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      Cara Mela by Casa Antillón is a dual-colour pastry shop in Madrid

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      Two rooms – one white and one green – make up this striking colour-block pastry shop that architecture and interiors studio Casa Antillón has completed in Madrid.

      The layout of Cara Mela naturally lends itself to having distinctly different coloured rooms, according to local studio Casa Antillón.
      Cara Mela’s first room is finished completely in white”From the beginning, we had a vision of a spatial cascade of rooms separated by colour-contrasted openings on the walls,” the studio told Dezeen.
      “It was very suitable with the architecture of the existing building, since the floor goes down from the entrance to the back of the shop.”
      A stainless steel unit accommodates different functional elementsUpon entering the pastry shop, which is located in Madrid’s Chamberi neighbourhood, customers are welcomed into an all-white room.

      The space is dominated by an angular stainless steel unit, incorporating a high counter where customers can stand and eat, a handwashing station and a glass display case that shows off Cara Mela’s sweet treats.
      The back room features sea-green surfacesThis front room narrows slightly before opening up to reveal a seating area at the back of the shop. Casa Antillón nicknamed the two spaces after the different phases of a heartbeat – systole and diastole.
      “Systole and diastole are the heart’s movements of contraction and expansion,” explained the studio. “For us, it refers to this spatial game where one space contracts and drags the visitor in, while the other expands letting the same visitor relax in the lounge.”

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      The rear room was finished entirely in a rich sea-green hue save for the steps leading down into the space, which are clad in white tiles to create the impression of the front room “spilling” into the back of the shop.
      Dotted throughout the space are a few wriggly-edged tables balanced on slim metal legs, which are also sea green.
      Furniture and fixtures have wriggly edgesRight at the back of the room is a small window that looks through to the kitchen. Its ledge and inner frame are coated in a glossy, bright-red paint reminiscent of caramelised apples – one of the most popular offerings on Cara Mela’s menu.
      The same shade of red was also applied to the shop’s front door.
      A red window offers views of the staff kitchenFounded in 2019, Casa Antillón is led by architects Marta Ochoa, Ismael López, Emmanuel Álvarez and Yosi Negrín.
      Cara Mela isn’t the first project the studio has completed in its hometown of Madrid. Elsewhere in the Spanish capital, the studio has designed Mood, a trendy hair salon with a galvanised steel facade.
      The photography is by Imagen Subliminal.

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      Roz Barr designs co-working club Bureau in Greenwich Design District

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      Roz Barr Architects has designed a co-working members’ club for London’s new design district, featuring a bright red salon, stairs you can sit on, and a workspace that doubles as a dinner table.

      Bureau offers a range of co-working and social spaces designed specifically for those working in the creative industries.
      It occupies two buildings in the recently opened Greenwich Design District: the concrete-framed D1 designed by Architecture 00 and the ripple-facaded C3 designed by HNNA.
      The ground-floor restaurant functions as a meeting space. Photo is by Ruth WardArchitect Roz Barr and her London-based team designed a series of playful interiors for Bureau, hoping to create a distinct identity that extends across both buildings.
      The buildings’ raw structures are left exposed but contrasted by bold flashes of colour, so that spaces feel characterful but open to adaptation. Bureau describes them as “elegantly utilitarian”.

      “The brief we developed was about offering a home for creatives, which allowed them to bring their own identity to how they occupied the spaces,” said Barr.
      “A language of elements and materials form a rhythm between both buildings,” she told Dezeen.
      Members have access to shared facilities including meeting rooms and phone booths. Photo is by Ruth WardThe C3 spaces were the first to open, as part of the Greenwich Design District’s official launch in September.
      Occupying four floors, the offer here includes private studios, a mix of fixed and hot-desk workspaces, plus a range of shared facilities that include a restaurant, a lounge, meeting rooms and phone booths.
      The salon is a red-toned lounge that doubles as an events space. Photo is by Joe HowardThe recent addition of D1 broadens the variety of space available. Its five floors include both indoor and outdoor workspaces, plus flexible spaces that can be used for a variety of events and group activities.
      In both buildings, the ground floor is designed to offer spaces where members can come together and share ideas.
      C3’s all-red salon can host talks and film screenings, while the restaurant functions as a gathering space.
      A long table offers opportunities for group collaboration or dining events. Photo is by Alex UptonMeanwhile, D1’s ground floor contains a 14-metre-long table that can be used for group collaboration or dining events.
      D1 also includes a space known as the forum, a lounge that can also be used for presentations. A staircase-like furniture element made from recycled plastic creates casual tiered seating.

