A chic and sleek apartment in Madrid by Claudia Schultheis
This chic and sleek apartment in Madrid was designed by Claudia Schultheis and has retained its classic moldings and seven balconies
Seven Balconies is located in the Justicia neighborhood, one of the most vibrant in the Spanish capital. This chic and design apartment in Madrid was designed by architect Claudia Schultheis. It takes its name from the seven balconies that line its long façade in a row.
The building certainly resembles what we find in Paris, one of those Haussmann-style stone buildings with wrought-iron balconies, but in a more modest style. Seven floor-to-ceiling French windows pierce the apartment's façades, flooding every room with natural light at all hours of the day. This generous light completely transforms the perception of volumes.
The living room is a good summary of what can be found throughout the apartment. Designer Claudia Schultheis played with carefully dosed contrasts: a rounded ivory bouclé sofa alongside two taupe velvet armchairs, all set on a terracotta, pale green and white geometric-patterned rug. Curves dominate this classic space.
The coffee table, with its stacked beige lacquered sphere legs, is one of the most original pieces in the apartment. It perfectly captures the spirit of the place: contemporary and playful, yet never ostentatious.
A smoked glass oval dining table rests on a bronze base cast in a single piece, shaped like a wide hourglass. The pendant light, a sputnik model in gilded brass with opaque white globes, adds a slightly offbeat mid-century touch. The black and white striped oval rug defines the boundaries of this zone within the open space. On the wall, a large abstract work in black and grey represents whatever you wish to see in it. Is it a wave? Or simply a spiral? It's up to you to choose your favorite interpretation.
The architect made the radical decision to conceal the entire functional part of the kitchen behind grey swing doors framed in marble. When the doors are closed, the room looks like nothing more than a bar. Aside from the stovetop, no appliance is visible. The tall units are clad in cognac-colored fluted wood that warms up the grey. The backsplash is in brass and the taps are gold-finished. It is not a large kitchen, but it features luxurious finishes.
The first bedroom leans into the urban retreat aesthetic. A full-height headboard is upholstered in quilted brown fabric. An old black cast iron radiator, deliberately kept in place, recalls the age of the building. The cushions and yellow bedspread inject energy into this bright room. A private bathroom accompanies this bedroom. Fluted glass partitions framed in brass divide the space between the shower and the washbasin. It resembles a genuine hotel suite bathroom.
The second bedroom adopts a less expressive register. A panoramic wallpaper serves classically as a headboard backdrop. Grey interior shutters, as found throughout the apartment, allow for complete blackout.
In addition to the main bedroom bathroom, there are other rooms of the same type in this apartment. One of them pairs grey-veined white marble on the walls with Marquina black marble for the sink surface, alongside a natural fluted wood unit.
Separate restrooms are also available. The architect covered the walls and ceiling with the same wallpaper featuring a fine chevron pattern in sage green on a cream white background. The cylindrical raw black stone basin, placed on the floor like a sculpture, is a bold choice that works very well in this space.
The overall result is very successful and will appeal to fans of modernized classic chic style. The coherence of the choices is evident throughout, through the materials, the gilded accents, and the fluting repeated across the furniture. This is rare in a rental apartment, where décor often suffers from compromises, whether aesthetic or financial.
The Justicia neighborhood takes its name from the court of justice that once stood there. Today, it has retained a serious atmosphere in its architecture: bourgeois 19th-century buildings, straight streets, carefully maintained façades. It has become one of the most desirable areas of Madrid for those looking to live in a beautiful apartment, get around on foot, and avoid the tourist crowds on Plaza Mayor.
The Mercado de la Abuela, smaller and less well known than the San Miguel, is a place where Madrileños do their everyday shopping. It is far removed from the mass tourism of Gran Vía, a ten-minute walk away.
The immediate surroundings of Seven Balconies are interesting. The Only YOU hotel, whose entrance is located almost directly opposite, was one of the most talked-about conversion projects in Madrid in recent years. Its lobby, designed by Lázaro Rosa-Violán, helped establish Justicia as a reference neighborhood for high-end interior design.
For museum lovers, the Museum of Romanticism is a five-minute walk away. It is a little-known address among foreigners, dedicated to 19th-century Spanish decorative arts, with rooms entirely restored to their original period condition.
