House of Joy — A Minimalist Kyiv House Wrapped in Soft Neutrals
House of Joy sets a calm, confident tone for a contemporary house in Kyiv, Ukraine, shaped by designer Oleh Hubanishchev. The home gathers tall volumes, quiet colors, and vivid winter views into a single interior, where daily life moves easily from social rooms to private retreats. Each zone feels tailored yet connected, softened by texture and controlled light.
Snow presses gently against the tall glazing while the living room glows in muted grays and warm timber. Soft upholstery absorbs conversation, and the quiet hum of the city stays outside.
House of Joy is a contemporary house in Kyiv, Ukraine, created by designer Oleh Hubanishchev around a restrained interior palette and generous rooms for gathering. The project leans on low, deep furniture, tactile finishes, and deliberate lighting to guide daily life through social, wellness, and private zones. Every room relies on color, texture, and proportion rather than decoration.
Living Room Volume
In the main living room, double-height walls stretch up behind a broad gray sectional that anchors the seating area. Full-height shelving cuts into the pale wall planes, with slim vertical niches carrying books, objects, and concealed lighting that washes the recesses with a soft glow. Large windows frame the snowy garden, so the neutral interior reads as a calm counterpoint to the white landscape. Heavy drapery drops from ceiling to floor, adding mass and acoustic softness without breaking the clean geometry.
Dining And Kitchen Core
Just beyond the sofa, an open-plan dining and kitchen core holds the social heart of the house. A stone-clad island stands parallel to a pale dining table, their contrasting tones tying cooking and eating into one composition. Above, a sculptural, dark metal hood and a cluster of slender pendant lights mark the center line, drawing the eye upward to the high ceiling. Warm wood cabinetry wraps the back wall, with illuminated glass cabinets at the sides that lend depth and a gentle amber tone during evening meals.
Wellness And Leisure Rooms
Deeper in the house, the palette shifts toward saturated warmth for leisure and wellness. A lounge with a billiards table, low sectional, and continuous cove lighting uses wood floors and wall panels to keep the room intimate despite its length. Nearby, a compact sauna lined entirely in pale timber glows behind a glass door, the dense grain and benches catching the amber light. An indoor pool hall stretches along a run of tall windows, its stone walls, calm water, and timber ceiling slats sitting in quiet contrast to the winter view beyond.
Quiet Private Quarters
Private rooms continue the focus on texture rather than ornament. In the bedroom, a dark upholstered bed stands against a charcoal wall panel that reads almost like stone, while taupe drapery and a pale rug soften the floor. A compact lounge upstairs uses ribbed wall cladding, warm indirect lighting, and a single artwork to create a more tactile, enclosed atmosphere. Bathrooms rely on large-format stone tiles, simple black fixtures, and long counters, so everyday routines unfold against a consistent, calm background.
Light moves differently through each level as the day progresses. Social rooms catch broad daylight, quieter corners lean on concealed strips and small spotlights that skim surfaces instead of flooding them. By night, the house reads as a series of warm volumes against the dark garden, unified by a steady palette of wood, stone, and soft textiles that holds the interior together without calling attention to itself.
Photography courtesy of Oleh Hubanishchev
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