Boho Chic Style: a mix of vintage and modern

Boho Chic Style: a mix of vintage and modern

Very popular in recent years, the Boho Chic style is characterized by the combination of various other styles that flow into a balanced mix of furnishings. Since there are no precise guidelines, if not the freedom of spirit of its inhabitants, we must be very careful not to furnish the house in a chaotic and disharmonic way.

living room reference

Entrance and living room in Boho Chic style.

The meaning of the word

There is a lot of talk about Boho Chic style, but what is the meaning of this term? Boho comes from the abbreviation of “Bohémien“, a French word born in the nineteenth century to identify the unconventional lifestyle of penniless artists, writers, musicians and actors of the major European cities, combined with the word “Chic” which indicates the modern trend to make even a style that was originally more rustic and natural elegant and refined. This expression took hold at the beginning of the millennium in the fashion world but soon merged into interior design as well. The Boho Chic style is an original combination of Nordic, ethnic, hippie and modern furnishings that everyone can interpret in their own way, also as regards the colors and finishes, different from each other and the unique pieces that distinguish it. Each space must tell the story of those who live there and the houses furnished in this style have some common points but they never resemble each other.

 Parisian style dining room

A bright Boho Chic style living area, with play of colors and wallpaper.

Boho Chic living room

In comparison, a living area in the same style based on the dark tones of wood and leather.

Vintage and unique pieces

A necessary element in this type of style is the recovery of antique or vintage pieces of furniture to be combined with other modern ones. The two eras in comparison give this cross-section of “timeless home” to the environment and each piece of furniture, each object and each decorative element contains a history and a personal and indissoluble bond with its owner. A Boho Chic home is constantly evolving, up to the filling of every available square meter. Thus an eccentric environment comes to life, made of unique colors and objects, travel memories and emotions.

Boho Chic living room

Boho Chic living room with antique sofas and armchairs, of different styles and eras.

 Parisian style living room
 Parisian style dining room

Here are two images of a living room and a dining area that Modulor created in Parisian Bohemian style

Materials and Colors

The colors are strong and lively in the Boho Chic furniture, even if light and bright tones are preferable, especially for the walls that highlight the color of the furnishings and accessories, whose shades can range from the ivory of the curtains to the terracotta of the vases, green plants or the textures of carpets, cushions and chandeliers. Colors reminiscent of foreign spices, such as turmeric, paprika, cinnamon and saffron, are highly recommended, or in recent years the most popular themes for any wallpaper on the walls are jungle and tropical. Very important are also the fabrics, the velvets, the opulent or geometric patterns that recall countries such as Morocco and India and the woven wood of armchairs and sofas.

texture and colors in Boho Chic style

Wallpapers and natural colors are fundamental in the Boho Chic style.

boho chic entrance

An entrance characterized by woven wood furnishings.

bathroom reference

Bathroom with neutral colors, wooden elements and green plants.

Lights and Plants

Having a lively domestic vegetation is fundamental in the Boho Chic home, the insertion of plants, vases on the ground, wall and ceiling makes the house even more warm, welcoming and hippie. Plants can also be functional elements of the space in their function of separating the various portions of the home environment. Another fundamental element are the lights, which are not uniform and homogeneous as in modern furniture but are located in several parts of the environment and with very different characteristics, both in intensity and in type. The soft lights must not be missing and also the projection of textures on the wall through lanterns with geometries engraved on the surface.

green as furniture reference
lights Boho Chic

Lights and plants, undisputed protagonists of the Boho Chic style.

Boho Chic living room
Boho Chic living room

Oriental rugs, plants and decorations in these Boho Chic living areas, undisputed giants of Boho Chic style.

Those who choose the Boho Chic style love to travel, even if only with their thoughts and bring many cultures and souls into their home that make it a real cosmopolitan environment.

An Emperador Marble kitchen

An Emperador Marble kitchen

A monolithic kitchen, entirely covered in marble, shows all its elegance in a project that emphasizes such a precious and distinctive material. Walls and surfaces, in Emperador marble, are recognized for their very dense and varied white and beige streaks on a warm gray / brown background. Such a sophisticated design line can only be accompanied by modern and innovative mechanisms.

THE PROJECT

The renderings provided by Tanya Kutzmina, a cosmopolitan Russian designer we had the pleasure of working with, immediately show the intrinsic characteristics of the project. The concept of the master kitchen, part of an open space, encloses high walls and monolithic surfaces in an ambivalent environment, inert at first glance but able to transform itself into an equipped and representative kitchen for the guests of the house when needed. Two types of marble alternate in this large space. On the one hand, Emperador dark marble, which symbolically defines the functional parts of the kitchen, becoming a scenographic setting for “acting”. On the other, Emperador light marble, clear and bright, which amplifies the perception of the environment by reflecting the light of the large windows and embodies the essence of everyday life. Living and acting therefore become the reading keys not only of the stylistic composition of the rooms, but also define the way to relate to them.

