Ekaterina Ignatova and Nana Kobakhidze from the Background Studio team combined two apartments in the St. Petersburg residential complex Krestovsky de luxe and adapted the resulting space for a young couple with a small child. The aesthetic preferences of the clients aligned with the designers' tastes, allowing them to quickly agree on key elements for the future design—calm forms, natural textures, and wood and glass as the main materials.
The clients approached Background Studio with a request to merge two apartments and create an individual spatial development scenario for each. The designers envisioned a gradual immersion into the home’s interior, so they separated the small hallway from the public area with several functional blocks. Thus, from the entrance area, doors in aluminum frames filled with frosted glass lead to the owner's study and guest room. Here, a system of cabinets is arranged in a rectangular volume with a folding bed in the middle. The design of the workspace is intended to emphasize the owner's status, so wood veneer became the main material: all walls are covered with wood in different shades.
An elongated corridor leads to an airy living room combined with a kitchen. The clients envisioned future furnishings as unobtrusive and integrated into the overall decor; therefore, designers opted for closed cabinets, a sliding backsplash with hidden storage, and disguised columns housing household appliances. A glazed loggia is adjacent to a bookshelf with a mini-bar and two B&B Italia armchairs, where one can enjoy morning coffee while taking in panoramic views of the city. The team paid special attention to selecting a sofa: they wanted to maintain proportions in the space and add "floating" leather consoles, leading them to choose a model from Minotti.
The dining area was formed on similar principles: the Bonaldo table, GUBI chairs, and Baxter coffee table feature rounded organic shapes with hints of ethnic style. Another unusual element of the living room is a rotating stand with a biofireplace and television. Its lower part is stationary while the upper part is suspended and clad in Kerlite with a travertine texture. Behind its external simplicity lies a complex metal frame that allows this heavy structure to move easily.
