I want to go to there

Summer vacation is on my mind, and here is a collection of cool hotels I wouldn't mind spending a few days in.  Visit the links to see more images of these well designed hotels.

The Opposite House

Beijing, China

Bulgari Hotel

Milan, Italy

Remota

Puerto Natales, Patagonia, Chile

La Purificadora

Puebla, Mexico

Seven Hôtel

Paris, France

Semiramis Hotel

Athens, Greece

Dar HI

Nefta, Tunisia

Interior Design Giants

I should have posted this in January, but better late than never.

Visit Interior Design Magazine's site to see the report on 2012's Top 100 Giants and visit the links below to see a showcase of their work.

Projects for Giants 1-10 slideshow here.

Projects for Giants 11-20 slideshow here.

Projects for Giants 21-30 slideshow here.

Projects for Giants 31-40 slideshow here.

Projects for Giants 41-50 slideshow here.

Projects for Giants 51-60 slideshow here. 

Projects for Giants 61-70 slideshow here.

Projects for Giants 71-80 slideshow here.

Looks like 2011 was a better year than predicted for many of the firms!  

I am so relieved to see things are looking up for the industry.  

Hospitality Design: Blue Frog Acoustic Lounge

Project | Blue Frog Acoustic Lounge 
Location | Mumbai, India 
Architect | Serie architects 
Client | Blue Frog Media Pvt. Ltd 
Completion Date | 2007





 

 

For a full narrative about the concept and design of Blue Frog Acoustic Lounge visit this link. 

Product Love: ASI Lamellux

Showing some product love to the Lamellux Collection of Wood & Resin and Carved Wood Panels distributed by Architectural Systems Inc.    The wall panels combine translucent or opaque resins, in a variety of colors, with exotic and domestic wood species, which can be backlit.

Chez Gerard, London, UK
Featuring Lamellux® - Vibrato - WPLMX047

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

THE DETAILS: 

• Sheet size is 48" x 102" nominal
• Thickness: 
• Quertec: 10-40 mm
• Vibrato: 12-20 mm 
• Inclusion: 15-30 mm
• Finishes:
• Satin varnish standard
• Species: Oak, Beech, Ash, Sipo Mahogany, Maple-Sycamore, Cherrywood, Bubinga, Walnut, Padouk, Iroko, Teak, Wenge, Zebrano
• Edge treatments: Machine-dressed
• Applications include tabletops, doors, walls, partitions, furniture, and bar fronts and customized to your specifications. Custom capabilities on all patterns, additional thickness available.Variations in color and texture may occur due to the nature of the material

There are 3 sub-collections:
 Inclusion: combining honeycomb, resins and wood

Quertec: linear patterns of bold colors and texture
Vibrato: 11 groups of abstract, kinetic designs (a selection from this collection shown below)

Griffe

Gouge

Alveole

Cric

City

Wave

Mini-Parrot

I can't wait to get my hands on a sample!  But this new product is so popular, they are currently out of samples.  Le sigh.

12 Solid Surface Fabrications That Will Blow Your Mind

Solid surfacing is great for commercial applications, especially healthcare and food industry, because 1)  it's non-porous, 2) With proper maintenance, it does not promote the growth of mold, mildew or bacteria, 3) it meets all of the 18 preferred characteristics outlined in the 2006 Guidelines for Design and Construction of Hospital and Health Care Facilities as an ideal healthcare surface to help facilitate improved infection control, and 4) it's Class Ι (A) fire rated. 

When you think of solid surface, you probably think about countertops, restroom vanities and partitions,  and wainscoting and wall cladding. Zodiaq is nonporous and when properly cleaned does not promote the growth of mold, mildew or bacteria.  

And you'd be correct, but you're a designer, why limit yourself?

Solid surface can be thermoformed into custom shapes and contours, sandblasted, routed, carved, and laser etched.  CNC machines can be  used to engrave solid surfacing to the most intricate detail.  It can be thermoplastically molded to create raised textures and patterns and three-dimensional shapes. Certain colors and thicknesses of solid surfacing become translucent when exposed to light.

With a little imagination and a great fabricator (the fabricator is key here), solid surfacing has nearly limitless applications.

Check out these amazing projects that prove solid surfacing isn't just for countertops:

 

 























Project | Raiffeisen Bank portrait wall panels

Location |  Zurich, Switzerland 
Design |   NAU Architecture, Drexler Guinand Jauslin Architekten

Product |   HI-MACS
Fabrication Method |   Thermoforming  & CNC Precision cutting

Fabricator| Keijsers Interieurbouw Horst
Photographer| Jan Bitter

Wallcovering patterns design: ROK, Rippmann Oesterle Knauss
Wallcovering patterns fabrication: Rosskopf & Partner AG
Wallcovering and joinery: Glaeser Baden AG

See more here.