marble kitchen render 01
marble kitchen render 02
kitchen island  sliding mechanism
Emperador marble kitchen render 02

THE COMPOSITION

The structure of the marble kitchen is an island and the central monolith opens with a drag mechanism that becomes a snack corner. Opening, it also shows a cooking area with three different types of fires: induction – teppanyaki – grill. On the internal front there are drawers entirely covered in the same marble and equipped with cutlery holders, crockery holders and potholders. Above it stands a splendid custom-made hood in stainless steel, as large as the island, equipped with filters and LED lights. All made with laser cuts and remote engine preparation. The dark marble of the island spreads into the floor and flows into the back wall. An ingenious book system opens the central doors folding up into two side compartments and revealing a broken interior that houses a sink, a dishwasher, baskets inside the doors, an oven column and exposed shelves with underlying LED lighting. The stainless steel top and back give a touch of modernity between the eternal elegance of the Emperador dark marble with which the surrounding surfaces are covered. On both sides, two large and spacious refrigerators enclose the central block of the kitchen. The covering of the Emperador light doors continues along the entire adjacent wall, hiding an access door to the second service kitchen. At the center of the room, a huge table stands for several diners in dark Emperador with bases made to measure in stainless steel and marble. These counterbalance both visually and physically the grand plan.

 
Emperador marble kitchen Moscow
island render Moscow project
island project Moscow 02
Emperador marble kitchen Moscow
island render Moscow project
island project Moscow 02

THE REALIZATION

Creating this kitchen was a new, arduous and stimulating experience. We accepted the challenge by finding solutions to the various executive problems that immediately arose. Among these, the union of two materials, wood and marble, so different in finishes, weights and typological characteristics. Obtaining the dynamism of the kitchen, with mechanisms suitable for the fluid movement of the parts and the arrangements on site for their perfect functioning with different materials and systems, required a lot of attention and an active collaboration with Tanya in Moscow, who followed the construction site. The marble, which was provided to us by Marmi Galli, a company with which we have been collaborating for long time, was used in 2 distinct thicknesses: 20 mm with 45° cuts to cover all the structures, and 5 mm thick screened for the application on the retractable doors to guarantee the functioning of the mechanisms with respect to the weight. We have taken great care of the quality of the mechanisms and the guides, both manual and motorized, especially for the doors of the shelf and the island snack top. We leave this video of Tanya the task of accompanying you in the living area and guiding you to the kitchen. Seeing it accomplished is a great emotion for us and awards our commitment.

The Moscow marble kitchen project fits perfectly into the series of single-material projects we have made. Among them, a kitchen entirely covered in steel.

 

Bar Restaurant Pizzeria Cavandola

Bar Restaurant Pizzeria Cavandola

A multifaceted place that is a bar, restaurant, pizzeria but also home for many inhabitants and vacationers of Lizzola, a mountain town in the Bergamo area.

MEMOIRS

Vivid memories come to the mind when you think of the 80s Lizzola town, people who crowded the streets with brightly colored ski suits, heavy plastic boots that echoed with every step in the streets and those skis that had the specific weight of lead. Those who did not ski walked awkwardly in the warm Moon Boot and enjoyed a chocolate at the bar waiting for the ski-day to finish and the rest of the family to enter through the door at any moment. All holidaymakers involuntarily found themselves catapulted into a film by the Vanzina brothers with ironic gags and hilarious anecdotes to be told on their return home.

 

CONCEPT

Thinking of the historical context in which this place was designed, about forty years ago, we can only remember the style in force in those years: the main material was wood in its natural state, which perfectly identified the mountain environment and it transmitted that sense of warmth and “home” essential to make the space welcoming. On a project by the architect Nava, the Cavandola’s restaurant and pizzeria provided a large bar counter at the bottom and at the entrance many table islands with benches and seats for at least six diners: the mountain holiday was a time of aggregation between family and friends and it was customary to go in groups in public places, for this reason tables for couples were very rare. The central corner benches have a high back in which a planter is inserted that runs along their entire length and separates them from the table to the side, a natural soundproofing that maintains a little privacy in general chatter. On the left side there is the exposed pizza counter and in a separate room the mythical space for videogames, which at the time were very popular among young people.

MATERIALS

As we previously specified, the whole project revolved around a specific type of wood, in this case ash, in vogue at the time. The walls have respected the original color, a warm yellow, regularly maintained from year to year with new colors and also the light points are the original designs: large semi-transparent rounded chandeliers that lower from the ceiling, with warm lights, towards the center of table; while in the transit areas and recessed in the upper part of the counter rounded spotlights. Even the external Neon sign has remained the same as it once was and today, as then, it is a strong call to enter in this timeless place and enjoy a Lizzola that changes, continues to change, but remains the same in the hearts of many who have grown up with her. Thank you Marisa and family for the care you have dedicated to the Cavandola Restaurant/Pizzeria and to all the dinners, lunches and afternoon chocolates that you made us taste!