Welcome to How They Pulled It Off, where we take a close look at one particularly challenging aspect of a home design and get the nitty-gritty details about how it became a reality.

With ultra-high ceilings and a completely open plan, lofts can be a blank canvas for home design dreams. But how do you make the most out of 16-foot ceilings in a space that feels like a big ol’ box? For Siki Im, a fashion designer-turned-architect who took on the gut renovation of his 1,600-square-foot Berlin apartment as his first residential project, the vision was clear: He needed to create a floating bedroom.

“There are not many residences in Berlin with this ceiling height, especially in our neighborhood of Mitte, so it felt like a unique thing to do,” Im says. “We also did it for practical reasons, as we were able to extend the mezzanine floor, and create more living space there.”

Sure, many have lusted after conversation pits that are relics of a different era. But this is the opposite end of the spectrum—a private bedroom that’s home to a collection of vintage robots, books, and records that literally looks like it’s hovering above the common living space.

How they pulled it off: A room seemingly suspended in space

Inspired by the principles of wabi-sabi and German rationalism, Im aimed for an aesthetic that challenged the pervasive grayness of Berlin. With warmer wooden materials used to offset the significant amount of concrete in the rest of the home, the result is something he calls “soft brutalism.”
Im didn’t want load-bearing columns to support the structure, so as to preserve the open feel of the space below. “The ceiling alone couldn’t hold the weight of the box,” he says. “I worked with a structural engineer on the solution, which involved installing a steel brace system anchored to the far corner of the box floor, which is mounted to the load-bearing column of the building.” The box can support more than 2,200 pounds as a result.
They had to use a crane to lift massive long beams into the apartment. “For that, we had to close down the entire street,” Im says.
The materials Im used for the box helped play up a different, more intimate vibe. “The American oak wood bed I custom designed is integrated into the space, and also holds plants,” he explains. “The walls and ceiling are rendered with natural stone granules, and the two walls are fully adjustable so that they can be opened.”

A cozy space is not something that usually comes to mind when people think of Berlin, but Im made it work. “The overall effect of the space calls to mind a variety of Asian influences, such as a tea room. The box hangs like a sculpture, and thanks to its playfully transformative nature, it gives me and my family a lot of satisfaction,” he says.

Project Credits:

Architect of Record: Siki Im, Siki Im Architecture / @sikiim

General Contractor: Phillipp Roessle

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