LESS IS more

COSTANTINO AFFUSO AND PAOLO BADESCO'S BEAUTIFULLY RENOVATED TRULLO HOUSE IN THE HEART OF PUGLIA BLENDS RUSTIC TRADITION WITH MINIMALIST TOUCHES TO CREATE A HOME THAT IS COMPLETELY UNIQUE

- MARZIA NICOLINI/GEORGIE RODGERS

Living room

As space is so limited in the trulli, we designed bespoke furniture to make best use of the small living room,' says Costantino. 'Every nook needs its own purpose, be it aesthetic or functional.'

BUY THE KEY PIECES

Olive fabric, £58m, Designers Guild at Your Stylish Home

HOME NOTES

WHO LIVES HERE?

Costantino Affuso, an architect, lives here with his partner Paolo Badesco, an interior designer. They own a homewares and furniture shop, Raw & Co in Milan.

THE PROPERTY

Two traditional trulli have been renovated to create a two-bedroom home in the Itria Valley in Puglia, Italy.

Living room area

Old and new work in perfect harmony in Costantino and Paolo's design. In the living room, the delicate powder blue vintage sideboard contrasts with the industrial stool for a rustic look with a contemporary edge.

BUY THE KEY PIECES

So'home industrial copper-look bar stool, £89, La Redoute, would work well here

When designers Paolo Badesco and Costantino Affuso happened to walk past the 'For Sale' sign outside a pair of traditional trulli in the heart of the Itria Valley in Puglia, they fell in love with them in an instant. 'We were struck by the simple, shy beauty of the trulli, surrounded by olive groves,' says Costantino. 'It felt like we'd wandered across something out of a fairytale hidden among the centuries-old trees.' In just a matter of days, the couple put in an offer and in no time at all found themselves at the start of an exciting and challenging project.