A wide run of glass sets the tone before the wood and stone surfaces take over. In this home renovation, the contemporary villa is read through clean lines, layered materials, and rooms that move from open living areas to more compact details without losing clarity. The exterior glazing catches the light first; inside, the eye lands on a custom built-in wall unit with open niches, then on the kitchen fronts in wood and the stone-look worktop that runs through the space.

Large windows and layered materials define the first impression

The contemporary villa uses glass as more than a surface. It opens the living spaces to the outside and makes the transitions between rooms feel lighter. Alongside the glazing, brickwork and wood accents break up the larger volumes, so the house never reads as one flat skin. The materials appear in distinct bands and planes, which gives the architecture a measured rhythm. That contrast also helps the home renovation feel grounded, with the stronger masonry elements sitting against the softer grain of timber.

Seen from different angles, the building’s envelope shifts between solid and transparent. Dark window frames draw sharp edges around the openings, while the wood cladding tones down the harder lines. This is where the project’s contemporary character becomes visible: not through ornament, but through how each material is placed and repeated. The result is a villa that relies on surface, proportion, and the relation between openings rather than on decorative gesture.

A custom built-in wall unit with niches brings order to the interior

Inside, the custom built-in wall unit niches give the room a clear focal point. Open compartments interrupt the wood frontage and create places for objects, books, and light to settle into the wall. Because the niches are set into a larger storage volume, the unit feels integrated into the room rather than added as separate furniture. Small shifts in depth and reflection keep the surface from becoming too uniform, which is especially noticeable where light touches the shelving.

Storage, display, and wall surface in one gesture

The open niches do more than store items. They break the height of the wall unit and introduce smaller pockets within the larger composition. In a contemporary villa, that matters: a long storage wall can easily dominate a room, but here the open sections relieve the mass and make the unit easier to read. The combination of wood grain, dark recesses, and reflected light creates a quieter interior focus, with the wall acting as both background and feature.

The kitchen pairs wooden fronts with a stone-look worktop

The kitchen with wooden fronts and stone-look countertop is one of the clearest material pairings in the project. The fronts run in a continuous line, which keeps the lower cabinetry visually calm, while the worktop introduces a paler surface with visible veining. That contrast is strongest at the edge where the counter meets the cabinetry: a straight join, a shift in tone, and then a smooth reading across the whole cooking zone. The kitchen feels built from a small number of materials, used with restraint.

Built-in niches within the kitchen repeat the idea seen elsewhere in the house. They are framed in wood and sit into the cabinetry like cut-outs, giving the preparation area more depth than a standard run of cupboards. The stone-look surface catches light differently from the timber fronts, so the whole composition changes as you move past it. This is a practical kitchen, but its strength lies in how the surfaces are composed rather than in any display of hardware or excess detail.

Glass and timber shape the staircase and the transition between levels

The staircase introduces another clear material pairing: wooden treads and a glass balustrade. The steps read as solid strips, while the glass rail keeps the side of the stair visually open. Because of that contrast, the stair does not cut hard through the interior. It sits inside the space with more light around it. The wooden wall panels behind it continue the timber theme from the kitchen and storage wall, so the route upward feels connected to the rest of the home renovation.

In the entrance area, a stone-look stair element and a central pendant light add a different note. The lighter stone surface stands apart from the wood, and the hanging fixture gives the hall a vertical anchor. The details are not loud, but they establish a sequence: first the open glazing, then the timber, then the harder stone notes near the stair. That progression gives the interior its pace and keeps each zone legible.

A bathroom built from stone-look planes and a glass screen

The bathroom stone-look shower glass area is defined by large grey slabs with visible veining and a clear glass partition. The shower enclosure does not interrupt the stone surfaces; it runs beside them, allowing the material to remain the main visual field. The effect is straightforward and controlled. A metal faucet and a few crisp edges are enough to break up the stone pattern, while the glass keeps the shower zone readable without closing it off.

Large-format wall panels give the bathroom a steady surface, with fewer seams than a smaller tiled room would have. That makes the veining in the stone look more deliberate and easier to follow across the wall. The glass panel reflects a little of the light and softens the transition at the shower opening. In the context of the rest of the home renovation, the bathroom continues the same language: wood elsewhere, stone here, and clean junctions between them.

Material shifts are the real decoration

What stands out across the villa is the way one material gives way to another. Wood fronts meet stone-look countertops. Glass rails sit beside timber steps. Grey stone surfaces frame the shower while the glass enclosure keeps the room open. None of these details needs extra ornament. Their role is to register movement, light, and scale. That is what makes the interior easy to read: the surfaces carry the composition, and each one is allowed to do its own work.

The patio and garden extend the house into a lighter outdoor surface

Outside, the patio and garden with light stone and greenery soften the mass of the villa. The paving uses pale slabs that sit close to the ground plane, so the terrace feels visually calm beside the stronger walls. Planting gathers around the edges and frames the outdoor area without crowding it. From the house, the view runs across the terrace and into the garden, where the contrast between stone and foliage repeats the material logic seen inside.

The exterior does not compete with the interior; it extends the same approach. Brickwork, wood accents, and large openings reappear in the outward-facing volumes, while the patio sets a clearer horizontal base. Greenery works as a counterpoint to the masonry and paving, especially where the garden edge meets the terrace. As part of this home renovation, the outdoor space is not treated as a separate scene. It is another surface in the sequence, one that completes the contemporary villa with light stone, glass, and planted edges.

Photography: Stéphanie Mathias Photography