Houzz Tours
Thane Houzz: Dark, Deep and Dramatic Describe This 212-Sq-M Home
In this family flat, DIG Architects proves that dark colours can work wonders within a limited footprint
Houzz at a Glance
Who lives here: A couple and their daughter
Location: Thane, Maharashtra
Year built: 2019
Size: 212 square metres (2280 square feet); 3 bedrooms, 1 lounge and 3 bathrooms
Principal architects and interior designers: Amit Khanolkar, Advait Potnis, Samadhan Mhatre and Fenil Gala of DIG Architects
Photos by PHX India
Having previously lived in a lavish bungalow on the fringes of the city, the clients were hoping to make their transition to this relatively smaller suburban apartment a smooth one. Comfort, contemporary forms and striking palettes encompassed the essence of their brief.
“They decided to move to the city to cut their daily commute to work. We breathed life into their brief through the use of local and global design. Unlike many other clients, they weren’t averse to the use of dark colours. As a result, the home sports bold shades, clean lines and linear layouts. Some structural changes were made to align the shell to the clients’ requirements,” says Amit Khanolkar, principal architect and co-founder of DIG Architects.
Who lives here: A couple and their daughter
Location: Thane, Maharashtra
Year built: 2019
Size: 212 square metres (2280 square feet); 3 bedrooms, 1 lounge and 3 bathrooms
Principal architects and interior designers: Amit Khanolkar, Advait Potnis, Samadhan Mhatre and Fenil Gala of DIG Architects
Photos by PHX India
Having previously lived in a lavish bungalow on the fringes of the city, the clients were hoping to make their transition to this relatively smaller suburban apartment a smooth one. Comfort, contemporary forms and striking palettes encompassed the essence of their brief.
“They decided to move to the city to cut their daily commute to work. We breathed life into their brief through the use of local and global design. Unlike many other clients, they weren’t averse to the use of dark colours. As a result, the home sports bold shades, clean lines and linear layouts. Some structural changes were made to align the shell to the clients’ requirements,” says Amit Khanolkar, principal architect and co-founder of DIG Architects.
The entrance passage branches out into a large living area, fashioned by integrating the original lounge with the home’s fourth bedroom. At one end, ash-grey sofas and black chairs form a U-shaped seating layout, while a red Godhra brick wall showcases the television. The ceiling sports slatted oak wood. A quadrant of modular coffee tables occupies the heart of the room.
See how a brick wall can stand in a way that any plain wall cannot
See how a brick wall can stand in a way that any plain wall cannot
“The apartment originally housed four bedrooms. Since the family of three had one bedroom to spare, we broke down and absorbed the fourth into the living-room footprint,” Khanolkar says.
“The use of bricks nods to traditional Indian living. The brick wall, therefore, was a move to imbue rusticity into the semi-public spaces,” adds Potnis.
Artwork: Yuvan Bodhisathuvar
Browse through Houzz photos for more living room ideas
“The use of bricks nods to traditional Indian living. The brick wall, therefore, was a move to imbue rusticity into the semi-public spaces,” adds Potnis.
Artwork: Yuvan Bodhisathuvar
Browse through Houzz photos for more living room ideas
At the other end of the living area, a glass-topped dining table and grey bucket chairs indicate the dining zone. A trio of rose-gold pendants cast circles of light over the setting. A birchwood-finish cabinet covers the wall at the back, providing a warm background to the room and connecting the wood-clad ceiling with the room.
The master bedroom lies at the end of the blue passage.
The master bedroom lies at the end of the blue passage.
Here, a mixture of textures and colours – matte and glossy, bold and subtle, dashes of monochrome – collide in a materials palette dominated by concrete, tinted glass, river-washed slate stone, charcoal tile and sheeny laminate. A charcoal wall backgrounds the all-black bed, while shiny salsa-hued wardrobes line the room on one side.
The wall opposite the bed is clad in rough-cut stone and serves to host a television and console. The ceiling continues the dark theme of the wall behind the bed.
“The rough-cut stone came in three different sizes and was arranged to form a symmetric pattern bound by an aluminium L-shaped end profile. The stones were assembled on the ground before being translated onto the wall, to ensure a natural and even colour distribution,” says Khanolkar.
Artwork: Yuvan Bodhisathuvar
Here are 7 Indian homes that prove that black is beautiful
“The rough-cut stone came in three different sizes and was arranged to form a symmetric pattern bound by an aluminium L-shaped end profile. The stones were assembled on the ground before being translated onto the wall, to ensure a natural and even colour distribution,” says Khanolkar.
Artwork: Yuvan Bodhisathuvar
Here are 7 Indian homes that prove that black is beautiful
Next to the master bedroom is the daughter’s bedroom. It employs the same device as in the living area: creating two sharply defined spaces by cladding a section of the shell in a contrasting material or colour: the slumber and study area are defined by birch plywood along the floor, wall and ceiling. Fuchsia cabinets with back-painted glass shutters form the wall to the right.
A black buttoned bed rests along one side, while a desk and storage shelves line the wall opposite.
Here is how to look at light, layout and circulation while thinking about your bedroom design
Here is how to look at light, layout and circulation while thinking about your bedroom design
The guest bedroom is situated opposite the daughter’s bedroom. A jet-black wall with a red brick panel serves as a backdrop to the black headboard. Grey soft furnishings perpetuate the dark aesthetic.
Read more:
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Tell us:
What did you like most about this home? Tell us in Comments below.
Read more:
Pune Houzz: A Spanish Villa Nestled in the Idyllic Aamby Valley
Lonavala Houzz: This Valley Vacation Home Has Windows for Walls
Tell us:
What did you like most about this home? Tell us in Comments below.
“The stretch of blue extends all the way up to the bedroom lobby. All the surfaces connected to this volume, including the floor, wall and ceiling, are rendered in blue to make them appear as a singular unit subtracted from the overall space,” says Advait Potnis, principal architect and co-founder with Khanolkar.
Artwork: Manish Nai
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