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    Eight guesthouse interiors designed for peace and escapism

    A one-room hotel kitted out with a miniature nightclub and twin dwellings with labyrinthine staircases informed by MC Escher are among the guesthouses featured in our latest lookbook.

    Guesthouses are accommodations for travellers, including cabins, rental cottages and private rooms, sometimes located in close proximity to permanent structures such as homes or offices.
    Despite their temporary nature, guesthouses can feature distinctive designs created to be remembered for longer than just during their occupants’ stay.
    From a bird nest-style retreat in Namibia to a micro dwelling in South Korea, here are eight guesthouses with impactful interiors from across the globe.
    This is the latest in our lookbooks series, which provides visual inspiration from Dezeen’s archive. For more inspiration see previous lookbooks featuring gardens with swimming pools, cave-like interiors and striking accent walls.

    Top image: Trunk House in Tokyo features a miniature nightclub. Above: Photo by José HeviaLa Hermandad de Villalba, Spain, by Lucas y Hernández-Gil
    Spanish studio Lucas y Hernández-Gil sought to honour the original architecture of this eighteenth-century building, which was renovated to feature decorative doorways and original arched ceilings.
    Nestled in a wine-growing town in Spain’s Extremadura region, the guesthouse takes visual cues from its site, with hues of deep red and pale green that nod to the town’s natural terrain and surrounding vineyards.
    Find out more about La Hermandad de Villalba ›
    Photo is courtesy of Den OutdoorsDen Cabin Kit, USA, by Den Outdoors
    Prefabricated in New York, Den Cabin Kit is a flat-packed kit-of-parts for a steeply pitched cabin that is designed to be assembled in a few days.
    Cabin-design company Den Outdoors created the structure to cater to a guesthouse, study or yoga studio. Slanted wooden walls and a single triangular window create a cosy atmosphere inside.
    Find out more about Den Cabin Kit ›
    Photo is by Katinka BesterThe Nest at Sossus, Namibia, by Porky Hefer
    The Nest at Sossus is an off-grid guesthouse in Namibia with a thatched facade informed by the amorphous shape of bird nests.
    Thatching also features on the interior, which South African designer Porky Hefer created with bulbous protrusions and built-in furniture to mimic the stacked components of a nest.
    Pieces include a sunken Chesterfield-style sofa upholstered in oxblood-coloured leather.
    Find out more about The Nest at Sossus ›
    Photo is by Chao ZhangDream and Maze, China, by Studio 10
    Shenzhen-based Studio 10 designed a pair of guest rooms in Guilin, China, which take cues from the optical illusions of the seminal Dutch graphic artist MC Escher.
    Called Dream and Maze, the rooms feature colour-coded arched doorways and disorientating anti-gravitational staircases built within a seven-metre-high structure with a pitched roof.
    “The challenge was in keeping the balance between the practical need of a hotel suite and the illusionary, spatial effect we wanted to achieve,” the studio told Dezeen.
    Find out more about Dream and Maze ›
    Photo is by José HeviaAlfondac, Spain, by Aixopluc 
    Catalan studio Aixopluc filled a guest apartment above its offices with modular furniture that can be assembled using DIY techniques.
    Named after an Arabic word describing a place for both guests and for storing goods, Alfondac features various exposed appliances and living areas amalgamated into one space.
    “This iteration is an exploration of the potential benefits of having different activities and their smells – shit, lavender soap, pee, escudella [a type of Catalan stew], incense, linen sheets after sex, hyacinth flowers, baby’s poo and half-full glasses of Priorat wines – coexist rather than being segregated,” said Aixopluc.
    Find out more about this apartment ›
    Photo is by Texture on TextureNuwa, Korea, by Z_Lab 
    Nuwa is a tiny guesthouse in northern Seoul that measures under 30 square metres. Local studio Z_Lab renovated a traditional Korean home, known as a hanok, to create the apartment out of a single room.
    A porthole window inserted next to the bed provides views of the surrounding garden, while a sunken bath and walnut and stone accents define the rest of the space.
    Find out more about Nuwa ›
    Photo is by Tomooki KengakuTrunk House, Japan, by Trunk and Tripster
    Hailed by its designers as containing Tokyo’s smallest disco, this one-room hotel in the city’s Kagurazaka neighbourhood features a miniature nightclub with a bright red interior, a curved bar and an illuminated dance floor.
    Hotel brand Trunk collaborated with design studio Tripster to create the interiors within a traditional 70-year-old geisha house. Living spaces are characterised by muted palettes, including a tearoom with tatami mats arranged around a sunken fireplace.
    Find out more about Trunk House ›
    Photo is by Piet Albert GoethalsThe Olive Houses, Mallorca, by Mar Plus Ask
    Architecture studio Mar Plus Ask designed a pair of guesthouses in the Mallorcan mountains to celebrate the craggy boulders that jut through their walls.
    The Olive Houses are off-grid dwellings created for solo creatives as a silent refuge. Sloping cave-like walls were rendered exclusively in blush-pink stucco to complement the pale green shade found on the underside of an olive tree leaf.
    “To us, the [boulders] became a piece of art – suddenly the house was more about sculpting its backdrop and being its lightbox,” explained the studio.
    Find out more about The Olive Houses ›
    This is the latest in our lookbooks series, which provides visual inspiration from Dezeen’s archive. For more inspiration see previous lookbooks featuring gardens with swimming pools, cave-like interiors and striking accent walls.

