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    Fettle returns The Georgian hotel in Santa Monica to its 1930s “glory”

    Design studio Fettle has restored an art deco hotel in Santa Monica, California, refreshing its distinctive turquoise facade and using the original style to inform the interiors.

    Facing Ocean Avenue and the water beyond, The Georgian hotel was originally built in 1933 to serve tourists visiting the beachside city west of Los Angeles.
    Restoring The Georgian hotel involved refreshing its turquoise facadeThe eight-storey building was recently acquired by BLVD Hospitality, which tasked London and Los Angeles-based Fettle with bringing it back to life while embracing its heritage.
    “The brief for The Georgian was very simple: to restore the building to her former and deserved glory,” said the studio’s co-founder and creative director Tom Parker.
    The dining terrace facing Ocean Avenue is surrounded by foliage”Not necessarily by going back in time, but more so by understanding how an art deco building right on the shoreline in Santa Monica would look and feel in a modern hospitality landscape,” he added.

    Under the navy-striped awnings on either side of the entrance, the shaded dining terrace is surrounded by foliage designed and procured by LA nursery Rolling Greens.
    The design of the Sunset Bar was intended to exaggerate the symmetry of the architectural detailsScalloped-back banquettes set the tone for a motif repeated throughout the interiors, including above the red key box in the lobby and for dramatic custom headboards in the guest rooms.
    In the lobby, the high ceilings are accented by deco-style chandeliers and original reliefs, and the floor is geometrically patterned to reference the designs of the 1930s.
    The dining room features mismatched custom lounge furnitureTo one side is the Sunset Bar, where a horseshoe-shaped counter of Italian emerald quartzite is strategically placed to highlight the symmetry of the arches overhead.
    The dining room is located on the other side of the lobby, and features mismatched custom lounge furniture among weekly installations by French floral artist Jean Pascal.
    Scalloped details are found throughout the hotel, including atop the red key box behind the reception deskTucked behind the reception area, past a spiral staircase and through a door, is Gallery 33 – an art gallery that also hosts private events.
    “This dramatic space has been designed to celebrate the best of culture, the arts and the most unique of gatherings as well as showcase the work of local, internationally renowned and up-and-coming artists through an evolving program throughout the year,” said The Georgian team.
    The Writer’s Room offers a private dining area for intimate gatheringsNext door is a red-walled library stocked with books curated by Lee Kaplan of Culver City’s Arcana: Books on the Arts, while the nearby Writer’s Room offers a private dining space for up to 20 guests.
    The Georgian has 56 classic rooms and 28 one-bedroom suites, all of which have art deco-influenced interiors.

    Kelly Wearstler designs relaxed and beachy Santa Monica Proper hotel

    Pale blue window valance boxes, globe-shaped crystal light fixtures and vintage-style record players are all included.
    Bedroom doors, cornices, window frames and bathroom tiles all match the bright hue of the building’s facade.
    All of The Georgian’s guest rooms have art deco-influenced interiorsOn the exterior above the entrance, Fettle also added a new brass framed neon sign based on the hotel’s 1930s original, tying together a celebratory restoration.
    “The end result presents a gleaming celebration of the building’s rich history with sensitive yet striking design elements,” Parker said.
    Window valances and globe-shaped chandeliers are among the guest rooms design featuresEnjoying the best of California’s beach culture and warm weather, Santa Monica is a popular destination for visitors travelling over from LA, as well as in its own right.
    Other accommodation options in the city include the Santa Monica Proper, designed by Kelly Wearstler with a relaxed feel and eclectic furniture, while a mixed-use development by Frank Gehry that’s currently underway will also include a hotel.
    A new brass framed neon sign based on the hotel’s 1930s original was also addedFettle’s portfolio of hospitality projects spans both sides of the Atlantic, with the 1 Warwick members’ club in London and the Schwan Locke Hotel in Munich among recently completed examples.
    The studio has also completed the public areas for several branches of the hotel chain The Hoxton, including the locations in Rome and Portland, Oregon.
    The photography is by Douglas Friedman.

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    Fettle channels Soho’s “grittier” years at 1 Warwick members’ club

    Interiors studio Fettle drew on the neo-baroque architecture of this Edwardian building in London’s Soho when converting it into a members’ club, as well as nodding to the area’s colourful history of the 1950s and 60s.

    Owned by Maslow’s, the group behind Fitzrovia club Mortimer House, 1 Warwick features mid-century furniture and lighting along with bespoke designs that reimagine the furniture of the period.
    Fettle has designed the 1 Warwick members’ club in LondonThe mix includes jaunty elements such as splayed-leg easy chairs and scallop-edged rattan lighting.
    “During this period of history, Soho was much grittier than we find it today, so we wanted to underplay the more elevated finishes that you would typically find in a members’ club,” Fettle’s director Andy Goodwin told Dezeen.
    “We have referenced the less polished nature of Soho in this period with raw plaster wall finishes and exposed brick.”

