From the email box last night: a link to an "apartment for two" designed for a young couple by KNQ Associates. Our favorite element of the design (and one we'd love to add to our own apartment) is the foyer, created simply and beautifully out of what was previously blank space as you enter the home - jump below for the before/after:
Entrance area, before
Entrance area, after
What an amazing difference! A super smart solution for creating a foyer - this design takes up very little space visually, but adds tons of functionality, storage and a sense of architecture to the main living area.
A mirrored closet, small bench and laminated fabric glass panel create another "room" where there was nothing, and while it wasn't a "weekend" project, it is one that is worth the effort and expense for the both the functionality and beauty it adds to a small home.
Some thoughts from the designers: Creating an illusion of space involves more than simply opening up an apartment's interior. Simply dividing a space into different 'pockets' can sometimes give the illusion that it is roomier. Instead of knocking down walls, we proposed to reconfigure the living room entrance by putting up a partition because the original 'open' configuration meant one would walk right into the living room upon entry. The newly carved-out section becomes an inviting foyer and shoe storage area.
Check out the rest of the project by KNQ Associates at their blog, Home Rejuvenation.
Photos: Home Rejuvenation
© 2009 Apartment Therapy
I think that womb chair is in just about every other home tour.
view itsmikethomas's profile
i've never seen the womb chair it in that green, nice. i love this idea for adding space without adding a wall.
view universal mod's profile
This is a beautiful change. Love the green too.
view peekay's profile
I love the dry stack stone wall...
I am trying to do this with faux panels in my condo.
view michael9246's profile
wow, that's beautiful.
view *heather leaf*'s profile
Pretty. And you could totally DIY a similar effect with a sheer panel curtain on a track. I love the look of the glass, but I imagine that would be the hardest thing to source, and the most expensive. Still, it looks amazing.
view lurker2209's profile
Man, I'm drooling over that womb chair in green.
view suzy8track's profile
that is a clever solution.
view maike's profile
I wonder what the total cost on that project is...they took down the soffit that runs over the door too....that means electrical, plumbing, etc would have to be redirected. Adding a closet into existing drywall can't be cheap either...and the idea that that is probably a shared wall with a neighbor...how would that affect things? This is definately not a DIY, though I do love the new wall. It also opens up more possibilities for furniture configurations
view amiencc's profile
It could be a DIY if, instead of a closet you used a bench with storage - something like Ikea's Molger Bench (for a baseline) and some Ikea tracks and fabric panels. I think the most important change is that you dont enter into the livingroom - which affords the homeowners a sense of privacy and function.
Personally I hate entryways directly into livingrooms. Always feels like I'm getting a draft from the door, or the neighbors are peeking at me eating ice cream in my underwear (oh, like you never do it!)
view Modfan's profile
wow the glass wall is gorgeous, as is the stone wall behind the tv. what a room to relax in!
view lovelyrita's profile
really looks great!
the clock kind of looks wrong to me---needed to be a great work of art.
view poptart's profile
LOL Modfan....um....a little less than that at times....hey! Sometimes you want ice cream for breakfast and it is just too much work to get dressed! But there will be no opening of doors while eating ice cream in the all-together! Darn drafts...
But this is definately going into the brain files for future reference...the foyer idea...not the ice cr...well you get it :)
view amiencc's profile
The soffit wasn't removed, it was extended, so they could put more recessed cans. Adding a new closet, a few lights, and sheer fabric panel isn't that expensive! Could be done for $600-$1000 diy.
view chaseunchase's profile
hee hee 600-1000 IS expensive, especially for a diy :) To me, anyway. And requires skills...drywall installation is not as easy as it may appear and can get expensive very quickly if you are following the learning curve...and you have to know your measurements for closet doors...not a beginners project, that's for sure, even though you could greatly modify it to just include the bench and the panel
view amiencc's profile
and should a DIY really be tackling the electrical ? :0/
view amiencc's profile