Caro Hotel by Francesc Rifé Studio

Located in the heart of the city, little more than 200 metres from Valencia Cathedral and the Basilica, the Caro Hotel is the first historical monument-hotel in Valencia. An urban and commercially independent hotel, the establishment has intelligently merged the legacy of historical substrata lying within its walls with the most vanguard of interior design.

Unique and authentic in style, the project undertaken by the interior designer Francesc Rifé is meticulous in its attention to detail, imbuing the hotel with a contemporary air, clean, geometric lines, which merge seamlessly with the original architectonic features of the former Palace of the Marquis of Caro, whose eclectic facade dates back to the nineteenth century. Beyond its facade, its walls stand guard over an unparalleled inheritance of more than 2,000 years of history, of which the original mosaic belonging to the founding city of the Roman era, “Valentia Edetanorum” (2nd century B.C.), the thirteenth-century Arabic defensive wall, several gothic arches and nineteenth-century constructions have been preserved, restored and integrated into its spaces.

Caro Hotel, Valencia, Spain, by Francesc Rifé Studio

Thread Family by Coordination

Thread Family is a set of small hight adaptable furnishings featuring a thread and seat lathed from walnut wood on a welded steel base in many colours. The family consists of three members: Small Stool, Bistro Table & High Stool. Main feature is the lathed upper part, consisting of a 40 mm thread cut from american walnut, connected with the seat by a visible and well crafted wedge-joint in a cross shape. Its surface is finished with hardwood oil to enhance the natural looks and to produce a smooth motion of the thread while adjusting the seat hight. The steel base was welded from precision stainless steel tubes, inspired by high quality bicycle frames. All additional parts like feet and inner thread have been hand crafted from a non dyed technical polymer.

Conceived as objects of high flexibility, the Thread Family works in small spaces and in large places. They rise and adapt to the needs of the user and can become a lifelong companion to a kid or an adult. “Thread” emphasizes the natural qualities of wood and works well as a single piece and in a group.

Thread Family, Small Stool, Bistro Table & High Stool, by Designer, for Coordination

Ciel de Paris by Noé Duchaufour-Lawrance

Situated on the 56th floor of the Montparnasse Tower, the Ciel de Paris restaurant spanning a whopping 400 sq.m makes an awe inspiring amber glowing statement on the Parisian skyline. At once, incredibly chic, welcoming and ethereal, like a Barbarella set, Ciel de Paris surrounds you like a bubble, encompassing the sleek 1960′s space influenced aesthetic. The skilled composition of the sombre reflections transform with time to create the perfect space to while away the hours waiting to experience the City of Lights like never before. Stepping into this restaurant is like floating through space where the breathtaking view from the huge bay windows is juxtaposed with the Star Trek meets stylish bars seen in 60′s French Truffaut films feeling throughout. The whole ambience lends itself to a world of go-go dancers shimmying away atop tables cleverly mixed with incredible modernity aimed at the chicest of tourists and locals alike.

The sleek modern interior design by Noé Duchaufour-Lawrance sets the stage for the accompanying furniture pieces which sit organically in fluid surroundings. Smooth flowing walls nodding seductively to retro references dance with modernity to produce something that is very special indeed. The lighting, designed especially for the project, in partnership with Artemide, resembles a cluster of planets or even the surface of the moon. This lighting arrangement, which can’t help but remind one of evenings spent gazing at the skies above, is then artfully reflected in the subtle circles in the made-to-measure Taî Ping carpet and the bar. The bar, strongly resembling a spaceship, like many of the fittings, is backlit by indirect lighting, creating a halo of light that is then projected onto the ceiling. Further orchestrated touches in the grey satin finish seating, Stolz leather interior and wooden benches which add a natural touch bringing the whole scheme back down to earth, all add to the unraveling of layers of genius in the overall design. All in all, this is a space full of surprises that yearns to be explored by the eye.

Ciel de Paris, by Noé Duchaufour-Lawrance, Photography © Vincent Leroux | Temps machine, via: Yatzer

Island Retreat by Fearon Hay Architects

An arrangement of freestanding structures around a sheltered central courtyard rests in a saddle above Matiatia Bay. The natural undulations of the saddle have been subtly emphasized to form a natural setting for three roofed structures and freestanding raised pool. Inspiration for the site came from a study of lightweight, canopy- like structures, tensioned to the ground plane. Draped roof planes are tensioned to the surrounding landscape over interior and exterior spaces.

Island Retreat, Waiheke Island, New Zealand, by Fearon Hay Architects, Interiors by Penny Hay, Photography by Patrick Reynolds

Rocky by Marc Newson for Magis

Marc Newson has designed a rocking horse for children; Rocky is a modern take on a traditional object, a pop version taking its character loosely from medieval jousting horses. The parallelogram motion mimics the movement of a traditional rocking horse. It is made from rotationally moulded polyethylene chosen for both its durability and recyclability. Rein in natural hemp rope.

