Voltaire Apartment by Diettert Collet Lets a Haussmannian Classic Breathe Again.

Plenty of Haussmannian apartments are hiding something. Behind the cornicing and herringbone floors, decades of piecemeal living tend to chop these grand old flats into a warren of small rooms. This one in Paris hadn’t been renovated since the 1970s, and its compartmentalised layout had done real damage. Circulation was fragmented, and the apartment’s best quality, its dual aspect, had been quietly buried by the plan.

Enter Diettert Collet, the architecture and interiors practice led by Emma Collet and Thomas Diettert. The studio set out to open up the floor plan into a more fluid sequence of spaces, while holding onto the character that made the place worth saving. Light was central to the brief. Clear the clutter of walls, and daylight can finally travel from one side of the apartment to the other.

What we love is the restraint. Diettert Collet describes the intent as understated, warm and domestic, and the palette follows suit. A tight family of materials repeats from room to room, so the interior wraps around its occupants like a favourite knit.

In the living room, original features stay put, but they sit alongside more radical moves. A bespoke monolithic travertine fireplace anchors the space with serious heft, while built-in storage and shelving sit against mirrored panels that visually extend the room.

Then there’s the black. Used selectively, it gives the walls’ soft mineral tones some backbone. Stone-lined openings frame the thresholds, the kitchen goes dark and moody, and a few furniture pieces carry the tone through. Without it, all that warmth could easily slide into beige soup. With it, the spaces feel structured and grown-up.

The furniture pairs sourced vintage pieces with contemporary designs, and the mix between periods sits comfortably. Our favourite is the timber folding screen in the lounge, its panels laced together with zigzag joints.

This is the kind of renovation we’d love to see more of. No shouting or gimmicks. Just a sharp reading of what an old apartment already had, and the confidence to let it be seen.

Inside Hauvette & Madani's Timber-Rich Paris Apartment with a Playful Twist.

Designed for a young couple, the space is grounded in warm timber tones, punctuated by vintage finds from Galerie Gastou—including Ettore Sottsass chairs and Marc Held's sculptural Culbuto armchair.

[Images courtesy of Diettert Collet. Photography by Clément Gérard.]