Beautiful Virgin Islands

Tuesday, Jun 24, 2025

A Dated Madrid Apartment Becomes a Fun and Funky Home for a Local Musician

A Dated Madrid Apartment Becomes a Fun and Funky Home for a Local Musician

By transforming mundane household essentials into cheerful, iridescent objects, Husos Architects turns a humdrum flat into a glowing residence.

In the historic Lavapiés neighborhood of Madrid, Spain, sits a recently renovated apartment beaming from the inside out. Dubbed the Moulting Flat, the 473-square-foot residence was redesigned by local firm Husos Architects for Spanish musician and performer Niño de Elche.



"With this project, we wanted to retain as many of the preexisting elements as possible," explain architects Camilo García and Diego Barajas. From the floor and wall tiles to the kitchen cabinetry and appliances, the team aimed to stretch the client’s tight budget by creatively repurposing whatever was salvageable.



"Rather than throwing things out, we simply refreshed items with a coat of paint, thus reducing the amount of rubble and waste generated by the refurbishment," continue the architects. "The seemingly ‘ugliest’ part of the apartment-the kitchen-was converted into an objet de désir, a new and surprising sculptural element within the home."



In addition to modernizing the interior aesthetic, the team focused on creating a large amount of flexible storage. "We constructed a system based on metal racks all around the perimeter of the apartment which support wooden shelves." Parallel to the shelves, they also integrated a rail on which separate curtains can hang. "This strategy allows the space to present multiple configurations, while also offering opportunities to hide or reveal stored objects," note the architects.



According to García and Barajas, "the house can work as a figurative, multi-narrative space, or as an abstract, ‘mute’ space. The translucency of the curtains redraws the geometry of the original architecture, while the concealed storage units double as acoustic insulation."



The architects also reused everyday household objects-such as funnels, mop drainers, and citrus juicers-to convert the apartment into a vibrant kaleidoscope of color. "We used these objects to create a new, transformable landscape, amplified in different ways through the gloss and transparency of the silver-colored curtains," say García and Barajas. "Because these luminous objects help to generate a variety of interior atmospheres, the home can be a place of solitude and tranquility-or an erotic haven, a social, festive space, and so on."



As a way to cater to the client’s professional and creative endeavors, the team designed the home’s living room/sleeping area into a large, shape-shifting space. "We wanted to enable different usages through movable furniture," note the architects. For instance, a table on wheels, with legs built from waste wood pieces, serves as a dining table or worktable. The sofa can be rolled from one spot to another and, by reconfiguring its cushions, used as a chaise lounge to read on.

"Architecture offers a system of multiple options, and it is the inhabitant who designs their home according to the way they live day-to-day life," says Husos. "This house is a multiuse platform-a molting haven."


Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Macron and Merz: Europe must arm itself in an unstable world
Germany and Italy Under Pressure to Repatriate $245bn of Gold from US Vaults
Airlines Evaluate Flight Cancellations Amid Escalating US-Iran Tensions
Starmer Invites Innovators to Join Government Talent Scheme
UK Economy’s Strong Opening Quarter Shows Signs of Cooling
Harrods Seeks Court Order to Secure Al Fayed Estate for Victims
BA and Singapore Airlines Cancel Dubai Flights Amid Middle East Tensions
Trump Faces Backlash from MAGA Base Over Iran Strikes
Meta Bets $14 B on Alexandr Wang to Drive AI Ambitions
WATCH: Israeli forces show the aftermath of a massive airstrike at Iran's Isfahan nuclear site
FedEx Founder Fred Smith, ‘Heart and Soul’ of the Company, Dies at 80
Chinese Factories Shift Away from U.S. Amid Trump‑Era Tariffs
Pimco Seizes Opportunity in Japan’s Dislocated Bond Market
Labubu Doll Drives Pop Mart to Status as China’s Most Valuable Toy Maker
Global Coal Demand Defies Paris Accord Goals
We have new information and breaking details to share about what is shaping up to be a historic air campaign tonight
Six Massive Bombs Dropped on Fordow; Trump: 'A Historic Moment for the U.S., Israel, and the World'
Fordow: Deeply Buried Iranian Enrichment Site in U.S.–Israel Crosshairs
United States Conducts Precision Strikes on Iran’s Nuclear Sites
US strikes Iran nuclear sites, Trump says
Pakistan to nominate Trump for Nobel Peace Prize.
BBC Demands Perplexity AI Immediately Stop Using Its Content
Telegram Founder: I Will Leave My Fortune to Over 100 of My Children
Political Turmoil Resurfaces in Belgium Amid Economic Concerns
Fed policymakers divided on timing of interest rate cuts
Trump signals imminent agreement with Harvard University
Inheritance tax referendum alarms Swiss billionaire community
Japan cancels bilateral security meeting amid US defence demands
AI skeptic Emily Bender warns that ‘the emperor has no clothes’
Israel Confirms Assassination of Quds Force Commander in Tehran
16 Billion Login Credentials Leaked in Unprecedented Cybersecurity Breach
Senate hearing on who was 'really running' Biden White House kicks off
Iranian Military Officers Reportedly Seek Contact with Reza Pahlavi, Signal Intent to Defect
FBI and Senate Investigate Allegations of Chinese Plot to Influence the 2020 Election in Biden’s Favor Using Fake U.S. Driver’s Licenses
Vietnam Emerges as Luxury Yacht Destination for Ultra‑Rich
Plans to Sell Dutch Embassy in Bangkok Face Local Opposition
China's Iranian Oil Imports Face Disruption Amid Escalating Middle East Tensions
Trump's $5 Million 'Trump Card' Visa Program Draws Nearly 70,000 Applicants
DGCA Finds No Major Safety Concerns in Air India's Boeing 787 Fleet
Airlines Reroute Flights Amid Expanding Middle East Conflict Zones
Elon Musk's xAI Seeks $9.3 Billion in Funding Amid AI Expansion
Trump Demands Iran's Unconditional Surrender Amid Escalating Conflict
Israeli Airstrike Targets Iranian State TV in Central Tehran
President Trump is leaving the G7 summit early and has ordered the National Security Council to the Situation Room
Taiwan Imposes Export Ban on Chips to Huawei and SMIC
Israel has just announced plans to strike Tehran again, and in response, Trump has urged people to evacuate
Netanyahu Signals Potential Regime Change in Iran
Juncker Criticizes EU Inaction on Trump Tariffs
EU Proposes Ban on New Russian Gas Contracts
Analysts Warn Iran May Resort to Unconventional Warfare
×