Minimalistic Animal Magetism: Luxury highrise in Miami

Entitled “Minimalistic Animal Magetism”, this deliciously designed apartment is situated in Miami, Florida, designed by local design firm Nieto Design Group. This luxury highrise pad has been designed with predominantly black and white interiors, offers stunning views out to the ocean. The mood is set for the entire scene as soon as you step off the elevator and see the dramatic Reflective Eye artwork that is flanked by a custom designed zebra glass wall, highly polished glass slab floors and an 8 foot wide high gloss lacquer pivot front door. Glossy and reflective finishes is mixed with textural materials to create a unique urban pad.

Once passing the camera and voice controlled security system, the 8′ high gloss black lacquer pivot door opens to reveal a dramatic entry hall where Belgian lighting housed in profiles reflect off the polished black glass slab floor to accentuate a portrait of Michael Jackson Invicible by Leonardo Hidalgo.

The kitchen appliances are concealed by custom designed glass panels as the kitchen is part of an open floorplan (the edge of the desk of the home office is visible in the foreground). The bar & kitchen peninsula anchor the kitchen.

The wave shaped sofa was custom designed to take in the expansive ocean view as well as to curl up and watch the 105″ plasma TV. The custom desk designed to comfortably seat two conforms to the fluid shape of the curved sofa. The organically shaped rug made of crocodile-embossed leather and hair-on-hide looks striking against the gleaming glass slab flooring.

The home office seamlessly merges with the living room as the custom leather-top desk-for-two hugs the curve of the back of the sofa, with its wave form and the wavy paneled wall giving homage to the waves crashing on the shoreline thirty stories below. The structural column becomes a focal point when clad in custom painted zebra glass panels with a linear light source embedded within.

Photos: Ken Hayden

Grey Loft attic reconstruction in Prague by OOOOX

Grey Loft is the brilliant reconstruction of an existing attic apartment in Ostrovského, Prague, Czech Republic by design studio OOOOX. The designers slightly modified the 1,097 square foot (102 square meters) layout, especially in the bathroom where they connected the glazing to the bedroom. The center box with bathroom and toilet is separated distinctly by colored dark pearl paint. The other spaces throughout the apartment are bright in color with various hues of gray in accents walls and furnishings, bleached wood floors, industrial light fixtures and a stainless steel center island in the kitchen.

Photos: Martin Zeman

Little Venice House showcasing playful design details

Little Venice House was designed for a family of four by Andy Martin Architect in Little Venice, West London, England. Warren and Claire Johnson live in Little Venice with their two young boys Charlie, three, and Jake, two. Their apartment is set on the ground floor of grade I listed mansion terrace overlooking one of London’s most beautiful garden squares. With ceilings reaching 4.5 meters, the space has been designed and converted to suit their busy work and family lifestyle. The architects were appointed to help achieve this.

Private rooms moved to the north and public living spaces to the south overlooking the gardens. Every area has been remodeled to offer abundant storage and walls purposely left free to offer space for their expanding art collection. Existing details were removed from doors and walls and reinstated the moulded ceilings and parquet flooring. New elements are made obvious by the use of color or texture, and are designed more like interventions.

Tire company warehouse loft conversion in SoMa

CCS Architecture is best known for their modernist creations and interior design firm Woodson & Woodson Interior Design, is not linked to a particular style, but has work that is more traditional in nature. What happens when the two work on a South of Market condominium in San Francisco is an electric combination of aesthetics. The concrete building was originally built in 1926 as a warehouse for the B.F. Goodrich tire company. Although the building was turned into condos in 1996, it retains metal factory-style windows, exposed ductwork and concrete walls and pillars. Via

The homeowners relocated from a larger, more traditional home. Smith chose celebrate the existing style, but reorganize the spaces around a central core. The effect is a doughnut shape where most of the living and entertaining space is in the ring, while the hole, or core, contains office spaces, workout areas, bathrooms and closets. “We chose to put the rooms that don’t require as much light in the center,” says Smith. “The rooms where people gather, like the kitchen and dining room, are built around that.”

The dining room is framed by two large metal support beams. Smith wouldn’t have it any other way. “I like how they define the space,” he says.

The homeowner says that, in her former residence, she had a set of Chippendale chairs around a dining room table. The chairs didn’t work here, so she and Woodson purchased a set of Chippendale-style chairs and had them lacquered, giving the traditional style a fun update.

Smith chose to do the kitchen cabinets and countertops in a muted shade in order to have the area blend into the open space plan. “Because it’s so visible, I didn’t want it to stand out as a separate room,” he says.

The media room is outfitted with four swiveling chairs. They can remain stationary for conversation, or turned toward the television or the living room.

The master bedroom shows how two styles can live in harmony. The baroque bed is flanked by two metal nightstands and sits in front of sleek cabinetry.

Photos: Paul Dyer & Courtesy of CSS Architecture

Contemporary design in Mexico City: Vidalta

Vidalta Apartment was designed by design studio Kababie Architects in Mexico City, Mexico, completed in 2012. The interior of the 4,843 square foot (450 square meters) home was generated with a full atmosphere that describes perfectly the lifestyle of the family who lives in it. One of the major challenges was the selection of furniture and accessories that, in combination with the finishes and the color palette, shaped each one of the different ambiances.

