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Michaelis Boyd partner Christina Gregoriou advises homeowners and designers to tackle awkward spaces early rather than leaving them until the end of a project. She points to a structural column at the Miiro Paris hotel, which the studio incorporated into a custom seat in a small niche.
Michaelis Boyd partner Christina Gregoriou is advising designers and homeowners to address awkward areas at the start of a renovation, rather than treating them as leftover problems. In an interview with Livingetc, she described how the studio incorporated a newly exposed structural column at Miiro Paris into a custom seat, turning a small, difficult niche into a focal point.
Gregoriou said tricky spaces can include unused corners, narrow corridors, small recesses and rooms whose character changes when walls come down and structural elements are revealed. A project may also require a new column for structural support, she said. If designers postpone decisions about these areas, they can end up looking like afterthoughts rather than fitting into the overall plan.
Her recommendation is to give those spaces primary consideration from day one. That means examining what a building’s layout, structure and setting allow before deciding on a room’s main feature. Gregoriou said constraints can prompt more focused design choices than an open, unrestricted plan, though the interview presents this as her professional advice, not as a universal rule.
At Miiro Paris, a hotel renovation involving two heritage Haussmann-era buildings linked from different streets, the studio rethought a dark secondary entrance that had been used for back-of-house functions and windowless meeting rooms. The team saw potential for a more intimate, speakeasy-like space. During the strip-out, a structural column created an additional planning challenge; the studio responded with a custom love seat fitted into the niche around it.
Planning Around Awkward Features
Gregoriou’s advice has practical relevance for people planning renovations: decisions about structural features and difficult layouts can affect how rooms function and feel, so leaving them until late may limit the available options. Considering them early may help a designer coordinate circulation, seating and the intended atmosphere instead of trying to disguise an obstacle after the rest of the plan is set.
The Miiro Paris example also shows the distinction between a design constraint and a design solution. The column remained part of the building; the team did not remove it, but incorporated it into a bespoke feature. For homeowners, the lesson is not that every awkward corner can become a showpiece, but that a constraint may inform the design rather than simply be hidden. Structural changes should still be assessed with appropriate professionals.
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From Hotel Renovation to Home Design
Michaelis Boyd is a London architecture and design practice founded in Notting Hill in 1995 by Tim Boyd and Alex Michaelis. Its work includes hospitality, residential and commercial projects. Livingetc’s interview asks partner Christina Gregoriou to discuss how principles from the studio’s projects might apply to homes of different sizes.
The Miiro Paris renovation provides the interview’s central example. According to Gregoriou, the hotel occupied two historic buildings connected from separate streets, and the secondary entrance had been treated as the less appealing side. The studio reconsidered how that area could be used, then responded to the column uncovered during construction. The available source also begins to describe a separate WOW!house bathroom project, where Gregoriou says the team chose a statement round bathtub as its focal point, but it does not provide the full account of that project.
Limits of the Published Account
The supplied Livingetc report does not state when the interview was published, provide a detailed project timeline for Miiro Paris, or quantify the renovation’s cost or results. It also does not give enough detail to assess how the hotel’s revised entrance operates in practice or whether the design changed its use by guests.
The source excerpt cuts off during Gregoriou’s comments about the WOW!house bathroom, so her full advice on that project is unavailable here. The interview offers design guidance and selected examples; it does not establish that every structural obstacle can be turned into a feature or that this approach suits every budget, building or household.
Applying the Advice in Renovations
For readers considering a project, Gregoriou’s recommendation is to identify difficult areas early and discuss how they fit the intended plan with the design team. In a home renovation, questions about load-bearing elements, new columns and other structural matters call for review by qualified professionals before design decisions are treated as final.
The source does not announce a new Michaelis Boyd project, a future milestone for Miiro Paris or further developments in the WOW!house bathroom. The next step described is a planning approach: study the building’s constraints at the outset and decide whether they should be accommodated, incorporated into a feature or handled another way.
Key Questions
What is Christina Gregoriou’s main advice for difficult spaces?
She recommends identifying awkward areas early and giving them attention from the beginning, rather than leaving them until the end of a design project.
What happened at Miiro Paris?
During renovation work, the Michaelis Boyd team uncovered a structural column that created a small, awkward niche. The studio designed a custom love seat to fit the space around the obstacle.
Why did the studio rethink the hotel’s secondary entrance?
Gregoriou said the entrance was dark, narrow and lacking natural light, and had been used for back-of-house operations and windowless meeting rooms. The team saw potential for a more intimate, speakeasy-like setting.
Does the interview say every awkward space can become a focal point?
No. Gregoriou shares a design principle and examples from the studio’s work, but the report does not claim that the approach works for every space, building or renovation budget.
What should homeowners do about structural obstacles?
They can raise them early with their design team. Any proposed work involving structural elements should be reviewed by qualified building professionals before changes are made.
Source: livingetc.com
