Clever configuration and a bright colour scheme give this Mid-Levels flat a distinctive personality.
When the design studio Bean Buro is tasked with reinventing a sprawling Mid-Levels home for a couple and their dog, they do so with inspirations drawn from the locale’s cascading topography.
“We interpret Mid-Levels’ cascading topography as various horizontal elements. It’s a way to stratify the different functions of the apartment and smoothen the flow of spaces,” says Kenny Kinugasa-Tsui, Co-founder of Bean Buro. “The aim is to create an open, comfortable and airy feel for the apartment.”
Situated adjacent to the urban jungle of Hong Kong, this 1,437-sq. ft. apartment titled Beau Cloud Mansion is nestled in winding and layered cascaded hills. Designed to be dog-friendly, it is poised to be further transformed to welcome new family members in the future.
Under the hands of the design team, the former three-bedrooms, two-bathrooms apartment is completely revamped into an open-plan apartment with an en-suite master bedroom, a guest bedroom-cum-study room plus a spacious helper’s room. As every window in the apartment faces incredible natural greenery sloping towards the peak, the space offers a variety of opportunities to locate the private and social areas.
The team approaches it by creating a horizontal space at the core of the apartment that serves multiple functions. It encases the en-suite master bedroom, a semi-open study that can become a guest room when needed, a guest washroom, and a built-in TV unit.
To further accentuate the horizontality, a black datum line is incorporated into the joinery, which runs consistently at the same height throughout most parts of the flat. This consistent black datum line occasionally rises up or down to form a small arc, illustrating a sense of playfulness.
“We keep the materials palette bright and neutral to maximise the poetic qualities of natural daylight as much as possible,” says Lorène Faure, Co-founder of Bean Buro. “The horizontal black line in the joinery detail playfully emphasises the notion of horizontality and continuity.”
Inspired likewise from the natural surroundings, the interior applies natural oak flooring in long planks as well as herringbone patterning, whilst the wall finishes are kept simple with off-white paint colours.
In the dining area, a full-height drinks bar constructed in brass metal finish is incorporated between the dining area and lounge, the dining table also tailor-made in quality timber and stone top with brass metal details.
For the canine, a sleeping area is designed alongside various horizontal platforms for it to relax and play. The open kitchen can be enclosed with sliding partitions during cooking sessions, but is left open for most of the day, allowing the dog to roam around in daytime.
Storage efficiency constitutes another part of the brief. The team has thus integrated bespoke joinery connecting the living and dining room to maximise storage. Customised storage in the living room, for instance, allows the owners to store away long snowboarding equipment, while the mastered room and guest bedroom offer a multitude of hidey-holes, including a large walk-in wardrobe.
A nug spot designed specifically for the lady of the house, the comfy reading corner brimming with an abundance of natural light looks onto the verdant greenery outside, its ceiling hung a swinging chair. The gallery walls are all set for displaying photography artworks collected by the owners.
Photo credits: Bean Buro
