A cosy apartment on the Tesla site, Prague 9

The challenge

The shell was set by the developer, and almost everything in it was predetermined. The layout, windows and doors could not be changed; the client wanted to keep the floors, interior doors and tiles; the finished layout dictated where storage could go. We started the project four months before construction, without access to the apartment, working from the architect's drawings. Later, deviations appeared on site: the bathroom radiator and the AC unit took spots where the design had wardrobes. The task fits in one sentence — create an individual, warm interior where there was almost no room to manoeuvre, and stay within a fixed budget.

The idea

We didn't fight the shell; we found a tuning fork in it. That became the existing floor — bleached grey walnut with a subtle reddish undertone. The whole home is built from this shade: first the furniture, then the walls, then the light. One tone carried through every room.

Solutions

Materials and light

Even before the client's selection, we chose finishes in the developer's showroom that matched their first idea, and built the palette outward from the floor. For the walnut tone we picked a furniture décor from the same family, paired with a warm grey cashmere that softens the coolness of minimalism, and thin 3D panels that catch soft shadows and enliven calm surfaces. The windows face south-east, so there is plenty of light. Curtains on a backlit track give control over harsh sun as well as evening softness. LTX lighting: hidden track lights, a minimalist surface-mounted chandelier, miniature spotlights. The fixtures are almost invisible; you see only the light.

The bedroom as one movement

A workspace had to fit into the parents' cramped bedroom. We built the desk in place of one bedside table and joined the whole wall along the bed into one continuous line: the wardrobe flows into the desk, the desk into the bed, the bed into the bedside table and the table back into the wardrobe. The wall surface is a restrained mosaic of 3D panels, paint and wallpaper: calm to look at, precise in construction.

Storage and the route

A long corridor leads to the brightest space — the living room with kitchen and windows along the entire wall; here the space opens up and breathes. Along the way: a laundry, a built-in hallway, a full-height backlit mirror, a full-height cabinet in the separate WC, a double basin and hidden lighting in the bathroom. The walls stayed where they were — but every corner is used for hidden storage, and the shared zone stayed open for rest. A separate accent is the TV zone in the shared space.