Project: 290 m^{² log home} + 96 m^{² terrace}.
Year: 2018.
Location: Suburbs of Kyiv
Design: Natalia Poplavskaya

Project description: The main advantages of a log house are the naturalness of wood, warmth, and coziness. Wood is a breathable material that retains heat well and keeps residents cool in the summer. When we talk about a log house, we tend to associate it with natural wood that’s specially coated with varnish or wax, dark, heavy furniture, a massive stone fireplace, and antlers on the walls. We, however, chose a modern style for our home together with the clients. That is why we opted to paint the wood for the finish. But even in this treated form, touching the wood evokes a sense of hidden nobility, warmth, and eco-friendliness—even on an emotional level.

The clients invited designer Natalia Poplavskaya to join the project as early as the house design phase with the architect. Consequently, at this stage, the interior designer became involved in developing the floor plan. Taking all wishes into account, the architect had to make quite a few changes to the architectural design: moving walls and windows, increasing and decreasing the floor area, adjusting room heights, changing the purpose of rooms, and altering the staircase layout. The kitchen was precisely the area that needed to be expanded and required the most changes.

The house design was developed by Architect Alexander Lysenko, who has specialized in log and timber-frame house designs for many years—a field with its own specific requirements.

Living Room.
The heart of nearly every wooden home is a living room with a fireplace. Our fireplace isn’t just a focal point—it’s literally at the center, and you can enjoy the view of the fire from anywhere in the room. We’ve arranged plush sofas and armchairs around it.
The spacious living room faces south. Sunlight floods the entire space.
An organic chandelier from the SERIP factory—with golden branches and glass droplets that shimmer beautifully in the sun-filled, spacious room—is the perfect fit for a country home surrounded by nature.
The cool white walls add even more volume to the already very high two-story space. The floor features tiles from the Spanish company PORCELANOSA.

Another particularly noteworthy design element in the living room is the TV area. We finished this wall with an innovative material—slate veneer—which is easily mounted on a drywall structure.

Kitchen.
The main purpose of the house is to serve as a gathering place for family and friends. In the kitchen, we’ve included: a large table measuring 3 m by 1.3 m, a spacious cooking and work area, as well as a kitchen island with bar stools. The kitchen also serves as a passageway to the terrace.

The ground floor also features one of the guest bedrooms, a guest bathroom with a shower, and utility rooms.
Bathroom.
We spent a long time wandering around the tile store and couldn’t find anything. Then the client said, “Just do whatever you think is best.” Natalia Poplavskaya brought back many impressions from her latest trip to factories in Italy. She particularly liked the “41zero42” tile collection, which they decided to use in the project. The same tiles used in the living room were also used here, along with wood-effect tiles from the Spanish brand PORCELANOSA.

Guest Bedroom.
The clients wanted the guest bedroom to have a darker color scheme. We covered the headboard with drywall and incorporated a floral panel.

The second floor is reserved exclusively for the family’s private use. It features the master bedroom with a walk-in closet and en-suite bathroom, two bedrooms for the girls, and another shared bathroom. Here, the clients wanted a more traditional style.
The master bedroom faces the sunny side, so we weren’t afraid to use darker colors. The master bathroom also features rich, deep colors.

The rooms for the two girls are nearly the same size and feature a similar color scheme, dominated by light, pastel colors. The bathroom is just as light and delicate, with a beautiful freestanding tub.

Here’s another design for a guest bedroom that the clients didn’t choose, but we really like it and wanted to show it to you.

Every client probably has their own pet idea. In this case, it was a terrace.
Sipping morning coffee under the beautiful play of light and shadow cast by a wooden pergola—it’s a dream that will soon become a reality. The terrace will also become a place where the family can entertain friends and relatives, where everyone can sit around a huge table, watch a movie together, or cook something on the grill.

This was truly our first experience with interior design for this type of home. Thank you to our clients for placing their trust in us. It was an amazing experience. We’re always open to new challenges and would love to do it again )))