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      “We understood we were creating a place for the creative industries to work, meet and relax,” said Barr.
      “Bureau is the centre of design district, so it was seen as a place where members of the community would join and form a sort of collective.”
      Felt screens help to improve the acoustics. Photo is by Alex UptonMaterial finishes throughout the interiors would be more typically be found in industrial workshops than offices, emphasising the creative nature of Bureau’s members.
      Floors are either bare concrete or covered in colourful marmoleum, while wall finishes include cement boards and corrugated metal, and perforated metal screens function as space dividers.
      Perforated metal screens allow light to filter through. Photo is by Ruth WardThese details are softened by textiles and lighting. Recurring elements includes globe lighting pendants, floor-to-ceiling curtains and digitally printed carpets and rugs.
      “We used a palette of materials that worked across both buildings, using metal stud walls that were clad in perforated metal sheets, acoustic felt, and doors and tables clad in furniture linoleum,” said Barr.
      “This language offers a soft backdrop for users to personalise however they want.”
      The terraces of D1 allow for outdoor working. Photo is by Alex UptonBarr chose contemporary furniture designs to accompany the custom elements, with designs from the likes of Richard Lampert and Philippe Malouin.
      With so many external terraces in D1, Hay’s Palissade outdoor furniture, designed by Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec, features both inside and out.
      “As ever, flexibility is key,” added Barr. “For larger events, rugs can be rolled up and furniture moved out onto the terraces.”
      Bureau occupies two buildings in the Greenwich Design District. Photo is by Taran WilkhuGreenwich Design District is London’s first dedicated design district.
      It includes 16 new buildings, including a transparent bubble-shaped canteen designed by Selgacano and an entrance building by David Kohn Architects with the words “design district” spelled out on the roof.
      Created by developer Knight Dragon, the district offers workspace for up to 1,800 people and a range of specialist facilities.
      Bureau members have access to other facilities in the design district, including photography studios, post-production suites, a sound studio and a pottery workshop.
      Photography is by Alex Upton, Joe Howard, Ruth Ward and Taran Wilkhu.

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      Snarkitecture designs Manifest “self-care” club in Washington DC

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      Design studio Snarkitecture incorporated tiled walls and arches into a club in the US capital that offers a barbershop, a coffee bar, a boutique and a speakeasy.

      Open to the public, the Manifest club occupies a slender, four-story building in Washington DC’s Adams Morgan neighbourhood.
      Manifest is entered through a courtyard lined with wooden wallsMeant to put “a sophisticated spin on self-care”, the club was conceived by the entrepreneur KJ Hughes, along with his partners Brian Merritt and Susan Morgan.
      The aim was to create a distinctive location where people could get a haircut or beard trim, grab an espresso, buy upscale streetwear and enjoy a cocktail.
      Tiled walls and arches were incorporated into the clubThe owners turned to New York’s Snarkitecture to design the project.