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    Kelly Wearstler adds pattern-filled bar to Austin Proper Hotel

    American designer Kelly Wearstler has created an intimate cocktail lounge within a hotel she designed in Austin, Texas, which is intended to evoke “a balance between old-world opulence and modern elegance”.

    The Quill Room forms an extension to the existing dining and drinking options at the Austin Proper Hotel and Residences, which Wearstler completed the interiors for in 2019.
    The Quill Room offers hotel guests and residents an additional lounge and bar spaceThe lounge is tucked away on the second floor of the Handel Architects-designed building in Downtown Austin, and offers a French-inspired menu and live music programming for the hotel’s guests and residents.
    Wearstler’s interiors for the bar are awash with pattern, mixing gold, brown and black to create a space that appears warm, rich and elevated.
    A variety of vintage and contemporary chairs populate the spaceMany of the design elements blend nostalgia and contemporary twists, like tufted leather armchairs positioned beside funky sculptural lamps.

    “The design of The Quill Room is a balance between old-world opulence and modern elegance,” she told Dezeen. “The salon-style bar pairs the aesthetics to transport guests to another time within Downtown Austin, while still reflecting the city’s creative and music scenes.”
    Golden patterned wallpaper covers the wallsGolden patterned wallpaper covers the majority of the walls and continues across the ceiling, helping to make the room feel more intimate.
    “A highlight would have to be the gold wall covering,” said Wearstler. “It’s actually an adaptation of a piece from my own archive, originally created during the UK’s 1920s Arts & Crafts movement.”
    Within niches, folded screens feature a checkerboard of gold mirrorSmall tables and mismatched seats are positioned in recesses, against folding panels with a checkerboard of gold mirrors and floral motifs within wooden frames.
    Wearstler’ also included low leather and upholstered seats, as well as taller dining chairs along the sheer-curtained windows.
    Furniture pieces were sourced from Europe and a famous Texas antiques marketMost of the furniture pieces are vintage, or were crafted specifically for this project, including the rugs, lighting and additional decorative items.
    “The Quill Room features a lot of inspired furnishings that represent design through the decades – mainly from the 1960s to 1990s – which we’ve sourced from Europe and as nearby as the famed Round Top Antiques Market,” Wearstler said.

    Kelly Wearstler creates sculptural oak staircase for hotel in Austin

    The bar itself runs straight along the back wall, fronting an open cabinet filled with liquor bottles that is topped with red neon tubes. “It’s a detail crafted by an Austin artist, bringing the modern and the local to the forefront amongst the vintage-inspired,” said Wearstler.
    Another feature element is the illuminated, self-playing Edelweiss piano that was custom designed to offer “a uniquely Texan experience” for guests. There’s also a small, shaded outdoor terrace for enjoying drinks and bites in the warm Austin weather.
    An illuminated, self-playing Edelweiss piano was custom designed to entertain guestsThe new space joins the hotel’s Mediterranean-influenced restaurant The Peacock, private ground-floor cocktail bar Goldie’s, and Mexican-inspired rooftop restaurant and bar La Piscina.
    “I see The Quill Room as a complement to The Austin Proper’s existing restaurants and bars,” Wearstler said. “Like the rest of the property, it embodies modern elegance and refined luxury that heightens guests’ experience of the city while offering an immersive escape.”
    The Quill Room serves cocktails and French-inspired light bitesWearstler has completed multiple locations for the Proper hotel group, including several outposts in her home state of California, such as San Francisco and Santa Monica – which was named AHEAD Americas Hotel of the Year in 2020.
    Her most recent project for the franchise, in Downtown LA, opened last year and features a suite with its own indoor swimming pool.
    The photography is by The Ingalls.

