Paris Houzz Tour: Small Studio Leaves Room for Luxurious Details
A designer transforms his son's student apartment with a mezzanine bed and elegant decor
Interior designer Jean-Christophe Peyrieux’s son, 18 and just finished high school, was about to start his art studies. While other parents might have made do with throwing some cheap furniture into a run-down apartment, Peyrieux saw the opportunity to put his talents to good use and make his son happy. “I loved working on this project because I was able to optimize the structure to its maximum potential and furnish it in a style we liked. It’s very different from working with the demands of a client, but it’s not necessarily simpler, because you have more doubts when you do it for yourself,” he says. The designer tells us how he found and renovated the studio, and shares some tips and tricks.
“The biggest challenge was making room for two separate beds, because my son wanted to have his big brother over regularly,” Peyrieux says. With this in mind, he used the existing constraints of the space as a starting point for planning the layout. Especially challenging was a bathroom with two small windows, partitioned off by a thick wall that concealed a chimney.
The studio has only one other window, facing southeast, which is where the sitting area is situated.
As the apartment has a 9½-foot (2.85-metre) ceiling, Peyrieux was able to place his son’s bed on a mezzanine.
As the apartment has a 9½-foot (2.85-metre) ceiling, Peyrieux was able to place his son’s bed on a mezzanine.
“[It was] impossible to build a structure for a double bed because it would have encroached too much on the living room, but the 90-centimetre-wide [3-foot-wide] alcove space allowed us to fit a sofa that [turns into] a second (double) bed. This way, my son has his bed on the mezzanine that he doesn’t have to fold up constantly, and he can have his brother and his brother’s girlfriend sleep downstairs, so they don’t disturb each other.”
Though Peyrieux’s affinity is for optimising the structure of a space and for electrical plans, he didn’t neglect the decor. The shelving unit and small pieces of furniture are his own designs, made by the Belgian company Steele.
Peyrieux finds ladders very uncomfortable for adults, so he built a real staircase to the mezzanine bunk. The MDF structure also allowed for concealed storage, which can be accessed from the living room.
To the right of the about 23½-inch-wide (60-centimetre-wide) staircase are 12-inch-deep (30-centimetre-deep) closets: “In reality, the storage space is much deeper at the bottom of the stairs because it spans the entire width of the mezzanine, that is, about 90 centimetres [3 feet]. So, I was able to install a closet, a shoe drawer and a tub on wheels that you can pull out and where you can store the comforter, pillows and so on,” the designer says.
There are about 27½ inches (70 centimetres) of vertical space above the bed – enough room to sit up comfortably.
At the foot of the mezzanine, the living area includes a full-fledged kitchen, a small desk near the window, and a seating area where the designer’s son has arranged his music equipment. The son fell for a Weltron radio cassette player from the ’70s from the shop where his father sells vintage design in addition to his work as an interior designer.
The desk was designed by Peyrieux and made by Steele.
A bar countertop marks the boundary between the kitchen and the living room: “I chose a tall table to balance the proportions of the mezzanine,” the designer says. The table has a wooden top and brass studs, while the chairs are covered with leather in an elephant-skin look. Both table and chairs were designed by Peyrieux and made by Topos Workshop.
Peyrieux especially loves lighting, which explains the luxurious – for a student apartment – central chandelier and golden wall lamp. “In a studio, only a few pieces of furniture set the tone, so you have to choose them carefully. A central chandelier always brings extra flair,” he says.
’70s chandelier: by Gaetano Sciolari, from the designer’s shop, Boutique Peyrieux; adjustable wall lamps: Atelier Moderniste
’70s chandelier: by Gaetano Sciolari, from the designer’s shop, Boutique Peyrieux; adjustable wall lamps: Atelier Moderniste
Peyrieux saved on the kitchen to keep the budget reasonable. His dreams of a high-end model and granite countertop had to be abandoned: “We chose a matt grey lacquered Ikea model and a painted wooden countertop. To give the kitchen a custom-made look, I enclosed it within partitions and opted for a mirror backsplash. A soffit [an overhanging architectural element] on the ceiling delineates the spaces and made it possible to install the pipes and spotlights,” the designer says.
