Vinohradská: Minimalist Prague Apartment With Herringbone Warmth
Vinohradská is a two-bedroom apartment renovation in Prague, Czech Republic, by SMLXL. Set in a traditional Vinohrady building, the project steers a clear, masculine minimalism through layered material contrasts and restrained moves. Clean volumes, custom storage, and tailored proportions create a practical home for a single resident without erasing the building’s character. It reads calm, precise, and quietly expressive.
Muted light washes a grey herringbone floor as you step inside. The apartment opens gradually, its darker joinery framing pale planes and a quiet rhythm of thresholds.
This is a two-bedroom apartment in Prague’s Vinohrady district by SMLXL, renovated in 2024 for a single resident. The plan stays intact, while the interior pivots on material contrasts and custom pieces that tune proportion, storage, and comfort. The throughline is tactile clarity anchored by dark-stained veneer, stone, glass, and fine metalwork.
Set The Tone
The entry hall carries generous built-in storage and a concealed utility room, setting a disciplined order from the start. Doors to the bathroom and WC dissolve into dark-stained veneer paneling, their flush lines keeping the corridor calm and tall. A grey-toned herringbone wooden floor runs throughout, linking rooms and lending visual continuity.
Bath And Utility
The most complex move happens in the bathroom, where the boiler’s placement drives a precise layout. Light, quiet tiling meets dark fixtures and cabinetry in the same veneer as the hall, keeping language consistent. A perforated metal countertop adds a refined industrial note, crisp against the pale surfaces.
Kitchen As Anchor
The main room holds kitchen and living zones, connected by double glass doors that preserve openness while affording privacy. A central stone island grounds the kitchen, with cross-suspended LED lights forming a sculptural grid above. Semi-partitions at the rear create a recessed niche, where a chipped stone backsplash edge brings texture and depth. A freestanding bar cabinet, layered in distinctive veneer, adds a polished focal point without crowding the room.
Living Room Layers
A generous central sofa faces a custom TV wall clad in dark-stained veneer and concrete plaster. The pairing tempers sheen with grit, and the composition reads as a single, quiet plane. A built-in desk tucks into the layout for a discreet home office. Near the window, a round dining table sits under a hand-blown glass pendant by Czech makers, catching daylight with a soft glow.
Dressing To Rest
In the bedroom, the plan breaks into two zones that respect daily routine and scale. Entry brings you through a moody dressing area defined by a slightly lowered ceiling and deeper tones. Dark-stained veneer pairs with deep grey lacquered fronts, finished with fine leather pulls that feel deliberate to the touch. An asymmetrical mirror meets perforated metal beside a narrow bookshelf, marking transition toward the sleeping area with a precise, almost graphic line.
Back by the window, a bespoke bed and soft sheer curtains dial down the palette. A sculptural pendant casts a gentle pool of light, keeping the room composed and restful. The apartment ends as it begins: measured, material-forward, and quiet underfoot.
Photography courtesy of SMLXL
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