An Interiors Pro Shares Tips for Creating an Urban Oasis

Adrienne BreauxHouse Tour Director
Adrienne BreauxHouse Tour Director
For more than 10 years, I've led Apartment Therapy's real home content, producing thousands of house tours from around the world. Currently, I live in my maximalist dream home in New Orleans, Louisiana, with my partner, a perfect dog, and a cute cat.
updated Feb 19, 2019
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Woman in black dress sitting on wooden stairs with a black cat, surrounded by small decorative mirrors on the wall.
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(Image credit: Séverine Piller)

Life is hectic. It can be even more overwhelming if you live in a vibrant, bustling urban area. Interior designer Séverine Piller and her boyfriend Gianfranco share this Milan apartment, and she wanted to create a calming, minimal retreat.

Name: Séverine Piller and Gianfranco
Location: Milan, Italy
Size: 1400 square feet
Years lived in: 6 months

tan sofa on pink chair

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Séverine‘s inspirations, advice and more on how she created an urban oasis she shares with her boyfriend:

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(Image credit: Séverine Piller)

Our Style: Parisian chic

Inspiration: Scandinavia meets Morocco, California Cool, Black and White

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(Image credit: Séverine Piller)

Favorite Element: The light! I also love the graphic touch that the black door frames and sockets bring to the flat.

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(Image credit: Séverine Piller)

Biggest Challenge: The kitchen. As it is also the entry of the apartment, it needed to be functional and practical but still give a feeling of being spacious and inviting. I think we achieved this by designing this bar that also sort of functions as a sideboard while leaving the kitchen as open as possible.

What Friends Say: Everyone tells us they feel like they are on holiday at our place (which is exactly what I wanted to achieve!). It makes me feel great when they say they don’t want to leave because they feel so at home at our place…

Biggest Embarrassment: We were running behind with the renovations and already had friends booked for a weekend. When they arrived, we had no doors inside the apartment, which sort of got tricky when using the bathrooms!

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(Image credit: Séverine Piller)

Proudest DIY: The hat rack in our dining area. Find how-to instructions on my blog, Simple & Chic. (original tutorial is from A Pair & a Spare.)

Biggest Indulgence: Our custom-made angle sofa and the black granite countertop in the kitchen.

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(Image credit: Séverine Piller)

Best Advice: Go with neutrals on larger pieces of furniture (and kitchen) and then add pops of colors with paint, textiles, art and decoration.

Dream Sources: LA Flea Market, Marché aux puces de Saint-Ouen, ABC Carpet and Home in NY.

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