London architecture studio Daab Design has turned a former art storage vault in Marylebone, London, into a two-bedroom apartment full of Georgian period features that were restored with the help of an archaeologist.
Before the renovation began, the Grade II-listed basement flat was boarded up for decades and featured a dark, cramped interior.
"The flat had suffered from years of unsympathetic alterations ? poor design decisions, neglect, cheap overlaid materials and clumsy partitioning, which distorted and confused the layout," Daab Design explained.
Daab Design restores period features such as Georgian stone courtyards (above) and fireplaces (top image)
The studio stripped back more recent additions such as vinyl flooring, peeling paint and roofing over the two courtyards to reveal the building's original features and generous proportions. "Much of the flat was boarded up in an effort to protect the strong room, which had been used as a vault by an art dealer," said Daab Design co-founder Anais Blehaut.
"The benefit of this was that the partitions and vinyl were installed straight on top of original features and actually covered and preserved them over time. So what we thought was lost at first glance was waiting to be found."
A petrol green glass pendant lamp hangs in the bedroom
The studio rearranged the floor plan to create a clean, simple and functional layout adapted for modern living.
From the street, stairs lead down to a recovered Geo...