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There are multiple ways to incorporate ceramic elements into your design project; vases, table wares and sculptural artworks just to name a few…

Yesterday marked the anniversary of America’s Independence, first granted on the 4th July 1941…

Courtyards have been a central part of urban planning for millennia, with the first iteration of one being recorded circa 6000 BC. Their primary purposes were to provide protection from the elements, ventilate structures efficiently, and provide occupants with private outdoor space in busy towns and cities.

In this week’s Five on Friday instalment, we’re paying a virtual visit to a space that not every hotel possesses but one that every hotel should have…

With the precipice of high-season on the horizon, holidaymakers are logging-off, packing up and boarding flights to recentre themselves in far-flung corners of the world, whether that looks like a week-long Savasana on a sun lounger or deep soul-searching journeys on the yoga mat…

It was at the 1992 Earth Summit that Canada’s International Centre for Ocean Development and the Ocean Institute of Canada announced the first World Oceans Day.

Whether you’re sipping a cocktail or a mocktail, the bar transforms into the heart of any hotel as dusk falls…

Incorporating metallic design components is the most effective way to make tight spaces feel more spacious and visually enhance an otherwise minimalist scheme.

This week marks the 77th edition of the esteemed Cannes Film Festival, a global celebration of art and cinematic excellence…

The fifth instalment of Sleeper Sessions, the symposium that connects specifiers and suppliers of the hospitality sector, has been in full swing over in Troia, Portugal, this week, with a star-spangled line up of industry leaders speaking on topics including…

The Garden of Time by J. G. Ballard is a short story about the home life of Count Axel and his wife who reside lavishly in their villa of rare artefacts…

Timber panelling has had somewhat of a rebirth recently; a design component previously admired in grade-listed buildings is now well-utilised in hospitality projects the world over.

Design publications awash with stripped-back spaces, another ‘Five ways to apply Wabi-sabi principles to your Space’ advert enters the periphery…

Pin-hole punctures, intermittent cutaways and elaborate latticework are just some examples of how hotel specifiers incorporate perforated cladding in the concept stage of a project. But what exactly is the use of this mode of elevation design? Is it purely for aesthetics?

Maximalism burst onto the interior scene after years of minimally curated spaces populating both social and mainstream media outlets. It’s often described as the ‘aesthetic of excess’, but at what cost?

Summer houses, orangeries and brightly lit conservatories; structures made of glass were previously a practical means to control conditions for optimal plant yield…

BEAM OF DREAMS FIVE ON FRIDAY Timber framing and “Post and Beam” have been tried and tested methods of building for millennia. Over time, the fundamental principles of both have...

This week, at Sleepifier, we’ve been firmly stuck on stucco. More specifically, the gypsum plaster kind that enhances the decorative appeal of intramural spaces.

In our humble opinion, a memorable headboard is a surefire way of grabbing guests’ attention right off the bat…

The architects and engineers of Ancient Rome were the first to implement the idea of a ‘coffered’ ceiling; a surface of hollow recesses that saw a significant mass reduction in domed stone structures.

Optimizing rooftop space has the potential to set your hotel project apart from the rest and often acts as a major drawing point for guests in the preliminary stages of booking.

A full-body detox in the Spa & Wellness suites of a premium hotel is just one way to start the new year off on the right foot.

Cabinets, chairs and wall panelling made from Indian hardwood peaked in popularity during the 1950s, with quality teak furniture by…

China produced the first examples of cast iron in the 6th century BC by using varying degrees of heat to fortify the raw material which they then…

Vaulting, in its primitive phase, was a building constituent reserved only for places of worship, but how have hospitality design leaders brought this design relic to the modern day?

Mention holidaying abroad and the image that gets called to mind is one of plunging into a turquoise body of water amidst the blazing heat…

This Friday, we’re going to be living La Dolce Vita at our penultimate AHEAD Awards ceremony, with this year’s theme being all things Italian…

The integration of textiles is imperative for any designer who hopes to have a cohesive interior scheme…

There’s something about booth seating that makes dining out feel a bit more special. That’s why, in this week’s Five on Friday we’re peering into some of the best booths our archive has to offer, paying particular attention to those of intriguing form, stand-out upholstering or finished off with plush soft furnishings.

