Matteo Simoni, a Flemish actor known for his leading roles in Marina and Safety First, and Loredana Falone, the creator of the Belgian sustainable fashion label ‘wearable stories’, live with their daughter Giulia in a charming neighbourhood in Antwerp. With beautiful windows 5 metres high and 4 metres wide at the rear of the house, it’s hard to keep out the heat and still maintain enough privacy.
Cooling down in style
Matteo and Loredana managed to snag a stylish home with an intimate garden in the centre of Antwerp, with plenty of light streaming in through its large windows. The luminosity, combined with the sun’s rays, allows plenty of heat to penetrate. Furthermore, for a young family with a one-year-old daughter, privacy is also an important factor. Large windows not only provide an attractive view, they also allow passers-by to peek inside.
To keep out not only the sun and any excess light from their home, but also to gain greater privacy, Matteo and Loredana contacted Harol. The message was clear: the family wanted to increase their comfort, while keeping it stylish. One requirement was that any solution would need to integrate seamlessly with their rear façade. Harol worked with them to find the perfect solution; to keep out the heat and guarantee privacy without compromising the house’s aesthetics. From the wide range of available outdoor sunscreens, they chose screens with a discreet box in a shade that matched their window frames. Thanks to the matching colours and the sleek design of the fabric and the box, everything now exudes a serenity that harmonizes perfectly with their home. When closed, the screens also provide the desired privacy by blocking the view from the outside. However, they are not fully closed off; the screens still allow for an outside view. This means that they remain connected with the outside world.
The role of sustainability
This stylish couple are not just delighted with the solar control and aesthetic advantages of their screens. For them, sustainability also plays an important part in all this. For example, Loredana is actively working on the issue of sustainability within the context of her ‘wearable stories’ fashion label. The Belgian brand Harol, with its local manufacture and energy-efficient solutions, was the logical choice for them. Local products and natural cooling ensure that the environment is under less stress from emissions caused by international transport and energy-hungry alternatives such as air-conditioning.
The photos are evidence of this: Matteo and his family now enjoy their win-win-win situation every day: sustainable heat retention, privacy and aesthetics in one solution, and a great deal of pleasure to boot. #Harol #Webelieveinnaturalcooling
