On the sun-drenched island of Menorca, a historic home has been slowly transformed. Guided by light, the Mediterranean sea, and a deep respect for memory, the interiors and architecture by Febrero Studio work in harmony, creating a house that feels both lived-in and enduring.
On an island off Spain, the town of Es Castell is bathed in sunlight and shaped by the water and warmth of coastal air. Here, BOS-COS Menorca has been reimagined as a homestay for slow living, honouring both its past and its natural surroundings. Inspired by the rhythms of the Mediterranean climate, the project holds both history and modern living in one place. Febrero Studio has worked to preserve the spirit of this home, creating a space that feels alive to its landscape and to those who live within.
“Durability and breathability were our starting points,” partner architect Jesús Díaz Osuna explains. “We focused on local building tradition and architecture, keeping alive the spirit of the house.” Díaz Osuna says. The character of the home is bound to the island’s sharp light, coastal air, and the swing of its changing seasons. Lime-washed walls were kept intact, with stone and terracotta from the region lending a raw, tactile authenticity. Open-plan spaces channel sea breezes through the interior, making ventilation feel intentional and further connecting to the Mediterranean climate. Outdoor living areas such as the ficus-shaded courtyard and the upper terrace were positioned to capture both shade and late-day sun, reflecting the island’s slow, open-air lifestyle.
The project began with what Díaz Osuna describes as “a house full of memory.” Every element of the home that was pre-existing—such as the tiles, beams, wall textures—were carefully catalogued and considered for their role in the overall story of the house. “Pieces that held patina, even imperfections, stayed,” he adds. Worn wooden doors were cleaned but never polished to perfection, ensuring that their age remains visible. This careful consideration of what stays and what goes connects back to the ethos of the home’s transition. The kitchen and bathrooms called for change, but even here, architects ensured new features were layered in to echo the original form of the home. “We preferred additions to feel like a quiet continuation rather than a break in time,” Díaz Osuna notes.
This approach shaped some of the home’s most important elements and adaptations. In the living room, the closed fireplace was opened up to connect with the surrounding spaces, creating a central meeting area for families to gather. The pool courtyard follows the same idea. Once a small service yard, it is now the heart of the home. “Its stone walls and central tree hold the memory of a simpler, functional past,” Díaz Osuna says.
Working within the constraints of the existing structure only deepened the design’s character. Limitations became opportunities for depth and intimacy. “Instead of fighting that, we worked with them, framing views through narrow openings, using thresholds as moments of pause, and celebrating asymmetry” Díaz Osuna describes. Rather than restricting, they lent into the constraints and layered onto the historic building design sensitivities may not have been achieved otherwise.
If the architecture carries the memory of the house, the interiors allow those memories to be made real and lived in. Light became the thread that ties everything together. “We embraced Menorca’s shifting daylight. Soft and golden in the mornings, sharper by midday” Díaz Osuna says. Vintage furniture, with its worn surfaces, catches this changing light and deepens in character as the day moves on. Textured fabrics add further to this interplay of light and time, adding warmth and cadence into each space. At the heart of the home, the patio is described by Díaz Osuna as “a breathing organ for the house”. More than a void, it cools the air in summer, offers a constant visual anchor, and keeps nature close at hand. “In Mediterranean culture, patios are not just circulation spaces; they’re social, climatic, and emotional anchors.” Díaz Osuna explains. Here, it gathers light, air, greenery, and water, embodying the project’s quiet principles of connection and continuity.
Now, its restored state, BOS-COS Menorca does not stand as a museum or as a contemporary restoration project. Instead, it is a considered layering of old and new, shaped as much by its constraints as by its possibilities. This is a home where memory and modernity meet, shaped by the sea, the sun, and the passing of time.
The design embraces Menorca’s shifting daylight—soft and golden in the mornings, sharper by midday.
The patio acts as a breathing organ for the house, bringing light, air, greenery, and the sound of water into every surrounding room.
The stone walls and central tree preserve the memory of a simpler, functional past.
Febrero Studio worked with the building’s limitations by framing views through narrow openings, using thresholds as moments of pause, and celebrating asymmetry.
