420 m² beach house gains urban style and loft in the garage

Located in Barra da Tijuca (RJ), this two-story house – with 420 m² of built area on a 600 m² plot of land – underwent a complete renovation by architects Paula Wetzel and Camila Simbalista, from Studio 021 Arquitetura and CASACOR Rio de Janeiro , to become the new home of a former soccer coach and his two children. According to the duo, the property belonged to the client's mother (who decided to live with her daughter) and originally had the look of an anachronistic summer house, which needed to be updated and given the feel of an urban home . “The client’s main request was to increase the presence of natural light and create a gourmet space in the outdoor area , since the children are young and wanted to entertain friends frequently. During the development of the project, the idea also came up of transforming the old garage into a loft for the daughter ,” says Paula. The old garage that was turned into a loft for the daughter is 85 m² and has a living room , bedroom and a small integrated kitchen , as well as a comfortable bathroom . In place of the existing cement patio in front of the garage, the architects created a garden, complete with two palm trees, so that the young woman can have more privacy, with the comforts of an apartment, even though she lives with her family.

“On the ground floor, we expanded the balcony and the kitchen. On the upper floor, we transformed the five cramped bedrooms into three spacious bedrooms, all with bathrooms and walk-in closets. In the outdoor area, in addition to changing the position of the pool, which was diagonally across the street, we created an attached gourmet area and transformed the garage into the daughter’s loft, just the way the client wanted it,” says Camila. The decor follows a contemporary style, with a light and relaxed feel. In the social area, the architects opted for a light and neutral base of gray (present in the porcelain floor, sofas and some lacquered woodwork) and white (walls), and added earthy tones (striped rug and brick wall), brown leather and natural wood furniture to make the space more welcoming. “Our biggest challenge in this project was to create a house with integrated social spaces that encourage family and friends to spend time together, but without giving up well-defined spaces so that each resident can have privacy whenever they want,” concludes architect Paula Wetzel.