The Potential that an old apartment holds

Looking at the built environment of the newly developing neighborhoods in Sofia, it becomes evident that there is a tendency for excessive overbuilding, a lack of proper infrastructure to accommodate it and an insufficient number of public spaces. This is part of the pressing problem which is the lack of extensive urban planning in the capital. We are going to tell you about one family who chose an old building in an old neighbourhood, instead of opting for a new and shiny apartment complex in a modern area of the city, unlike most.

While this unusual strategy had both its ups and downs, the benefits of the project definitely outweighed the negatives.

-          An apartment with more light – the cumulative spacing of the old buildings is not following the same norms as today, thus the terraces and common areas are not part of the total area -          Location in an area with well-developed infrastructure -          Abundance of established green spaces and playgrounds for children -          20-minute proximity to South Park -          Parking space

The challenge of renovating apartments in old buildings lies in carefully analyzing and planning the spaces so that they can be both relevant to the context of the contemporary inhabitants and compliant with today’s norms.

Part of the client’s brief included the re-organization of the species of the apartment, so we had to tear down a few of the walls. This led to the development of a spacious living room where both the kitchen and the dining room are now situated. To one of the two bedrooms, which were similar in size, we attached a spacious bathroom for maximum functionality and comfort for the parents. A niche in one of the hallways was turned into a laundry room/storeroom, enclosed with louvred doors, so we can ensure that the space is in unison with the rest of the design, and at the same time provide proper ventilation for its purpose.

The client asked us to create a design that incorporates classical details with modern minimalistic elements without losing the feeling of warmth and comfort. The budget was discussed from the very beginning of the concept design development and we successfully managed to fit in with the financial expectations of the client.

The floors of the apartment were covered in massive parquet, which was in great condition. We collectively took the decision to keep it, since it added to the concept of synergy between the past and the future. The colour scheme aimed to provide a contrast of light and dark in each one of the rooms. While the main furniture was picked out to be monochrome, the walls were painted in colour, which allowed us to put an accent on the Mediterranean details and highlight the warmth of the apartment.