Smaller and better thought out spaces
PHOTO PROVIDED BY ARCHITECTURE DEVICE
When designing the Résidence Tsuga project, still on the drawing board, the Apparatus Architecture team sought to exclude the superfluous and focus on the essential, explained architect Marc-Antoine Juneau.
The house must meet an increased number of demands, as people are spending more and more time there, said Marc-Antoine Juneau, architect at Apparatus Architecture. “Office space has become a prerequisite because of teleworking,” he said. For our part, we must multiply our strategy to avoid going in excess and try to limit the square footage, to build responsibly. The danger is ending up with parts unused for a large percentage of the year. To illustrate his point, he presented the Résidence Tsuga project, still on the drawing board. Compact, the house will take advantage of the topography of the land to have a minimal footprint on the site. “We tried to maximize the square foot of the rooms as much as possible by creating multipurpose spaces, which would have a dual use,” he explained. We use built-in furniture, such as fold-away beds in the two bedrooms, so that they can serve as a desk or to do yoga in connection with the terrace. According to him, the concept of minimalism – “less is more”, to use the expression in English – is more important than ever. “It is far from being synonymous with soulless spaces, which are not inhabitable,” he said. It means focusing on simplicity and clean lines. And continue to prioritize quality over quantity. Exclude the superfluous to focus on the essential. ”
Visit the Appliance Architecture website
Kitchens made to last
PHOTO JASON HARTOG PHOTOGRAPHY, SUPPLIED BY MIRALIS
Timeless cuisine does not mean without personality, says Valérie Brière of Miralis. “There is a way to dress up a kitchen with accessories and color,” she says.
The most eco-responsible kitchen is the one that you don’t change, said Valérie Brière, brand manager at cabinet maker Miralis at the outset. “To avoid creating unnecessary waste, we must try to provide kitchens that will be beautiful, good and functional for a long time. The concept of beauty is however very subjective, she noted. To try to define it, the company based in the Bas-Saint-Laurent consulted architects and designers. One observation emerged: beauty is intimately linked to the notion of timelessness. Mme Brière then alluded to the “Orange Book Prophecy”, which emerged from an in-depth study of a French decoration magazine published in 1980, which the company’s president and CEO, Daniel Drapeau, wrote about. discovered in his chalet. Seeking to find out what had become of the companies that appeared there, he found that only manufacturers of furniture or kitchen cabinets specializing in the contemporary style still exist. “They are even dominant in the European market, because a clean-lined style is easier to robotize,” she said. In North America, robotization and automation are sure to arrive, to ensure both production volume and quality, and to make kitchens sustainable. Timeless does not mean without personality. There is a way to dress up a kitchen with accessories and color. ”
Visit the Miralis website
Exit gray, make way for green, “ultimate neutral”
PHOTO PROVIDED BY KRYPTONIA
After reigning in our interiors for two decades, gray is replaced by colors that bring joy and meet new needs, underlined Marie-Chantal Milette, color expert.
The house has become a refuge and the gray in our interiors, which felt good when the pace of life was hectic, brings no joy, noted Marie-Chantal Milette, color expert and founder of the Kryptonie agency. “Brown, which is a reassuring color, should be followed, just like deep blue, which invites introspection. As we have been devoid of human contact in the past year, we see an explosion of skin tones in the design, be it terracotta, peach, brown. People, on the other hand, have not been able to travel and they need some sun. Cradled for a long time, they will seek a certain warmth in the yolks. They also need to see the light at the end of the tunnel. The yellow therefore evolves to become warm. Greens and blues, on the other hand, are colors of balance, associated with the environment. They are at the heart of what is happening, in terms of trends. She also considers green to be a neutral color. “It is nature’s ultimate neutral. No one has ever found that a plant is not doing well in a room. Green will slowly replace the stability of gray in our interiors and we will see it more and more. ”
Visit the Kryptonie website
Call for calm
PHOTO PROVIDED BY STUDIO FUTUR SIMPLE
The architect Christine Djerrahian, of Studio Future Simple, presented the underside of the transformation of the loft where she lives with her young family, in a century-old building in Old Montreal.
Calm is a source of happiness, believes architect Christine Djerrahian, of Studio Future Simple, who presented the background of the transformation of the loft where she lives with her young family, in a century-old building in Old Montreal. Entitled “Rue de la Gauchetière”, his innovative project won an AZ Award in the residential category. All the existing gypsum walls were removed to rethink the space according to the needs of the occupants and observe the path of light. The challenge was to create an open and flexible space, which meets everyone’s needs, while keeping the brightness, therefore not blocking any windows, she said. “In all of our projects, we look for a palette of raw materials, because it touches the timeless,” she continued. The balance between four elements, earth, air, stone and greenery, gives a feeling of calm and serenity. There are many ways to interpret it, with different colors and textures. In our apartment, the space has been warmed by integrating the walnut, which makes a link with the brick. The air is linked to the light provided by the windows and mirrors, which reflect the view of the garden of Marie-Reine-du-Monde cathedral. The stone color, the gray we needed, is in the concrete, the couch, the carpet. Then of course, plants were integrated. The light, she pointed out, is very dynamic. It brings poetry and contributes to the impression of calm.
Visit the Studio Future Simple website
End food waste
PHOTO FROM RF STUDIO WEBSITE
In the kitchen, Belgian designer Ramy Fischler, who lives in Paris, is campaigning for total transparency, with refrigerators with glass doors containing only food that is zero waste.
Belgian designer Ramy Fischler, the soul behind RF Studio, notably highlighted his work to fight food waste and promote a zero waste philosophy, both in restaurants and businesses. In the kitchen, he campaigns for total transparency, with refrigerators with glass doors containing only food that does not generate waste. “Everything we buy, all living products should be valued and shown, so that children understand the difference between a zucchini and a cucumber, and that this food culture does not disappear because of technology. Becoming an entrepreneur by default, he helped design the Nu! Smart fridge, initially focusing on the workplace, where well-being is essential to attract and retain millennials. “Once good zero waste habits are adopted in business, we will no longer agree to do otherwise,” he predicted. Industry will follow to change household products. ”
Visit the RF Studio website