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Form & Habitat Interiors
Concept project

The Olive Apartment

Category
Residential
Location
Kilimani, Nairobi
Services involved
Space PlanningResidential Interior DesignInterior Styling
Sage-green wall with a round mirror above a cane-fronted timber sideboard, potted plants and a patterned wool rug
Reference photography — illustrative of the concept, not a photograph of a completed project.

Overview

A concept for a two-bedroom apartment where every wall is asked to do something. The design adds storage without adding clutter, opens a cramped entrance, and gives the main room a single, quiet colour — a soft olive that ties living, dining and kitchen together.

Design brief

Make a small rented-to-owned apartment feel larger and more settled, with enough storage that daily life does not spill onto every surface.

Client requirements (fictional)

  • A defined entrance with space for shoes, keys and coats.
  • Storage for a home office that can be closed away in the evening.
  • A dining area for four that does not block the route to the balcony.

Design approach

  1. The plan is simplified by removing one non-structural partition (subject to building-management approval) and replacing it with full-height joinery that works from both sides.

  2. A single wall colour runs through the main space, with darker kitchen cabinetry to anchor it. Furniture is chosen with visible legs and open bases so the floor reads as continuous.

  3. Mirrors, sheer curtains and a pale rug are used to move light deeper into the plan.

Material & colour palette

  • Soft olive

    Main living walls

  • Charcoal

    Kitchen cabinetry

  • Natural cane

    Sideboard and joinery fronts

  • Warm white

    Ceilings and trim

Materials

  • Painted MDF joinery with cane door inserts
  • Matt charcoal kitchen fronts
  • Hand-knotted wool rug in a pale pattern
  • Sheer cotton voile curtains

Furniture & lighting

Furniture

  • Extending round dining table for two to six
  • Compact sofa on a raised timber base
  • Fold-away desk within the living-room joinery

Lighting

  • Wall-mounted sconces to free up floor and table space
  • Single statement pendant over the dining table

Design considerations

Approvals first
Any change to walls or services in an apartment block would need confirmation from building management and, where relevant, a structural or MEP professional.
Storage before furniture
Joinery is designed first, so loose furniture fills the room rather than compensating for missing storage.

This is a fictional concept project prepared for the studio portfolio. It does not represent a real client, and no costs, measurements or outcomes are implied.

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Planning something similar?

If the Olive Apartment reflects what you have in mind, we'd be glad to talk about your own home.

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