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    Eight bedrooms with bathtubs that make a lavish statement

    A steel bathtub in a grey carpeted bedroom and a marble bath positioned on a wooden plinth are included in Dezeen’s latest lookbook, highlighting luxurious bedrooms with bathtubs.

    Typically confined to bathrooms with splash-safe surfaces, a bathtub in a bedroom has an air of grandiosity and indulgence.
    It is often seen as an impractical design trend due to ventilation considerations, the need for a strengthened floor and the transition of moving from a soapy bath soak to fresh bed sheets, but this roundup showcases different ways baths in bedrooms have been achieved in homes and hotels.
    This is the latest in our lookbooks series, which provides visual inspiration from Dezeen’s archive. For more inspiration see previous lookbooks featuring cherry red interiors, minimalist bedrooms and concrete kitchens.
    Photo by Antoine HuotNicolai Paris, France, by Network of Architecture

    Architecture studio Network of Architecture added curved lines and custom oak furniture to this Parisian apartment, including a curved wooden plinth for a Botticino Fiorito marble bathtub in the main bedroom.
    Located in the former Hotel Nicolai, the studio transformed the interior into a two-level family home that “reflects the elegance of the Parisian ambience in the flat”.
    Find out more about Nicolai Paris ›
    Photo by Piet-Albert GoethalsApartment A, Belgium, by Atelier Dialect
    For the Apartment A residence in Antwerp, Belgian design studio Atelier Dialect placed a shiny steel rectangular bathtub in the carpeted open-plan bedroom, offsetting the surrounding green walls.
    Behind the tub is a partition wall covered in white and black subway tiles, creating a graphic backdrop and concealing a walk-in shower.
    Find out more about Apartment A ›

    Lundies House, UK, by Groves-Raines Architects
    Scottish studio Groves-Raines Architects combined Scottish vernacular and contemporary Scandinavian design when converting a former clergy living quarters into the Lundies House guesthouse, complete with a slipper bath in the main bedroom.
    With views out the nearby window of the Scottish highlands, the freestanding tub is a luxurious addition to the calming neutral-toned interior.
    Find out more about Lundies House ›
    Photo by Gaudenz DanuserConcrete Cabin, Switzerland, Nickisch Sano Walder Architects
    A deep polished concrete ledge with a sunken bath stretches the width of this holiday cabin bedroom, which is sunken into a rocky site in the Swiss Alps.
    Architecture studio Nickisch Sano Walder Architects designed the Concrete Cabin as a stark hideaway for up to two people. Timber salvaged from a log cabin previously on the site was used as the formwork for the cast concrete walls.
    Find out more about Concrete Cabin ›
    Photo by Mariell Lind HansenPrimrose Hill townhouse, UK, by Studio Hagen Hall
    The owners of this refurbished London townhouse can draw a pink curtain to separate the cork-tiled bathtub from the rest of the bedroom, designed by architecture office Studio Hagen Hall.
    The pastel-toned bedroom has a paired-back appearance compared to the rest of the home, which features elm, velvet and fluted glass surfaces informed by 1970s Californian modernism.
    Find out more about the Primrose Hill townhouse ›

