When Sophia Goigoux-Becker’s clients approached her to transform their newly acquired Normandy property La Pie (The Magpie) into a large family home, one of the main concerns was where to create their ideal kitchen and living room.
Photos courtesy of Studio Becker.
The first step was to demolish two concrete outbuildings in order to create a generous reception area, complete with new facade, opening onto a larger garden.
Formerly a small reading room separated from the main house by a partition, this space was opened up to accommodate a larger, brighter walk-through kitchen adjacent to the reception/lounge.
It enjoys a view of the front garden and a field and offers easy access to the outside dining area through a glass door.
In particular, photographs by Marie-Pierre Morel sit alongside contemporary ceramics by Cecile Vazeille.
The new kitchen had to be created from scratch. The general idea was to keep it light and airy with the look and feel of a small dining room.
Under the staircase, a bespoke niche with a worktop made from Viscont Grey granite from Spadaccini is decorated with personal objects, while the cupboards below keep everyday kitchen appliances out of sight but within reach.
Thanks to the creation of a zenithal skylight, the new living space, made from two smaller rooms, is bright and welcoming.
Comprising a bar area for entertaining with a scullery and a lounge area with a generous-sized masonry bench close to the window, it was designed to make the most of the view of the garden.
The bar was custom designed with an oak worktop from a local sawmill and a bar surround covered in rectangular ceramic tiles from local company Normandy Ceramics. An arch was created to catch the light, give relief to the room, and accommodate a back bar.
Becker came up with the idea of a long line of storage units of varying depths as a solution to the slanted wall in the bar area.
A closeup of the bar area’s storage cupboard covered with the weave.
The homeowners love Lanzarote in the Canary Islands, and the new lounge area was inspired in part by the work of its leading architect, César Manrique. In keeping with Studio Becker’s commitment to the environment, Kirkbydesign Magma rust fabric was used for the made-to-measure seat cushions.
Above the masonry bench is the owners’ personal statement mirror and collection of carved statues.
The walls are painted in Finca limewash paint by Ressource.
Studio Becker created a bright, convivial space to relax and entertain using a warm, earthy color scheme reminiscent of the south, simple furniture, metallic accents (the brass and ceramic wall light are from The Socialite Family), and a small collection of decorative objects found at a sales depot.