Rocky, by, Marc Newson, for Magis

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For other children’s furniture online

Atlanta House by Barbara Hill

Barbara Hill’s signature moves feature a heavy rotation of glass walls, open spaces, concrete floors, and the blue-chip minimalist art she helped introduce to the area back in the 1970s as an early champion of Sol LeWitt and Daniel Buren. For her latest project, the venerated designer ventured out of Texas in the company of a family of four, whose contemporary Houston home she outfitted four years ago. The owners, who relocated to Atlanta, Georgia, for work, wanted to re-create the feeling of their previous house with the furniture Hill had already selected and her unerring taste, which aligns so closely to their own that, say the homeowners, they “never” disagree. After striking out on a search for an outwardly modern home in the genteel capital city, they changed tack and ranked their new neighborhood – formal, tree-lined, and gracious – as first priority, figuring they could make over the interior spaces with Hill’s assistance. The house they purchased is a Mediterranean-style two-story stucco structure that was chockablock with dark wood molding and floorboards, making Hill’s modern transformation even more remarkable.

Atlanta House, Atlanta, Georgia, by Barbara Hill, via: dwell

Nevis Pool & Garden Pavilion by Robert M. Gurney Architect

Located in a neighborhood bordering Washington, DC, this suburban site has the advantage of being located adjacent to woodlands. A contemporary house surrounded by mature trees and manicured gardens anchors the site. A new swimming pool, stone walls, and terraces located behind the existing house organize the rear yard and establishes a dialogue between the existing house and a new pavilion. New paths, trees and structured plantings reinforce the geometry.

The new pavilion, intended for year round use, is strategically located to provide a threshold between the structured landscape and adjacent woodland. A low-pitched, terne coated stainless steel roof floats above a dry-stacked slate wall and mahogany volume. Five steel-framed glass doors along with frameless glass walls and mitered glass corners enclose the space, creating an environment that is surrounded by views of the structured landscape, pool and the adjacent woodland. The doors pivot to open the space much of the year while a large Rumford fireplace and heated floors provide a cozy counterpoint in winter months.

The interior contains a stainless steel kitchen component with seating, along with a small living space anchored by the fireplace. The blue stone flooring, stone and mahogany walls, and Douglas-fir ceiling create a warm, natural space. This new pavilion is intended to provide shelter from the harsh natural elements while simultaneously allowing the occupant to enjoy both the beautifully structured garden and the native, natural surroundings.

Nevis Pool and Garden Pavilion, Washington DC, USA, by Robert M. Gurney Architect, Photography © Maxwell MacKenzie Architectural

Alcova Canopy Bed by Maxalto

The classic canopy bed in a modern interpretation, suitable to be positioned mid-room; base frame and headboard in leather or fabric. The bed rests on a platform which is large enough to position a storage element with an open compartment and a drawer at the foot of the bed. One single large size and four different finishes: brushed light and black oak, grey and brown oak. While maintaining the structural characteristics of a canopy bed, another version is now available, Alcova. The new bed is smaller in size with the headboard and mattress box higher than the original version. The protruding base has also been eliminated. The easily removable covers are finished with exquisite needlework. In natural grey, brown, black oak or wengé, Alcova is available in six sizes, from 160 cm up to King Size Mattress.

Alcova Canopy Bed, by Maxalto

Button Side Table by Fredrik Wærnes

Button is a side table developed with the purpose to provide versatility in the living space. With the removable table top it can also be used as a serving tray and adapts to the user’s wish. The centered handle makes it easy to move and it also becomes a visual feature in itself.

Button Side Table, by Fredrik Wærnes

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Great selection of bedroom furniture and metal beds at Wedo Beds UK.

Barn Redevelopment by Ruinelli Associati Architetti

The barn redevelopment project addresses the issue of the transformation of a disused farm, situated on the route leading out from the historical village centre, into a living space. The new architecture is related to the existing through a dialogue of tradition and contemporary, with the attention to a correct contextualization. The architecture is sober and proposes itself as a new project and, at the same time, as something that fits in with the existing village. The house is on three levels, the entrance is on the ground floor, with services areas and guest rooms overlooking the courtyard. The first floor is a unified space with kitchen, living room and study arranged around the block of the stairs and fireplace. Another room and a “loggia” are located on the second floor.

The facades are made of stone and wood, as the original texture, and have smooth concrete inserts, with a core of reinforced concrete, framing the new openings of the ground floor. The stone corner walls and roof are existed. The large openings are filtered by vertical oak axes, making up a manually moveable screen. The outdoor areas are arranged on three levels, as the natural slope, designed through a smooth concrete wall, that enunciating the theory of contemporary construction in continuity with the context.

Inside, the materials used are contemporary but not-compound and not-industrial. They are: smooth concrete, raw solid oak wood and hand- treated welded steel. The material has a rough appearance, but it is prepared and used not with improvisation and approximation, but instead with extreme accuracy, design and craftmanship. The smooth concrete has a static behaviour similar to that of a traditional brick wall. (There was not the possibility of using reinforced concrete inside because of the conditions of the construction site -the roof was maintained-). The new wall tries to merge with the old stone wall, as if it was its translation in the language of contemporary techniques. Everything is prepared before laying the concrete, switches, doors and window frames…

The implementation is experimental and derives from research through 1:1 scale models. All the oak used (25 cubic meters) was acquired and processed in the same place, so that material would have the same colour, behaviour and the same “patina”. The material used is a key element of this architecture. In this house the atmosphere is achieved through the care and culture of the craft, and materializes in line with the roughness of the place, and it is expressed in the designing of the details, in a homage to craftmanship, to know-how.

Barn Renovation, Soglio, Switzerland, by Designer, for Ruinelli Associati Architetti