    Amsterdam canal house, the Netherlands, by Standard Studio
    Local firm Standard Studio converted a canal house in Amsterdam into an apartment with rooms arranged around a central courtyard, including a bedroom with an oval bath and freestanding bath tap.
    Large glazed doors open the bedroom and bath area to the courtyard, and both interior and exterior spaces were finished with polished concrete floors.
    Find out more about the Amsterdam canal house ›
    Photo by Ricardo Oliveira Alves Open Hearts, Portugal, by AB+AC Architects
    Open Hearts is a wellness centre in Lisbon that doubles as an artists’ residence, designed by Portuguese practice AB+AC Architects.
    The studio added terracotta tiling to a corner of the white bedroom, visually separating the bath area from the rest of the space.
    Find out more about Open Hearts ›
    Photo by Ana SantlMona Athens, Greece, by House of Shila
    Located in a former 1950s textile factory, design studio House of Shila created luxurious open-plan rooms with freestanding baths for the Mona Athens hotel.
    A change in floor level and translucent drapes separate sleeping and bathing areas, creating a “certain balance of comfort and drama” according to the studio.
    Find out more about Mona Athens ›
    This is the latest in our lookbooks series, which provides visual inspiration from Dezeen’s archive. For more inspiration see previous lookbooks featuring cherry red interiors, minimalist bedrooms and concrete kitchens.

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    House of Shila designs industrial yet sultry interiors for Mona Athens hotel

    The ancient Acropolis of Athens is in full view from the rooftop of this boutique hotel, which design studio House of Shila has housed in a former factory building.

    Mona Athens is located in the city’s lively Psirri district, within an eight-storey 1950s building that once served as a textile factory.
    The Mona Athens lobby features an eclectic mix of furniture and decorHouse of Shila, led by New York-based entrepreneur Shai Antebi and Greek photographer and creative director Eftihia Stefanidi, chose to keep as much of the building’s bones as possible when converting it into a 20-key hotel.
    This meant retaining its original dramatic iron staircase, terrazzo flooring, metal window frames and marble facade.
    The spilt-level communal space houses a lounge and cafe”We designed Mona with great respect for the building’s 1950s architecture,” said Stefanidi.

    “The structure itself remains unchanged, revealing 70 years of history. Emphasis was given to preserving original features.”
    House of Shila retained as many of the building’s original details as possibleLayering over industrial materials like exposed concrete and weathering steel, the team added wooden furniture and textured fabrics to bring warmth and tactility to the spaces throughout.
    Accessed from the street, the 200-square-metre split-level lobby serves as a lounge and a cafe that can host pop-up events and installations.
    A variety of textured materials are layered over the building’s industrial bonesAn eclectic mix of furniture and decor populate the space, which can be opened to the outside via full-height folding glass doors.
    The hotel’s six different room categories range from intimate rooms of around 16 to 20 square metres all the way up to the 55-square-metre penthouses and Mona’s Suite, with some of the larger rooms providing access to private balconies and patios.
    Wash areas are open to the sleeping quarters in many of the roomsAll feature a similar sultry-meets-industrial aesthetic, which House of Shila compares to a “sensual refuge”, characterised by curtains of sheer cotton and richly-coloured velvet, low minimalist beds, custom-knitted carpets and soft lighting from bespoke fixtures.
    In the majority of the guest rooms, the washing areas are open to the sleeping quarters – with separate water closets for privacy – and some feature comfy lounge seating.
    Larger suites have access to porches, balconies and patiosWhite freestanding Corian bathtubs and industrial-style rain showers are shrouded by translucent curtains, creating a “certain balance of comfort and drama”, according to the design studio.
    The open rooftop offers a direct view of the Parthenon and other structures atop the Acropolis, the UNESCO-listed epicentre of Ancient Greece, while the tourist entrance to the site is a 15-minute walk from the hotel.

    Raw concrete penthouse and event space created inside former Athens warehouse

    Reserved for Mona Athens guests and members, this outdoor space includes a long glass-and-metal communal table, cushioned sofas, outdoor showers, lush planting and a bar that serves cocktails and “eclectic fare” with ingredients sourced from the local food market.
    There’s also a speakeasy venue in the basement, where pop-up exhibitions and private events can take place.
    Freestanding Corian bathtubs are set against weathering steelAll of the decorative items in the rooms are available for guests to purchase, from the organic cotton bedsheets to the ceramic coffee cups.
    Antebi’s background is in real estate development while Stefanidi was previously the creative director for immersive entertainment company Secret Cinema.
    The rooftop is reserved for hotel guests and membersThe duo founded House of Shila after working together on their first hospitality project Shila – another boutique hotel-cum-arts venue in Athens’ Kolonaki neighbourhood.
    Once a quick stopover for tourists on the way to the Greek islands, the capital is becoming a popular destination for city breaks in its own right, thanks to its rich history, growing culinary scene, year-round fair weather and relative affordability.
    A prime view of the Acropolis can be enjoyed from the roofThe owner of Carwan Gallery described Athens as “the new Berlin” when the contemporary design gallery relocated there from Beirut in 2020.
    Several boutique hotels have opened or undergone renovation in the downtown area over the past few years, including the neo-modernist Perianth Hotel and the Evripidis Hotel, which received a new rooftop bar and breakfast room.
    The photography is by Ana Santl.

