtle sense of movement, which is once again a small reference to the sea: a sail inflated by the wind, reaching out to the sun and the blue of the sea and sky.
Read more:
Houzz Tour: A 1-BHK Flat Transforms Into a 2-BHK
Tell us:
What did you like about this home? Tell us in the Comments below.
Read more:
Houzz Tour: A 1-BHK Flat Transforms Into a 2-BHK
Tell us:
What did you like about this home? Tell us in the Comments below.
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House at a Glance
Who lives here: A retired couple, who come here for vacation
Location: A seaside town near Genoa, Italy
Year built: 1960s
Year renovated: 2017
Architects: Llabb studio
Size: 35 square metres (about 377 square feet)
Cost of the project: About ₹26,00,000 ($37,000), including carpentry work, which the architects did themselves
The owners wanted to make the best use of this small space without sacrificing its pleasant feel. Combining functionality and aesthetics on so little square footage, however, was a challenge. The owners turned to Genoese architecture firm Llabb, founded in 2013 by Luca Scardulla and Federico Robbiano.
The architects took inspiration from interior design solutions for boats, which are known for being precise, functional and certainly inventive.