reviews
Hüttenpalast, Berlin
by X2 admin on May.31, 2012, under reviews
First it was camping and then it was glamping. Now in a former factory in Berlin comes the inspired concept of camping without any of the inconvenience of actually having to be outdoors… Welcome to The Hüttenpalast
Interior Design : Sarah Vollmer & Silke Lorenzen
When people think of caravans, they invariably conjure up childhood memories of cold, damp holidays with older relatives in rather non-glamorous destinations. Invariably in Britain.
But Silke Lorenzen and Sarah Vollmer have changed all that for ever with their unique and funky hotel Hüttenpalast in Berlin. It actually features accommodation options that include caravans and cabins, but indoors.
Hüttenpalast, or Huts at the Palace, is a small hotel in the Neukölln neighbourhood of south Berlin. It came about after the two owners could no longer fit all their friends into their living room, so went on the hunt for a space that would be perfect for entertaining, they say. After falling in love with a former vacuum-cleaner factory with an outdoor courtyard, they decided it would be perfect for transforming into a comfortable little hotel. (continue reading…)
Hotel Indigo, Liverpool
by X2 admin on May.31, 2012, under reviews
Hotel Indigo makes a Thoroughly contemporary statement through its interiors about modern Liverpool and adds design gestures that also link it to its industrial heritage
Interior design: Denizen Contracts; Carroll Design
The luxury Hotel Indigo with its Marco Pierre White restaurant has opened in the heart of Liverpool’s commercial district. This £15m, 151-bedroom hotel is just minutes from the city’s World Heritage Site.
The design of Hotel Indigo took the local area’s heritage as its theme, reflecting the city’s cotton trade history in the decor of its guest rooms and the use of artwork depicting its location, including images of St Nicholas Church, Edmund Street, the Cotton Exchange and the Liver Birds. (continue reading…)
Viceroy Maldives
by X2 admin on May.31, 2012, under reviews
Beach meets romance, intrigue and reflection at the hands of New York-based interiors specialist Yabu Pushelberg on a paradise Island in the Maldives
Interior design: Yabu Pushelberg
Guests staying at the Viceroy Maldives Resort will not only marvel at the tropical scenery but also at the interiors. Awardwinning design company Yabu Pushelberg used its innovative talent to transform this resort into one of the most spacious in the Maldives.
The 61villas of this island resort follow the design by New York-based design firm Yabu Pushelberg to provide laid-back luxury to a design-savvy clientele. Carefully crafted interior spaces frame a moment in time to provide an environment of comfort and ease in which, it is promised, one can rejuvenate, rekindle, and reflect. (continue reading…)
Be Playa, Mexico
by X2 admin on May.31, 2012, under reviews
The beachside be playa eschews any reference to its ocean location in opting for stripped-down, simple yet elegant interiors
Architecture and interior Design: Sebastian Sas
The open bathroom areas feature rounded marble sinks with Daniel Rubinetterie taps, which adhere to the simple style applied to the hotel’s interiors, and freestanding semi-sunken hot tubs sit in the corner of every suite next to black canvas or cow-hide print chairs, allowing the occupant to make the most of the views of the beautiful surroundings while drying themselves.
As a nod to the region’s rich history, elaborate, rustic-looking patinated walls decorated with lines of poetry by contemporary Latin American poets are a feature of the suites. Shades of white and pale grey are highlighted with theatrical lighting, including the acrylic base of the bed and hot tub. And amid the rustic simplicity, technology plays its part, with flat-screen TVs, iPod docks and free wireless internet access all offered as standard. (continue reading…)
W St Petersburg
by X2 admin on Apr.25, 2012, under reviews
In the hands of Italian designer Antonio Citterio the W brand has created a contemporary hotel for the Old Russian capital St Petersburg that sits comfortably with the city’s heritage and its former taste for opulence
Architecture: Grigoryev and Partners
Interior Design: Antonio Citterio Patricia Viel Partners
When Italian design company Antonio Citterio Patricia Viel Partners took on the task of designing a hotel in St Petersburg for W – a lifestyle brand with 41 hotels and retreats including 14 W-branded residences – it decided that there was no better inspiration for the hotel than what was all around.
The man behind the design concept, Antonio Citterio, spoke of being inspired by the architectural ancestry of the city and jewel tones of the famous Fabergé egg, first seen in 1885. ‘St Petersburg is a fantastic city, the dream of every architect and designer. Everything is monumental, the colours are amazing and the nature, light and panoramas are unique,’ Citterio states. (continue reading…)
The Zetter Townhouse, London
by X2 admin on Apr.25, 2012, under reviews
Inside the Cosy Zetter Townhouse, located just across the cobbles from the Zetter hotel in Clerkenwell, the rich and eclectic collection of furnishings and furniture make it look as though it is the home of an eccentric Victorian ancestor… Job done!
