The Journal: How do you want to live?
Stories, guides and honest answers on whole-home concepts, new kitchens, bathrooms, room transitions and materials. Written from the practice of a Vienna studio that plans and builds.
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Whole-Home Design Concept: One Plan, One Home That Feels Finished
Whole-home design concept in Vienna: how one plan joins light, materials and built-ins into a calm home, and why it often beats piecemeal work.
Planning a Fitted Kitchen in Vienna: The Complete Guide
Planning a fitted kitchen in Vienna, step by step: daily life, layout, dimensions, materials, appliances and schedule, from first idea to handover.
Bathroom Renovation in Vienna: From "One Day" to Your First Shower
Bathroom renovation in Vienna step by step: survey, permits, planning and schedule, from the first call to the first shower in a bathroom made for you.
Whole-Home Concept
A whole-home concept treats an apartment or house as one: floor plan, light, materials, built-ins and furniture from a single source. Read how it works, what it costs and who it is for. All articles in Whole-Home Concept →
Whole-Home Design Concept: One Plan, One Home That Feels Finished
Whole-home design concept in Vienna: how one plan joins light, materials and built-ins into a calm home, and why it often beats piecemeal work.
A Life Concept for Your Home: Rooms That Grow Out of How You Live
A life concept for your home starts with one question: how do you want to live? See how layout, light and built-ins grow out of your day. Vienna.
Redesigning a Whole House: From First Call to the Day You Move In
Redesign a whole house without losing the thread: six phases from first call, survey and concept to handover, explained for homes in and around Vienna.
Renovating an Altbau Apartment in Vienna: Keep the Charm You Fell For
Renovating an Altbau apartment in Vienna: decide what stays and what is new, which services and permits matter, and how one concept keeps the charm.
Furnishing a Penthouse: One Concept for Light, Space and Privacy
Furnishing a penthouse in Vienna: how one whole-home concept tames the sun, shapes open space, opens the terrace and protects privacy. Free first call.
Combining Two Apartments: Two Floor Plans, One Home Without a Seam
Combining two apartments in Vienna: how floor plan, structure, owner consent and building services turn two units into one home with no visible seam.
Room Transitions
The threshold matters more than the room: how kitchen, dining and living grow together, when a wall may come down and how sliding doors, floors and light connect spaces. All articles in Room Transitions →
Open-Plan Kitchen and Living Space: When the Wall Can Come Down
Open-plan kitchen and living space in Vienna: when the wall can come down, what structure, ventilation and acoustics demand, and how to get it right.
Designing Room Transitions: The Threshold Decides How Your Home Feels
Designing room transitions in Vienna and Lower Austria: how flooring, light, openings and built-ins turn separate rooms into a home that flows.
Semi-Open Floor Plan with Glass Sliding Doors: Light Together, Quiet When You Need It
A glass sliding door in the living room keeps light and views, yet holds back noise and cooking smells. See how semi-open plans work in Viennese homes.
Continuous Flooring: One Floor Throughout, and Rooms That Breathe
Continuous flooring makes Viennese apartments feel larger and calmer. See which materials work in every room and how to get a floor without thresholds.
Kitchen, Dining, Living: Zones Instead of Rooms, So an Open Space Feels Like Home
How to organise kitchen, dining and living in an open-plan space: zoning with light, furniture, dimensions and acoustics for homes in and around Vienna.
Bedroom with Bathroom and Dressing Room: The Private Suite as a Sequence of Rooms
Bedroom with bathroom and dressing room as one calm master suite: sequence, dimensions, ventilation and light for homes in Vienna. Free first call.
Kitchen
From the island to the worktop, from the layout to the appliances: everything about a new fitted kitchen, planned around cooking and living. All articles in Kitchen →
Planning a Fitted Kitchen in Vienna: The Complete Guide
Planning a fitted kitchen in Vienna, step by step: daily life, layout, dimensions, materials, appliances and schedule, from first idea to handover.
Kitchen Island Dimensions and Clearances: Plan It Once, Enjoy It Every Day
Kitchen island dimensions that work: aisle width, depth, seating, services and light, plus the island mistakes we see in Vienna and how to avoid them.
Kitchen Layouts Compared: L-Shape, U-Shape, Island or Single-Run for Your Room
Kitchen layouts compared: find out when a single-run, galley, L-shaped, U-shaped or island kitchen suits your room, with minimum sizes for Viennese homes.
Handleless Kitchen: Pros, Cons and How It Feels Day to Day
A handleless kitchen looks calm, but does it hold up? Finger rail, finger pull and push-to-open compared honestly, with Vienna kitchen-planning tips.
Kitchen Fronts Compared: Matt Lacquer, Veneer, Solid Wood, Ceramic for Ten Good Years
Kitchen fronts compared: matt lacquer, veneer, solid wood and ceramic by look, robustness, care and ageing, with tips for choosing samples in Vienna.
