Francesca Monfrinatti’s house unites design and original mining

Unusual combinations and hi-lo are what define the style of the fashion influencer Francesca Monfrinatti, 28 years. The São Paulo native, who became known for her former blog, launched in 2008 and named shoe lover (since she is passionate about shoes, especially those with outstanding design), she believes more in authentic looks than in necessarily wearing branded pieces. The thought was honed over an already considerable fashion experience🇧🇷 Graduated in product design at Istituto Marangoni, in Milan, she worked at Carlos Miele, Schutz and Daslu and was also one of the creators of Fashion Day In, an event that emerged in 2011 to present collections of new and promising brands to the market, which did not part of the official line-up of Sao Paulo Fashion Week🇧🇷 Labels such as Thelure and Lolitta were some of those that took part in the initiative. Today, he dedicates himself to feeding the website that bears his name with content related to lifestyle. “I like what’s good, of course. But I prefer pieces that show my personalityregardless of how much they cost and even if they may seem extravagant at first glance”, he says.

This same mood can be seen in his home. Since 2013, she lives with her husband, the design and architecture consultant Marcello Maksoud, in a 450 m² apartment in a building designed by the architect Isay Weinfeld in Vila Nova Conceição, in the South Zone of São Paulo. Francesca moved to the address in the middle of the renovation process, idealized and led by Marcello for two and a half years. This did not stop her, however, from printing her mark in the choice of colors (the blue sofa in the main room was her idea) and in the arrangement of the furniture, which was numerous. “He already had the apartment and the idea for the work and the interior design because, after all, that is part of his job. But, as we have similar taste, everyone says that the house has my face too”, she says. “Marcello is in decoration as I am in fashion: we like to mix findings with more distinctive pieces.”So, the two filled the spacious property with a collection of art, contemporary design and vintage objects – which feels like a home thanks to two wide side porches all around of the entire apartment, the only one in the building with this floor plan. “I have always lived at home. So, for me, that’s very special,” says Francesca.

Radical, the redesign sought to enhance the amplitude. Everything was thought for fully integrate the three current environments: the living room, with an open kitchen to frequently receive friends, the TV room, which at first was a bedroom, and the remaining suite, with a generous 120 m², a spacious bathroom and a closet that stores the countless pairs of shoes resident. After the demolition of some walls and the replacement of the floor, only the structural beams and columns and the ceiling slab remained from the original plan. Even the concrete that covers most of the walls of the rooms, giving them unity, was applied. The project impresses by the preciousness🇧🇷 From the air vents to the cabinet handles, from the stainless steel kitchen to the carbon steel doors, Marcello designed every detail – which please Francesca, one by one. “It’s all super modern. If I had made it from scratch, I think it would have turned out exactly like this.” A choice from the beginning was to prioritize the decoration of the bathrooms. The bathroom in the TV room, for example, has a curious mirror made of Jacques Adnet and works of Alex Flemming and Evelyn Tannus🇧🇷

That artsy line appears throughout the place. Some corners, by the way, look like a gallery – an atmosphere reinforced by the indirect lighting, hidden under the beams – and others resemble a showroom of design stores, such is the variety of objects from different eras and currents, signed by big names in the field. , as Patricia Urquiola🇧🇷 Jean Prouve🇧🇷 Sergio Rodrigues and John Reeves🇧🇷 Pudera: Marcello owned the defunct decor store Benedixt and, by importing pieces for his windows, he took the opportunity to bring furniture into his own home. “We have everything here: Scandinavian, Portuguese, Italian, Vietnamese, Canadian, Australian traits. It opened my mind to the world of furniture,” says Francesca. Among the works of art, there are paintings signed by the artist RAGin the entrance hall, and huge screens of Ian Strange, à la street art, in the corner of the TV. Contemporary and authorial creations mix with antique pieces, found in thrift stores, auctions and even in a motorcycle workshop – the case of a doll playmobil customized as a rebellious Santa Claus, who irreverently welcomes anyone who arrives at the house. But the darling finds are the chaise-longue Rio, original from Oscar Niemeyer and raised at auction, an Indian window from the 1600s, the archive of a old laboratorystill with inscriptions on the drawers, and a pair of trunks Louis Vuitton, inherited from the influencer’s grandmother. The mix gives particularity to the decor – and matches the way in which Francesca assembles her productions. “In that sense, there is a total dialogue between fashion and decoration🇧🇷 In both areas, I mix elements that don’t go beyond the idea that they would look good together. I like a current item next to a piece of furniture dating from the 1920s″, he exemplifies.

At first glance, the voluminous collection of objects and furniture and the profusion of colors may even seem exaggerated, but a closer look is enough to capture that there is indeed harmony in them. “I’m not an influencer with 1 million followers, but those who follow me understand what I like”, guarantees Francesca. It’s those who know that it’s not rarely right there, in what is unusual, where beauty lives🇧🇷