Hallways, lifts, ramps and stairwells. Circulation is arguably the most important aspect of a hospitality project or any other multistorey building for that matter…

Over the years, wallpaper has gained a reputation of being stereotypically kitsch, difficult to remove and, above all, a design relic of the seventies.

This week, we’re casting an eye over a quintet of projects that utilise the versatile material of brick, from
characterful hand-thrown blocks to the military precision of those made with modern-day extrusion dies.

Checking into a luxury suite after a hectic day of air travel will never fall out of favour, often providing some much-needed visual distance from the quotidian lives of guests, including that of their daily commute…

With winter on the horizon in the Western Hemisphere and the last of the cold climates in the East, we thought it appropriate timing to take a look at the humble hearth. Originally a fixture in domestic dwellings, this seasonally used building constituent has also earned a central spot in hospitality projects in recent years, and for good reason…

When we think about construction and the luxury hotel sector, perhaps the first thing that springs to mind is megalithic concrete paradises, tonnes of mass bearing down on the Earth and natural resources going surplus to requirement…

From great fortresses and monolithic temples down to village huts and agricultural structures, stone has been the go-to building material for its durability for thousands of years…

As some of hospitality’s leading design practices have adopted a neutral and ‘stripped back’ approach in recent years, the latest hotel openings evidence that ornamental décor from yesteryear has slowly fallen out of favour.

There’s nothing more opulent than a free-standing bath. Especially one with a view across a major city skyline or cocooned in carefully designed details. That’s why, in this week’s Five on Friday instalment, we’re taking a moment to appreciate five examples of tubs that command the attention of the whole room. The bathroom, that is.

This weeks’ Five on Friday pays homage to hospitality projects that utilise a piece of FF&E which increases guest capacity and ensures that smaller rooms can be manoeuvred around with ease. We’re, of course, talking about the humble bunk bed…

With certain cinematic productions being at the forefront of everyone’s minds today, we’re dedicating this week’s Five on Friday to a quintet of projects that make us tickled pink or – in other words – ‘very happy’ in the use of one contentious colour…

First impressions count, and the front desk is one of the first opportunities hotel designers have to provide a touchpoint for guests and setting the scene for the rest of their stay…

Top 5 interiors with a touch of Pop-Art  When Marcel Duchamp first perfected the concept of ready-mades in art, he opened a door that never closed,  that later influenced the way we conceive...

If there’s one thing we can all agree on, is that nature is the most intelligent, delicate and gracious designer.

The bar is so much more than a place to get your favourite drink in its appropiate sophisticated glassware.

Today we’re embracing a simple yet core component of design and architecture: lines. In particular, curvy lines.

When drafting a hospitality design project, architects and interior designers inevitably think about two things: the different parts and peculiarities of the design itself, and the way visitors wil experience it.

Murals can embody an infinite amount of styles and themes, but today we’re focusing on botanical-based murals. These grand-scale expressions give personality and help to define the hotel’s character.

From the beginning, red seems to pop more than other colours, it demands our attention, and we deliver.

Just like a painter can create the illusion of depth and atmosphere in a bi-dimensional space, interior designers can do something similar.

t was 1974 when Robert Arnold took a flight from Bangkok to Hong Kong and his eyes spotted the innovative mini bottles of alcoholic beverages that would later influence a key element in every hotel room; the minibar.

It’s no news that colour has the ability to affect our perception, senses and emotions.

This architectural feature can play many roles other than allowing people to move around different heights.

Our selection of this week’s staircases did more than their expected purpose.

We’ve been using marble in baths for thousands of years, and it still manages to feel sophisticated, clean and new.

Bearing walls or load-bearing walls carry the load of floors and roof above in addition to their own weight.

