When it comes to typical Mumbai apartment layouts, the clients put forth two main requirements: one to make the space feel as large and visually expansive as possible and two to maximise storage space. With the use of the right materials, colours and elements an illusion can be created of expanse and spatial volume. The primary task was to make the most of the floor space of this typical 2.5 BHK compartmentalised apartment with minimum turnover time and budget.
Light and bright
The decision was to retain none its existing elements but to remodel the entire space as per the new brief. The home needed to make the occupants feel at ease. It was to be converted into a welcoming sanctuary. Our design team tried to represent and replicate the simplicity and peace felt within the client’s own nature.
In terms of spatial realignment of the floor plan, 2 major changes were made in the layout. The first included the unused duct area beyond the kitchen to be taken in to make the kitchen larger. Dividing the kitchen into the wet zone which contains the washing and drying activities and the dry area where the cooking and storage happen. The entry of the kitchen was modified and a sliding glass door added which allows privacy and visual access whenever needed.
The second change was to break the wall between the passage and the balcony taking in the balcony space and converting it into a work from home office. This alteration suddenly made the passage area visually lighter and brighter. The ample amount of light filtering in through the huge window washes over the previously dark and dingy passage.
Drama of layers
Exploring minimal layering was coupled with a play of understated materials. This created a controlled muted environment interspersed with colours, patterns and textures. The aim was to create a visual dichotomy across the space with the use of blues and greens, a plethora of patterns through wallpapers and tiles, textures through rattan and terrazzo alongside a calming neutral palate. The balancing act was important in this project.
The living room has a long continuous wall which was panelled with pop mouldings and painted in a bluish grey tinge allowing it to become an understated backdrop for the furniture pieces. The in-house custom designed shoe rack flanked by wall lights and art gives way to a bought out console cum bar unit topped with a wooden carved mirror reflecting the passage and the space beyond to add the illusion of length. While the flooring and the ceiling were kept humble in design, the elemental additions have been done with restraint so as not to overpower the subtleness of the overall space. The fluted wooden panel and a simple black glossy TV unit are accompanied by art showing a floating cloud in a bright blue sky duplicating the sense of lightness we wished to bring to the home. Art adds life to any space. It’s that final ingredient which makes the dish whole.
The dining space was conceptualized to add some textural play to the elemental designs. With grey, and wood brown as the primary players, the prints of the tiles, the irregularity of the terrazzo table top, the texture of the rattan sheet and the dining headboard fabric along with the colours of the vintage bird art all create a measured drama of layers.
Balance of blues
The mother’s room was homage to her love for nature. Designer’s love for prints is drizzled in here by the inclusion of floral wallpaper with birds perched on branches with flowers from the Payal Singhal collection of Marshalls wall coverings and the foliage art by Calcuttan gallery. These perfectly complement the base colours in grey and sea green. Bringing in the duct space in the mother’s room makes a walk in wardrobe accessible from the bedroom.
The spatial aesthetics for this home are all about continuity in elemental language, colours, textures and materials that create an uninterrupted spatial flow and visual expanse. Every design decision, material and colour choice has been derivative of this thought. For the master bedroom, rattan sheets continue on the wardrobe doors with wood and grey again forming the primary base. The wooden flute flanks the grey fabric headboard intersecting with an arched mirror. With ample light washing in through the window, this wallpaper becomes the piece de resistance of this otherwise simple and muted bedroom. But the true hero is the light which makes the space look expansive. Not shying away from colour with the addition of a royal blue curtain along with hints in the soft furnishings and the fabrics.
The washrooms are designed with terrazzo tiles accompanied by blue and ochre tiles that like the rest of the host stimulate with muted colour and pattern. This home not just adds pomp and luxury but invites peace and quietude. Not a house with sensory overload but a home which allows you to listen to your own silent musings. Less is more here as it successfully balances the scales of various elements to create harmony.
The design of this house is an effort to be sensitive and responsive to all dimensions of body, mind and spirit.
Fact file:
Name of the project: Bianca Residence
Location: Yari Road, Andheri West, Mumbai, India
Area: 1,000 sq ft
Design firm:Â The Design Chapel
Principal Designer: Preshita Shah Gupta
Design team: Kajal Kamath, Anjali Khandelwal, Tanvi Kirve
Photography: Biju Gopal, Bizou Photos
Styling: Preshita Shah Gupta
About the design firm:
The Design Chapel is a multidisciplinary design studio which creates inspired works in the fields of Interior Design, Architecture and Art. The motto of their design practice is to create and curate bespoke spaces which touch, move and inspire its occupants. Preshita Shah Gupta the founder of The Design Chapel is an alumina of the Centre of Environmental Planning and Technology, (C.E.P.T University), Ahmedabad. She graduated from the Faculty of Design (FID) with a Bachelor’s degree in Interior Architecture and was awarded the Vastu ShÂÂÂÂÂilpa Foundation Award for the best graduating student 2010 from the University.
