Dual Contemporary Houses by VPA Architects - Interiors

 Interiors of dual contemporary homes for two brothers living in Ahmedabad, India as designed and created by VPA Architects.

Ground Floor Plan

First Floor Plan

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"Concrete House" by Vanguarda Architects in Buenos Aires

“The land’s characteristics made it possible to plan the design of this weekend house through vast glass façades that are benefited by the empty area surrounding it and integrate large visual fields towards the golf course and the immediate environment. The access to the house features a paneling made of lapacho boards set horizontally. The house is organized around a very simple layout, composed of two crossed volumes: the first one runs parallel to the front, floating over the sitting room and the second one runs perpendicular to the former and supported on the only side that has a nearby neighbor.

From the double-height hall, access is gained to the public areas aligned on the rear façade with open views onto the golf course. The sitting room, dining room, kitchen and barbecue area may be fully integrated by means of movable panels to create a suitable space for social gatherings. The access area is completed with a toilet and a home theater room that leads us to the staircase, made in concrete, from which we get to the master suite and the children’s area. This sector is made up of two en-suite bedrooms and a common playroom separated from the parents’ area by the double height and connected by means of a steel and glass bridge.

The ground floor is completed with the service area, made up of a roofed double garage, laundry, storage area, machine room, service bedroom, bathroom and changing room for the pool.

Exclusive graphic applications supplied by the company Hachetresele were designed for the toilet, kitchen and home theater room in this house, thus incorporating graphic design to the proposed architecture and emphasizing the customization of its rooms.” ~ Vanguarda Architects

The main feeling that the home conveys is a sense of defiance of gravity and space. With its large spans of glass that take advantage of the house’s relationship to the environment, the space seems almost larger than life.

With an expansive surface area of 500 m2 distributed across 9 rooms, the ground floor is home to the social sector of the house. Here you will find the living room, dining room, kitchen with breakfast bar, and TV room, as well the outdoor barbecue and patio.

Each space in the house features a special design selected according to the way of life of its owners, and remains true to the rational current style that is perceived in each and every corner.

On the upper floor, find the master suite with a spacious bathroom and private dressing room. At the other end of the floor, two secondary suites are connected by a glass corridor that opens onto a balcony, generating a sense of integration and flow.

The whole house is designed in perfect harmony, with materials such as wood, steel, and glass found throughout. The seriousness of the style is broken by the use of bright colors on some of the walls, as well as on the furnishings.

The union of the spaces creates a sense of endlessness, taking full advantage of the environment. generates an endless spatiality, wich was thought to take advantage of the environment, that ends with an dematerialized surround that covers the architectural box.

Architects: Vanguarda Architects
Location: Buenos Aires, Argentina
Project area: 502 sqm

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Why You Should Break the Rules When Decorating Your Home ~ Nate Berkus

Nate Berkus - a guy who knows firsthand what a well appointed space can do for your soul - on his design for living; in conversation with Lisa Kogan

Nate's Design Philosophy

Lisa Kogan: You like beautiful things.

Nate Berkus: I do. But even more than that, I like things that remind me of where I've been. Who I've loved. Who I love. And where I want to go.

Lisa Kogan: Wow...my things remind me that I should probably dust more often.

Nate Berkus: [Laughs] I'm just saying let's admit that our things mean something to us when they do. But let's also admit when they don't. Let's really look at what we want our homes to say about who we are.

Lisa Kogan: Mine says I like a good tag sale. Actually, I hit a few flea markets after seeing a makeover you did on your show. I spotted the coolest little creamer, and I could hear you whispering in my ear, "That doesn't have to be for serving cream." So now there's a silver Deco creamer on my dressing table, and it's holding a bunch of Q-tips—one of a bazillion things currently cluttering my apartment.

Nate Berkus: For a long time I was hell-bent on clutter-free living. I was a ruthless editor when it came to my possessions, to the point where my homes were very sparse, very minimal. Then I realized that's not who I am. I wanted to be surrounded by things that moved me. I wanted to have tabletops piled with books and shells and candles. But it took me a while to let go of this very rigid idea I had, of what my space should look like. Once I started letting stuff in, I really started making a home for myself.

