Over the past few years, we’ve covered a number of projects by Barcelona-based design firm Conti, Cert. They all share a similar aesthetic—white-ish walls, high beamed ceilings, clean lines, a light touch—yet every single time we encounter a new project by its founders, Andrea Conti and Isabel Cert, we are smitten all over again.
Our latest obsession: an airy, unpretentious home that Conti, Cert remodeled for a French family of five living in Poblenou, an up-and-coming neighborhood in Barcelona. A suitable home for a large family can feel a bit like a unicorn in urban areas, so their clients resorted to an age-old big-city solution: luck into a situation that allows them to combine two flats. “The apartments were really dark and old. They had a lot of walls, and every space was divided,” say the designers. “We tore everything down and built the distribution from scratch with the clients, looking after their needs. The result as a bright, spacious two-story home.”
The upstairs and downstairs flats are now connected via a new staircase—and their clients, a photographer and an investment banker, finally have the “cozy, warm and timeless house” of their dreams.
Have a look.
Photography by Claudia Mauriño, courtesy of Conti, Cert.
Above: An open-plan kitchen, dining, and living room comprises the first floor. There’s also a home office tucked away on this level.
Above: Sliding doors lead to a patio just off the living room.
Above: The paneled walls are painted in Farrow & Ball White Tie, “The paneled walls reminded us of cabins, which represent the ultimate indoor coziness,” say the designers.
Above: Like other Conti, Cert projects, the furniture selected is chic and unfussy. The sofa is from Maison de Vacances, “an amazing French linen brand.” The Akari BB3-33S floor lamp is by Noguchi. The coffee table is a custom design.
Above: The dining table is custom: “It is expandable so that they can hold bigger dinners with friends. It’s made from oak wood, just like the coffee table.” The chairs are sourced from Fenix Originals, “one of our trusted vintage dealers.”
Above: Just off the dining area is a “laundry-pantry room.” “We love showing spaces that are typically hidden away.”
Above: “We designed every corner of this space to make it beautiful and tidy from the outside, while at the same time useful for the day-to-day.”
Above: Though the kitchen is open to the rest of the room, it feels very much its own space, thanks to dark painted cabinets.
Above: Conti, Cert designed a new staircase to connect the two apartments. “We used pine wood to match the transition from the microcement floors [on the first floor] to the pine floors [on the second floor].”
Above: Just off the kitchen is the study.
Above: An Akari lamp sits in front of a wall of closets in the main bedroom on the second floor. “We are very consistent and demanding with our light choices; for us, they are one the most important parts of the atmosphere we create,” says the designers, who often gravitate to classics by Santa & Cole, Noguchi, and Artemide.
For other Conti, Cert projects we’ve covered, see:
- Old at Heart: Keeping the ‘Essence of Barcelona’ Alive in a Remodel by Conti, Cert
- Let the Light In: A Barcelona Flat, Uncramped and Rejuvenated for a Young Couple
- Calm in the City: A Cramped Apartment Becomes a ‘A Warm and Cozy Home’ for a Couple with Young Kids
- Kitchen of the Week: A Modern Space with a Timeless Spirit