The living and dining room area is flanked by large windows on one side and the hallway leading to all areas of the apartment on the other. To increase light and height, a mirror plafond was installed across the whole ceiling resulting in a dramatic effect, intensified by the glare of the light marble floors. The dining area is emphasized with a long row suspended lamps with a slight variation in height to give a subtle movement on top of the rectangular and square tables that conform the dining table.

In this space also stands out the combination of leather, wood and glass of the different furniture in both environments, creating an atmosphere full with dark and amber colors and textures broken only by the contrast of the warm purple carpet in the living room. The thick wall that divides the living room from the family room is covered with slabs of black stone whose motion give a nice texture enhanced by the light from windows and ceiling.

The first thing that catches your eye in the hall is a wall covered with copper foils that leads the view in to the apartment.

One of the most important concepts for the design of the kitchen of this apartment was the incorporation of details that refer to the tradition of the family differ from the established parameters. On the ceiling was placed a classic Persian carpet framed in acrylic, giving the room the warmth of the fabric and textures, and a bold splash of color. Another important issue was the distribution of the cooking areas in accordance with the canons of the religion, for which two separate islands were installed, one for the preparation of food that includes meat and other for the preparation of food including dairy products.

The three bedrooms were located in the private area. The guest room has a very simple style generated with a group well selected elements. The secondary room was developed according to the user’s personality and needs.

The master bedroom is also simple, but with elements carefully selected to enjoy the stay in space. The master bedroom has a generous bathroom with dressing room with a nice combination of natural and artificial light.

Photos: Courtesy of Kababie Arquitectos

Crisp and clean three-level urban apartment in Kiev

This urban apartment was constructed in 2012 by Olga Akulova Design created from a C19TH building, on Basseynaya str., Kiev, Ukraine. The 861 square foot (80 square meters) home has been spread out onto three levels over an arch and a road. On the first level, the designers organized the guestroom and the kitchen area. The two stairways lead to the second and third levels where the master bedroom and dining area are situated.

Photos: Roman Shyshak / Stylist: Anna Polyushko

Exceptionally beautiful duplex apartment in Sweden

This unique and completely renovated duplex apartment spotted on Alvhem is situated in Linnéstaden, Sweden. Old and new are combined in an exemplary manner between the two floors that are connected via a white and almost floating white painted custom built staircase with a fitted wardrobe underneath. Quiet and protected on the top floor, one can enjoy fantastic views from the sunny terrace into a beautiful inner courtyard. The 979 square foot (91 square meters) home also features a fully renovated luxurious bathroom, separate laundry area, renovated open kitchen, plenty of storage and a subtle mix between the turn of the century details and modern design. Freshly painted white walls mixed with an exposed brick wall and painted white wooden floors runs like a thread through all the rooms on the lower floor, clean and very tasteful. The kitchen and staircase is at the heart of the home and on the upstairs level there is an impressive living room with dark heated floors, electronic operable skylights with rain sensor, inset spotlights, exposed beams and a glazed side which can be opened up completely to the lovely terrace with views of the open courtyard, and the neighbor’s rooftops.

Contemporary Aquatic Park penthouse renovation

A complete contemporary renovation of Aquatic Park penthouse is located atop a concrete high rise in San Francisco, California by Craig Steely Architecture. The project involved complex considerations relating to the mobilization of materials and the impact to building residents. The original four bedroom and four bath penthouse was transformed into an open floor plan to take advantage of the views on both the north and south sides of the unit. Modern finishes include book-matched walnut cabinetry, live edge walnut slab countertops, steel and walnut bookcases, handmade mosaic tiled walls, gun blued steel and clear and etched 1/2″ glass.

Photos: Rien van Rijthoven

Charming 41 square meters apartment in Stockholm

This charming Stockholm, Sweden apartment, spotted on Alvhem, is situated on the second floor of a three story building with breathtaking views over the river. The home is extremely well designed and space efficient for only 441 square feet (41 square meters) of living space, offering an open contemporary floor plan, high ceilings and a sunny balcony. With a continuous floor plan, the home feels quite spacious and the large windows give a bright and airy feeling. Painted white boarded floors run throughout the apartment. The recently renovated kitchen is open to the living room with a built-in breakfast bar dividing the space that serves as extra work/countertop while providing dining space. The spacious bedroom features partly glazed double doors that leads out to a cozy balcony.  There is also a stylish bathroom that was recently renovated in timeless colors and materials. The apartment is located towards a quiet courtyard and out toward the river with the absence of traffic, this is a very quiet and peaceful home.

Modern apartment with a sleek sculptural staircase

Nam Dger Apartment is a unique modern home situated in Nam Tower in the heart of Tel Aviv, Israel, designed by Gerstner Architects. The most intriguing feature about this home is its sculptural steel staircase as the focal point of the home. This two-level bachelor pad showcases sleek white interiors and modern furnishings of minimalist design. There is an upstairs mezzanine level that encompasses the private areas of the home, a master bedroom and nursery. A large embankment of windows along the front of the home looks out onto the busy city, extending out to a spacious patio.

Photos: Amit Geron