Walnut veneer in a house for two architects in Paris

Toledano + architects is an architecture and design studio founded by Gabrielle Toledano and based in Paris. One of his most important projects was his own home: House for two architects. The project consisted of the renovation of a 19th-century apartment located on the fifth floor facing the Luxembourg Gardens, in the Latin Quarter of Paris. It had to be designed for the couple and their two children, as well as have a workspace.

As in many old apartments, the original layout was very compartmentalised, with many small rooms. Therefore, they decided to knock down walls and create a daytime space, a bedroom with a bathroom for the parents, and another room for the children with their own toilet.

To separate the daytime area—which includes the kitchen, dining room, living room, and an office—from the nighttime area, they designed a large, continuous element clad in walnut wood. This piece of furniture includes a large surface for storing your books, but it also conceals the laundry room, storage room, and a home cinema.

Walnut is also a key element in the couple's bedroom, covering the wardrobe fronts and shaping the frame of the headboard and bedside tables. In this way, the elegance of the living room is transferred to the main room of the house.

The Finsa 's American walnut veneer shows a predominantly light to medium brown base colour, with rich greyish hues and purplish touches that are very characteristic of this wood. The rich tonal range is one of the main qualities of this natural decorative surface. The branched walnut tree is distinguished by a very expressive and varied grain pattern. Cathedral-shaped figures can be seen opening and closing along the sheet metal, creating organic and fluid patterns.

In addition to the elegance it brings to the room, the walnut wood veneer fits perfectly with the stainless steel chosen by Toledano + architects for the shelving bars, a material that is also a protagonist in the kitchen. All of this blends perfectly with other decorative elements in the room, such as the marble chosen for a section of the wall or the green paint on the ceiling.

Category: Living
Application: Custom-made furniture, wardrobes, shelving, wardrobe fronts and bedside tables
Material: FibraPan® Natur Walnut
Built area: 100 m²
Photographer: Ricard Romain