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    Capella hotel takes over former government building in Sydney

    Architecture firm Make and interior design practice BAR Studio have converted Sydney’s heritage-listed Department of Education building into the latest outpost from Capella Hotels.

    The adaptive reuse project involved adding a modern extension with curved glass corners to the building’s roof, set back from its sandstone facade to respect the original Edwardian Baroque architecture.
    With these four additional floors, the building now measures eleven storeys high and houses 192 guest rooms alongside bars, restaurants and a 20-metre swimming pool that occupies the former sixth-floor gallery.
    Sydney’s Department of Education building was converted into a Capella hotelSince the Department of Education was constructed in Sydney’s historic Sandstone Precinct in 1912, its interior had been compromised with countless ad-hoc changes, according to Make.
    The studio worked to restore the sense of grandeur envisioned by the original architect George McRae, for example by reinstating the internal garden courtyard on the ground floor.

    “Stitching together the existing Edwardian Baroque-style structure with a new contemporary layer of architecture is one of many things that makes this landmark project stand out as a hotel,” Make designer Michelle Evans told Dezeen.
    It now houses 192 guest rooms and restaurants including Brasseries 1930″Capella Sydney has been a joy to work on, as it builds on our growing portfolio of reusing and adapting existing and heritage buildings,” she added.
    Picking up the baton from Make, hospitality design firm BAR Studio was tasked with creating luxurious yet contemporary interiors for the hotel that work seamlessly with the history of the building.
    “The heritage building that houses Capella Sydney provided us with the underpinning for the interior design,” said co-founder Stewart Robertson.
    A swimming pool occupies the building’s sixth-floor galleryWhile the building’s exterior was largely intact, only a few areas of historical significance remained inside.
    Some of these spaces offered incredible opportunities for reinvention, such as the gallery on the former top floor, which has become the Auriga spa and pool.
    Meanwhile, references to the original steel-framed windows were incorporated into the interiors via a recurring motif of framed forms.

    Make completes dramatic arched link for Chadstone shopping centre

    Steel in black and bronze finishes was used throughout the building to frame doors, windows and screens, making a subtle reference to the district’s origins in the age of industry.
    This serves the practical purpose of delineating and dividing spaces but also brings a restrained form of embellishment, Robertson said.
    “We’ve used framing techniques to create separation but also to build an organic connection between the public spaces,” he explained.
    “We wanted the colour and finish to feel appropriate to the original era but also for these elements to read as new and sophisticated insertions.”
    The same floor also houses a spaA palette of natural materials brings a sense of subtle luxury to the bedrooms and communal spaces.
    Steel was used alongside honed marble, sandblasted travertine, natural wall coverings and light and dark timber. This approach enables the heritage features as well as the art and objects to become the focal points.
    The colour palette, too, is simple and neutral, taking its cues from the material palette with stone-coloured walls and tan leather upholstery.
    Each treatment room sits under a one of the original roof lanterns”The neutral base palette of cream stone and dark and light timber integrates with the existing architectural and design elements but sets a warm and soothing mood, creating a real sanctuary from the surrounding city,” explained Robertson.
    In keeping with the light touch of the new architectural interventions, much of the furniture draws on the concept of campaign furniture – traditionally made for military campaigns and therefore easy to transport.
    “These portable and ingenious pieces bring the comforts of home to remote places,” said Robertson.
    A recurring motif of framed forms features throughout the hotel’s interiorsOther Capella hotels include the Norman Foster-designed Capella Resort – set on an island off the coast of Singapore – and the Capella Sanya, which won the 2020 AHEAD Asia award for best landscaping and outdoor spaces.
    The photography is by Timothy Kay.

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    Il Capri Hotel receives pink-heavy revamp from Graziella Buontempo and Arnaud Lacombe

    A husband-and-wife hotelier duo has renovated a hotel in a Venetian-style palazzo on the island of Capri, refreshing its pastel-pink facade and continuing the hue into the guest rooms.

