The owners of this house of 65 square meters, located in the Arturo Soria neighborhood of Madrid, are the same authors of the project. María José de Blas and Rubén Picado, founders of the studio Picado-de Blas Arquitectos, wanted to design an independent space for their children, Mateo and Candela. All four are architects and this singular space, which was in a state of abandonment, represented a challenge for them when it came to inventing a home that reflected the spirit of the neighborhood, opening up to the outside and the vegetation so appreciated in the city .
The house is located on the top floor of an apartment building and has a public terrace right above it: “The house had humidity in the ceiling, it was very deteriorated and very dark, with closed spaces. This is why we nicknamed it ‘The Cave’ “, explain the architects, who achieved a spectacular transformation with the initial aim of flooding the entire interior with light. And they succeeded. After renovationnatural light has become the protagonist ofapartment thanks to the full-height glass that connects the green terrace with the space dedicated to the living room with fireplace and the linear kitchen (sometimes hidden behind accordion doors). Naturally, this light also passes through the house on the other facade thanks to the windows that have been opened in the dividing walls of the interior, providing transparency and a cross-view of the apartment: “The typology is that of a pass-through dwelling, and this quality it is used to generate transparencies between the west-facing terrace and the two bedrooms and the dressing room located to the east. Furthermore, the separations between the spaces open and move like furniture”, explain the authors.
The partition walls and laminated wood furniture are from Garnica Plywood.
The carpentry work was carried out by Alma Ebanistería and the floors by Solados de Poligar. All the furniture in the house was designed by Picado de Blas Arquitectos.
Hidden kitchen, designed by Picado-de Blas Arquitectos. Floor lamp by Candela Picado de Blas. Dividers and furniture in laminated wood, Garnica plywood. On the table, ceramics by Fernando Alcalde.
Picado de Blas Candle Lamps.
Background image of Candela Picado de Blas and Eclipse fireplace by Picado-de Blas Arquitectos. Wallpaper by Nacho Rabadán.
The exterior is visible from anywhere in the apartment, even from the bathroom’s brilliant walk-in shower, which is located right in the center of the floor. The most curious thing is that the color of the vegetation on the terrace changes with the seasons, modifying the shades of the interiors. At night, the external light is replaced by the fire of the Eclipse fireplace and the lamps designed by her daughter, Candela Picado de Blas, who often transforms the multifunctional room into her design and art studio.
The furniture was made to measure and specifically for the house. Pieces with which to exploit all the space and create comfortable environments, full of naturalness. Furthermore, the difference in height between one room and another was exploited to create wardrobes and storage modules. Design, all, with a Nordic air that we love and that is wonderfully in tune with the natural light, fabrics or artworks of Candela.
Blankets for the bedroom
Wool blanket with herringbone pattern and Tirol-Mona fringes
Cotton muslin bedspread with fringes
AM.PM Reversible striped plaid in alpaca and cotton, Stills
Ezcaray blankets.
www.picadodeblas.com
Gema Marcos is a journalist and is specialized in the themes of decoration, design, architecture and hotels. Graduated in Information Science from the Complutense University of Madrid, she has worked for many years in the editing of interiorism and life style magazines.
In the New Style is where he was formed and acquired his knowledge about the interior world. Meeting the decorators and architects of the national panorama, traveling to the European design fairs and studying every week at the tips of the furniture brands will help them to get to know the world of interiorism more deeply. Furthermore, it was his skill to coordinate the hotel section of this magazine, which allowed him to improve the operation and stage of some of the best hotels in Spain and Europe.
He is currently freelance and collaborates with our magazines Elle Decor y Nuevo Estilo, aimed at promoting communication and diffusion in the medium of some national interior design studios. She enjoys her work and enjoys writing about living, contract, craft and travel projects. Indeed, the world of decoration has attracted her since she was small… She knows that eating good things is the essential thing to be happy every day.
Gema enjoys discovering new places and locating curious objects in places and things that inspire her, also, at the time of writing. She enchants her to change and move the household items three by three, put on her chimenea, spend hours in the kitchen and open a wine in her company. She prefers the winter on the veranda and enjoys the vegetables more than the gazpacho. Her favorite place is Villarrube, her maternal home.
