Fasano Cidade Jardim | São Paulo, SP

HIGH-GLOSS · VENEER AND BLACK MARBLE

When the reflection of wood is not an effect — it's a design

Cidade Jardim, São Paulo. The apartment begins with the kitchen — and the kitchen says it all. High-gloss wood veneer cabinets, black marble backsplash and countertop, built-in cooktop. This combination exists in many designs. What distinguishes this one is the continuity: the same finish, the same grain, the same gloss extend from the kitchen to the living room shelf, from the bedroom panels to the countertops. It's an apartment that breathes as a single space because the millwork was designed that way — not room by room, but as a continuous gesture.

High-gloss natural veneer is one of the most demanding finishes in fine carpentry. The surface must be absolutely smooth before varnishing — any imperfection in the substrate appears magnified by the reflection. At Marcato, the process begins with the selection of veneers: for side-by-side panels, we choose veneers from the same log with continuous grain. The varnish is applied in multiple coats with intermediate sanding in a temperature and humidity-controlled booth. The result — that depth that makes the wood seem illuminated from within — is a consequence of the process, not chance.

In the living room, the veneer gains scale. The floor-to-ceiling shelving unit occupies the entire wall — open niches in varied depths, a central sliding door that integrates the TV into the panel without it being visible. The shine of the wood multiplies the natural light from the windows, creating the perception that the wall is deeper than it is. The dark wood flooring runs uninterrupted from the kitchen to the garden — the apartment reads as a single inhabited volume, without defined beginning or end.

In the social area, the scale changes — and the wood follows. The floor-to-ceiling shelving unit occupies the entire wall: open niches in varied depths, a central sliding door integrating the TV into the panel without it being visible. The structural column, in the middle of the space, receives the same veneer cladding — ceasing to be an obstacle and becoming an element of the design. The library in the background organizes the collection without separating the living room from the dining room: the apartment reads as a single inhabited volume, from the cooktop to the garden.

The bathroom concludes the design in deliberate counterpoint: light stone on all walls, a mirrored ceiling that magnifies the space, a freestanding bathtub, and a natural wood cabinet — without high-gloss. It is the only piece in the apartment where the wood returns to its calm state. This internal contrast is what gives rhythm to the design: it's not a high-gloss apartment. It's an apartment where high-gloss was chosen with intention — and where knowing when to stop makes all the difference.

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Design: Marcato Móveis · High-End Carpentry · São Paulo, SP · Interiors: Studio Obra Prima

See also: Natural Veneer · IVE Lechler · Quatro Ventos