A magazine dedicated to compact interiors

Carla and Olivier's hidden apartment 70 m² Saint-Denis, France 60 000 €

This Home Tour is from Sloft Edition 03

Cross the ring road for more space. This is the story of the many Parisians who left for the suburbs. It's also the choice of Olivier, a journalist with Télérama, who settled in Saint-Denis after wavering between Paris and the surrounding area.

When you need more space, you cross the périphérique ring road. As is the reality for so many Parisians who "sought adventure" in the banlieues, or suburbs. It was also the choice made by Olivier, a journalist at Télérama, who moved to Saint-Denis after floating between Paris and its neighboring suburbs. "I grew up in the banlieues, and like many others like me, I couldn’t wait to go live in Paris when the time came for me to leave home." And then he reached his thirties and with it came a desire for more space. He took the first step by moving into an old car headlight factory turned into a block of flats in Pantin. But when it came to buying, Pantin had already gotten too expensive. And so, Olivier and his partner decided to head a little further out...

"From the outset, I had a preference for Saint-Denis because I had friends living there." So Saint-Denis it was! Olivier already had "a soft spot" for the place, as he grew up close by. "I’ve always identified with this kind of town, I feel at home here." When the journalist visited the apartment, he was immediately charmed by the "ritual" for arriving at the apartment. "After exiting Saint-Denis station, which is one of the biggest stations in the Île-de-France region in terms of traffic and footfall, it’s a hundred-meter walk along the canal, before arriving at a small porch leading to a cobble-stoned courtyard. It’s so quiet despite the proximity to the station".

First-time homebuyers, Olivier and his partner were looking for an old property with character and unusual volumes – and this early 19th-century building had it all. On the second and last floor, they discovered an attic apartment with exposed beams and high ceilings. "We decided pretty quickly what we wanted to do. The idea was to knock everything down to let light in, give the impression of more space and create a primary suite so you can cut yourself off from the rest of the apartment to suit your fancy or needs." The couple sought help with the renovations from Studio Classico, who were recommended by a friend of Olivier’s. "The main challenge was to renovate the space without ruining its essence, its personality. And maybe also sanding off all the red varnish on the existing hardwood floors!", recalls Suleïma Ben Achour, the architect in charge of the project. Once the renovations were done, the apartment revealed all its pluses: charm, originality and light. And plain wooden floors!