“I cannot resist fooling around with our established certainties. It gives me great pleasure, for example, to deliberately mix up the second and third dimensions, flat and spatial, and to make fun of gravity” – M.C. Escher

Today we’re taking a look into one of the most important design elements of hospitality design: the reception desk.
This seemingly neutral area of the hotel has more impact on the guest’s experience than one may think.

It’s about the journey, not the destination.
These hallways not only lead to other places, but also become an area in itself worthy of attention.

Grisaille or grisaglia, is a type of monochromatic painting style, originally in grey or neutral tones that produce the illusion of three-dimensional texture or architectural reliefs. Many times they embody the appearance of ornamental molding.

One of the main and usual goals of architectural or interior design is the possibility to give character and personality to a particular habitable space.

Storytelling is a commonly used tool for the building of hotel’s identities.

Apart from the obvious answer related to the need for more accommodation in dense populated areas, the view is what seals the deal.

This week we’re taking a look into projects where designers achieved to express the maximum capabilities of certain materials.

Some travellers dream of getting to know big luminous cities, others seek just the opposite.

“We do not dislike everything that shines, but we do prefer a pensive lustre to a shallow brilliance, a murky light that, whether in a stone or an artifact, bespeaks a sheen of antiquity. . . . we do love things that bear the marks of grime, soot, and weather, and we love the colours and the sheen that call to mind the past that made them.”

“The separation between the man and its surroundings is not a total separation, however, but an ambiguous form of relationship, where what is looked at is reconstructed from memories, requests, own and other people’s nostalgia, which sometimes refer to very long periods of human sensibility, other ephemeral fashions.”

Past and present. How do those two coexist in terms of design?
If you look around, chances are you’re surrounded by at least a few objects that belong to different eras than the one we live in.

Velvet fabrics, usually reserved for the confection of special-occasion garments, are also a well-known material for luxurious upholstery, curtains, pillows, wall coverings and more.

Glass is a generic category for a wide variety of different-sourced types of glass. There are silicate glasses (made from silica, the main component of sand), as well as other types like lead glass (commonly called crystal), desired for its clarity, though much more fragile than silicate glass.

In 1929 the Villa Savoye, designed by Le Corbusier was completed.
This project not only materialized his five principles of architecture, but also portrayed his way of perceiving space itself.

Terrazzo is a composite material, poured in-site or pre-fabricated in the form of tiles made of marble chips. granite quartz, glass, shell pieces, or other similar materials.

The first pools date back to at least 2500 BC; from the ceremonial Great Bath at Mohenjodaro in Pakistan and the social Roman and Greek public baths to the first indoor swimming pool at London built in 1837, pools have an interesting history steered by crucial socio-political changes in society.

Colour psychology starts at our most primitive instincts.
Even if new meanings can be adhered through the power of social construct, its core associations go back to our first beginnings as a species.

Did you know that bamboo can grow up to 90 centimetres in just a day? You could just watch it grow without the need of a sped-up video and still notice the changes.

What do we think about when we mention stone? Where does it take us?

Or should I say when does it take us?

From Stonehenge to the Great Pyramids of Giza, stone has participated in humanity’s development before the beginning of written history.

Blue is a trustworthy colour.
It’s soothing, intellectual and orderly. It is the colour of the sky and sea and this can lead people to enter a contemplative mood.

If you speak to any musician about travelling and homesickness, they will for sure mention that they miss their instruments back home or that they take some with them everywhere they go. This week we selected five projects that cradle artists and music lovers.

Layouts, or “the way in which the parts of something are arranged or layed out”, play a crucial role in experiencing and physically feeling a space or room.

In the accelerated world that we live in, taking a long bath instead of a five-minute clock-ticking shower is seen as an act of self-care.

Top 5 Coworking Spaces Working remotely used to be something limited to primarily freelancer nomads. After the pandemic, we had to adapt fast and rethink the typical white cube office....

