What could be more prosaic than the most ordinary interior?hairdressing salon? However, every interior is different, and today's Interior of the Week might not have happened at all if the customer had turned to another designer. Why? The answer is in our new article Today we have an unusual article: the author, Alena Mkhitarova-Smirnova, will tell us about the history of the creation of the interior of a very unusual hairdressing salon. Design bureau "21" Alena Mkhitarova-Smirnova and Elena Zufarova have been working together for 3 years now after graduating from the interior design school "Details". During this time, they have implemented a number of public and private interior projects, participated in various competitions, and in 2012 were awarded the prestigious "Debut of the Year" award. Their projects are appreciated for their sense of proportion, intelligence, love of color and objects, smart planning solutions, and most importantly, for the love for the customer that permeates everything they do. "A friend called us and asked to meet with her friend about a new project. We happily agreed. The discussion was about the premises for a beauty salon on Mayakovka. “Hello, I’m Zhenya,” said a pleasant blonde with an open, friendly look and extended her hand in greeting. “I’ve been working in this business for 30 years, and now I’ve finally decided to open my own salon. This is my dream! I think I know exactly what I want now. The salon should be very warm, homey. I want my clients, many of whom have long since become friends, to come to visit me, and not just for a haircut/dye/manicure. I can see something very Moscow-like or even country-style in its atmosphere… The main thing is tea, a lampshade, conversations… and you don’t want to leave!”
Alena Mkhitarova-Smirnova:"You can let light into all the rooms with transoms and internal windows - a technique common in Europe. Transoms can be placed above doors, in the walls between rooms - anywhere where you don't want to put an obstacle to light in the form of a blind partition. You can place them at different heights, make them different sizes and shapes. This often helps us out when there should be more rooms in the apartment than windows. If they are made large enough, this will psychologically unite the neighboring rooms."
We relaxed, mentally immersed ourselves inthe atmosphere of an old Moscow house, we are already sitting under a lampshade with streaming warm light, drinking tea... - But we have very strict SES requirements, - Zhenya says in a completely different voice, and the imaginary lampshade above our heads disappears with a pop, - regarding finishing materials, room footage, ventilation, etc. If even one thing is wrong, they won’t let us work. - I see, and what are you planning to place there? - 2 cosmetology rooms with an area of 12 sq. m and 14 sq. m (with a shower), a manicure room, an administrator’s workplace, a cosmetics sales area, a space for visitors to relax, where you can have tea and hold a master class if necessary, a staff break room, a kitchen, a bathroom and storage, storage, storage... - Okay, and how many meters do you have in total? - About 50. - ??? - And that’s not all: the opening should take place in exactly 1.5 months, I’m already sending out invitations. At that time my Italian partners will be here, they should be present. And friends from Holland will come…
Alena Mkhitarova-Smirnova:"The proportions of the room can be visually adjusted. If the color of the ceiling "descends" to the walls, small rooms with high ceilings stop looking like wells. Window frames, doors, and in this case transoms painted in a contrasting color introduce the necessary rhythm, graphics and also work to create a feeling of increased volume and emphasize the geometry of the room where needed. Color can also set the correct trajectory for guests to move in."
From the categorical “This is impossible!!!" the only thing that saved us was that from the first day of our bureau's existence the word "impossible" has been strictly forbidden for us. At parting Zhenya said: - Oh, I almost forgot: I also can't do without a photo studio and a place for painting classes in mini-groups. We took some time to think about it, although we probably immediately realized that we wouldn't refuse. We really liked both Evgenia and her dreams. As a result, in 1.5 months from a dull concrete shell with a lonely metal column opposite the front door we got this small but very nice salon in Blagoveshchensky Lane, and we acquired a new wonderful friend from whom you will also never hear "It's impossible", because nothing is impossible.
Alena Mkhitarova-Smirnova:"It is important to make maximum use of the space vertically. In small spaces there is always a shortage of storage space. You can use roll-out drawers located under the podium. Doors in carpentry or textile can be used as facades for such storage systems. There are probably many other options."
The area of the salon had to be increased from 50 sq.m to 75 sq. m, to accommodate all the rooms. This was possible due to the layout of the rooms on different levels. The ceiling height was originally almost 5 m."
By the way
And this is what Evgenia's dreams looked like
