A prewar apartment from Manhattan was transformed by architecture and interior design studio MKCA into a contemporary urban oasis full of color and refined beauty. It’s one of the most impressive and most inspiring before and after projects we’ve seen in a while and we’re very excited to get into all the details.

The living room originally had darker-colored herringbone flooring and felt quite small because of thatThe new living room design is much brighter and has a custom curved sofa as a centerpiece

The original layout of this 2,800 square foot apartment was segmented and a lot of the spaces were dark so the architects focused a lot on maximizing the natural light and on creating enlarged openings between the spaces in order to increase circulation and visual connectivity. The rooms were already well-proportioned so no adjustments were necessary in that regard.

The other side of the living room didn’t have a specific purpose in the original layoutThis is where a casual small table was placed, turning the area into a board game spaceThe living room features a fireplace which has been redesigned using modern materials and finishes

A variety of stylish apartment decorating techniques were used to reimagine the spaces for contemporary living and that was achieved without stripping away the apartment’s original character. The large entrance hall is adjacent to the cloak room and the powder room which was originally a closet space. They’ve both been transformed and now feature brightly-colored flamingo wallpaper and respectively dark and elegant wall tiles.

This is the formal dining room. Originally, it looked dark and rather austereThe new dining room setup is full of color and feels more open thanks to the glass panels separating it from the living roomThe initial kitchen setup featured lots of furniture which created a rather cluttered appearanceThe reimagined kitchen has no upper cabinetry and crisp white walls which better reflect the light

In general all the spaces have a graphic and colorful look and burst with playfulness without being too casual. A lot of the furniture pieces have vintage designs and are used in combination with contemporary pieces, complementing and bringing out the beauty in each other.

The layout of the kitchen also changed and this little area gained a completely new roleA cozy breakfast nook was set up in the kitchen. It has an oval table, an upholstered bench and two simple chairsOther sections of the apartment have also been repurposed, like this closet space for exampleThe closet was converted into a powder room with geometric floor tiles and black wallsThe original color for the master bedroom walls was brown which was warm and cozy but not very freshThe walls and the ceiling of the bedroom have been painted in a pastel shade of pink which looks very trendyThe second bedroom originally featured a large wall unit with lots and lots of storageThe mint green wall color, casual daybed and rocking chair combo give this bedroom a much fresher vibeThe entrance hall, although spacious, didn’t have character and lacked colorA lighter floor color, muted pink walls and black and white furniture give the entryway a glamorous look