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Couple Eli and Okan Cem Cohen, both half-Dutch, half-Turkish, haven’t always been lucky in creating their perfect home. After spending seven months painstakingly renovating a three-storey townhouse in Amsterdam, just weeks after moving in, Eli, Okan and their 18-year-old son, Brandon, were woken up at two in the morning as a fire from the hotel next door spread to their home. Forced to start again from scratch, it took a year and a half of rebuilding and redecorating before work on the house was complete. Unbelievably, just four months later, the property caught fire again. “We developed a huge fire phobia. Now we have fire alarms and extinguishers everywhere,” said Eli, pointing out a quirky wine bottle-shaped fire extinguisher mounted on the kitchen wall.
The second fire came as a huge blow to the family, so when the opportunity came to move to Barcelona for Okan’s job, they decided to take the leap. “We wanted a fresh start and we liked the idea of living in Spain,” said Eli. Having both lived and worked all over the world, the prospect of relocating wasn’t a daunting one and in March last year, they moved into a temporary apartment on Via Laietana with their Chihuahua Coco.
Although their plan was to find a villa in Sant Cugat, everything changed when Eli stumbled on their current Sagrada Família apartment while working for a property development company. “The apartment hadn’t been touched for decades. It was in a complete state of desolation, but it had such positive energy that I was immediately attracted to it.” Eli phoned Okan and told him to come and see the flat, and to bring cash with him. When Okan arrived, he agreed that this was the apartment for them. “It was a pretty impulsive decision,” admitted Eli. While many people might have been deterred by the amount of work necessary to make the place liveable, with their experience they saw the neglected space as a blank canvas.
It hasn’t all been plain sailing though. The couple got the keys for the apartment in May 2016, but weren’t able to move in until April of this year. The biggest hurdle was getting permission to knock down walls, which they were told threatened the structural integrity of the building. “It was a frustrating process because we knew that that wasn’t the case,” said Eli. After months of discussions with the city council, construction finally began in October. By rearranging the layout of the apartment, they were able to open up the dark and cramped space. Walls were removed in the entrance to create a sizeable open kitchen and what is now a bright and airy dining room come office, used to be three closed off bedrooms.
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“Our goal was to make this feel like a large, spacious apartment within 80 square metres,” explained Eli. Their interior design know-how helped to achieve this. For instance, in the kitchen, an oversized antique clock has been strategically placed above the sink. This is one of the tricks of their trade. “Large statement pieces can open up a space and make it seem bigger,” Eli advised. In the same vein, door frames throughout the apartment have been painted darker shades to give the illusion of greater height and width.
Eli described the design for the apartment as 1945 Parisian-esque, combining antique pieces with modern furnishings and pops of vibrant colour to create a luxurious yet cosy feel. In the dining room, a Victorian-style crystal chandelier, which Okan made himself, hangs above a classic wooden table. Next to the window sits a pastel-coloured chaise lounge—the ideal spot to curl up with a book. In the living room, a series of collectable memory blocks by Canadian artist Sid Dickens hangs above a brown leather sofa. “We created that wall as a vision board—each tablet means something to us.” Aside from the artwork, Eli’s favourite part of the flat is the spiritual area he has put together in the living room. An emerald green chest from Mongolia is adorned with a traditional menorah and a handmade Turkish evil eye. “Even though we aren’t religious, we have Jewish, Muslim and Christian heritage and we like to celebrate this diverse culture.”
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Despite experiencing countless ups and downs along the way, Eli and Okan’s hard work and perseverance has undoubtedly paid off. From the enviable architectural features to the stylish decor, they have managed to create their ideal home in a smaller space than they had initially envisioned. “Moving here was one of the best decisions we have made, we couldn’t be happier,” beamed Eli from the sun-drenched balcony, a cup of coffee in hand.