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      Kelly Wearstler's “fiercely local” Santa Monica Proper Hotel named AHEAD Americas Hotel of the Year

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      American designer Kelly Wearstler describes how she worked with local artisans and artists on the Santa Monica Proper Hotel in this video produced by Dezeen for the AHEAD Awards.Wearstler is the designer of Santa Monica Proper Hotel, a 271-room boutique hotel seven blocks away from the beach in Santa Monica, California.

      American interior designer Kelly Wearstler designed the Santa Monica Proper Hotel
      The project was named Hotel of the Year at the 2020 AHEAD Americas hospitality awards, as well as winner of the Guestrooms and Lobby & Public Spaces categories.

      The Californian interior designer, who has appeared as a judge on the Bravo reality show Top Design and designed homes for celebrities including Cameron Diaz and Gwen Stefani, described the hotel as “fiercely local” in an exclusive interview filmed by Dezeen.

      Santa Monica Proper Hotel was named Hotel of the Year at the AHEAD Americas awards 2020
      “We wanted to design a hotel where it felt like you’re in Santa Monica,” she said. “The inspiration came from everything that surrounds the hotel, the palm trees, the organic nature of the architecture, everything that you would find at the beach.”
      Natural and heavily textured materials, neutral colours and vintage furniture are used throughout the hotel to create a sensory experience that references Santa Monica’s beachside identity.

      Kelly Wearstler designs relaxed and beachy Santa Monica Proper hotel

      “There is a connection of materiality that speaks to the location” said Wearstler. “Organic materials, neutral colour stories, everything has a texture.”
      “There’s a patina, there’s a hand, there’s something that feels very warm.”

      The hotel also won in the Guestrooms and Lobby & Public Spaces categories
      Santa Monica Proper Hotel is filled with artworks and furniture pieces created specifically for the property by local artists and artisans.
      “Everything’s connected to somebody that is local in the city,” Wearstler said. “We’re so lucky to be in Los Angeles, the talent pool here is extraordinary.”

      The site comprises an historic 1920s building and a new curvilinear extension
      The site consists of the 1920s Santa Monica Professional Building, to which an extension by local firm Howard Laks Architects was added.
      “There’s an historic building that was built in 1928, in the Spanish Colonial Revival style, and then there’s a new contemporary building,” explained Wearstler. “We had to connect these two buildings with one voice.”

      Kelly Wearstler furnishes San Francisco Proper hotel with vintage European design

      “The atmosphere is something that’s just very relaxed,” the designer asserted. “When you come to California, it’s just super relaxed and it’s friendly, and there is a sense of style – it’s just cool. We can connect you to that coming to Santa Monica Proper.”
      The hotel is the latest in the Proper brand, which was founded by Wearstler’s developer husband Brad Korzen alongside hotelier Brian De Lowe, following the San Francisco Proper which Wearstler also designed.

      Wearstler collaborated with local artists and artisans to furnish Santa Monica Proper Hotel
      Previous hospitality collaborations from Wearstler and Korzen include the Tides hotel in South Beach, Florida, the Avalon and Maison 140 hotels in Beverly Hills, and hotels for the Viceroy brand in Miami, Palm Springs and Santa Monica.
      This year’s AHEAD Americas awards were shown in a video ceremony as part of Dezeen’s Virtual Design Festival after the event was called off due to the coronavirus pandemic. Previous winners of the Hotel of the Year award include the opulent Siren Hotel in Detroit and the Calistoga Motor Lodge and Spa, a renovated motel in California.

      Natural materials and neutral colours reference the hotel’s beachside location
      This video was produced by Dezeen for AHEAD. Photography is by The Ingalls and Matthieu Salvaing.

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      Studio Collective revitalises modernist LA tower for Hotel June

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      Los Angles practice Studio Collective has renovated a mid-century building in the city designed by modernist architect Welton Becket in the 1960s to create a laid-back hotel.Hotel June is a 250-room property in a white, 12-storey tower designed by Los Angeles architect Welton Becket in 1968.

      Becket built a number of modernist buildings in the city, including the rounded Capitol Records Building, Koreatown’s Equitable Life Building skyscraper and the Los Angeles Music Center’s Ahmanson Theater near Frank Gehry’s metallic Walt Disney Concert Hall.

