Ever wanted your own book-lined wall? This 1,937sqft home in Mexico City, Mexico, is both book and nature-smart. Designed by Paul Cremoux Studio, 70% of the year is dedicated to outdoor living in a light, bright, and natural indoor-outdoor flow. Rain water is drained through two filters, eliminating dependency on the grid. Direct sunlight enters from the south, east and west, while a halved home conversion decreases household costs and lets in the forest. Take a walk with us as we explore, with the help of working drawings and renders, an eco-friendly dream with the most breathtaking of bookcases.
Walking through an open-framed sliding door, a Scandinavian living space awakens. Wide-leaved ferns lead into a wall of books, zig-zagged over by a stunning white staircase. Kept in a wooden block frame and leading past the eye’s reach, the myriad colours in the shelves provide a scintillating backdrop for muted furniture. A view towards the space at night turns the exterior panel dark; the light glowing inside like a beacon.
Spaced on similarly-hued floors, the lounge and kitchen create a relaxed space. A powder blue couch offers a few pastel cushions, as it faces two wooden school chairs, a table and two-lighter hued cabinets. Facing a window around a corner, the dining room sits neatly in simple wood. As the day turns dark, a mounted light spreads out like the rays of the sun, a design feature all its own over a light grey rug.
As the dining room dominates the other corner, a view outside shows a clever joining of plaster and wood panels. Showing as far as the bookcase and as near as the dining table, a peek directly inside shows a simple white dome light and MOMA bowl marking the space. Surrounding lush greenery gives a view from the inside.
An outside area bathed in wood and plaster makes the most of outside plants. Hedges and ferns tumble over an outside garage, as wooden decking leads the way to paths. As the stony walkway around the house extends, large trees give off a forest feel and view to the main interior.
On the second floor, large steel frames create perpendicular grates. A wooden-floored balcony with a small, rounded light extends into the home, while wide window joinery offers a view for rainier days. The overall construction maintains a block effect, adding interest at the intersection of wood and plastered white.
From the front, a slatted wooden door opens to plinths in tiled white. As stony paths hold plants, the sunlight dapples over the open-roofed space.
Another white-tiled space, the bathroom also beckons with a wooden door. Oblong furniture shows off a wooden-hued double sink and mirror panel, while a magnifying glass shows a closer view. Its LED-lit frame leads to a rainforest shower, a perfect match for a forest-look setting. Separated by a misted glass panel, the toilet views the outside, maintaining privacy within a light and bright feel.
A step away shows a space in the forest need not be far from the roadside. Two trees create shade, a plaster wall privacy from the neighbours.
See our sets of 3D models and house, levelling, bookcase and staircase plans below, for a more intricate lesson on creating a book lover’s forest home.
