Italian-ish Dining at Club Kloof
According to The New York Times, it’s the age of the pizza geek. And what better way to summon this palatable epoch in than with a new ‘Italian-ish’ eatery, in Cape Town, the capital of all things modish?
All posts tagged: design
Studio Joanna Laajisto
My home needs work. I’ve been living in it for six years and it needs work. Houses and apartments take maintenance and at the moment I’m embarrassed by how run-down and sad it is. In light of this, I’ve imagined a lump-sum lotto win and an opportunity to renovate the parts of my home that yearn for a spruce up – i.e everything. Inspired by this ‘ultimate renovation’, I’ve naturally turned to the Scands. Studio Joanna Laajisto, headed up by the eponymous lass herself, is a Helsinki-based boutique design agency with a focus on functionality, quality and infinitely beautiful aesthetic. Founded in 2010, and scoping commercial, retail, hospitality and office design, each project is a masterpiece.
Eden Locke Hotel
Although well over 250 years old, Edinburgh’s New Town – a UNESCO Heritage Site – is a beautiful, if austere, collection of sturdy and uniform ranks of Georgian buildings. Rows of terraces and mansions clad in local grey sandstone are a physical embodiment of the Scottish Reformation. Refurbished by NYC-based architecture firm Grzywinski+Pons, Eden Locke is a new 72-room hotel with a café and bar that’s received a complete renovation and comprehensive fit-out. Celebrating its heritage details, the 18th-century Georgian mansion and its 20th-century extension was whittled down to its respective bones – and the chic new hotel created from there.
Bar Luce
I don’t know what rock I’ve been living under, but I’ve only just discovered Bar Luce, a Milanese café designed in 1950s Italian style by director of all directors, Wes Anderson.
Barceló Torre de Madrid Hotel
In 18 months my mom and I have committed to walking the Camino. That gives me 18 months, about 547 days – and counting – to get my financial shit together. I’m a terrible spender and an even worse saver. In September 2018 that needs to be revolutionised so that I can take a sabbatical (work logistics to be arranged then, don’t ask questions) and fly to Europe for two, maybe three, months. Deviating from my obsession with everything French (Paris will naturally be on the agenda), I find myself drawn to and inspired by the dusty colours and flavours of Porto, and the bold patterns and architecture of Spain. Hence, this hotel’s exquisite renovation and striking personality caught my attention.
Hôtel Providence, Paris
I’ve always been a dormant francophile, significantly less dormant in the last few weeks. In an attempt to make household chores more ‘fun’, I started playing French music, and so went down the Parisian rabbit hole – and have yet to come out. Longing for a return to Paris, I’ve been living vicariously through French design, French music, and French film. And lusting at Paris’ most beautiful French hotels.
Vincent Darré’s Surreal Parisian Apartment
Unusual and theatrical designer Vincent Darré, famous for his baroque creations, just put his house and all its furnishings up for auction. Full of fantasy, flirting with surrealism and eccentricity, he is character personified in the world of decor and design.
Douglas and Bec
I’ve been quite pathetic about my home’s interiors. I moved in four years ago with the greatest plans, but there are still unframed prints that need to be hung (and framed), dead plants and too much cat hair. I’m challenging myself to Get. Shit. Done. It needs attention. And Douglas and Bec is my inspiration.
The Kinfolk Gallery, Copenhagen
Danish studio Norm Architects has taken influences from both Scandinavian and Japanese design to create this pared-back gallery and workspace for Kinfolk magazine in central Copenhagen.