Architecture Wednesday: From Stable to Tiny House

In 1850, this apartment was nothing more than a small stable at the end of a typical Parisian paved courtyard overlooking Boulevard Garibaldi. It had a tiled roof supported by an oak framework with a hayloft on the first floor.

At that time, the Boulevard Garibaldi was the rampart between the city of Paris and the beginning of the city of Issy. Between 1853 and 1870, the boulevard was built and the stable was incorporated into a Haussmanian building facing the boulevard. With the disappearance of the horses and the appearance of the metro, a façade was created and the stable became a small apartment.

In 2024, the apartment underwent a complete renovation. Everything was transformed and renovated. Curves are an integral part of this achievement; they hug the existing walls and facades and link the spaces together.

The main space is one room with an angled wall and windows open to the street; a small living and dining area fills that nook with a nice modern kitchen at the other end. It is a small space, clearly, but the high ceilings and unused attic space allowed for the creation of an additional level for a sleeping loft linked to the main floor by a custom-made curved staircase.

The project gives full place to natural materials and traditional techniques to give a second breath of life to the building: a crawl space regulates the humidity of the ground; the oak framework was repaired, lightened, and sanded; and the stone walls were plastered with a mixture of natural lime and pigments. The brick façade walls are insulated from the outside with wood fiber and a lime-hemp plaster is sprayed on the inside.

It's not for me, because that small living area would drive me crazy, but I love the rest of it … perhaps if I could bust through the space next door and add a few feet to the living room?

Dwell

Architecture Wednesday: Modernized French Loft

It’s got so much of what I want … it’s in Paris, it’s modern, it’s industrial, it has history, outdoor space, and a grand staircase for a Mame-esque entrance. What’s not to love?

French designer and architect Vincent Eschalier has taken an old industrial factory and turned it into a stunning home. This Modernized French Loft, in the 10^th arrondissement of Paris, was rehabilitated from an old factory originally built in the late nineteenth century. Now, rather than heavy machinery and busy workers, the old building accommodates 17 lofts in total.

But this one … owned and lived in by Eschalier himself, sits on the top floor of the original factory building. And since it was his personal space, he made it very personal.

He included industrial influenced elements to stay true to the building’s history, but contrasted them with natural wooden details, contemporary shapes, and pops of my new ‘It’ color, orange. But it isn’t the color that catches one’s eye, it’s the stunning black metal winding staircase in the very center of the apartment.

Flanked on either side by two matching metal columns, the staircase leads from the main living space to a loft area that includes the master bedroom and a private roof terrace.

It’s a large space, an open space, but thanks to skylights and clerestory windows it never feels dark, and there is little need for a lot of artificial lighting.

It’s bright, open, airy, modern …and French.

J 'aime cette maison!

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Tuesday Thought #1

Architecture Wednesday: Saganaki House

When I first saw the name of this home — Saganaki House—I assumed it was somewhere in Asia, but no … it’s Paris, baby.

It’s an extension of a small … and I mean small … triangular home on three levels, but there were problems, not the least of which it was small and triangular and on three levels. It was a complex geometrical space, difficult to furnish and live in, and was quite dark and north facing.

A new first level was created using the geometry of the small plot of land and the second level was constructed “off-axis” which allowed for a new orientation to the west and the ability to remove two small roof terraces.

The new levels have a differentiated architectural façade — zinc cladding for the first, wooden cladding for the second—to express the “hierarchy” of the spaces created. By the same logic, the four staircases of this five level home have different geometries as one travels “from the basement to the attic” to the terrace.

The architect also used custom furniture to optimize storage space while highlighting the complex geometry of the plan. The use of white as a predominant color and wood for all the floors walls and ceilings links each level bringing “clarity to living spaces.”

It is small …. And it’s five levels … and it’s oddly shaped … but, sheesh, it’s Paris.

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The Funny Papers

Clay Bennett, Mike Luckovich, John Cole, Darrin Bell, Bill Day, David Horsey, Randy Bish