There’s many different ways to approach colour theory, and there’s been a wide range of, systems, colour wheels, chromatic disks, and so on. That’s because there is also many ways to synthesize and organize colours.

The arch: an iconic element in the history of architecture. From massive roman aqueducts to vaults and colossal arches, the arch has always been present in many different styles and eras.

A nook or niche offers seclusion and security. It’s a space to escape and snuggle into a world of your own.

The great Louise Kahn had once said: “Architecture appears for the first time when sunlight hits a wall”

“Shimmering neon lights
And at the fall of night
This city’s made of lights”.

So, what is modular design anyway?
Depending on the field, a module (from the latin modulus) can mean different things. If we focus on geometry and design, it refers to a unit of measurement that repeats and combines itself to assemble different structures or architectural volumes.

Lets start this year with a smile. This week’s selection presents our top ten details that made us giggle or say to the person next to us “hey, look at this!”.

The awaited top five of the year is here! This selection features the best projects that opened their doors in the year of 2021.

This week we turn to a diverse category of projects; conversions. In a world where planned obsolescence is the norm and society is in a constant look towards brand-new things, re-using what’s already there has a strong potential.

Dividing a space without actually having to build a wall has its fruitful benefits. It provides some level of privacy while allowing light to seep through, allowing the room to keep its dimensions.

Known as the heart of the house, fireplaces carry with them a multitude of symbolysms and powerful history.

If there’s one material that’s included in almost every interior, it’s probably wood. It is a noble material that’s been used for centuries and still can’t be replaced by anything.

Futurism is a word that can spark different meanings depending on the context. As a word with capital letters, it refers to the art movement that began in 1909 with Filippo Tomasso Marinetti’s Futurist Manifesto.

3200 years ago, metals revolutionized human history, this was known as The Iron Age. 130 years ago it revolutionized architecture. Ever heard about the Eiffel Tower?

This week we enter a world of sophistication and flavour; wine cellars. A space dedicated exclusively to the protection of wine… who wouldn’t want that?

The atrium, historically known as a key feature in ancient roman houses , would provide ventilation and light, becoming a very effective architectural layout.

Neutral tones, if strictly defined, are known as those that are not in the colour wheel (primary and secondary colours). This includes beige, brown, grey, white, taupe, and so on.

What is the purpose of design? Is it to use space wisely… or to make it seem calm and clean?
The beauty of this question is that there are many possible answers.

So, what exactly is a hostel? It is defined as a lower-priced inn that offers basic shared (and sometimes private) accommodations. However, it can be so much more than that.

We all know who the best designer really is: Mother Nature.

In fact, the first human homes were part of the landscape itself. After thousands of years, humans left the caves and the first architectural designs were created.

Today we’re exploring an unbelievably useful tool for design, architecture and landscaping: water.

Never judge a book by its cover… unless you need them for interior design.

Almost everybody has a bookshelf at home. It is a common piece of furniture, and they are usually very similar to each other.

Today we explore the exciting world of prints and patterns. A great example of this subject is Kit Kemp and her unique approach to hotel design.

Also known as the Chambre de bonne, it was historically used and designed as a separate room at bourgeois apartments where domestic employees would sleep and rest.

“Concrete” from the latin word “concretus” meaning compact or condensed, is one of the most frequently used materiales in construction.

This week we dive into a spectacular selection of 5 Private Swimming Pools.

Usually considered a luxury feature in the hospitality experience, guests can lounge much more comfortably by the pool and stand feet away from they room’s shower and bed.

This week we dive into other-worldly elevator halls where guests will find themselves lost in the attractiveness of their surroundings.

Most people are familiar with the term “pastel colour” but, what are they exactly?

The ceiling, also known as the “fifth wall”, can have a variety of roles in interior design. Apart from the usual one, (hiding roof construction details) it can support or lead an entire design concept.

The night table, reading light, the power outlet are some of the must-have elements that are placed at the side of the bed both in a hotel and at home.