    The club has a rooftop restaurant called YasminFettle juxtaposes these references with some influences from the neo-baroque mansion itself, reworking its sense of assured comfort in a contemporary way with richly toned wood panelling and elaborate chandeliers.
    “We wanted to ensure that we referenced this period within the final design,” Goodwin said. “We simplified a traditional Edwardian baroque skirting and architrave style within the bespoke joinery that was designed for the ground and first floors.”
    “Typically, buildings of a similar age had common features, including bold geometric floor patterns within the entrances. And as such we reimagined a pattern from the period in the lobby of 1 Warwick.”
    Its wraparound roof terrace offers views across SohoWhile drawing on the history of the building and the area, Fettle worked hard to ensure that the club feels fresh, welcoming and contemporary.
    “We have mixed furniture, lighting and accessories from a variety of different eras and curated a space that feels relaxed and residential in its aesthetic,” he continued.
    “When designing furniture specifically for the project, we referenced more traditional designs, however. We looked at the details through a modern lens to make the space feel familiar yet contemporary.”

    Fettle designs apartment block The Gessner to resemble a hotel

    Set over six floors, the crowning glory of 1 Warwick is the rooftop bar and restaurant Yasmin with its wraparound roof terrace and views across Soho.
    Here, pink mohair-upholstered bar stools nestle against a wood-clad marble-topped bar while the menu is Middle Eastern, inspired by executive chef Tom Cenci’s time in Istanbul.
    Two lounge spaces – the Living Room and adjoining Den – are at the heart of the club, where Fettle used an earthy-toned palette, along with exposed brick walls and geometric patterned rugs to bring a sense of warmth to the interior.
    The club has several co-working areas”We wanted to let the existing architectural features be visible within the final design to create a more neutral backdrop, onto which we layered playful choices across the furniture and fittings,” said Goodwin.
    “We used deep, saturated, colourful fabrics for the upholstered pieces and we have looked to mix mohairs and velvets with more vibrant leathers and patterned fabrics to give an eclectic feel to the space,” said Goodwin.
    In the daytime, 1 Warwick offers spaces to suit different kinds of working styles, from private studies and rentable desks to the Pied-à-Terre – an open-plan workspace featuring long, library-style tables and comfortable lounge seating.
    Members can also work in private meeting roomsAt ground level, there’s the neighbourhood bistro and bar Nessa, open to all and offering a playful take on British classics while the more intimate, horseshoe-shaped bar serves up its own menu of small plates.
    With a colour palette of warm, autumnal tones and a material mix of exposed brick, wood panelling and marble-topped tables, the atmosphere here is welcoming and down-to-earth.
    The Nessa restaurant is set on the ground floor and open to the publicFounded in 2013, Fettle has a long history in hospitality design with previous projects including the Schwan Locke Hotel in Munich, which was conceived as an homage to early German modernism.
    Elsewhere in London, the studio was also responsible for designing The Gessner apartment block to resemble a hotel, complete with a cafe and co-working area.
    The photography is by Simon Brown.

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    Fettle designs apartment block The Gessner to resemble a private members' club

    Interiors studio Fettle took cues from hospitality spaces when fitting out this contemporary residential block in London, which houses 164 apartments alongside a co-working area and an in-house cafe.

    Managed by property developer Way of Life, The Gessner is set in a former pencil factory in the rapidly regenerating industrial area of Tottenham Hale.
    The Gessner’s lounge doubles up as a workspace for residentsFettle created refined and cohesive interiors for the development, informed by its experience in designing hotels such as The Hoxton in Boston and Schwan Locke in Munich
    “Most of our work as a company currently is hotel-based, so we have a strong understanding of what makes these kinds of spaces special,” co-founder Andy Goodwin told Dezeen.
    There’s also a cafe inside the apartment block”A lot of the other commercial clients we work with are aiming to achieve a very layered, somewhat residential feel to their spaces so there is a lot of overlap,” he continued.

    “We utilised many of the same suppliers we use within members clubs, hotels and restaurant projects.”
    As well as apartments, The Gessner includes guest suites for temporary visitorsAfter coming through the ground floor entrance of The Gessner, residents arrive at a lobby that’s richly furnished with sofas, patterned armchairs and a mix of vivid artworks curated by art consultant Kate Anniss.
    During the day this area serves as a communal workspace, while in the evenings it can be used as an oversized living room where residents can convene and chat.
    Nearby, there’s a cafe with wood-lined walls, tan leather seating and a terrazzo service counter inlaid with orange aggregate.

    Fettle designs Schwan Locke Hotel in homage to early German modernism

    Furnishings and fabrics found on The Gessner’s ground floor are also incorporated throughout the apartments, which are available furnished or unfurnished, as well as in a pair of guest suites located on the building’s 13th floor.
    These can be reserved by residents who have friends and family coming to visit, or by other travellers hoping to stay in the area.
    Residents can make meals in the building’s communal kitchenThe 13th floor plays host to a number of other communal facilities, which were designed to encourage socialising among residents.
    This includes a large dining room and kitchen with wooden cabinetry and a greenery-filled gantry that stores pots and pans.
    The kitchen adjoins a private dining roomThere’s also a lounge and a spacious outdoor terrace complete with sun loungers, beach-style umbrellas and a BBQ station set beneath a shady pergola, where residents can while away the warmer summer months.
    “One of the key things with both hotels and apartment buildings is having some synergy between the public and private spaces, which was successful at The Gessner as they feel like a continuation of each other,” Goodwin said.
    Residents can also make use of The Gessner’s roof terraceFettle was established in 2013 by Andy Goodwin and Tom Parker.
    The Gessner isn’t the only project to come from the studio this year. Last month, the duo finished work on The Malin, a homely co-working space in New York with loft-style interiors.
    The images are courtesy of Way of Life. 

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