Family home transforms into space-saving indoor playground

In Courdimanche, France, a family is moving about in their new home. Redesigned by interior designer, Mickaël Martins Afonso, Around the Net is an adaptation of a family house into a home, in which the owners wanted their house to adapt to their new way of life with children. The family wanted the renovation to suit their lifestyle and tastes, of significant importance was the need for the interior spaces to adapt as their children grow up.

The family home boasts a mezzanine net of textured white, which was built for relaxation and play, while also allowing natural light to come through into the lower levels of the home. The color of the floor, a clean white, allows for high-reflective potential for the light, while the white color also allows an ‘inversion of sensations with the shuttered concrete ceiling.’ Whereas, the home’s oak furnishes, with some black spots, brings warm tones to the space.
The mezzanine net is able to become a space for the children to play, a space to relax or to watch a film in the movie room, depending on the time of day and the family’s schedule. Along the wall, a wooden strip borders the mezzanine net. The strip offers multiple storage space whilst integrating a video projector for the home cinema; this can be concealed behind sliding doors once the film is over.

The textured elements of the interior design work together to highlight how intentional design can impact a space; in particular, how a home’s best asset can be incorporated throughout the rest of the structure, and to help make a house feel like home.

The goal of the renovation was to reorganize the living spaces across two floors, so coherency could be achieved. At the same time, each area of the house was to have its distinct purpose, dedicated to a specific use.

Guests are welcomed to sit down at the entrance of the home and take their shoes off before coming into the house. This is facilitated by a built-in bench seat, complete with hidden storage space underneath; ideal for shoes, blankets or children’s toys.

An in-built bespoke multi-purpose storage unit is featured in the center of the house. The furniture piece goes up to the living room wall and stretches two stories high. It is made of Oak timber and conceals several storage units, including a Hi-Fi system. The light tone of the wood blends perfectly with the softness of the French light, giving the home a warm and inviting presence. Large shelves top the piece, sheltering books and subdued lighting.
The central block is the backbone of the house, linking both levels together. Its sculpted, cool wooden volume has many uses: stairs that lead to other floors, it allows access to the basement, toilets, bar, library, television unit and storage for the family’s vinyl record collection.
By exposing some storage elements and hiding others, the home creates a tactile atmosphere, reflecting the ongoing change a family home requires as children grow, and that with it, the home requiring different usage purposes.