    Il Capri Hotel was built in the 19th century as a private villa in the Neo-gothic Venetian style before being transformed into a hotel in 1899.
    Il Capri Hotel is located in a Venetian-style palazzo in the centre of CapriIts current owners, Graziella Buontempo and Arnaud Lacombe, redesigned the interiors to reflect the grandeur of the property while imbuing it with a sense of contemporary chic.
    The duo retained the building’s signature pink-and-white facades, repairing and repainting them. They also chose to repeat some of the same hues and external architectural details throughout the interiors.
    The reception area features a marble-topped desk and a retail space”Honoring the property’s history and location, the hotel’s colour palette is inspired by the pink found across the island of Capri and the striking volcanic reds of Mount Vesuvius,” said the hotel team.

    A bright red curved awning signals the hotel’s entrance, located close to the town square in the centre of the famous Italian holiday destination, leading guests to a reception desk topped with reddish marble.
    A checkerboard floor runs through the communal lounge spacesRoom keys are stored individually in small arched niches within a wood-panelled wall behind, while local gifts are displayed on built-in shelves nearby.
    The hotel’s public areas feature checkerboard flooring, black lighting fixtures and red curtains to the match sofa cushions and rug trims.
    The hotel has 21 guest rooms spread over several floorsA variety of antique furniture pieces were curated to make the lounges feel homely while artworks and photos were sourced from the personal collection of Buontempo, whose family has long associations with the island.
    Archways divide various seating areas from corridors and one another, creating several distinct areas where guests can relax.
    The pink of the building’s exterior is continued in the guest roomsIn the bedrooms, pink appears again as wainscoting and on upholstered headboards shaped as ogee arches.
    The rooms include sisal floors and other natural materials and are simply decorated so that attention isn’t drawn away from the views.
    The rooms are decorated sparingly to draw attention to the views”Each of the 21 guest rooms pays homage to the culture of the island with decor imbuing a feeling of comfort, no-frills luxury and understated elegance,” the hotel team said.
    Il Capri offers several options for dining and drinking, many of which allow these activities to be enjoyed al fresco with views of the island’s dramatic coastline and the Gulf of Naples.

    Two buildings in Rome merge to form boutique hotel Condominio Monti

    These include the street-level Caprirama Bar, connected to the lobby and extended onto an expansive terrace with a herringbone-pattern tiled floor and groupings of terracotta plant pots, landscaped by garden designer Jonathan Froines.
    The all-day restaurant Vesuvio also has a shaded outdoor dining terrace, where caned bistro chairs accompany wood-topped tables.
    The hotel has several terraces for relaxing outdoorsSun loungers line up along the rooftop swimming pool, shaded by red parasols with crenellated white edges.
    There’s also a subterranean nightclub, Rumore, which is used as a cinema and an events space during the off-season.
    The terraces feature herringbone-tiled floors and groups of potted plantsA short boat ride from Naples on the Amalfi Coast, Capri is a popular destination for both Italian and international tourists.
    Elsewhere in the country, recently opened or revamped hotels include the Palazzo Daniele in Puglia, the Condominio Monti in Rome, and the Aeon Hotel near Bolzano.
    The photography is by Jonathan Froines.

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    Birch Selsdon hotel takes over 19th-century mansion in Croydon

    British hotel chain Birch has opened an outpost in south London, with grounds rewilded by designer Sebastian Cox and interiors conceived by local studios A-nrd and Sella Concept.

    Birch Selsdon is housed in a 19th-century mansion in the borough of Croydon and accommodates 181 rooms alongside a wellness space and lido, co-working facilities and a medley of restaurants and bars.
    Birch Selsdon takes over a 19th-century mansionThe building was first turned into a hotel in the 1920s, with slapdash extensions and modifications added over the following century.
    Local studios A-nrd and Sella Concept took a “restorative approach” to the interior works, stripping back much of the existing fit-out to allow the building’s original architecture to come to the fore.
    The building’s original stone walls and bas-relief ceilings can be seen in the lobbyRestoration was also the focus for Sebastian Cox, who developed a woodland management plan for the hotel’s grounds as well as a rewilding strategy for its 18-hole golf course.

