14 Cobalt is situated on the first floor of an historical building in the neighbourhood of Castello di Cagliari, on the highest and oldest spot in the city. Intended to accommodate short-stay tourists, the place has been remodeled by architect brothers Mauro and Matteo Soddu, who have spliced contemporary style with 16th century architecture (according to the requests of their customers), signing off with chromatic accents such as a strong cobalt theme, and cutting geometries in the absence of any separating elements within the space.
The open space – measuring about 50 square metres with a double-height ceiling – also features a mezzanine and can accommodate up to five guests. In its original configuration, the apartment housed an 11-square-metre kitchen and a bathroom of 3.5 square metres. Given the projected function of 14 Cobalt as a reception space, the designers decided to convert the old kitchen into a second larger bathroom with a double sink and a double shower while placing a new, small kitchen unit in the space underneath the staircase.
The kitchen unit, nicknamed ‘The Spaceship’, which is coloured the same shade of aviation blue as all of the other customized furniture in the space, is designed to be one with the staircase: the finish of the worktop and the backdrop are made from the same treated iron, while the height of the work table coincides exactly with the level of one of the stairs.
The apartment’s wooden elements (the beams, floorboards, fixtures, the mezzanine flooring) that have been put in place over time, have been made uniform by the application of white paint which also adds a lot more brightness to the space.
The two different levels of flooring present in different parts of the space inspired a variation in colour of the new resin flooring: the central part, which is lower, is shaded a pale grey while the bathrooms, entrance area and window steps (all of which are 15cm higher) are coloured purple.
Previously facing a blind wall, the living room now centres around a dining table, creating a more convivial atmosphere. Coordinated to match the purple colour of the floors, the sofa bed in the living room backs onto wallpaper designed by Inkiostro Bianco (the van-gi model) which echoes, with its hibiscus and parrot design, the colours of the furnishings in the apartment. The wallpaper continues up beyond the mezzanine level, reinforcing the concept of continuity and becoming the backdrop to the double bed.
The upper level – which measures 22 square metres – is reached by way of the ‘Spaceship’ stairs: a glass balustrade with black iron frames (which match an existing structural beam) protects the sleeping area which is made up of two rest areas. Next to the double bed is a relaxing area madeup of a sofa bed and built-in cupboards, which conceal a storage space above the small bathroom.
The decision to make a new larger bathroom meant eliminating the bidet from the original bathroom, as well as reducing the space for the shower with the simultaneous knocking down of the wall in the entrance area, which is now more spacious as a result. A long black shelf on the cobalt-coloured wall leads guests into the living room: the first part of the shelf serves as a desk while the second part, which is in the kitchen area, is available as a kitchen work top.
The new 11-square-metre bathroom, which is triangular in shape, conceals a washing machine in its narrowest corners. The purple colour covers the walls, floors and bathroom counters and can be seen from the living room through the opening of the sliding cobalt door (which disappears into the cobalt wall). The double shower has an area of 3.5 metres, and hanging rods of various lengths made from black iron light up the bathroom. The lighting for the rest of the apartment is a mixture of 50s-style lamps and LED strip lights built into the ceiling.
The original 1950s vintage table and chairs, whose salmon-coloured cushions perfectly match the hibiscus wallpaper, were restored especially for this apartment and attest, along with the bizarre subjects of the framed photographs in the dining area, to the decade celebrated in 14 Cobalt.
Material Used :
Wallpaper: Inkiostro bianco – VAN-GI
Sofa/Bed living: Felis – TOM
Armchair: Maisons du Monde - COSMOS
Round tables: Maisons du monde – CAMERON e CLARENCE
High Tables: Maisons du monde - EDISON
Table and chairs: Unknown, original ‘50’s
Lunch lamp: Made.com – LAB
Entrance lamp: House Doctor – CB0811
Applique lamp: Maisons du Monde – HARRIS
Kitchen: Handmade
Kitchen Tap: Ikea –LUNDSKÄR
Sink: Catalano – SFERA
Wc: Catalano - SFERA
Bathroom taps: Ib Rubinetti – MILANOTORINO
