PAST & PRESENT
This minimaluxe Milanese apartment is a harmonious blend of the old and the new, thanks to the subtle touch of its designer owners
LIVING ROOM
‘The main thing was to be able to accommodate many people. The ottoman, which we use as a coffee table, can also serve as extra seating,’ says Leonardo.
DESK AREA
‘We had the idea of creating a workspace without dedicating an entire room to that, so we stylised a bookcase to make it into a shelf that could accommodate various objects,’ says Leonardo.
when Leonardo and Marzia Dainelli found their Milanese apartment, their priority was to save as many original features as they could. This involved reviving the gorgeous parquet and encaustic tile flooring and restoring the decorative window frames and plasterwork, such as cornicing and ceiling stuccos, typical of this kind of turn-of-the-century Milanese building. ‘When we find traces of the past in good condition, we tend to preserve them,’ explains Leonardo. For the couple it was important to ‘let the history of the building not be too stifled by the renovation’. Tackling it this way gave them a canvas on which to stage their deliberately minimalist interventions in order to make the apartment their own. ‘We wanted to keep the mood of the apartment the same, just update it with custom details and furniture.’
The couple, who are partners in business as well as life, moved to the city from their original base in Pisa in 2018. The low-key yet luxe vibe they have imbued their home with is thanks to a tight edit of vintage and bespoke furnishings, placed alongside a selection of high-end materials, from parquet to marble, leather to brass. The latter has become something of a design signature for the duo, who have used it as an accent in several of their interior design projects. In their own home it is seen to most spectacular effect in the dining space with its glamorous brass and marble table – the glimmer of the metal picked up on the striking brass swing door that leads through to the kitchen. This recurring metallic motif also features as an insert in the bespoke entrance storage and as a backdrop to shelves above the desk in the living room, as well as being the material of choice for door and window handles. Far from being blingy, it is a nuanced addition that highlights t
