A 70 m² apartment is masculine, modern, light, and easy to maintain

The owners of this apartment with 70 m², in Arpoador (RJ), were neighbors of the architect Ricardo Melo when he lived in the same building and ended up becoming friends. When deciding to renovate the property, the couple did not hesitate to invite him for this mission, alongside his partner Rodrigo Passos – the duo is part of the line-up of CASACOR Rio de Janeiro. "The apartment had already undergone renovation about 10 years ago. However, due to its proximity to the sea, it was very worn out. In addition, the materials chosen at the time were not good options, as they required special care and a lot of maintenance," says Ricardo. "The clients asked us for a bright and light decoration and that one of the bedrooms be integrated with the living room, with a sofa bed to accommodate occasional guests. Additionally, they wanted to improve circulation and create an area with a sink, since there was only a washing machine," he adds. With the renovation, the architects opened one of the bedrooms to the living room (but installed hinged doors that allow these spaces to be isolated when necessary), transferred the kitchen to where the dining room used to be, and changed the access to the couple's bedroom. In general, the project concept sought to create a masculine, modern, bright, and visually light apartment, easy to maintain. The decoration, completely new, started from a color palette with a neutral base, composed of gray, black, white, and light wood laminate, except for the sofa positioned in the middle of the living room, upholstered with faded blue canvas.

"We painted the walls and the ceiling snow white and applied cement texture on the column that divides the living area from the dining area," informs Rodrigo. Among the signed design furniture pieces, he highlights the Carbono C41 coffee table and the Carbono C60 dining chairs by Marcus Ferreira. In the living room, both the wall-mounted shelf and bar console behind the sofa were designed by architect Ricardo Melo and executed with a structure of black-painted iron and light wood MDF. The kitchen is marked by the combination of black and white, present in the countertop and the Pitaya granite backsplash, in the lower and upper cabinets with melamine finish, and in the water mixer. "Another highlight in the kitchen is the volume of the cabinet that houses the side by side refrigerator, which gave more privacy to the entrance of the couple's suite," says Rodrigo. "Our biggest challenge in this project was changing the position of the kitchen, which forced us to redo the sewage installations. But it was very worth it, as the new layout brought more spaciousness, brightness, and functionality to the living areas," concludes architect Ricardo Melo.