Here is another trick Peyrieux used for space optimisation: An extra-flat water heater by Ariston is hidden behind one of the wall-mounted cabinets in the kitchen. This type of water heater, which is rectangular rather than cylindrical, saves a lot of space.
Here is another trick Peyrieux used for space optimisation: An extra-flat water heater by Ariston is hidden behind one of the wall-mounted cabinets in the kitchen. This type of water heater, which is rectangular rather than cylindrical, saves a lot of space.
As Peyrieux’s son had bad memories of his previous, ground-floor apartment – which tend to be dark in Paris, as buildings are close together – he wanted his little nest to be very bright. He and his father chose an ivory-tinted concrete floor. “The result is really good. The whole place is very bright and there’s a feeling of spaciousness despite the the small size of the apartment,” the designer says. The self-levelling concrete is protected with a matt wax, and has an urban look with a slightly artisanal feel.
Floor: tinted concrete by Weber; kitchen: Veddinge in gray by Ikea
Floor: tinted concrete by Weber; kitchen: Veddinge in gray by Ikea
The bathroom would have been difficult to move because one of its walls is load-bearing. Since it made the entrance dark, however, the interior designer came up with another trick: “I livened up the wall with an about 240 by 25 centimetre [94½-by-10-inch] arrowslit, and I used smart glass [which can be turned opaque at the touch of a button] so as not to lose the view from the entrance and the kitchen while also being able to maintain privacy when needed.”
Peyrieux says the smart glass really broke the bank, coming in at around US$1,375 [1,200 euros], but the wow effect is undeniable.
Peyrieux says the smart glass really broke the bank, coming in at around US$1,375 [1,200 euros], but the wow effect is undeniable.
To draw all attention to this feature, Peyrieux went for a frameless door. “Removing such details helps make the space more fluid,” the designer says.
Here is the arrowslit as seen from the shower side.
The small bathroom is equipped with a shower, tall storage closet, vanity unit and toilet. Minimalist details like the wall-mounted faucet and ceiling-mounted shower head reveal the quality of the work. The latter was also helpful as a conventional shower head would have been difficult to install because of the placement of the windows. Another smart detail is the built-in LED strip on one side of the shower ceiling, which provides a soft glow.
Peyrieux has some advice to those who want to renovate their own studio: “As it’s not possible to move the walls in a small space, you have to give the eye the widest possible sight lines so it doesn’t feel cramped. Here, from the entrance, you can see through the bathroom to the roofs of the city, and the mirror backsplash also plays a part in making the space feel larger,” he says.
As for his son, he has joyfully discovered the life of a student and the fun of inviting friends over to his own home – once his schoolwork is done, of course.
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As for his son, he has joyfully discovered the life of a student and the fun of inviting friends over to his own home – once his schoolwork is done, of course.
p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; line-height: 21.0px; font: 17.0px ‘Helvetica Neue’; color: #333333; background-color: #ffffff}p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; line-height: 20.0px; font: 17.0px ‘Helvetica Neue’; color: #333333; background-color: #ffffff}span.s1 {font-kerning: none}
TELL US
What do you love about this home? Tell us in the Comments below. And don’t forget to save your favourite images, bookmark the story, and join in the conversation.
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House at a Glance
Who lives here: An 18-year-old student who studies at an art school
Location: The fifth floor of a building from the 1930s on a lively street in the Bastille district of Paris, France
Size: About 215 square feet (20 square metres)
Budget: About US$45,900 (40,000 euros), including the renovation, decor and furniture
Year completed: 2018
Interior designer: Jean-Christophe Peyrieux
Other contributors: Steele, Topos Workshop
When Jean-Christophe Peyrieux got wind that one of his clients wanted to sell an about 215-square-foot chambre de bonne – a room that would have once served as a maid’s quarters – in the lively Bastille district of Paris, France, he jumped at the chance. Peyrieux got a great deal at about US$845 per square foot (8,000 euros per square metre), but the space was in poor condition and needed a complete renovation. It was a real playground for the designer.