What can a savvy designer obtain when introduced with the cramped footprint of, say, lower than 100 sq. ft? How about lower than 50? Or what might they do with simply 20 sq. ft and a clumsy ceiling top in addition? These predicaments can afford the chance for a real inventive to showcase a eager eye, technical expertise, and design prowess.
Right here, 5 designers current the smallest areas they’ve ever created, and share how they tackled the challenges to maximise layouts and design one thing really placing.
Hattie Collins, Hattie Sparks Interiors
I designed an under-the-stairs powder room that’s 24 sq. ft (at most!) and had simply sufficient area for the necessities. The ceiling is slanted at a number of totally different angles over the sink and the bathroom, making wallpaper selection tough. I selected a traditional Cole & Son wallpaper that helped trick the attention by visually flattening the slope of the ceiling whereas nonetheless offering motion and depth. The natural traces of the palm leaves helped camouflage the sharp angles, one thing a extra geometric repeat could have known as to consideration as a substitute.
We additionally used customized slim louvered French doorways with a smaller opening radius than an ordinary door, a dynamic sample to supply visible curiosity, an arrogance nestled flush right into a nook, and smooth equipment and {hardware}. The darkish self-importance and equipment supply a layer of distinction and just a little pressure, however do not compete with the wallpaper—the true star of the present. With the assistance of an skilled installer, a affected person consumer, and just a little creativeness, we managed to drag it off.
Hattie Collins’s powder room.
Photograph: Laura SteffanJim Dove, Jim Dove Design
A champagne bar I designed for the 2019 Kips Bay Decorator Present Home introduced distinctive challenges when it got here to performance, lighting, and incorporating proportion and stability on a small scale. Due to its tiny dimension, the jewel-box aesthetic instantly got here to thoughts. I needed one thing attractive. It actually began with the Kohler faceted glass-vessel sink and the Cambria countertop, which has the flexibility to be under-lit. Then I introduced in a number of sources and ranges of lighting and reflective surfaces—the mirror, lacquered cabinetry, and reflective wallpaper on the partitions and ceiling. Layering and utilizing a single palette creates each visible depth and the phantasm of area.
I utilized the identical rules utilized in a bigger area, however with much more exact evaluation—and a willingness to switch because the set up processes progressed. For instance, I had to make use of totally different overhead lighting than initially deliberate. Recessed shelving niches add depth. Complementary customized carpeting and artisan-made {hardware} create an unique environment that doesn’t compete with the adjoining areas.
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