Before & after: Reconfiguring a three floor apartment

James Rippon James Rippon
Reforma integral de piso, Intra Arquitectos Intra Arquitectos Moderne badkamers
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One of the main desires of the owner's of properties both here in UK and abroad, is to reconfigure and remodel the annoying, and often puzzling, internal layout of older homes. The spacial arrangement of interiors in old homes can sometimes leave rooms irregularly shaped, disproportionally too big or small, too dark, or feeling like they weren't very well planned out. One such property is this apartment in the northern Spanish city of A Coruña, which was previously two separate flats, both with dark and complicated layouts. Recently acquiring the two apartments, with the help of Intra Architects, the new owners set out to unite the two flats into one three story home, and to adapt the home for modern life and the lifestyle of the owners.

Before: The bottom level

As non load-bearing walls and parts of the ceiling began to be removed, the potential for a more spacious and light-filled home became more apparent. If you have ever undergone a comprehensive reform in your house, you will understand the scary feeling realised by the owners at this initial stage: there is now no turning back, and the final result is all in the hands of your architect.

After: A beautiful living space

After lots of hard work, the final result is truly stunning. Here, we can see the end product of the living room, which is now a bright, airy, and modern space. We can see the new staircase, which became a central focus of the new home; the join that connects the dots of the now connected stories of the apartment. Comparing this image to the one above, you can see the staircase now runs up to the part of the ceiling that had been removed. The breezy colour scheme of the new interior is also the perfect match for the lightweight design of the timber and glass staircase.

Before: A tired old kitchen

40 years ago, this kitchen would have been modern and sleek. Today, however, it is dark, drab, and in dire need of updating.

After: Kitchen with a view

Now, the kitchen is much more inviting, with the redistribution of space reserving more room for the kitchen. A world away from the previous room, this bright and spacious area is an idyllic modern kitchen, full of light and life. Throughout the new design, bright whites and tones of lacquered timber keep the mood uplifting and vivacious; the perfect colour combination for a modern home.

Before: A badly designed layout

At the time of construction, homes were designed around a layout of rooms connected by hallways, which compartmentalised the home, and distinctly divided each room to serve a single function. Open plan living was not as common, which left hallways taking up a lot of unnecessary floorspace.

After: Inviting lounge spaces

Added windows, removed walls and bright colour schemes ensure this new home will remain light and upbeat for years to come. After all, why would you want to live in sunny Spain, yet live in a dark and dreary home?

Before: A horror bathroom

Looking like something out of a horror movie, this old bathroom was the last place you would want to wind down in after a busy day.

After: A bathroom from a magazine

To this, a stunning rendition of a luxurious 21st century bathroom. It is images of projects such as this that architects will look back on in another 40 years and see what everybody was wishing for in their homes in 2015; open plan living areas, light-filled spaces, monochrome and neutral tones, recessed lighting, with glass and timber throughout.

Interested to see how other Spanish homeowners are renovating their apartments? Then take a look at this ideabook on a penthouse in Barcelona.

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