 

 

Project | DuPont Corian Design Studio conference table

Location |  Philadelphia 
Product |   Corian
Fabrication Method |   Thermoforming

See & read more here.

Project | EUROSHOP

Location |  Amstelveen, Netherlands 
Design |   Yasmine Mahmoudieh

Product |   HI-MACS
Fabrication Method |   Thermoforming, Backlighting

See & read more about the show here.

Project | KPMG Office

Location |  Amstelveen, Netherlands 
Design |   Marcel van de Schalk

Product |   HI-MACS
Fabrication Method |   Carving, Backlighting

Fabricator| Keijsers Interieurbouw Horst
Photographer| M.B. Simons Fotografie

 

Project | “Home of the Future”

Location |  Urban Nes(x)t Show

Design |   Italian architect’s studio Bestetti Associati

Product |   Partition walls made from LG HI-MACS
See & read more about the show here.

 

Project | Cantilevered Bar @ “Cafeneaua Veche” (The Old Café)

Location |  Bucharest

Interiors |   Sebastian Barlica
Product |   LG HI-MACS
Fabrication Method |   Thermoforming
See & read more about the project here.

 
 
Project | Hogatec Fair, Germany

Location |  Zurich, Switzerland 
Design |   JOI-Design, Germany

Product |   HI-MACS

Fabricator| Klöpfer Surfaces, Germany
Photographer| Tobias D.Kern

See more here.




Project | Leaf Collection for Avanzini Group

Design |   Giancarlo Zema

Product |   Corian Eco-Concrete

Project | Peacock Chair, Colors + Lines, a feature at IDS12

Design |   UUfie & DuPont Corian

Product |   1 sheet of Corian!

More here.

Project | Corian Light Ball

Design |   soliDline

Product |   Corian
Fabrication Method |   Thermoforming
Watch this video to see how it's made.


 

Project | Bubblegum Chair

Design |   Stuart Melrose

Product |   Corian 
Fabrication Methods |   Thermoforming, Inlaying, & Seamless Bonding
More here.

Project | Seating

Location |  Bronx Museum in New York 

Design |  Acconci

Product |   Corian  

Fabrication Methods |   Thermoforming 

More here.

Which one of these projects is your favorite? 

Want to see more amazing solid surface fabrications? 


Visit these links:
Corian USA Design Studio
Corian Design Inspiration
LG Hi-Macs Design Contests
LG Hi-Macs Project Archive

Top 10 Materials in Tangerine Tango

Pantone’s Color of the Year 2012 Tangerine Tango

In celebration of the color of the year, here are 10 interior products to energize your latest interior design project.

1. Contract Carpet  |  Shaw Contract, Vertical Edge Tile in Paprika Margin. 

 

2. Resin Panels  |  Lumicor, Luminous in Sunset.

 

3. Residential Wall Covering  |  Graham and Brown, Trippy in Orange.

4. Contract Textile  |  Luna Textiles, Urban Grid Varick. 

5. Surface Material  |  Icestone in Persimmon.




 6. Rubber Tile  |  Johnsonite, Folio Tile in Tangerine Tango.
 

7.  Vinyl Wall Covering  |   Lentex Contract, Belvedere in Mango Tango distributed by MDC.

8.  Vinyl Wall Covering  |   Lanark, Scandia in Folkloric, distributed by DL Couch.

  

9. Laminate  |  Pionite in Summer Heat Wave.

10. Solid Vinyl Tile |  Johnsonite, Karim Shapes.
 

Tangerine Tango Interiors

Pantone’s Color of the Year 2012 Tangerine Tango

The bold reddish-orange hue was announced color of the year by Pantone Color Institute. According to Pantone's statement, Tangerine Tango offers "the energy boost we need to recharge and move forward."   Whether it's used in small or large quantities, orange is a strong color.  Here are few projects that embraced the bold hue and executed their designs beautifully.  We'll start with a pop of orange and finish off with striking all-orange spaces.

Project  |  unknown

Firm  |  unknown

Found here.

Project  |  Kundenhalle der Stadtwerke Mühlheim ( a bank)

Firm  |  P2-Pankoe

 

 

Project  |  Seagram's Martini @ Midtown landmark for EnTrust Capital.

Firm  |  Gensler and William T. Georgis

Found via Interior Design Magazine. More images & full project details here.

Project  |  Implantlogyca Dental Office Interiors

Firm  |  Antonio Sofan Architect

More images & full project details here.

Project  |  Reina Bruja- Nightclub

Firm  |  Tomas Alia

Come back next week, I will have 10 Interior Design Materials that will bring a little Tangerine Tango to your projects.