- Interior
- Architecture & development
WS House is a project designed by the Ukrainian Men Bureau. A few years ago, a couple found a charming old house not far from Kyiv. It was intended to be a country retreat, a place to escape the city at the weekends. Then came the pandemic and the couple got a taste for country life after all. This is now their home for most of the time.
The interior of the house has a strong focus on natural materials and texture.
The project is surrounded by a unique terrain, into which the colours of the house merge. Being connected to nature was the owners' greatest wish, so this became the primary goal of the design. Natural light is used in every room to create a spacious atmosphere and maximise the view outside. Each room is picturesque, each in its own way, yet modest and connected to the other. Men Bureau also rearranged a few rooms. For example, the living room was moved to where the dining room used to be, because it was at the front of the house and, therefore, has now a more logical layout.
The interior of the house has a strong focus on natural materials and texture. The floor is European oak and was carefully finished on site with a black resin that fills in the knots. Deep wood is the dominant flooring throughout the entire house. 
In spite of its rural appearance, this home is equipped with contemporary facilities that guarantee its residents a comfortable lifestyle. This has resulted in a house of understated elegance and contemporary minimalism, where everything is seamlessly integrated into the building fabric. For Men Bureau, it was important to get to know the house they were working with, which gave them a kind of guide in which direction to go. It was also important that it did not feel like a museum. This house may have been built 50 years ago, but we are now living in 2022. So the design studio had to find a balance between preserving the history of the house, on the one hand, and, on the other, making it liveable and adaptable to the way the owners want to live. The result is a warm, minimalist and timeless house in harmony with the past and the needs of the client. 
Want to know more about WS House? Read the full article in Imagicasa Autumn 2021.
Images courtesy of Men Bureau