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High Style Bungalow

By Erika Brechtel @smallshopstudio

Flipping through the September 2012 issue of Elle Decor, it’s easy to miss this little 1910 Craftsman bungalow revamp by Claudia Benevenuto. But I’m so glad I didn’t! I’ve been studying how she infused a worldly sophistication into a typically comfy casual architectural style, and how she makes the small spaces appear much larger.

HIGH STYLE BUNGALOW //

In the living room, she opened up the ceiling to the original pitched roof for height. Notice how she uses a very narrow glass cocktail table. (wall color: Benjamin Moore Stonington Gray)

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HIGH STYLE BUNGALOW //

In the sitting area off the living room, she created a functional wall of built-in bookcases, keeping it out of the main sight lines and avoiding visual clutter that can make a space seem smaller.

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HIGH STYLE BUNGALOW //

In the dining room, she mixes chairs with a small table to make the space seem larger, and has incorporated mirrored doors to hide the kitchen from view.

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HIGH STYLE BUNGALOW //

In the guest bedroom, she keeps it light with small scale furniture such as a day bed instead of larger bed, and a narrow ottoman instead of a table.

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HIGH STYLE BUNGALOW //

Her office used to be a small garage. Here she mixes new and old, high-end and affordable, modern and traditional, but takes advantage of the full height with the addition of a foldable step ladder.

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Another tip? Stain the floors very dark. It’s one of those contradictions to our thinking about “darker = smaller” and “lighter = bigger.” But I find that it seems to smooth out the field, and pull it away from our perspective, if that makes sense.

HIGH STYLE BUNGALOW //

Images via Elle Decor; photography by Joe Schmelzer; styled by Stephen Pappas.

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