Milan Houzz Tour: A Former Mechanic's Garage Becomes a Home
Clever space planning, clean lines and repurposed vintage finds turned an empty shell into a welcoming modern home
Sabrina Sciama
4 August 2019
A couple looking for a new home is nothing special, but if one’s an architect and the other a designer, you can assume the result is going to be original and packed with interesting, space-saving solutions and personality. The Milan home of Italian-based architect Stefania Micotti and designer Matteo Dall’Amico is no exception.
Finding the right property and making it the perfect place to settle down and start a family was neither quick nor easy for Micotti and Dall’Amico. “This was originally a car garage. The first time I saw it, I wasn’t particularly impressed,” says Dall’Amico. “It was Stefania, with her architect’s eye, who spotted its potential. When we arrived, it was just a shell; it looked like an undefined box. It took a lot of imagination, but turning it into a place of our own was a really fun challenge.”
Finding the right property and making it the perfect place to settle down and start a family was neither quick nor easy for Micotti and Dall’Amico. “This was originally a car garage. The first time I saw it, I wasn’t particularly impressed,” says Dall’Amico. “It was Stefania, with her architect’s eye, who spotted its potential. When we arrived, it was just a shell; it looked like an undefined box. It took a lot of imagination, but turning it into a place of our own was a really fun challenge.”
Houzz at a Glance
Who lives here: Architect Stefania Micotti and designer Matteo Dall’Amico, who have a daughter on the way, plus their dog, Giulia
Location: Milan, Italy
Size: About 200 square metres spread over two levels, with two bedrooms
Contractor: MGM
Images by Angelita Bonetti of Monad Visual
Micotti and Dall’Amico bought the building in 2016 and proceeded to renovate it. The former mechanic’s garage is located inside the inner courtyard of the building, which was previously part of a larger redevelopment of the entire property. The firm that had handled the redevelopment, Baroni + Piscone, had already rezoned the structure for residential use.
Who lives here: Architect Stefania Micotti and designer Matteo Dall’Amico, who have a daughter on the way, plus their dog, Giulia
Location: Milan, Italy
Size: About 200 square metres spread over two levels, with two bedrooms
Contractor: MGM
Images by Angelita Bonetti of Monad Visual
Micotti and Dall’Amico bought the building in 2016 and proceeded to renovate it. The former mechanic’s garage is located inside the inner courtyard of the building, which was previously part of a larger redevelopment of the entire property. The firm that had handled the redevelopment, Baroni + Piscone, had already rezoned the structure for residential use.
The apartment was a shell with no finishes or even window frames, but Micotti and Dall’Amico were inspired by the huge space and its industrial feel. The large windows and the facade’s overall look hinted at the non-residential nature of the building. Dall’Amico and Micotti chose to emphasise these elements, using them as a motif for the project.
They balanced this theme with more domestic architectural and stylistic choices. “We didn’t want to exaggerate the industrial feel of the building, because that would have made it too trendy and not very liveable,” says Micotti.
The new steel-framed windows and doors have large panes that echo the original windows in a more contemporary way.
Windows with painted steel frames: Jansen
They balanced this theme with more domestic architectural and stylistic choices. “We didn’t want to exaggerate the industrial feel of the building, because that would have made it too trendy and not very liveable,” says Micotti.
The new steel-framed windows and doors have large panes that echo the original windows in a more contemporary way.
Windows with painted steel frames: Jansen
The pair found some of their vintage and antique furniture at antiques markets. Other pieces are heirlooms. The walls are decorated with original sketches by architect Mario Botta, works of art by Sergio Pappalettera and photographs by Masiar Pasquali.
Find an architect near you on Houzz to design your next home
Find an architect near you on Houzz to design your next home
The sofa in the living room repurposes parts of Dall’Amico’s grandmother’s bed. The other half will be placed in their daughter’s bedroom. The armrests were made out of the foot of the bed.
The living room and kitchen are separated by a blue wall.
Another part of the bed was made into a low bookcase, pictured here on the right.
Living room floor: concrete with Ultratop System natural finish by Mapei, enhanced with brass strips; Atollo table lamp: designed by Vico Magistretti
Another part of the bed was made into a low bookcase, pictured here on the right.
