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Michaelis Boyd partner Christina Gregoriou advises homeowners and designers to identify awkward spaces early in a project rather than leave them until the end. She points to a niche created by a structural column during the Miiro Paris hotel renovation, which the studio turned into a custom seat and a defining feature.
Christina Gregoriou, a partner at London architecture and design practice Michaelis Boyd, says renovation teams should address awkward corners, narrow corridors and exposed structural features at the start of a project, rather than leave them until the end. In an interview with Livingetc, she described how the studio turned a niche around a structural column at Miiro Paris into a custom seat, illustrating how a design constraint can become a prominent feature.
Gregoriou’s advice applies to residential, commercial and hospitality projects, according to the Livingetc interview. She identifies spaces that can be difficult to plan around: unused corners, long corridors, odd nooks and areas altered by renovation work. A structural column that cannot be moved can create another challenge, whether it is uncovered during construction or required to keep a building standing.
Her central recommendation is to give these areas primary consideration from day one. Gregoriou said teams can be tempted to leave a stubborn space until the rest of a design is settled, in the hope it will fade into the background. But, she argued, an unresolved spot may instead look like an afterthought. Early attention gives designers a chance to make it part of the overall plan.
At Miiro Paris, a hotel renovation involving two heritage Haussmann-era buildings, the studio reconsidered a secondary entrance that had been used for back-of-house functions, offices and windowless meeting rooms. Gregoriou said the entrance was dark, narrow and short of natural light, qualities the team used to support the idea of an intimate speakeasy. During the work, a structural column left a small pocket in the floor plan. The studio fitted a custom love seat into that niche, which Gregoriou described as a defining feature of the space.
Planning Around Awkward Spaces Early
The advice has practical relevance for homeowners planning renovations, where existing layouts and structural features can limit what is possible. Treating difficult areas as part of the design brief early may help avoid leaving them as disconnected leftovers once other rooms and circulation routes have been decided.
Gregoriou’s example also shows the difference between a design idea and a confirmed outcome: the column was a physical constraint in the Miiro Paris project, while the custom seat and its role as a memorable feature were the studio’s design response. The case does not establish that every awkward corner can be turned into a focal point, but it offers a specific approach: consider what a space can do before deciding it has no use.
For people weighing renovation options, the point is not to conceal every irregularity or imitate a hotel interior. It is to bring layout problems into discussions with the design team early, while the project can still respond to them. Structural elements also have functional requirements; design decisions involving them need to respect the building’s support and the relevant professional advice.
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The Miiro Paris Design Example
Michaelis Boyd was founded in Notting Hill, London, in 1995 by architects Tim Boyd and Alex Michaelis. The practice works across hospitality, residential and commercial design, according to the Livingetc profile. Gregoriou’s comments draw on that mix of project types, but the interview’s main example is the renovation of Miiro Paris.
The hotel project brought together two heritage buildings connected from different streets. In Gregoriou’s account, the secondary entrance had been treated as the less appealing side and assigned support functions. The studio changed how that area was used, planning a moody, intimate venue and then incorporating the column-created niche into the design.
The interview also mentions a bathroom Michaelis Boyd designed for WOW!house in collaboration with House of Rohl. Gregoriou said the team chose a grand round bathtub as the room’s “protagonist” rather than allowing a functional layout alone to dictate its feeling. The source material ends before providing further details about that project, so it does not support a fuller account of its design or outcome.
Limits of the Published Details
The Livingetc source is an interview and provides Gregoriou’s account of the projects; it does not include an independent evaluation of the design outcomes or comments from hotel operators, guests or other project participants. The supplied material also does not state when the interview was published.
It is unclear from the source how the Miiro Paris venue is operating now, whether the hotel has reported guest responses to the seat or speakeasy, or what costs and construction changes the design required. The excerpt about the WOW!house bathroom is incomplete, so further details about its constraints and finished design are not available here.
Applying the Advice to Renovations
The interview does not announce a new project, deadline or upcoming design decision. Its practical next step for readers planning work is to identify difficult areas early and discuss their function with the project’s architect or designer before the wider layout is finalized.
Where a column or another structural element is involved, the design response must account for the building’s structural needs. The source gives no technical guidance about altering or working around such elements, so project-specific decisions should be made with qualified professionals. Further updates about the Miiro Paris project or the WOW!house bathroom are not provided in the material.
Key Questions
What advice did Christina Gregoriou give about difficult spaces?
She advised designers and homeowners to identify awkward areas at the start of a project and give them early design attention instead of leaving them until the end.
How did Michaelis Boyd use the column at Miiro Paris?
Gregoriou said the column created a small, awkward niche during the hotel renovation. The studio fitted a custom love seat into it, making the pocket part of the design.
What was the secondary entrance at Miiro Paris used for before the redesign?
Gregoriou said the dark, narrow entrance had been used for back-of-house operations, administrative offices and windowless meeting rooms. The studio reimagined the area for an intimate speakeasy.
Does the interview give technical advice for changing structural features?
No. It describes a design response to a column but does not provide structural or construction instructions. Any work involving a building’s structure requires project-specific professional advice.
Source: livingetc.com