Lisa Kogan: How do you decide what to let in?

Nate Berkus: What I've come to understand is that if things have meaning, if they sing a little song to you when you look at them, that's when you can really start breaking the rules, quote-unquote, of design. Why not take a two-dollar creamer with the lid missing and fill it with Q-tips? Who says you can't reupholster your chair with a shearling rug or take the fantastic vintage necklace you never wear and hang it around the neck of a lamp?

Lisa Kogan: Your place is full of wild cards. This chunky pine table next to a sleek modern chaise is a surprise.

Nate Berkus: That table wasn't drawn into any floor plan. I fell for it the first time I went to Mexico City and stumbled across an amazing antiques store tucked away in the basement of a building. It was the most impractical thing in the world. But when I look at it, I remember the exact moment I was standing there—too hot, a little hungry, tired from the night before—and thought, "That's a beautiful thing."

Lisa Kogan: I like that your idea of beautiful is something that's got a few miles on it. You're not afraid of the occasional scratch and chip.

Nate Berkus: I'm a big fan of the chip. I like it when something's a bit damaged.

Lisa Kogan: That's why you hired Henry and Emma [Nate's two endlessly teething shelter mutts].

Nate Berkus: Exactly. [Laughs] Those two are masters at messing up whatever comes in here. That's why about 80 percent of the stuff I live with is old. I like letting things take on the character they're meant to have by really being used. You know, even some of the finest antiques show some wear and tear. Think of the feet of a chest of drawers from the 17th century—they're always corroded because people used to wash their floors with lye, which ate away the wood. And that's one of the signs that the best antiques dealers look for to see if the piece is authentic. So when you own things that have the imperfections they deserve, that they've earned from a well-lived life, it frees you from feeling as though they're untouchable.

Lisa Kogan: I bought a very expensive zinc dining table about 20 years ago. It was just totally flawless. And I thought, "I should have people over for dinner." Then I thought, "And we could eat sort of buffet-style, standing up...right near the table. Like maybe in the vicinity of the table."

Nate Berkus: To admire it, without actually making contact with it. Nice!

Lisa Kogan: Did I mention that it was expensive and, for one brief, shining moment, totally flawless? What can I say? It's hard to keep your stuff from owning you.

Nate Berkus: People first. Dogs second. Things last. It's a simple philosophy.

How to surround yourself with things that are genuinely nourishing .....

Lisa Kogan: I've got a friend who's in my home on a regular basis, and she keeps giving me things that are—how to put this delicately...seven kinds of ugly. I know people have to come first, and the last thing I want to do is hurt her feelings, but....

Nate Berkus: Is there a shelf you can use for those things? I mean, people are more important than things, but things are important. I think it matters what our eyes land on; I think it matters what our butts sit on. It's important how we feel in our homes, because feeling good makes us more gracious. And that makes it easier to welcome others not only into our homes but into our lives.

Lisa Kogan: So what are the things that matter most to you?

Nate Berkus: To me it's about the books that are out of print, and the photos in frames. And the letters and notes.

Lisa Kogan: The rest is gravy.

Nate Berkus: We all have so much: We open our closets, and so many things still have their price tags attached. We open our cupboards, and there are those dishes that we've never used because they're "too good." Under our sinks we've got the 25 glass vases that held every floral arrangement ever sent to us. Why not recycle the glass? Better yet, fill it with sand and white candles, and throw a party. Take the dishes out and set the table with them every day. I mean, what exactly is an "everyday" dish? Why do we have all these categories?

Lisa Kogan: So people can sell us more stuff?

Nate Berkus: Right! I'm the first person to say, "Do not buy everything. Please, buy a new set of sheets if you want. But pair them with your grandmother's quilt."

Lisa Kogan: Okay, but what happens when you're ready for the next chapter of your story? What happens when your home seems to represent who you were a million somebody else's ago?

