18 March 2022
THE SECOND HOME BECOMES BEAUTIFUL
The second home has always been the dream of many Italian families in the collective imagination. Mainly because in our country you can find about 7,000 km of coastline, our envied mountains and our reassuring hilly landscapes. It is therefore able to offer a range of alternatives for every taste and need.
If we want to have a look at the numbers, we can tell you that it is estimated that 5.5 million Italians are owners of second homes, a market to be considered particularly flourishing and in continuous expansion.
The reason is quite clear: the need to have a place where you can spend periods of relaxation and carefree has grown thanks to the recent problems related to the pandemic, which has led Italians to seek a valid local alternative to international travel, which in the meantime has become risky and complicated to organise. During holiday periods, in fact, people spend much more time at home, or for the lucky ones in their second home.
It is precisely because of this need that furnishing these spaces is becoming a real habit for those involved. The design approach is profoundly different from that of the main home.
Reduced space and, at the same time, a different lifestyle from living in the city mean that good design is essential. In any case, the client wants to have a sober but quality furniture, elegant and functional, but above all comfortable and with all the comforts of the main house.
In the next two articles we will see how to approach the design of the holiday home, from the living area to the sleeping area.
Reduced space and, at the same time, a different lifestyle from living in the city mean that good design is essential. In any case, the client wants to have a sober but quality furniture, elegant and functional, but above all comfortable and with all the comforts of the main house.
In the next two articles we will see how to approach the design of the holiday home, from the living area to the sleeping area.
Let's start from the fact that in most cases the dining and living area are both located in a single room (open space): in this regard the kitchen must contain all the appliances in a small space, without sacrificing functionality: refrigerator, sink, dishwasher, induction hob, oven and often microwave oven are now part of the furniture.
It is therefore advisable to develop everything vertically in order to have more storage space in the wall units and in any tall units. Very often the peninsula top replaces the dining table, which is placed directly on the large covered terraces, now almost more important than the house itself.
When it comes to colours, light and soft shades are preferred as they can be easily matched with natural woods such as oak or ash. Starting with white, you can then move on to warm earthy shades and combine them with wallpaper. If chosen wisely, they can truly decorate certain walls of the house.
Obviously the living area, usually a sofa with a TV cabinet, must be perfectly coordinated with the entire environment. The choice of the sofa issue, especially for two- and three-room flats, is most often resolved with a sofa bed, preferably a double bed with a comfortable pull-out mattress 16 or 18 cm high for a more comfortable rest. This creates a third or fourth bed, essential for the family and any guests.
As for upholstery fabrics, the choice falls on fabrics that are easy to wash and have easy clean or water-resistant technical characteristics. The new ecological leathers and hypoallergenic micro-fibres are also very popular.
The TV cabinet, which is almost always wall-mounted, must have essential lines and design, must accommodate the TV on a surface, or better still, suspended, and be equipped with convenient pull-out baskets or drop-down compartments, the only real container for the entire living area.
All the materials used must have certified resistance characteristics and must absolutely comply with the new regulations in force, therefore water-based varnishing in the case of lacquered surfaces and total absence of formaldehyde in laminate or melamine furniture.
In the next article we will talk about the night area and how to improve outdoor environments.