A rural villa turns into a modern masterpiece

Izelle du Pisanie Izelle du Pisanie
Reabilitação em Ponte do Abade, Vasco Rodrigues, arquitecto Vasco Rodrigues, arquitecto Casas modernas
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Today we bring you another one of our favourite type of projects – before and after. If you've visited homify quite a few times, you should be well acquainted with these projects that we present to you and tour together. There are few things as satisfying as seeing someone of something receive an entire image makeover. We just love to see how the potential of old buildings is brought out by the insight of talented professionals, and we love sharing this with you!

So, today we have yet another before and after project to show you, and we are sure you'll be impressed by this one. In the charming Portuguese village of Ponte do Abade, we can see with our own eyes how a very old villa is transformed into a modern home to rival the most distinguished of its contemporaries. Does this seem like an interesting project to you? Well, let's waste no further time and get right to it!

Before: On the brink of deterioration

So, here it is – the house in question. As we can see from this image, the villa is in a traditional European style suited to the rural atmosphere of the village. There is something very nostalgic about this look, a romantic spirit which attracts thousands of tourists to the ancient streets of European cities each year round. Understandably, the architects and homeowners did not want to relinquish this look entirely, and thus the renovation had to continue whilst retaining something of the house's original character. 

The stone slabs used in the building's construction is a very prominent feature, and is surely something which you'd want to save to some extent. However, as you will surely agree, the exterior structure could not be kept exactly as is, since some of the integrity has already been lost over years of existence and use. 

After: Restored beyond its previous state

The rehabilitation of the house is far more impressive than we could have imagined. The architects of Vasco Rodrigues have managed to maintain much of the original structures walling with the rough stone slabs, whilst also updating the entire facade to a more modern look. You can see for yourself, the building looks like anything out of a modern architecture catalogue, yet we can still see those nostalgic features of the older building, especially in the beautiful natural stone.

In addition to the rehabilitation and the retention of the romantic features, the design also includes steel touches on the balcony, as well as an entire top floor extension in the place of the small attic rooms. 

Before: Overgrown and dark

Here we can view the original house from another vantage point in the village street. This rear view of the house reveals a back entrance to the property, and a section of the yard which is fenced around with more of that romantic stone walls. 

The image of the home from this view is rather dismal, however. Once again, the physical structure of the entire building looks at the point of crumbling, and the overgrowth of vegetation on this side does not help with lightening the appearance. 

At the back of this image we can also see the roof of the original structure, which is dull and listless with shingles that look tired and out of place. 

After: Clean and minimal

After the renovation of the home, this rear view of the property also got a breath of new life. On this side, however, there is little ornamentation of distinguished features, as the focus had clearly been placed on a minimal aesthetic that also exalts the beauty of the original building materials. 

The crisp and clear image that is created on this side of the building is ideal for this side of the street, as it ensures privacy from the street activities for the inhabitants inside the home. 

A look inside

Now that we are well-acquainted with the exterior dimensions of the home, let's take a look at what the interior has to offer. Here we have the bedroom, and we are sure the first thing that catches your eye is the extraordinary view from this room. On the new top floor extension of the building, this bedroom has a supreme outlook on the city scenery, and anyone must feel glad to reside here. 

Besides the overwhelmingly beautiful surroundings of the room, we can also see that it is furnished and decorated in a contemporary style, updating the interior entirely whilst the outside retains something of the past. The residents surely get access to the best of both worlds!

The details

Lastly, we would just like to take a moment and zoom in on some structural and design details here in the interior of the home. In this image we can see how the stone details of the walls had been retained in an exposed state on the interior as well. This is definitely an asset when it comes to interior decoration, and adds such a beautiful rust style element to it all. 

Other than this nostalgic reminder of what the house was before, all of the other elements have been updated to suit a modern lifestyle, such as the aluminium window frames and the leather sofa. this just goes to show how a renovation can bring you the best of eclectic style. 

For another amazing before and after, take a look at: This fairytale renovation!

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