For designer Aboudi Hassoune, the plan of his home began with a simple question: “Why should our surroundings remain inactive when we are constantly evolving and changing?”
Following Hassoune began his own design practice, Abnorm Studio, the need for a workspace quickly became evident. In 2011, with hardly any means, he determined on a tiny rental unit centrally located in the Plateau area of Montreal. The job: Turn this little apartment in an office and a home which expresses his nature and style sense.
Hassoune transformed his 720-square-foot space into a myriad of alternative configurations. Custom and stock furniture pieces are put compared to one another, allowing the large main room to be an office, a lounge, a large dining room and a walk-in cupboard, all in a single.
in a Glance
Who lives here: Aboudi Hassoune and Kurt-James Dexter Kaulbach
Location: Montreal
Size: 720 square feet; 2 bedrooms, 1 bathroom
That’s interesting: The same light reflectors used on a desk are also used from the fall ceiling. This enables Hassoune to switch up the shed ceiling with interchangeable images.
Emily Campbell
The brightly lit apartment is basically one big, open room. Flexible and portable furniture, vibrant books, toys and multipurpose spaces give it a playful feeling.
Normally the main room is divided into three spaces: lounge/living room, storage and office. However, if the occasion presents itself, a library wall can be pushed back and also to transform the room into a sizable area right for a dinner party, movie watching or game playing, centering around a ping-pong table created out of wood tables and a home made net.
Emily Campbell
The furniture can be combined and reconfigured with custom cushions to give sofa chairs for up to 30 individuals. Movable foam tiles out of a dollar store piled in different configurations to specify distinct spaces for lounging around the ground.
The custom-designed upholstered pads are a recent addition. With regular dimensions, every bit of furniture in the apartment can work together. For example, these cushions can be inserted to the top of the worktable to make a multilevel lounging area.
Emily Campbell
Two big tables made from standard plywood and timber offer a surface for working, dining or meeting. After the area is set up like a formal office, beanbags out of Neon are used to keep the apartment’s playful and casual attitude.
Emily Campbell
The rear wall is coated in slats very similar to wall coverings in a clothes store. Stock hardware holds shelves, spare and magazines chairs. The slats allow this wall to adapt quickly and easily. After the area is arranged as an office, traces of home life are hidden.
Shelf: Expedit, Ikea
Emily Campbell
To maximize the distance, Hassoune made certain everything has multiple applications. In addition to providing storage and display space, the slat wall conceals the bedroom doors. In a similar manner, the sliding door for the stacked washer and drier functions as a whiteboard.
Emily Campbell
Both doors to the bedroom spacious inward. This enables Hassoune to place furniture in front of the doorways when guests are finished.
Emily Campbell
The entry to the apartment is flanked by two practical spaces: the kitchen and the storage space, completed in black and dark grey. The colour choices contrast with the mild and playful feeling of the remainder of the apartment. Juxtaposing the dark and light regions exaggerates the size of the light spaces. The absence of walls between the darkened spaces and the chief room keeps the kitchen and storage spaces out of feeling modest.
Emily Campbell
Hassoune lifts his apartment, so he kept alterations to the kitchen layout to a minimum. The cupboards were painted with chalkboard paint to visually unify the kitchen — and provide an enjoyable way to tag their materials. (Other doodles and drawings sometimes make their way on the cabinets, also.) Hassoune coated the laminate countertops with wood cutting boards out of Ikea.
Emily Campbell
The storage space is a narrow area enclosed by full-height closets on each side. They had been an investment, but Hassoune can take them with him if he moves.
Emily Campbell
The library unit divides the storage space from the remainder of the space. It’s a cupboard on one side and bookshelves and exhibit space on the opposite. The library unit is on wheels, allowing the room to be partitioned in a variety of ways. This motion enables Hassoune and his roommate to change the size and purpose of the space, continuing with all the dynamic theme of the apartment.
Emily Campbell
There’s no formal dining area in this casual and creative apartment. If needed, the principal space can become a dining area for up to 16 individuals. But generally there are only a few people eating at a moment.
For everyday dining, Hassoune dressed up a counter-height table from Ikea with vibrant paint swatches. A layer of glass helps to maintain the swatches set up and protect them from spills. The glass is raised using an aluminum reflector that is ordinarily found in fluorescent light. Like many things from the apartment, the swatches can be swapped out.
Emily Campbell
One of Hassoune’s favorite pieces is his custom “flying carpet” coffee table. Drawing from his Middle Eastern heritage, he place a playful, custom-built spin on the Persian rug. The carpeting rests on a plywood surface which can be readily removed.
Emily Campbell
The base is really a smaller wood coffee table. The built in wine cooler is constructed from a plastic bar container for ice hockey and two metal wine chillers for holding the bottles. These pieces can be bought from any restaurant supply shop as an inexpensive solution to keep drinks cold and available.
Emily Campbell
Hassoune shares his apartment with author Kurt-James Dexter Kaulbach, and throughout the workday with his partner Bella Astor. Both roommates continue to come up with unique configurations for their innovative live-work space.
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