Living room floor: concrete with Ultratop System natural finish by Mapei, enhanced with brass strips; Atollo table lamp: designed by Vico Magistretti
The recovery and restyling of vintage furnishings were key parts of Micotti and Dall’Amico’s design process. In fact, most of the pieces were custom-made, with the couple not only designing the spaces and furniture, but also upcycling various pieces or making them from scratch.
“This choice was driven by the desire to surround ourselves with family heirlooms, which bear the warmth of memories, as well as by an ethical and anti-consumerist desire to preserve what already exists, rather than buying new pieces,” says Micotti. This also translated into savings on renovation costs.
“This choice was driven by the desire to surround ourselves with family heirlooms, which bear the warmth of memories, as well as by an ethical and anti-consumerist desire to preserve what already exists, rather than buying new pieces,” says Micotti. This also translated into savings on renovation costs.
The finishes and coatings throughout the house have a subtle retro feel. One example is the kitchen floor’s hexagonal ceramic tiles.
Hexagonal ceramic floor tiles, Quintessenza Ceramiche; mustard-coloured epoxy grout: Kerapoxy by Mapei
Hexagonal ceramic floor tiles, Quintessenza Ceramiche; mustard-coloured epoxy grout: Kerapoxy by Mapei
Steel is a recurring theme throughout the home, and was used for the structures of the table, benchtop and kitchen stools. Steel never feels cold in this home, because it’s always paired with wood. Pale timber in the custom-made furniture is matched with darker vintage pieces.
The white metal structure in the kitchen was a stroke of luck. “An acquaintance of Stefania’s was dismantling part of an exhibit at Expo 2015, and I promptly took it, cut it apart and re-welded it together,” says Dall’Amico. He then used the same material for the handrail on the stairs, the frame of the bed upstairs and the table on the terrace.
The white metal structure in the kitchen was a stroke of luck. “An acquaintance of Stefania’s was dismantling part of an exhibit at Expo 2015, and I promptly took it, cut it apart and re-welded it together,” says Dall’Amico. He then used the same material for the handrail on the stairs, the frame of the bed upstairs and the table on the terrace.
The ground floor houses a living room, kitchen and this bathroom.
Basin and toilet: Ceramica Flaminia; bespoke vanity: custom-designed by the owners
The etched-iron spiral staircase was already in the building. It’s covered in fabric by Kvadrat to make it more homely and less slippery.
The upper floor of the apartment houses the bedrooms and a second bathroom. Here, the ground floor’s industrial concrete yields to a light-coloured timber floor.
Oak floor: Noesis
Oak floor: Noesis
The steel motif continues here in the bed frame and the covering on the step to the outdoor terrace. Birch storage containers have been fitted into the bed frame.
The walls in the second-floor bathroom are finished in classic subway tiles. The vanity unit and the vintage mirror were recovered by Micotti and Dall’Amico.
Ceramic floor: Quintessence; basin, toilet and shower: Kaldewei and Catalano; tiles: Ceramica Vogue.
Ceramic floor: Quintessence; basin, toilet and shower: Kaldewei and Catalano; tiles: Ceramica Vogue.
The second floor opens out to a terrace. This open-air living room is a good match with the interior spaces. Here, too, Dall’Amico’s touch can be seen in the unique iron table: the top is decorated with majolica tiles recovered from the nearby building.
The plant life on the terrace is constantly evolving, turning this terrace into a serene corner.
Your turn
What do you like about this converted garage? Share your thoughts in the Comments below, like this story, save your favourite images, and join the conversation.
More
Craving more clever design? Don’t miss last week’s Houzz Tour: An Acreage Lifestyle on an Inner-City Brisbane Block
The plant life on the terrace is constantly evolving, turning this terrace into a serene corner.
Your turn
What do you like about this converted garage? Share your thoughts in the Comments below, like this story, save your favourite images, and join the conversation.
More
Craving more clever design? Don’t miss last week’s Houzz Tour: An Acreage Lifestyle on an Inner-City Brisbane Block
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Beautiful, the old and new, industrial and modern, all merges seamlessly into a bright, warm, inviting home. These people have style.
Such a nice apartment! I love the windows, and the terrace is particularly nice, but is upstairs off the bedrooms. I wonder if they considered putting the bedrooms on the ground floor and shifting the kitchen/living room upstairs so that the terrace could be accessed from these "public" spaces. It would be difficult carrying meals up those stairs from the kitchen.
Beautifully designed space, with one exception: why so many stairs, twists, and turns in the bathroom, with the tub? It looks like a serious trip hazard.