Two years after the house was renovated, it was the basement’s turn to be transformed into a Six Senses–style vacation retreat

To evoke an authentic, enveloping atmosphere, most of the furniture is in soft sand tones, complemented by desert rocks used as bookends and fragments of weathered wood as decoration. Designed as a retreat for the family’s three primary school–aged children, the space balances natural textures with a playful spirit

About two years ago, a family from Kiryat Tivon approached interior designer Orly Gonen Steingert for a simple color consultation for their kitchen. What began as one meeting quickly evolved into a full home renovation, carried out in stages. Today, Gonen Steingert notes, only three bathrooms remain untouched—and they, too, are soon to be redone.

The most recent transformation was the basement level. The parents wanted to dedicate the space to their three elementary school–aged children, envisioning a place where they could host friends and spend time together. ‘The idea was to create a floor just for the kids,’ says Gonen Steingert, ‘but the truth is, since the renovation, everyone in the family wants to hang out there.

The basement spans roughly 60 square meters and is framed by a narrow courtyard. It includes a living room, a den with the parents’ study, and a bedroom with an en-suite shower—currently serving as a guest room but planned to become a teenager’s room in the future.

Access is through an indoor staircase that opens onto a curving hallway, along which stretches an unusually long storage closet. Crafted by carpenter Eli Zukro of Ramat David, the closet features a curved wall that softens the space and striped molding echoed throughout the floor. ‘He was one of the most talented carpenters in the north,’ recalls Gonen Steingert, ‘and he tragically passed away just three weeks after being diagnosed with cancer.’

Zukro’s work remains as both a design feature and a tribute. Within the closet lies a concealed door to the house’s storage room, as well as thoughtful touches: a refrigerator stocked with drinks and ice cream for the children, a family shoe closet, and other practical functions.

The hallway, like the entire level, is finished with light neutral tiles. ‘Before the renovation, the floor was covered with parquet,’ recalls the designer. ‘But after years of struggling with moisture rising from the ground, the family finally gave up and removed it—and they were adamant about never using parquet again.’

Instead, the flooring, walls, and even the custom closet were all given a unified sand tone, reflecting the desert-inspired aesthetic the family envisioned. Their inspiration came from the atmosphere of resorts such as Para, Beresheet, and Six Senses Shaharut. ‘My goal was to create the feeling of a vacation inside the home,’ explains Gonen. ‘I believe we should all bring the sensations we experience on holiday into our everyday lives—so that home feels like a resort.

Opposite the hallway closet, the wall was replaced with a large display case—part fixed, part movable—designed to close off the guest area when needed and ensure quiet in the house while the children host friends. Previously, this spot held only a small window, but Gonen Steingert enlarged it dramatically, opening the space to the surrounding courtyard and flooding it with natural light. The once dim corner has now become a true living room.

Along one wall, a generous built-in closet provides abundant storage. Some doors feature the same notched detail as the hallway closet, while others are finished with an elegant Viennese lattice. At the far right, beside the window, a small storage niche was given a whimsical twist: two potted plants were placed inside, creating the illusion that they are sprouting directly out of the cabinetry.

Beneath the window, a long cushioned bench runs the length of the wall, doubling as clever storage with deep, grooved-front drawers for the children’s games and books. At one end of the bench, a striking black light fixture rises dramatically to the ceiling, custom-made especially for the house.

To conceal electrical systems, Gonen Steingert thickened the wall opposite the closet by about ten centimeters. Rather than leaving it plain, she transformed it into a decorative feature: an elegant arched niche lined with marble shelves.

Most of the furnishings—the large black sofa, rug, and coffee and side tables—were sourced from Tolman’s and its more accessible sister store, Tolman’s Dot. Adding a personal touch, the homeowner brought in a striped wine-and-beige armchair from Zara Home in Spain, blending luxury pieces with meaningful finds.

Everything here is new and bought after the renovation, but I didn’t want all the accessories to feel store-bought,’ says the designer. Her solution was to bring in natural elements: desert rocks repurposed as bookends and pieces of disassembled wood used as decoration.

The space also highlights the work of Israeli designers. At the end of the large cabinet, near the display case, stands a ceramic jug from a Haifa-based studio. The wall light beside the arched niche, as well as the fixture mounted inside the cabinet, were both designed by Assaf Weinbrom, adding artisanal detail to the space.

The hallway continues to the study in the master bedroom on the left and the guest bedroom on the right. Here too, the palette of soft sand tones extends across the walls, ceiling, and closets, creating a cohesive flow. Much of the furniture was again sourced from Tolman’s and Tolman’s Dot, reinforcing the home’s consistent design language.

Repetition plays a key role: an iron side table paired with a dresser and topped with a lamp echoes the arrangement in the living room. Additional layers of character come from carefully chosen details—the carpet brought from Spain, sleek metal hangers from Prat Living, and a wall fixture by designer Assaf Weinbrom, entwined with curling greenery. Above the bed, personal artwork adds intimacy: a small photograph by Shani Falko Zaritsky and a collaborative piece by Shonit and Ido Bar-Shay.

From here, the passage leads into the bathroom, where—just like in the living room—the window was enlarged and fitted with frosted glass to preserve privacy while inviting light. The floor and walls are clad in generous terrazzo tiles, while one wall is accented with rectangular tiles in a warm Hamra shade. A slim strip of small Hamra tiles wraps around the base of the walls, introducing a subtle visual rhythm.

A rounded natural oak vanity anchors the space, topped with a custom-made mirror that adds a distinctive touch. Above it hangs another of Assaf Weinbrom’s light fixtures, tying the bathroom into the broader design story. Although this is the only room where the base palette shifts away from sandy tones, the continuity of materials, details, and artisanal elements ensures harmony with the rest of the floor.