    This will involve introducing grazing pigs and ponies, which can naturally distribute seeds and shape growing vegetation. The former fairways of the golf course will become wetlands, while the sandy bunkers will eventually attract small reptiles and other animals.
    Timber from the grounds was used to create the shingled reception desksCox has also turned trees harvested from the grounds into a series of furnishings for the hotel, creating affordable, locally produced products while providing ecosystem benefits for the woodland.
    “Managed woodlands have higher biodiversity because when you harvest the trees, light gets onto the woodland floor and other vegetation can grow,” Cox explained during a recent episode of Dezeen’s Climate Salon podcast.
    “So we can categorically say that our furniture actually makes a net contribution. It doesn’t just harvest materials, it actually contributes to the spaces that the materials come from.”
    An arched nook discovered during the hotel’s renovation is now a dining spaceAmong Cox’s furniture contributions is a pair of shingled timber reception desks in the entrance lobby, backed by an ombre curtain that mirrors the shifting seasonal hues of the landscape around Birch Selsdon.
    The lobby’s floral bas-relief ceiling was preserved alongside the original masonry walls, which peek out from behind the curtain.
    Peach-coloured surfaces appear in Birch Selsdon’s Meadow BarDotted throughout the space are moss-green velvet sofas as well as wicker armchairs, potted plants and vintage petal-shaped pendant lamps made from Murano glass.
    When guests are hungry, they can head to the hotel’s all-day restaurant Vervain, which serves a farm-to-table menu.

    Red Deer and Jan Hendzel Studio combine ceramics, beaten copper and recycled plastic for hotel valet stands

    The space is anchored by two huge, arched banquettes featuring seat cushions upholstered in an abstract camouflage print and sawn-timber backrests, which were also sourced from the hotel’s woodland.
    Oversized rice paper lanterns hang from the ceiling overhead, which is painted a rich apricot shade to highlight the existing ornate bas-relief.
    The hotel includes another bar called The Snug with wood-panelled wallsFor drinks, guests can head to the hotel’s peachy-hued Meadow Bar or to the Snug, which has a slightly more grown-up aesthetic thanks to the dark, wood-panelled walls that are original to the building.
    The space is dressed with vintage travertine coffee tables and an array of lounge chairs in sumptuous colours like ochre, olive green and damson purple.
    Chequerboard flooring in The Orangery nods to the Victorian periodTo one side of the room lies a curved seating nook that was uncovered during the renovation works. Its interior was rendered in blush pink to foster a warm, intimate dining ambience.
    There’s also the option to relax in The Orangery, a light-filled space centred by a wiggly cobalt-blue sofa. Terracotta tiles are arranged in a traditional checkerboard pattern across the floor in a nod to the building’s Victorian past.
    Bedrooms are filled with textural details like linen curtains and sisal rugsThe aesthetic of the hotel’s communal spaces is maintained in the guest bedrooms, which are finished with textural decorative elements like linen curtains and hand-blown glass lamps that cast dappled light across the limewashed walls.
    Larger suites come complete with lounge areas, dressed with plump armchairs and sisal rugs.
    Timber from the hotel’s woods was also used to produce 352 bedside tables for the rooms, all crafted in Cox’s Kent workshop.
    The bedside tables are also made with timber from the hotel’s groundsThe launch of Birch Selsdon comes just three years after the opening of the inaugural Birch branch near Hertfordshire.
    It was designed by architecture studio Red Deer to challenge the notion of a luxury hotel and features a series of pared-back rooms with quirky, unfinished details.
    The photography is by Adam Lynk.

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    Keiji Ashizawa and Norm Architects design tactile interiors for “hotel in the sky”

    Japanese designer Keiji Ashizawa and Danish studio Norm Architects have unveiled their design for the Bellustar Tokyo hotel, which aims to evoke a sense of nature in the middle of Tokyo’s urban Shinjuku district.

    The two studios worked together to design interiors for five penthouse suites as well as hospitality spaces for the top floors of the Bellustar Tokyo, 200 metres above the ground in Shinjuku’s Kabukicho tower.
    Norm Architects and Keiji Ashizawa Design had to take the city views from the building into account when designing the hotel rooms, which are spread over three levels from the 45th to the 47th floor.
    The Tsuki (moon) penthouse suite has calm grey walls”I would say that it is the tallest hotel I have worked on,” Ashizawa told Dezeen, describing it as “a quiet hotel in the sky of Shinjuku”.
    “Since there are no nearby buildings at this elevation, there was no need to be concerned about privacy, and it feels surreal that the views from all the windows are almost always spectacular,” he added.