Kitchen Worktops Compared: Dekton, Natural Stone or Quartz Composite?
Kitchen worktops compared: Dekton, natural stone and quartz composite on heat, scratches, stains, edges and care, so you choose one you enjoy for years.
Bath & Wellness
Bathtub out, shower in, light at the mirror, ceramics without joints: guides to bathroom renovation, from the guest toilet to the wellness bath. All articles in Bath & Wellness →
Bathroom Renovation in Vienna: From "One Day" to Your First Shower
Bathroom renovation in Vienna step by step: survey, permits, planning and schedule, from the first call to the first shower in a bathroom made for you.
Replacing a Bathtub with a Shower: A Safer, Larger Start to Your Day
Replacing a bathtub with a shower: which size fits, when level-access works and what happens behind the wall. A clear guide for bathrooms in Vienna.
Planning a Level-Access Shower: Falls, Waterproofing and the 2 cm Question
Planning a level-access shower: the build-up height you need, how falls, drains and waterproofing work, and what is possible in your Vienna Altbau.
Making a Small Bathroom Feel Large: Six Decisions That Change Everything
Making a small bathroom feel large: six decisions on shower, materials, walls, mirror, light and door that give a 4 m² bathroom in Vienna real generosity.
Large-Format Tiles in the Bathroom: Fewer Joints, a Calmer Start to the Day
Large-format tiles in the bathroom: sizes, substrate, joint plan, shower and transport, for a calm, almost jointless bathroom in Vienna and Lower Austria.
Natural Stone in the Bathroom: Care, Myths and Which Stones Really Work
Natural stone in the bathroom can age beautifully. Learn which stones suit, what marble really needs and which care myths are wrong. Advice from Vienna.
Living & Sleeping
Living room, bedroom, dressing room, home office: rooms that grow out of everyday life, not out of a catalogue. All articles in Living & Sleeping →
Furnishing a Living Room Without a TV Wall: A Room That Belongs to You
Furnishing a living room without a TV wall: how sofa, light, storage and hidden technology make a Vienna room for talking, reading and film nights.
Planning a Bedroom: Light, Materials and Acoustics for True Calm
Planning a bedroom for calm: bed position, blackout, warm light, acoustics, climate and storage, so your Vienna bedroom becomes a true retreat.
Planning a Walk-In Wardrobe: Dimensions, Layouts and When It Pays Off
Planning a walk-in wardrobe: minimum dimensions, layouts, hanging heights, light and ventilation, and when a dressing room in Vienna truly pays off.
Made-to-Measure Fitted Wardrobe or Modular System? Decide for the Next 20 Years
Made-to-measure fitted wardrobe or modular system? When joinery wins in a Viennese Altbau, when a system is enough, and how to decide well for 20 years.
Home Office in Your Apartment: Work Without Losing the Feeling of Home
Plan a home office in your apartment with the right location, light, acoustics and storage, so work disappears at six and your Vienna home is a home again.
A Child's Room That Grows With Them: From Age Three to Thirteen, Planned Once
Plan a child's room that grows with them: which built-ins, sizes and materials last from three to thirteen, so Vienna families do not buy everything twice.
Materials
Dekton, solid wood, terrazzo, ceramics, microcement: what materials can do, how they age and which still look good after five years. All articles in Materials →
What Is Dekton? The Honest Answer on What Ultra-Compact Surfaces Can and Cannot Do
What is Dekton? Strengths and limits of ultra-compact surfaces for kitchen, bathroom and terrace, so you choose a surface that quietly works for years.
Real Wood in Interior Fit-Out: Oak, Walnut, Ash and How Wood Grows More Beautiful
Real wood in interior fit-out: how oak, walnut and ash differ, how timber ages and moves, and which finish suits your everyday life in Vienna.
Veneer or Solid Wood? The Honest Answer From a Joinery Workshop
Veneer or solid wood: what each can do, where each construction wins and how to recognise quality. An honest answer from a joinery near Vienna.
Terrazzo Comeback: A Viennese Classic for Floors and Washbasins
Terrazzo for floors and washbasins: poured, tiled or resin-bound, what works in a Vienna Altbau, how to care for it and where the bathroom limits lie.
Micro-Cement in the Bathroom: Jointless Trowelled Finishes and Their Limits
Micro-cement in the bathroom and living space: what jointless trowelled walls and floors can do, their limits, and what substrate and waterproofing need.
Flooring Compared: Parquet, Natural Stone, Ceramic and Terrazzo for Daily Life
Flooring comparison for Vienna: parquet, natural stone, ceramic and terrazzo judged on daily use, care, acoustics and underfloor heating, and chosen well.
