Spaces that break down stereotypes that loft style is uncomfortable, boring and tasteless

Not so long ago there was a time when many people wanted a loft, meaning by it something industrial, with brick or concrete walls, laconic decor, communications sticking out and beams on the ceiling. This was the end of the requirements — neither the location of the object was taken into account (initially the loft was a residential space in a former industrial building), nor the originality of the textures. Photo wallpapers “for concrete” and plastic imitation of bricks have become commonplace, so the loft style suffered the same fate as minimalism, which acquired the epithet “mortgage” in its worst manifestation, or Art Deco, which turned into “Gypsy Baroque”.

In fact, the loft can — and should! — to be authentic, bright, self-sufficient. And most importantly — cozy: conciseness has never been opposed to comfort. All this is perfectly understood by professionals — designers, architects, interior bloggers, photographers, artists and collectors. The lofts they live in are very different, but each of them is worthy of attention.

Designer Paola Navone’s loft in Milan

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ENRICO CONTI/LIVING INSIDE

Famous designerPaola Navone (Paola Navone) chose to live in the Tortona area — now it is one of the most fashionable places in the city, where successful artists and architects live, but before it was a factory. Paola Navone’s house is located in a former machine shop: a studio is located on the ground floor, and above it are the actual living quarters. So from the point of view of location, everything is as authentic as possible. Attention is also attracted by metal ceiling beams, from which light is reflected, which is also a sign of the loft style. There is a lot of metal here in general, but thanks to the abundance of antique objects and bright furniture, it does not look aggressive at all. And due to the fact that there is a garden at the entrance to the loft, the whole space does not seem brutal, but homely friendly.

The entire interior by link:

• Visiting the famous designer Paola Navone

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ENRICO CONTI/LIVING INSIDE

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ENRICO CONTI/LIVING INSIDE

Loft of Sabine Marcelis and Paula Cournet in Rotterdam

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Christopher Regild / Living inside

Multitouch DesignerSabine Marcelis collaborates with fashion brands, creates art installations and collectible design items for leading galleries. Together with your partner and colleagueBy Paul Cournet, the architect of the OMA/AMO bureau, they chose a 520-meter house that once housed a paper mill. “It was important for us to preserve the original appearance of the house. The only thing we allowed ourselves is curtains, they separate the zones bedrooms, living room, dining room and make the space mobile, flexible.” Exposed brick walls and cement underfloor heating emphasize the industrial character of the building. The space could look like a gallery of modern art, but art objects and bright accents organically complement the interior, filling it with life.

The entire interior by link:

• “Antidom” by designer Sabine Marcelis on the site of the former factory

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CHRISTOPHER REGILD / LIVING INSIDE

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CHRISTOPHER REGILD / LIVING INSIDE

Loft of the creators of the Fort Street Studio brand in New York

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JONATHAN LEIJONHUFVUD

Janis Provisor and Brad Davis are the founders of the handmade carpet brand Fort Street Studio. Interestingly, they created the first carpet made of wild silk specially for their loft in New York — this is how their business began.

“We didn’t contact interior designers, but we worked with an architect. The main idea was to leave the main space as open as possible and create different functional zones. The back half of the loft is more like a separate apartment with an office, a master bedroom, a bathroom and storage spaces,” the owners say about this space.

The entire interior by link:

• Loft of the creators of the Fort Street Studio brand in New York

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JONATHAN LEIJONHUFVUD

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JONATHAN LEIJONHUFVUD

Loft of photographer Kirill Ovchinnikov in Krasnaya Polyana

Kitchen-living room. The dining table is made of a log cabin.

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Kirill Ovchinnikov

Photographer Kirill Ovchinnikov calls his apartment an “industrial chalet”. After moving to Krasnaya Polyana, he found a space that suits him not without difficulty — a house with an attic floor and large windows designed by the workshopAlexey Kozyr. “We left all the concrete elements intact, and plastered the walls of the blocks. In the center of the composition is an open metal fireplace separating the residential part of the apartment from the hallway. The combination of decorative plaster and concrete complements the kitchen made of metal profile and the table made of timber. Above the table — real vintage factory fixtures from my friends from Moscow Chronosfactor. The “industrial chalet” style is completed by high stumps-stools, fortunately there are still a lot of stumps in the Clearing,” Kirill Ovchinnikov tells about his interpretation of the loft style.

The entire interior by link:

• The apartment of photographer Kirill Ovchinnikov in Krasnaya Polyana

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KIRILL OVCHINNIKOV

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KIRILL OVCHINNIKOV

Artists’ loft in the Netherlands Zaandam

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Maarten Willemstein

An industrial building with an area of 353 square meters in the city of Zaandam, thanks to the Modijefsky architectural studio, has turned into a multifunctional space — at the same time a gallery, a workshop and a residential house for a couple of local artists. The original beams, painted white, are in harmony with the parquet laid with a “herringbone”, and the former chimneys have turned into windows through which light penetrates. The space is very airy and bright, which proves once again that the loft style is not about unkemptness and twilight.

The entire interior by link:

• Artists’ studio in a former industrial building

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MAARTEN WILLEMSTEIN

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MAARTEN WILLEMSTEIN

Loft of an interior blogger in Berlin

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@eightyfive.sqm

Artist and art director Alexandra Eliza became interested in blogging when she began to equip her apartment in Berlin. Let the house, built in 1895, have only plaster left of the original details, the ability to mix old and new and a passion for Japanese culture allowed Alexandra to create a girlish cozy space in which loft style elements like industrial-style items and emphatically untreated surfaces only emphasize the overall soothing atmosphere.

The entire interior by link:

• Apartment of an interior blogger in Berlin

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@eightyfive.sqm

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@eightyfive.sqm

Anna and Sergey Mongayt’s loft in Moscow

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mikhail loskutov

TV presenter Anna Mongayt, her husband, graphic designer Sergey Mongayt and their two sons live in a spacious loft located in the buildings of the former Rassvet factory in Moscow. “Our second child was born, and we decided that we wanted not just a big apartment, but some unusual housing,” Anna recalls. — We were immediately looking for a factory loft with high ceilings. We once had an apartment filled with cheerful space plastic from the 1960s, there was another one – cold, “high—tech”, now we wanted a New York loft, like in the Meatpacking District, where rough industrial textures and wood are combined.” The architect realized their dreamKaterina Vinogradova. 

The entire interior by link:

• The Best of ELLE DECORATION: visiting Anna Mongait

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MIKHAIL LOSKUTOV

Nina Anisimova

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