Design: AHAA & Studiospacious
Project: Storage Attic Transformed into a Modern Apartment
Location: Haarlem, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Team: Annemarijn Haarink, Freddy Koelemeijer en Coen Smit
Area 60 m2
Year 2017
Photography: Studio Kopp
After a characteristically steep climb to the former storage attic of this building you enter in the heart of the loft.
With the removal of the suspended ceiling, height is gained and the beam for lifting goods from the street is made visible – a traditional and distinctive element in the completely modernised apartment. By making an open floorplan, a free height of over 3.2 meters and an uninterrupted wooden herringbone floor, the narrow and deep apartment is turned into a light, continuous space.
An untreated steel window frame subtly divides the living area from the sleeping area while creating the necessary transparency so that daylight can penetrate deep into the plan. The black custom-made kitchen from shinnoki wood is the centrepiece of the loft. The kitchen consists of two low elements that have a minimal impact on the transparency between living room and bedroom with the tall refrigerator integrated into the steel window frame. The brass edge detail between drawers and base units allows a handle less kitchen, and connects the kitchen island and the adjacent table visually to form one element.
The custom cabinets in the sleeping area also include access to the small bathroom. The bathroom looks spacious because of the use of sliding doors and the on-going herringbone pattern tile work in the shower and toilet.
Making a new staircase above the existing staircase makes the roof accessible from the living room. The skylight creates extra daylight in the darkest part of the house and is the foundation for a future home extension on the roof.
