Hilal Residence

Residential, Defence Phase 6, Karachi, Pakistan

A three-level family house in Defence Phase 6, redesigned room by room around warm light, dark stone and timber.

Location: Defence Phase 6, Karachi, Pakistan
Year: 2026
Status: Completed
Typology: Private house, renovation
Area: 11,000 sq ft

From drawing to building

Each room is shown twice: the render the client signed off, and a photograph of what was built.

Living room

Drawn around a long, low sofa facing a stone media wall, with the ceiling cove doing most of the lighting. Drag the handle to compare.

Render of the Hilal Residence living room

As designedAs built

Kitchen and breakfast bar

The render set a marble breakfast bar between the kitchen and the dining table. It was built the same way, under a timber ceiling.

Render of the kitchen with green cabinets and a breakfast bar

The marble breakfast bar and stools as built

Entrance lobby

A double-height entrance with dark veined marble underfoot and one round table at its centre. The built lobby keeps that single centrepiece.

The entrance lobby as built, with a round table on black marble

Before, during and after

February 2018The house as it was: stone cladding, a tiled roof and timber windows.
March 2021The roof: a bare slab with washing lines and standing water.
March 2025The carport under its pitched, tiled porch.
April 2025The double-height foyer with its red timber lattice balcony.
April 2025The drawing room: wall-to-wall carpet, gilded sofas and a crystal chandelier.
April 2025Bedroom: carved bed and dresser.
May 2025Demolition starts. The porch roof is down and the front is being stripped.
June 2025A new opening is cut through to the outside.
March 2026The new front at night: white render, timber fins and a black gate.
July 2026The foyer now: a glass balustrade and dark veined marble.
July 2026Dark marble steps under the new louvred canopy, where the tiled porch was.
July 2026Bedroom: upholstered bed, lounge chairs and a full-height mirror.
September 2026The drawing room now: timber wall panels with lit reveals and low upholstered seating.
September 2026The roof now: a dining pavilion under a canopy, against a lit feature wall.

Walking through it

Street front at night

Entrance void and chandelier

Living room

Breakfast bar and pantry

Watch Hilal Residence Walk-through

About the project

Brief

An existing family house, redesigned inside and out without rebuilding it: new planning, lighting and finishes across three levels, with some structural additions.

What changed

Hilal Residence is an 11,000 sq ft house renovation in DHA Phase 6, Karachi. The structure stayed; almost everything else was reconsidered. ZADS redesigned the home interior across three levels, added to the structure where the plan needed it, and stayed on through construction. Furniture layouts, circulation, doors and windows, ceilings, lighting, flooring and elevations were designed together, so each room has a clear purpose and the rooms connect.

Lobby, living and kitchen

The entrance lobby is double height, with dark veined marble underfoot and a fluted timber wall. Living and dining open to each other through sliding glass doors. The kitchen design is modern and handleless, in sage and taupe with integrated appliances, and a marble breakfast bar sits between it and the dining table.

Material and light

The palette is deliberately narrow: beige, taupe, warm grey, sage and olive against dark wood and veined marble. Depth comes from texture and concealed lighting: fluted and ribbed walls, textured plaster, glass partitions, brass and bronze details, and lit ceiling coves in the main rooms.

Bedrooms, exterior and roof

The bedroom interior design treats each suite as one space for sleeping, lounging, dressing and vanity. The master suite has glass-fronted wardrobes lit from inside, backlit mirrors and marble vanity tops. Bathrooms use floating vanities, glass shower partitions and concealed lighting. Outside, the entrance and boundary wall carry the same stone, dark metal and timber to the street, with step lighting and planters. The roof level adds a lounge, a pool table and a terrace for hosting.

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