Reconstruction of an apartment in Vršovice

The apartment in a historic apartment building caught the owner's eye at first sight. The fourth floor promised a view of the surrounding buildings in the narrow streets of old Vršovice, and its southeast location offered an interesting play of light throughout the day. The symbolic name of the street, Na Spojce, was a clear sign for her – the apartment is a connection and a refuge for her business trips.
The investor was acquiring the apartment for herself during the ongoing reconstruction by the development company. However, their layout and material solutions did not suit her, so she sought someone who could help transform the apartment with great potential into an open and light space with quality materials, rather than a layout-replicated apartment lacking these characteristics. Based on our previous realizations, she chose our studio, and the project full of details, quality materials, and interesting elements could begin.

The client had a clear vision that we managed to capture even during the design phase, and the execution followed in quick succession. The apartment needed to be cleared of new, poor-quality constructions that could not be reused. The load-bearing floor structures were statically reinforced, particularly in the area of the glass dividing wall. During the work, a beautiful vault in the hallway and brick patterns on the walls were revealed, which we cleaned and preserved in agreement with the investor. Due to the original reed ceiling, it was necessary to create a ceiling throughout the apartment.
The apartment layout is designed as 1+1, but thanks to the glass acoustic partition with a curtain, it can be considered 2+1. The partition divides the kitchen from the living room, which can be separated as a guest room if needed.
The entire apartment features a wooden floor made of bleached oak. In the bathrooms, tiles and floors with historic decor and underfloor heating were selected.

A long narrow corridor, which incorporates a built-in large wardrobe and storage cabinet, ends with the entrance to the bedroom. These panel doors are designed with a skylight to allow the bedroom to share the morning sun with the hallway. In the future, it may be possible to replace the clear glass with sandblasted decorative glass, which the investor salvaged from the removed entrance doors to the building.
The bedroom is a morning oasis of light, which the client wished to be as bright and white as possible. A small space that fulfills the need for storage as well as space for books.

The bathroom and toilet are hidden behind sliding doors that span the entire light height of the apartment – nearly 3 m. Half of the bathroom's area is taken up by a shower, which is enclosed by a dividing wall that hides the distribution risers, into which a niche for storing cosmetic essentials was fitted. The corner is separated from the rest of the bathroom by only a glass partition in a black frame, which corresponds in color with the color of the faucets, bathroom cabinet, and actually with other details throughout the apartment. In the room with the toilet, a boiler and the technical distributions of the house are hidden behind furniture sliding doors.

In the main living area, the kitchen is designed as a large gray box with a cooking surface, hidden hood wiring, and countless storage spaces. The central island is in the same decor, albeit a darker color. The countertop made of artificial stone has golden specks in the poured fraction that reflect the brass faucet at the sink.

A seating and storage bench made of bleached birch plywood along the longer wall of the room is essential throughout the layout. The client is an avid reader who prefers to spend her evenings with a book rather than in front of the television. The bench offers her endless possibilities for this hobby. At the same time, the bench is also a storage solution, hiding one radiator that heats the seating area and essentially substituting for half of the seating at the large dining table.
Choosing the table was perhaps the longest process in the entire realization. Fortunately, the production of the table turned out according to the visions of both the client and us, and it serves as a dignified design element in the minimalist interior. When sampling the tabletop, we paid attention to the color and structural resemblance of the wood on the floor. The base is inspired by Brussels design and relates materially to the design of the bar stools and other interior details.
The dining chairs are from the investor's grandmother, which she brought from her home country – Romania. A sensitive restoration has given them new life, and in the Prague Vršovice apartment, they hold a piece of memories of the Romanian grandmother. Additionally, the floral rug in the living room is crafted by a small artisan family company from Romania.

We searched long for a chest of drawers for the living room. Eventually, we managed to find a small pharmacy chest from the investor's beloved France. 

Details and stories during the selection process and throughout the realization have turned the apartment Na Spojce into an oasis of home for the busy investor, who finally enjoys returning home.