Studio IQL

Bainbridge St. project before & after ➝
When Frank + Genny found this Philly home, the natural light and rooftop views were irresistible, but the layout? Not so much.

Challenge: A powder room opening right into the living room and a pantry lit like a convenience store.
Solution: We reoriented the powder room and added a connecting hallway, creating a clean sightline from kitchen window to French doors.

From dated and developer-grade to thoughtful, functional, and full of light.

One small reconfiguration, a huge transformation.

We’ve believe the smallest details can completely shape how a space feels. Each room in this project carries its own mood through texture, color, and pattern, creating spaces that feel collected over time rather than simply designed. We used for these two which gave them a layered, personal, and a little unexpected feel - which is exactly how we like it.

Next to the former United Methodist Church in East Falls, The Rectory was once abandoned and falling apart. Today, the 1890s home has been lovingly restored and reimagined into a layered, deeply personal space that reflects the values at the core of Studio IQL: sustainability, resourcefulness, and soul.

Every element in The Rectory tells a story. Much of what fills the space has been made, thrifted, or passed down, each object and material chosen with purpose. Light plays a key role in the design, with custom windows and panel curtains shaping the mood of each room throughout the day. A wood-burning stove anchors the living space, offering both physical warmth and a sense of gathering. And at the heart of the kitchen, a counter-to-ceiling pot rack nods to Val’s past life as a restaurateur, blending function with memory.

The Rectory is more than a home, it’s a lived-in laboratory for the ideas that shape Studio IQL’s work. It’s a place where good design doesn’t mean perfection, but presence. Where history, utility, and emotion combine to create spaces that feel genuinely lived in and deeply personal

In Good Company: Chris Poehlmann / CP Lighting

Since the 1980s, Christopher Poehlmann and CP Lighting have been creating fixtures that blur the line between sculpture, craft, and function. Transforming recycled aluminum, glass, and industrial materials into lighting that feels deeply organic and alive.

We’ve had the pleasure of working with Chris on many projects over the years and always love incorporating his work into our spaces. His pieces bring a sense of warmth, texture, and presence that feels grounded and a little unexpected.

It’s a way of working that feels deeply aligned with how we think about design: thoughtful, material-driven, and rooted in the details that give a space its soul.