Photo:Sergey Dzhevakhashvili: In the first two-room apartment where I renovated, there was a blue corridor, a yellow nursery, an orange kitchen, in other words, complete chaos. But then it seemed to me that I, as a designer, did an excellent job. Then we moved out of town, built a large house in an eco-ethnic style. From each trip, Volodya (Vladimir Turchinsky, an athlete and TV presenter, Irina's husband, passed away in 2009. - Ed. "Antenna") and I brought some interior item - an elephant from Thailand, a giraffe from Argentina, we dragged in our hand luggage. I remember how you come back, put up another animal and think: "Oh, beauty!" And such a vinaigrette as a result! Ksyusha had a panel of toucans in the toilet, it took six weeks to lay it out. In our bathroom - a huge unfolding shell made of mosaic. And there was also an anteater made of a single piece of wood... When you don't have a huge space, you strive for it. But I soon began to understand that most of this lovingly made house does not participate in my life, as I do in its. It was just a period of family with a lot of friends, constant movement, and then came the time of city life. Moscow is functional for me and for my daughter, it is connected with studies, with work.
Walls without quarrels
Photo:Sergey Dzhevakhashvili - First, we moved to a new building, where the walls could be torn down as you wished. We connected the corridor, the hall and the large room, and it literally turned into a football field. Only later did I understand: this was a completely incomprehensible and unnecessary step. I decided to make it completely white. And do you know what the first thing I bought for it was? Bathroom accessories. I saw a liquid soap dispenser in a store of an unreal cranberry color and grabbed the whole set. I showed it to a friend, a designer, in the evening, and she said: "Ira, I have never met a person who starts a renovation with a toilet brush." I lived in this white "hospital" for about a year and decided that my next space should be completely different - an apartment with roots. The choice fell on a Stalinist house built in the late 50s. Apartments here were given to employees of the Academy of Sciences. I looked at many options and asked the realtor: "What needs to happen for me to understand: this is my place?" She answered: "What happens when you fall in love? You get high." And when I walked into this apartment, I fell in love, there is no other word for it. I saw the balcony, the floor-to-ceiling window, almost immediately a picture came to mind that in the summer there will be flowers here, and in the winter, gatherings with a blanket. I immediately realized that I would put a fireplace in the living room, put parquet on the floor, because it is from that era, let there be wallpaper on the walls - and no baroque, fringe, beads or mosaics. As soon as the renovation was finished and the workers gave me the keys, I came here in the evening, sat down in the place where the sofa now stands, lit the fireplace and realized that I am an absolutely happy person. Nothing else is needed. Fire, floor, wall and the feeling that you did everything the way you like it. Every centimeter is used, it is needed for something. A huge number of people who visit my home sincerely say: "Oh, how great, how cozy." The apartment is small and at the same time gives a huge number of positive emotions. I love it, I know it from corner to corner. It seems to me that the people who lived here before did not know how to shout, within these walls there is not a single quarrel, not a single squabble.
Photo:Sergey Dzhevakhashvili - If we think esoterically, an interesting sign preceded this apartment. Getting ready for the purchase transaction, where the owner and I were supposed to meet for the first time, I, like all girls before an important event, started to dress up. I decided to put on a black skirt, a red sweater and high boots. I arrive at the meeting, and the seller is a girl of my build, also with short hair, only blonde, in a red sweater, a black skirt, black high boots. And they are all the same styles! Everyone looks at us and understands that we are like sisters. She then said: "How pleased I am to sell you an apartment." And how pleased I was! By the way, the first thing I let into my new home was a fish. Before ordering any finishing materials, I went to see what was happening on the market. I go into a showroom where chandeliers are sold, I see a figurine of a fish and I understand that it should live with me. I don’t know why, but it simply amazed me. I say, "Sell it." They answer, "It's not a product, it's an interior item." It turned out that the fish belonged to the store owner. They called the owner, and I said that I would buy all the lamps from her later. They sold the fish, and I didn't buy anything else. But the most interesting thing happened later. About a year and a half later, I went to an event with my designer friend. He introduced me to his colleagues, including the designer Maria. I told her about my apartment, said that I needed lamps, and we agreed that I would send photos of the interiors. I took some photos, sent a shot of a fireplace with a fish on it. Maria called back and said, "So you're that crazy girl who took the fish from my desk!" She loved it very much and gave it away, assuming that a potential client would come back to her later. And it turns out that I did.
