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Attic Rooms in Haussmannian Paris -- Chambre de Bonne

RS likes to reminisce about the old guest rooms, before all the mod cons, when the rooms were tiny and hot and the bathroom was down the hall. Did you think about what those rooms were originally intended for, and how they came about, and where they are now?

Chambre de Bonne were the maid's rooms in the attic of the buildings designed by Haussmann --
and there is a new podcast from 99% Invisible that gives a great sense of their history and how they continue to evolve:

https://99percentinvisible.org/episode/chambre-de-bonne/

Note that this is a podcast -- after you read the article, click to listen to the podcast, which is a bit under an hour.

Enjoy!

Posted by
3746 posts

Thanks for this.
I’ve never been in one, but always look up at the little windows when I’ve been in Paris and wondered about all the people who ever lived there in days gone by.

Jay Swanson, an American fellow , lives in one in Paris.
Check out his YouTube channel.

Posted by
10651 posts

The idea of living in one of those makes me want to crawl out of my skin. All I can think of is how hot it has to be up there right under the zinc roof. Uggghhhh

Posted by
7396 posts

People still live there. Showers have usually been fitted in, but toilets sometimes remain on the landing.

And as someone who lives right under a Parisian zinc roof: yep, summer is hot.

Posted by
652 posts

There is a good 2010 RomCom, Les femmes du 6e étage set in 1960"s Paris about some Spanish maids that live in the Chambre de Bonne.

"In 1960s Paris, a conservative couple's lives are turned upside down by a group of Spanish maids that live in the same building."

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1805297/

Posted by
10651 posts

That's such a nice film. Wonderful recommendation.