Designer Marina Mikheeva bought an apartment for rent in an old St. Petersburg apartment building. But in the process of renovation, she fell in love with this place so much that now her family stops here herself during frequent trips to the northern capital

Sofa, Dantone Home. Chairs, vintage. On the wall is a painting “From the window”, by Marina Mikheeva.

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IVAN SOROKIN. STYLE: Anna Krutolevich

OBJECT PARAMETERS:

Property type: one-bedroom apartment in an apartment building 1873-1874.

Where it is located: in St. Petersburg in the city center at Five corners

Square footage: 75 m2

Style: eclectic, based on the classic style and filled with modern and vintage furniture

The main idea of the project: the main idea is to open the space, let the spirit of St. Petersburg through the beautiful arched windows into the apartment.

Color scheme: achromatism + related colors (red / orange / red-orange). The main color is light gray (the color of St. Petersburg), accents are yellow, red, black

The author of the project: architect and designer Marina Mikheeva, T. +7 926 521 95 01

Chairs, vintage. Floor lamp Five fingers, vintage, Sweden, 1980s.

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IVAN SOROKIN. STYLE: Anna Krutolevich

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IVAN SOROKIN

“I’ve always dreamed of living in the center of St. Petersburg,” says designer Marina Mikheeva. — I remember this city since the early 1980s. Then it was a city of communal apartments, frozen in anticipation of something new, accustomed to its beauty and sometimes not paying attention to it. I studied architecture in Leningrad, and I always wanted to come back here again. And now my dream has come true.

We originally bought this apartment on Five Corners with my husband for rent. But now the hand does not rise to hand it over, so we ourselves stay in it when we come to St. Petersburg for exhibitions, theater premieres, garage sales or just to relax. And after us, our children also fell in love with this city, and now they are also happy to be here.”

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IVAN SOROKIN. STYLE: Anna Krutolevich

Atlantis armchair, vintage, Czechoslovakia, 1960s after restoration. Coffee table, vintage, Italy, 1980s

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IVAN SOROKIN. STYLE: Anna Krutolevich

The apartment is located on the fifth floor of an apartment building built in 1873-1874, designed by architect M.A. Makarov. Historically, the layout was enfilade, passing through all the rooms, but in 1974 the house underwent major repairs and divided the premises into apartments. As a result, the usual Soviet layout turned out: two rooms, a separate bathroom and a small kitchen. Therefore, the first designer completely dismantled all the partitions, removed the old decoration and utilities and made a complete redevelopment of all the rooms.

The most unusual and interesting item in the apartment is a Hollywood Regency—style bookcase by the Parisian brand Maison Jansen, found on Avito. She emphasizes the historicism of the interior, emphasizing its eclecticism.

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IVAN SOROKIN. STYLE: Anna Krutolevich

Due to the reinforced concrete beam running throughout the apartment, a niche was formed in the living room, in which an alcove was placed – a cozy sleeping place + spacious storage systems. And between the corridor and the kitchen, the designer made a metal partition.

The sleeping area is located in a niche. Bed, Dantone Home. Sconce, Gaetano Sciolari, vintage, 1970s. Textiles, “Objects”, Zara home.

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IVAN SOROKIN. STYLE: Anna Krutolevich

Above the console is a vintage print of “The Girl and the Plane”.

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IVAN SOROKIN. STYLE: Anna Krutolevich

Bed, Dantone Home. Textiles “Shop Items”. Decor and pillows, Zara home. Bed linen, H&M home.

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IVAN SOROKIN. STYLE: Anna Krutolevich

The interior of the apartment is decorated in a classic St. Petersburg style, based on symmetry. “I tried to bring all the rooms along the axis that leads to the light and windows,” says the designer. “Everyone who is here wants to pour themselves a glass of good wine and immediately go to the window, sit on the windowsill and enjoy the view of St. Petersburg.”

The console is custom-made. Decor, “Objects”, H&M home.

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IVAN SOROKIN. STYLE: Anna Krutolevich

Canteen. Chairs, Marcel Breuer design, vintage. Antique table after restoration.

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IVAN SOROKIN. STYLE: Anna Krutolevich

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IVAN SOROKIN. STYLE: Anna Krutolevich

The kitchen differs in its style from the rest of the interior of the apartment, but at the same time harmoniously fits into it. The gas column is hidden and does not catch the eye, which was not easy, and I had to work hard on the design of furniture. On the wall above the work surface hangs a black-and-white work by the Hermitage photographer Yuri Molodkovets, which, with its monochromacy, is ideally combined with the gray St. Petersburg sky and the same shade of kitchen facades.

Kitchen furniture, “Stylish kitchens”. On the wall is a photo work by Yuri Molodkovets, MOST gallery.

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IVAN SOROKIN. STYLE: Anna Krutolevich

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IVAN SOROKIN. STYLE: Anna Krutolevich

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IVAN SOROKIN. STYLE: Anna Krutolevich

The interior has many details inspired by the architecture and atmosphere of St. Petersburg. So, the color of the walls (Little Green paints from Manders) is associated with the shades of the sky of the city on the Neva, the metal partition in the corridor resembles St. Petersburg stained glass windows in the front, and even the paintings that Marina painted herself are inspired by Peter.

On the wall is a painting by Marina Mikheeva. To her left are two photographs by Nikolai Kule, gallery of interior photography MOST.

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IVAN SOROKIN. STYLE: Anna Krutolevich

There are a lot of rare vintage items in the setting, which Marina collected bit by bit throughout Russia. “I have long wanted to make an interior that combines classic and vintage,” she says. — It took a lot of time to find furniture and lighting, it turned out to be a very exciting activity, I spent nights on the Internet looking for interesting and inexpensive things. I consider an unusual find to be a bookcase in the style of Hollywood Regency (“old Hollywood”) in the living room. As soon as I saw her, I immediately realized that she was for St. Petersburg. And the Czech Atlantis chair is generally a separate world of comfort and peace. For older guests, it evokes a lot of pleasant memories: “My parents had just such …””.

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IVAN SOROKIN. STYLE: Anna Krutolevich

The metal partition is made by MakeLoft.

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IVAN SOROKIN. STYLE: Anna Krutolevich

“When we completely dismantled the apartment, I realized that the windows should be open, and there should be cast-iron batteries under the windows. I found these in Taganrog, at some metallurgical plant. I wrote there, painting the history of the house and apartment in colors. And the guys from the factory somehow responded very sincerely. In three weeks, the necessary batteries were welded to us and delivered to St. Petersburg.” Now all the guests first of all pay attention to our windows.

Another interesting case happened with the candelabra. Flipping through Instagram (an extremist organization banned in Russia), I found unusual candlesticks in Moscow. I don’t understand why I was drawn to them. I went to buy, and I was told their story. These chandeliers were made in the 1960s by engineers of the Rubin Design Bureau of the Leningrad Submarine Factory. They are made of brass and crystal and are completely disassembled into parts. Of course, I took them without any hesitation, deciding that this was fate, and they simply had to return to their historical homeland. Needless to say, they fit perfectly into the interior.”

The bathroom is made in the spirit of classic St. Petersburg communal apartments.

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IVAN SOROKIN. STYLE: Anna Krutolevich

View from the apartment window.

The layout of the apartment.

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