Design & Craft
Sliding doors, sofas, lighting, ceramics, wardrobe systems: how to recognise good design and sound workmanship, beyond the name. All articles in Design & Craft →
Sliding Glass Doors and Glass Partitions: Divide Rooms Without Closing Them Off
Sliding glass doors in Vienna: which systems exist, what ceiling, wall and acoustics demand, and how to recognise quality you will enjoy every day.
Planning a Sofa for Your Living Room: It Shapes the Room, Not the Other Way Round
Planning a sofa for your living room: what size the room can take, which distances count and how to judge good upholstery in Vienna when you sit-test it.
The Kitchen as Architecture: A Designer Kitchen That Shapes the Room
Kitchen as architecture: how a designer kitchen in Vienna joins the living space through floor plan, light and extraction, and how to spot quality.
A Designer Kitchen with Judgement: Where the Budget Pays Off and Where It Doesn't
Designer kitchen and budget in Vienna: where investing pays off in daily use, where saving makes sense and which priorities keep a kitchen good for years.
Kitchen Between Craft and Industry: How to Recognise Quality
Recognising kitchen quality in Vienna: judge carcass, fittings, fronts and installation, craft or industry, with a checklist for your next appointment.
Wardrobe System and Dressing Room: Storage That Works Like Architecture
Wardrobe system and dressing room in Vienna: when a system fits, when the joiner takes over, and how storage in an Altbau becomes part of the room.
Light & Technology
Lighting design, acoustics, smart home, heating and cooling: technology you feel but do not see. All articles in Light & Technology →
Lighting Design for the Home: The Fundamentals Beyond the Catalogue
Home lighting design explained: layers of light, colour temperature, colour rendering and switching, with examples from Viennese Altbau flats.
Acoustics in Open-Plan Living Spaces: End the Echo, Keep the Openness
Why open-plan living spaces echo and how textiles, furniture and built-ins improve room acoustics at home, explained through projects in Vienna.
Planning a Smart Home That Makes Sense: Technology You Never Have to Think About
Which smart home features are worth having and which merely blink? See how lighting, shading and heating disappear into a calm Viennese home.
Heating and Cooling Through Surfaces: Quiet Comfort, No Visible Radiators
Underfloor heating with cooling, wall and ceiling systems: how they work, what is possible in a Viennese Altbau and how furniture and floors fit in.
Electrical Planning for the Home: Why the Socket Comes Before the Sofa
Electrical planning for apartments in Vienna: where sockets, switches and connections belong, why furniture comes first and how your renovation succeeds.
Making Use of Daylight at Home: Windows, Mirrors, Colour and Orientation
Improve daylight at home and brighten a dark Altbau apartment in Vienna with the right orientation, colour, mirrors, glass and furniture. Free first call.
Process, Costs & Planning
Process, costs, timeline, permits: what you should know before a project, explained honestly. All articles in Process, Costs & Planning →
Working with an Interior Designer: How the Process Unfolds and What Is Asked of You
Working with an interior designer in Vienna: from first consultation through concept and planning to handover, and what your own role is in each phase.
What Does a Complete Interior Concept Cost? An Honest Answer, Without Guesswork
What does interior design cost in Vienna? See what the fee and the construction budget of a complete concept depend on, and where saving really pays off.
What Does a Fitted Kitchen Cost in Vienna? What the Price Really Depends On
What does a fitted kitchen cost in Vienna? What the price depends on, the main cost blocks from fronts to appliances, and where you can save wisely.
What Does a Bathroom Renovation Cost in Vienna? Items, Cost Drivers and Savings Traps
What does a bathroom renovation cost in Vienna? Cost drivers, every item from demolition to taps, the Altbau factor and the false economies to avoid.
Renovating a Flat: The Realistic Timeline from First Idea to Moving In
How long does a flat renovation take in Vienna? A realistic timeline with every phase, lead times and permits, so you know the day you will move in.
Converting a Viennese Altbau: Which Permits and Consents You Need, and in What Order
Converting a Viennese Altbau: when the property management, co-owners, MA 37 and a structural engineer must agree, and how to prepare calmly.
Commercial & Hospitality
Restaurants, offices, practices, boutique hotels: spaces where guests and clients stay longer. All articles in Commercial & Hospitality →
Designing a Restaurant Interior: Why Guests Stay Longer in Some Venues
Restaurant interior design in Vienna: how acoustics, lighting, seating, zoning and materials help guests feel at ease, stay longer and come back.
Designing a Practice or Office: Rooms That Convey Calm and Trust
Designing a medical practice or office in Vienna: how reception, acoustics, light and materials create calm and trust, and what a surgery needs on top.
Boutique Hotel Interior Design: Rooms Where Guests Feel at Home by the Second Evening
Boutique hotel or holiday apartment in Vienna: how light, sleep, bathroom, robust materials and storage make guests feel at home from the first evening.
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