      This building, which is in Los Angeles’ beachside community of Playa Del Rey on Lincoln Boulevard, was previously another hotel before it was overhauled by Studio Collective.
      While the exterior was left intact, the interiors are refreshed with many built-in oak pieces, terrazzo floors and woven accents. Pink and green details add a pop of colour.

      The interiors have “a sense of the new and dynamic through coastal influences and a true California spirit” said the studio. The hotel features a pared-back feeling with natural materials and subtle use of colour.

      A lobby has cream terrazzo floors, a wood-clad ceiling and a bright painting on a wall designed by Brooklyn artist Alex Proba. Becket’s granddaughter, Alexandra Becket, also created wallpapers for other areas of the hotel.
      Hotel rooms have white walls, woven carpeting and a mixture of modernist and more contemporary furniture pieces, including Hem sofas. Bright blue and grey are integrated into the suites for visual contrast.

      “Hotel June is at once airy and cosy, blending clean lines and warm natural woods, earthy finishes, and custom furnishings,” the studio said.

      Lush courtyards surround 1 Hotel West Hollywood in Los Angeles

      White oak closets, custom platform beds and wooden daybeds are intended to evoke mid‐century designs, like those by Charles and Ray Eames and relate to the building’s history.

      “Guestrooms and corridors play with colour-blocking geometries (that recall the work of local mid-century industrial designers Charles and Ray Eames),” Studio Collective said.
      Bathrooms have black fixtures and showers are clad in small, square tiles in grey with dark grout.

      In the hotel’s restaurant and sitting area, glass walls are shaded by slatted oak wood screens to help filter natural sunlight. A white, curved sofa and a large woven light fixture decorate the lounge, while the dining area has dark terrazzo floors and wood furniture.

      Hotel June is complete with an outdoor swimming pool, patio, an outdoor bar and restaurant, a fire pit and indoor gym.
      The property, which is called Hotel June to reflect new beginnings and California’s year-round summer sensibility, is the brainchild of Proper Hospitality co-founders Brian De Lowe and Brad Korzen.

      The Proper hotels in California, which are designed by Kelly Wearstler, include Santa Monica Proper with a similarly relaxed style and San Francisco Proper overflowing with colourful art and furniture.
      Hotel June joins a number of hotels recently completed in Los Angeles, like Ace Hotel, the West Hollywood Edition Hotel by Ian Schrager and John Pawson, Arts District Firehouse Hotel and 1 Hotel West Hollywood.
      Photography is by The Ingalls.

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      Commune designs Serra marijuana dispensary in Los Angeles to be airy and luxurious

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      Oak and brass display cabinets fill this cannabis dispensary in Los Angeles that local studio Commune designed to look like a jewellery store. Commune designed the store for Portland brand Serra that sells and produces cannabis products, from caramel treats to pre-rolled joints. Serra, whose Portland flagship was designed by OMFGCo and JHL Design, tasked […] More

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      McLaren Excell channels church interiors for The Splash Lab's LA showroom

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      Arched doorways, altar-like tables and a nave-style display area feature in this Los Angeles showroom that McLaren Excell has designed for bathroom brand The Splash Lab. The Splash Lab’s showroom takes over a converted factory in LA’s Culver City area that was originally built back in the 1930s. As this is the bathroom brand’s US […] More

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      Proem Studio uses muted shades to design Cheeks & Co facial spa

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      Hues of soft pink and bold grey are coupled with tiled surfaces in this California facial studio designed by Los Angeles firm Proem Studio. Cheeks & Co is a facial spa and skincare boutique located in a narrow building in Old Town Pasadena that was previously a travel bookstore. To give the space its “high-end” […] More

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      Los Angeles church transformed into The Ruby Street co-working and event space

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      Stained glass windows feature alongside contemporary furniture in this multipurpose space in Los Angeles designed by Francesca de la Fuente and Working Holiday Studio. The Ruby Street venue occupies an Arts and Crafts-style building that was constructed in the late 19th century in LA’s Highland Park neighbourhood. The building has a storied past, having served as […] More

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      California bar Auld Fella is influenced by the pubs of Dublin and Belfast

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      Green tartan wall coverings and leather banquette seating are among the references to traditional public houses that The LADG​ has used in this Culver City bar. The Los Angeles Design Group​ (The LADG) combined period furniture and a number of materials, including brass and dark wood in Auld Fella restaurant and bar, which is located […] More