Interiors

Home tour | Ancient meets modern in Girona

February 6, 2017February 6, 2017

Another week, another beautiful abode to feast your eyes upon. Today I’m taking you to Girona in Catalonia, northern Spain, for a peek at not one but two wonderful apartments.

Set in a 16th-century house in the shadow of the city’s cathedral, they were designed by Barcelona-based architect Anna Noguera, who now lets them out as holiday rentals. Both are a beautiful combination of ancient and modern, with old stonework and gnarled wooden beams sitting side by side with exposed iron forgings and swathes of polished concrete.

The apartments fan off a central steel staircase, which acts as a pivot for the building’s internal layout. The larger of the two, El Badiu (‘The Veranda’), is a duplex spread across the upper two floors, with a master suite, two further bedrooms, a kitchen-diner and a large living room. It takes its name from the traditional covered balcony outside, which gazes out over the city rooftops. The smaller, El Jardi (‘The Garden’), has two double bedrooms, an open-plan living area with a kitchenette, and a walled garden with a swimming pool created from the house’s old rainwater cistern.

Both are kitted out with minimalist furniture and fittings which sit in harmony with the architectural features. The sleek white kitchen units create a striking contrast with the exposed walls, and the use of rails and open shelving in place of wall cupboards allows the texture of the stone to shine through. Beds and sofas throughout are low-slung and clean-lined, and banks of built-in cupboards provide plenty of storage to keep rooms clutter-free. The scheme is finished off with sheer muslin curtains, deep-pile rugs and relaxed canvas chairs (including the iconic ‘Butterfly’ chair), which soften the angular lines and industrial feel.

Perhaps my favourite space is the lounge in El Badiu, which features understated lighting, a sink-into-comfy corner sofa, and a contemporary fireplace embedded in a wall of polished concrete. I also love the look of the bathroom, whose giant tub was cast from concrete and takes centre stage in the middle of the room.