This chic and sleek apartment in Madrid is available to rent through Airbnb
The building certainly resembles what we find in Paris, one of those Haussmann-style stone buildings with wrought-iron balconies, but in a more modest style. Seven floor-to-ceiling French windows pierce the apartment's façades, flooding every room with natural light at all hours of the day. This generous light completely transforms the perception of volumes.
A living room that is both classic and contemporary
The living room is a good summary of what can be found throughout the apartment. Designer Claudia Schultheis played with carefully dosed contrasts: a rounded ivory bouclé sofa alongside two taupe velvet armchairs, all set on a terracotta, pale green and white geometric-patterned rug. Curves dominate this classic space.
The coffee table, with its stacked beige lacquered sphere legs, is one of the most original pieces in the apartment. It perfectly captures the spirit of the place: contemporary and playful, yet never ostentatious.
A smoked glass oval dining table rests on a bronze base cast in a single piece, shaped like a wide hourglass. The pendant light, a sputnik model in gilded brass with opaque white globes, adds a slightly offbeat mid-century touch. The black and white striped oval rug defines the boundaries of this zone within the open space. On the wall, a large abstract work in black and grey represents whatever you wish to see in it. Is it a wave? Or simply a spiral? It's up to you to choose your favorite interpretation.
Its kitchen, discreet as a bar
The architect made the radical decision to conceal the entire functional part of the kitchen behind grey swing doors framed in marble. When the doors are closed, the room looks like nothing more than a bar. Aside from the stovetop, no appliance is visible. The tall units are clad in cognac-colored fluted wood that warms up the grey. The backsplash is in brass and the taps are gold-finished. It is not a large kitchen, but it features luxurious finishes.
The bedrooms with a contemporary atmosphere
The first bedroom leans into the urban retreat aesthetic. A full-height headboard is upholstered in quilted brown fabric. An old black cast iron radiator, deliberately kept in place, recalls the age of the building. The cushions and yellow bedspread inject energy into this bright room. A private bathroom accompanies this bedroom. Fluted glass partitions framed in brass divide the space between the shower and the washbasin. It resembles a genuine hotel suite bathroom.
The second bedroom adopts a less expressive register. A panoramic wallpaper serves classically as a headboard backdrop. Grey interior shutters, as found throughout the apartment, allow for complete blackout.
The bathrooms
In addition to the main bedroom bathroom, there are other rooms of the same type in this apartment. One of them pairs grey-veined white marble on the walls with Marquina black marble for the sink surface, alongside a natural fluted wood unit.
Separate restrooms are also available. The architect covered the walls and ceiling with the same wallpaper featuring a fine chevron pattern in sage green on a cream white background. The cylindrical raw black stone basin, placed on the floor like a sculpture, is a bold choice that works very well in this space.
What we sincerely think of this chic and design apartment in Madrid
The overall result is very successful and will appeal to fans of modernized classic chic style. The coherence of the choices is evident throughout, through the materials, the gilded accents, and the fluting repeated across the furniture. This is rare in a rental apartment, where décor often suffers from compromises, whether aesthetic or financial.
The Justicia neighborhood in Madrid
The Justicia neighborhood takes its name from the court of justice that once stood there. Today, it has retained a serious atmosphere in its architecture: bourgeois 19th-century buildings, straight streets, carefully maintained façades. It has become one of the most desirable areas of Madrid for those looking to live in a beautiful apartment, get around on foot, and avoid the tourist crowds on Plaza Mayor.
The Mercado de la Abuela, smaller and less well known than the San Miguel, is a place where Madrileños do their everyday shopping. It is far removed from the mass tourism of Gran Vía, a ten-minute walk away.
What can be found near this apartment?
The immediate surroundings of Seven Balconies are interesting. The Only YOU hotel, whose entrance is located almost directly opposite, was one of the most talked-about conversion projects in Madrid in recent years. Its lobby, designed by Lázaro Rosa-Violán, helped establish Justicia as a reference neighborhood for high-end interior design.
For museum lovers, the Museum of Romanticism is a five-minute walk away. It is a little-known address among foreigners, dedicated to 19th-century Spanish decorative arts, with rooms entirely restored to their original period condition.
This chic and sleek apartment in Madrid is available to rent through Airbnb
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