Nate Berkus: I find myself helping people in that situation a lot—after a divorce, after a death. They want to do something new. Sometimes they even want to be someone new, and changing their environment can be part of that process. It's a way to shed your skin. It's a way to move forward.

Lisa Kogan: You have been faced with that situation yourself. Is it ever hard to be with Fernando's stuff?

Nate Berkus: He was one of those people you just don't want to sit next to on an airplane—the guy who's always trying to cram a three-foot ceramic pineapple under his seat. Then one day I went to the 26th Street flea market and brought back some African beads and wooden bowls and an English picture frame and a tiny French-to-English pocket dictionary from the 19th century. And he said, "You mean I've been traveling the world, bringing these things home, and they've been sitting on a card table on 26th Street?"

When Fernando died, his brother allowed me to take whatever I felt a connection to. So the majority of his library, I have. And one of the things that he and I always used to do together was sit down and go through these books. He had stuck little Post-it notes on all the pages because he was always wanting me to see something I hadn't seen before—a brilliant quote or some amazing place he thought we should visit or the pattern on a tile wall in Morocco or maybe just an incredible face. Now a part of what he collected lives on and is celebrated by the way I live.

There's something beautiful and very circular about passing by something that was important to the person you loved, or touching something that once meant something to him—that brings me some peace.

Lisa Kogan: And yet it's not a shrine around here.

Nate Berkus: I look at people who have lost someone and go for years without changing a thing in the room because they're afraid even the tiniest change would just be too painful. And I always think, "Wouldn't it honor the person more if you used the room for something that gave you joy? Because they're not here. But you are."

Lisa Kogan: You know, there's a great sense of serenity in this apartment. How does somebody use design to create that for themselves?

Nate Berkus: Good design isn't just about mathematical proportions and eyeballing and space planning. Good design is about imagination, and it's about surrounding yourself with things that are genuinely nourishing.

Lisa Kogan: And anybody can do that.

Nate Berkus: Definitely. People should be proud of the home they've created and the memories that have been made there. You have to ask yourself if the place really does represent who you are. When your eye travels around the room, does it say something about the people who live in that house? About those who came before? Does it really tell the story of your life?

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Ways to make your home feel bigger - Part 1

A house cannot be made any larger without some serious demolition work. In order to expand a floor plan, one would normally need to knock down walls, extend the roof line and rebuild all over again. This original plan might become more complicated along the way as it is undertaken and as new discoveries are made. It is quite a hassle taking on large home improvement plans because of the costs and the inconvenience involved.

One of the reasons why a home looks smaller is the amount and style of furniture that is inside it. If there is too much furniture in a room or if the furniture is too big for a room, it makes the room look smaller. This is the main problem if people are moving from a bigger house to a smaller one and do not want to get rid of any furniture.

Colours also play an important role in any home. Light colours are always better than dark colours in a small house. One should paint the walls in light colours and also keep the décor light so that the rooms feel more open. Light and earthly tones are much more pleasing to the eyes and bring about a major difference in a house which was previously painted in dark colours. Also, one should avoid hanging large picture frames in a room which has a lower ceiling as this tends to make the height of the ceiling more noticeable.

The doors in the house are an important criteria as well. An entry door made out of glass or a French door is a much better option to have. Exterior doors made of glass let more light in and this helps in making the interiors feel bigger. Also, using a French door in a room will help in making it and the adjacent room feel bigger when the door is closed. One could even consider swapping out a single door for a double door wherever possible.

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Contemporary Interiors : Premier Penthouse in Montreal

This 3,300 square foot residence was once two units turned to one– designed by René Desjardins as a contemporary, yet cozy feeling space all overlooking the Canadian city.

Though the views reign supreme, the wood elements, stunning tile and subsequent flooring all tie in the luxurious feelings this home exudes. One of the highlights of this space has to be the mosaic tile installations in the master bathroom, with gold floral patterns and a whole lot of glass. The entire project is a classic space that really breathes elegance and a keen eye for style.

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