New Zealand designer Katie Lockhart has developed an unparalleled approach to midcentury-inspired interiors brought into the current century. Last year, Lockhart and her team completed the renovation of an apartment in Helsinki, Finland for a young couple. They began talking during lockdown, and the project was completed remotely through most of 2021. Lockhart added architectural detailing—from flush oak architraves and skirting, an oak parquet floor, and colored tiles on the kitchen floor—to create a base palette. Here is a look at the resulting design, stripped down to show its main features.
Photography by Mary Gaudin courtesy of Katie Lockhart Studio.

The kitchen features custom oak cabinetry and built-in seating. At the top of kitchen runs the flush oak detailing (instead of typical moulding). The fireplace, also designed new, is set with black brick.





Both the kitchen and dining room cabinetry was detailed through drawings and made out of oak by a local Finnish cabinetmaker.

The dining table is the couple’s vintage Hans Wegner table. The chairs are also Wegner designs: the classic Wishbone Chair in oiled oak. The pendant light above is the the Hotaru Double Bubble Light by Barber & Osgerby for Ozeki & Co. Ltd., the Japanese manufacturers of Noguchi lamp shades.
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Next to the flush oak molding is one of many Charlotte Perriand Wall Lights in White positioned throughout the apartment.


The couple requested a fully tiled bathroom in a similar vein to the tiled baths Lockhart had designed previously. The result is a dual-tone palette with cream tile for the walls and green for the tub and floor.
For more projects by Katie Lockhart, see our posts:
- Collective Composition: A Historic Villa Renovation in Auckland by Katie Lockhart and Jack McKinney Architects
- Bathroom of the Week: Two Bath Remodels with Bold Green Tile in Auckland
- Mission Bay Pavilion: A Modern, Color-Packed Addition to Auckland’s City Beach
- A Soulful, Monastic House in New Zealand, Japanese-Shaker Style Included
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