Interior Design: Russell Sage
The Zetter Townhouse is located just across the cobbles of St John’s Square from the original Zetter hotel in Clerkenwell, London. The 13-bedroom Georgian townhouse features sumptuous interiors by Russell Sage, whose previous work includes the design of The Goring Hotel and numerous Gordon Ramsay restaurants.
Owners Mark Sainsbury and Michael Benyan went to Sage with their vision of what the Zetter Townhouse should encapsulate – ‘A Zetter, 200 years ago’. They wanted a completely different look from The Zetter hotel across the road, but one that nevertheless shared its relaxed feel as well as its sense of quirky humour.
Each of The Zetter Townhouse’s two suites and 11 guest rooms is unique, featuring a variety of bold shades of heritage colours and eclectic antique furniture pieces. Sage continued the quintessentially English use of textile that The Zetter is known for, but this time used Gainsborough fabrics reworked exclusively for The Zetter Townhouse in contemporary shades. (continue reading…)
Interview: Russell Sage
by X2 admin on Apr.25, 2012, under reviews
Russell Sage Studio was established in 2004 by the quintessentially Englishman Russell Sage. He has been commissioned to revitalise some of London’s most iconic hotels, restaurants and attractions, and his handiwork is visible throughout the capital. Recent projects include The Goring Hotel, Sofitel St James, and Clerkenwell’s Zetter Townhouse, and numerous Gordon Ramsay restaurants including the Savoy Grill. Further historic work includes projects for St Paul’s Cathedral, English Heritage (Dover Castle) and the National Trust (Avebury Manor). (continue reading…)
Conservatorium Hotel, Amsterdam
by X2 admin on Apr.25, 2012, under reviews
Sleek and Chic is the hallmark of a design by Piero Lissoni, who has used a subtle colour palette and some of his own-design furniture to transform this iconic 19th-century bank building
Interior Design : Piero Lissoni
Award-winning Milan-based designer Piero Lissoni has transformed one of Amsterdam’s most iconic buildings, a former Victorian bank, into the luxury Conservatorium Hotel.
Built at the end of the 19th century to house the Rijkspostspaarbank, it became a landmark building in the regeneration of the museum district, which had previously been derelict. After the bank moved out it was left abandoned for five years until 1983, when the Sweelinck Music Conservatorium made its home there until 1998. A decade of neglect followed, until the building’s glorious past was recognised by developer Alrov, which bought it in 2008 and began an enormous renovation project.
Architect Daniel Knuttel, who had designed the building 114 years ago, has been praised for his ability to fuse simplicity and functionality – what the furniture and interior designer Lissoni has fused in the renovations with his hybrid modern and contemporary designs. He has succeeded in breathing new life into the late-Victorian building by creating a hotel with a new, modern spin that nevertheless is respectful of the building’s history. (continue reading…)
Design Hotel Miura, Czech Republic
by X2 admin on Mar.27, 2012, under reviews
When a new hotel makes the word ‘Design’ part of its name, it sets out making a very strong statement. This new-build hotel in the Czech Republic, filled as it is with contemporary conceptual art in addition to the inspired architecture and interiors, lives up to its name…
Architecture & Interior Design: Labor13
Design Hotel Miura, which recently opened in Celadna, Czech Republic, has been designed by Prague-based company LABOR13 to gratify art lovers, design and architectural fans as well as golf enthusiasts.
Located in between two 18-hole golf courses, in a valley in the midst of the picturesque Moravian Mountains, the hotel boasts an art collection featuring the work of British sculptor and Turner Prize winner Tony Cragg, controversial Damien Hirst, monumental Henry Moore and father of pop art Andy Warhol.
The architecture of the entire building is eye-catching, as the large, rectangular building sits in front of the picture-perfect mountains and amid the work of Czech sculptor, David Cerny. His oversized, mirrored sculptures of cuboid people, or ‘cubeople,’ sit on the roof, push against the side of the hotel, or are taking a dip in a water pool. (continue reading…)
Hotel Lone, Croatia
by X2 admin on Mar.27, 2012, under reviews
This new resort hotel on the Adriatic Coast is just a short walk around the bay from the Medieval town of Rovinj. It not only pays homage to classic Croatian Hotel design from the Seventies but also is a showcase for the talents of contemporary Croatian Creatives
Architect: 3LHD
Interior design: Numen/For Use
Croatia’s first design hotel, the newly opened Lone, is so much more than a sensational looking hotel on the Adriatic coast. The organically shaped exterior form of the hotel is carried on into the interiors, where design, bespoke furniture and lighting, conceptual artwork in the form of sculptures in steel and fabrics and live plants, collaborate to present a stunning showcase of Croatian creative talent.
The Lone is in Istria in northern Croatia. The region survived untouched by the bloody and vicious fighting that ravaged the rest of the country and its neighbours in the Nineties, but its creative forces that were just starting to emerge in the post-Tito era were nevertheless overshadowed by events, and now are only re-emerging on to a worldwide stage. (continue reading…)