    “That is why the relationship between views from the windows and the space is indeed very simple.”
    Floor-to-ceiling windows let light into the Tori (bird) suiteBoth studios were involved in the spatial organisation of the five penthouse suites as well as the placement of the hotel’s three restaurants, its top-floor spa and a penthouse lounge designed for guests to enjoy the setting sun.
    Ashizawa and Norm Architects drew on their signature use of natural materials and muted palettes to create the interiors for the five guestrooms.
    The penthouse lounge was designed for guests to view the sunsetThese were informed by the “beauty of the four seasons in Japan” and have names such as Hana (wind) and Tsuki (moon).
    The rooms have been furnished with pieces by the studios’ Karimoku Case Study series for wood furniture company Karimoku and feature a mix of natural materials.
    “The use of organic forms and natural materials like wood and stone can be seen as an antidote to the city that serves as artworks through the grand windows,” the studios said.
    The Hana (flower) penthouse suite features furniture in dark woodAmong the tactile details in the guest rooms are stone-topped bedside tables and wood-panelled headboards.
    “The idea is to create a balance of hardness and softness against the large area of the room that will be covered with textiles,” Ashizawa said.
    A bench creates distance from the view in the Sora (sky) penthouse suiteAs the guestrooms have floor-to-ceiling windows, the bedrooms and living rooms feature benches and curtains that were added “to create a little distance from the view to make the space feel more comfortable,” Ashizawa explained.
    A colour palette of mainly white, ivory and gray was used throughout the Bellustar Tokyo, which is a Pan Pacific hotel, with darker colours creating contrast in some of the spaces.

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    “The color palette is what we and Norm Architects consider to be the colors of nature, and we hope to create a sense of richness by evoking nature in Shinjuku, the most Tokyo-like place in the city,” Ashizawa said.
    “As an antidote to the city, we have tried to listen to nature’s story of artistry, optimism, imperfection, and impermanence, and bring these poignant qualities into the work,” Norm Architects added.
    The Bellustar restaurants have views over TokyoAshizawa also used tiles and handcrafted details to create more tactile walls in some areas of the hotel, including in the main restaurant, which has custom-made tiles from Japan.
    The Bellustar Tokyo features three restaurants: the main restaurant and bar, which was designed solely by Ashizawa, as well as a sushi restaurant and a teppanyaki restaurant.
    Here, the studios worked with material palettes that include wood and brick.
    The restaurant’s sushi restaurant has an intimate design”The sushi and teppanyaki restaurants are designed to feel like small hidden and intimate traditional city restaurants but transformed into contemporary places on the top of Tokyo,” Norm Architects said.
    “Both restaurants have their own unique character and material palette where the sushi restaurant is bright and works with hinoki [cypress wood], the teppanyaki place is dark and dominated by dark bricks in creative patterns.”
    The Kaze (wind) penthouse suite has tactile material detailsThe studios hope that by using natural materials and muted colours, the Bellustar Tokyo will function as a refuge from the busy city.
    “We hope that the guests of the hotel will first experience the vibrant atmosphere of the Shinjuku Kabukicho district of Tokyo, and then enjoy the serenity of the penthouse interior – as if the lively Tokyo scenery were like a Zen temple’s karesansui (dry landscape garden),” Ashizawa said.
    Light falls in through the large windows of the penthouse loungePrevious projects by Keiji Ashizawa Design include the Hiroo Residence overlooking Tokyo’s Arisugawanomiya Memorial Park and the Kyoto showroom for Karimoku.
    Norm Architects recently created a headquarters for children’s brand Liewood and an inside-out greenhouse restaurant in Sweden.
    Project credits:
    Interior architecture: Keiji Ashizawa Design: Keiji Ashizawa, Mariko Irie, Kenji Kawami, Yuichiro Takei. Norm Architects: Jonas Bjerre-Poulsen, Peter Eland, Frederik WernerBellustar penthouse (five penthouses): Keiji Ashizawa Design and Norm ArchitectsBellustar restaurant and bar: Keiji Ashizawa DesignSpa Sunya: Keiji Ashizawa DesignFurniture, fixtures and equipment: Keiji Ashizawa Design and Norm Architects

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