Ever since the Industrial Revolution, mass production of products and the technification of processes has led to the growing absence of human craftsmanship in day to day objects.

The word “texture” is defined as “the feel, appearance, or consistency of a surface or substance”, “the tactile quality of the surface of a work of art” and “the quality created by the combination of the different elements in a work of music or literature”.

Today we dive into new perspectives of design; the aerial point of view.

Tiles are one of the oldest forms used for decorative art; they’ve been treasured for centuries due to their stunning beauty and durability.

Choosing a monochromatic colour palette may be a minimalist approach to colour but it shines light upon every single other design component. Reducing the spectrum of a color scheme does not mean easiness.

Why patios?
The word ‘patio’ in Spanish means an inner court open to the sky.

Doors symbolically and physically stand between here and there, between the known and the unknown.

This week we’re venturing into magnificent sculpturally-shaped spaces.
These structures place guests into a multi-sensory experience where massive curves and counter-curves directly impact the visitor’s physical perception of the room.

On arrival guests expect to be impressed by the lobby, the restaurant, the suites… but what about the public restroom?
Frequently overlooked, the public restroom holds an endless potential to be a showstopper.

When travelling to an unknown city, the first impression of the guest is how different their urban areas feel in relation to their home town.

When entering a hotel, the first thing that we come in contact with is the floor.
We walk over it, look at it more often that we might think and even feel its texture against the wheels of our carry-ons.

One of the most crucial architectural elements is the window. Humans inevitably need ventilation and natural light to feel good and content.

Today we venture into the exciting world of W hotels where guests become the cast of a vibrant theatrical scene.

Do you remember walking into the sea and feeling the undeniable yet fascinating vertigo that infinite waters spark off?

Stepping into the world of LOCKE hotels, we became more and more drawn to explore their cohesive unique aesthetic that their designs delicately render.

“The grass is always greener on the other side”, they say.
Well, that may be correct if they’re referring to these extraordinary greeneries.

Who would have thought that rugs could be such a powerful design tool?

From a 16th-century palazzo to an ancient Chinese house, these renovation projects preserve the original virtues of the historical buildings while giving them a modern twist.

This week we focus on projects that introduce art into the hospitality industry in thoughtful and innovative ways.

When color palettes are reduced, texture, shapes and lines become the rhythmic leaders of the composition.

This week we put on center stage one of the key elements in hospitality;
the bar counter.

It’s about the journey, not the destination.
These hallways not only lead to other places, but also become an area in itself worthy of attention.

Why not take a shower while enjoying the view of the room’s window?

Today we celebrate beauty that lays on a minimal approach.
Amongst our selection; a repurposed winery, a re-articulated pre-existent warehouse, and a reworked art deco building.

The worldwide lockdown may have reduced the capacity for people to travel to distant places, but the one thing it cannot extinguish is their appetite for remote and unusual experiences.

A great façade has the power to grab attention and keep it; to express personality and anticipate the hotel’s spirit.

There is evidence that the first saunas were man-made caves that were draped closed with animal skins and had a fire burning inside them below a pile of stones.

Colour is one of the most significant and influential aspects of interior design.

Among more than 1200 projects we have received in 2020, these are the ones that we have chosen and what we loved about them.

Today we celebrate mobile forms of hospitality.

“The details are not the details. They make the design.” Said Charles Eames.

Murals have been around for more than 40.000 years as a form of valuable testimony of life.

Biophilia describes the human tendency of being connected to nature and it derives from the Greek meaning the love of life and nature.

The Hospitality Industry has always been known for its ability to immerse guests into worlds that escape routine.

Have you ever walked into a room and felt the physical effect it had on you?

Today we celebrate our favourite guestrooms of Design Hotels.

Today, projects that will stand the test of time.

We have rounded up our favourite frontdesks in our website.

Today we celebrate 5 of the most unique and memorable designs showcased on our website.

It is scientifically proved that colours affect our senses, emotions and perception of space.

Our selection of splendid rooftops in the most iconic city skylines.