The Grand Tour

The Fully Renovated Paris Apartment of a Fashion Power Player

At home with Edouard Schneider and his many lamps 

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In the background is a vintage rosewood  Florence Knoll cabinet from the 1960s. The “pills” are a lamp by Cesare Casate and Emanuele Ponzi, 1960. The hanging light fixture is RAAK. On the walls: a blue lithograph by Francois Morellet called 1000 Squares, and a work by Philippe Pasqua from 2010. 

Fashion insider Edouard Schneider has taste. He's made a career in communications for Swarovski, Sonia Rykiel, Martin Margiela, Louis Vuitton, and now Acne Studios. A Parisian for the past 20 years, Edouard recently found himself moving to what is now his third apartment in the capital, but always in the hip areas of the 3rd and the 10th arrondissements.

At about 1,270 square feet, Edouard shares this two-bedroom, two-bath apartment with his partner, Dan Gotlieb, who is in charge of global celebrities at Cartier. Though stunning now, the place was in a very different state initially, and everything had to be redone. “This was about five years ago and one of the first places I saw,” Edouard explains. “I loved the volume, but it was a showroom and only had a toilet in the entrance. I was afraid of all the work needed, so I kept looking and looking. I finally decided, Why not this one? But it was already sold. It came back on the market, and I ended up redoing everything.”

The cabinets and island are IKEA covered in concrete. The colorful stools are Duplex by Javier Mariscal, edited by Ediciones de Diseno, from 1981. The floor lamp is called Shogun Terra by Mario Botta for Artemide  and the wall light is Serge Mouille. The serigraphs are by Gottfried Honegger from 2015 and the marble bowl is by Angelo Mangiarotti.

 The space ended up needing a major renovation; there weren’t any bathrooms, and all the plumbing had to be laid. “There weren’t any rooms!" Edouard shares. “I loved doing all of the work, always have. My father is an architect and so is my best friend, Dario Mucedda of Cabinet 2D, who worked on this place with me.” The space still had a few surprises for Edouard, ”Fortunately the floors had been protected and there were nice parquet floors under the carpeting." 

For Edouard, working with his best friend was great, but, in his own words, “I’m a total control freak. Dario wanted to do the black wall, which I didn’t, but he convinced me, and it really works." He also wanted to prioritize a treasured collection: “I collect lamps and they are everywhere here! When we first started the apartment I arrived at the meeting with a PowerPoint of all of my lamps.” He continues, “For me, the most important thing was to determine where all of them would go; this was first.”

Lithographs by French artist Francois Morellet hang on the walls, all sourced from the Kamel Mennour gallery in Paris. The bedside night table is a vintage Raymond Loewy. The lamps above the bed are also vintage, by French designer Jacques Biny, circa the 1950s. The table lamp is by Arlus Lighting, also from the 1950s.

Along with the lamps, Edouard's art collection which he's been acquiring over the years was factored into the space. Usability was also a priority, while the couple typically travels a great deal for work, they frequently have people over for dinners. Edouard says he wanted a nice salon for hosting and a kitchen/dining room area since he loves to cook. 

Now that Edouard and Dan are settled comfortably in their Parisian apartment, it’s time for another project. Next up is a house in the South of France, another renovation with Dario. Edouard confesses he actually always wanted to be an architect, and this space was originally designed by an architecture student for a school project. Edouard has decided that he wants to show his renovation idea to him to get his approval and blessings, marrying his passions into what is sure to be another beautiful home.

A vintage Florence Knoll rosewood cabinet with marble top from the 1960s on the original wood floors. On top of the cabinet are reversible marble vases by Angelo Margiarotti for Knoll and Pillola lamps for Cesare Casati and Emanuele Ponzi. The hanging lighting fixture is by RAAK and the artwork is by Philippe Pasqua.

The dining room table is by Gérard Guermonprez and the chairs are Pierre Paulin. The Moroccan carpet is vintage from the 1980s. The wall lights are RAAK and the hanging fixture is “Tunika” by Jo Hammerborg for Fog & Morup.  The art is by Geneviève Claisse and the painting is by Danhoo.

⚒ Do It Yourself

Customize your IKEA kitchen. The standard kitchen is covered with a very thin layer of concrete to give it a unique look. 

Break it up. A subtle palette of black, white and gray can be given some oomf with pops of color like in the bar stools or works of art.

Get creative when hanging art. Stack them or line them up. Keep the hanging interesting for the eye.

The chair is “Vilber” by Verner Panone for IKEA and the wall lights are Pierre Paulin. The pink metal stool in the background is India Mahdavi for Monoprix and the console is by Raymond Loewy from 1960. On top sits a “Tahiti” lamp by Ettore Sottsass.

The walls are covered in large tiles printed to look like marble by Ariostea. The fixtures are by Fantini and the stool in the shower is inspired by Le Corbusier.

🛍 Shop It Out

All products featured on Architectural Digest are independently selected by our editors. However, when you buy something through our retail links, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Barstools, €989, Pamona 

Lamp, vintage IKEA