      “When we set out to design Manifest, it needed to be a new kind of barbershop, inviting to all people,” said Alex Mustonen, a firm partner.
      Snarkitecture added a barbershop to the project”Simultaneously, we wanted to create a sanctuary, a community space, an institution, a one-of-a-kind experience that still feels like home,” he said.
      Set back from the street, the Manifest building is entered through a courtyard lined with wooden walls.
      The studio used a largely restrained palette of materialsThe outdoor space is adorned with pockets of greenery and curved concrete benches. At the base of the benches are illuminated reveals made of LED strips with an acrylic diffuser.
      Inside, walls are clad in white tiles, and the floor is covered in large-format cement squares. For the millwork, the team used white oak with a natural finish.
      White oak was used for the millworkThe barbershop – which encompasses four stations and an area for washing hair – is fitted with chairs wrapped in buttery leather. The coffee bar features a counter with a fluted wooden base and a terrazzo top.
      In the retail zone, clothing by brands such as Engineered Garments and Homme Pliseé is displayed within arched, wooden niches. The store also sells apparel from Manifest’s own line, Of US.
      Chairs wrapped in leather feature in the barbershopStretching across the ceiling are wooden beams with embedded LED strips – a design element that contributes to the interplay of straight and curved lines in the space.
      “Unifying details throughout the space include archways – which are meant to represent the sloughing off of the old and moving into a new phase of life – while linear elements symbolise a sense of community and connection,” the designers said.

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      A “secret staircase” leads up to the speakeasy, which seats up to 30 guests. In contrast with the lower-level space, the bar has a moody atmosphere.
      Walls are sheathed in a custom green plaster, and floors are finished with dark-stained oak. Seating areas are adorned with green velvet banquettes and leather chairs from Nikari.
      The speakeasy has a moody atmosphereOverhead are arched forms that help create a sense of intimacy while also drawing a visual connection to the arches in the lower level. The arches are finished with mosaic green tile and safety glass with wire mesh.
      Throughout the club, Snarkitecture aspired to create an environment that was both comfortable and stimulating.
      Walls are sheathed in a custom green plaster”Every single element was designed to create a welcoming, intimate atmosphere that will invoke conversation and appeal to all the senses,” the team said.
      Later this spring, Manifest will expand to include a rentable apartment with a retractable glass roof and a terrace.
      Throughout the club, the atmosphere was designed to be both comfortable and stimulatingThis is not the first project in Washington DC by Snarkitecture. In 2018, the firm created a Fun House installation in the National Building Museum’s great hall that featured a white gabled house and a kidney-shaped ball pit.
      Other projects by the studio include a shop for streetwear brand Kith within a Parisian mansion, and an installation in a Manhattan gallery that consisted of 168 white spherical orbs that changed colours when touched.
      The photography is by Michael Grant.

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      Theatrical curtains drape around Dame bar by Bergman & Co

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      A “rather fabulous” fictitious muse influenced the design of this richly decorated bar and restaurant in Melbourne by local interiors studio Bergman & Co.

      Dame recently opened in the IM Pei-designed Collins Place, a mixed-use complex in the East End of the city.
      Dame is located in IM Pei’s Collins Place complexThe concrete development was completed in 1981, so Bergman & Co looked to this decade for inspiration when devising a concept for the bar’s interior.
      “The narrative of Dame is centred around a fictitious 1980s muse; a powerful, well connected and rather fabulous woman,” said the team, led by director Wendy Bergman.
      A curvaceous pink marble bar counter sits in the centre of the spaceThe fictional character’s power and femininity are reflected in elements like the curved bar counter, made from blush-toned marble.

      Her portrait, painted by local Melbourne artist Stacey Rees, hangs behind the bar to tie the concept together.
      Blush curtains provide a backdrop for communal diningPale pink curtains divide the space from the building lobby and are draped dramatically to create an entryway.
      Diners are presented with multiple seating options around the restaurant’s glazed periphery.
      Glass block table legs nod to the building’s gridded architectureCommunal tables feature dark wooden tops and glass block supports, nodding to the gridded architecture of the setting.
      Above, pendant lights created in collaboration with Melbourne design studio Please Please Please are delicately suspended like pieces of jewellery.

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      Banquette seating wrapped in dark textured fabric creates cosy booths, while more casual round tables are paired with wicker-backed chairs.
      “A sumptuous banquette setting finished in rich, earthen tones creates a subtle sense of nostalgia, warming the building’s otherwise restrained palette of architectural finishes,” said Bergman & Co.
      Upholstery for banquettes was chosen to create a “sense of nostalgia””Quilted upholstery and 1980s-inspired furniture complete the aesthetic tableau, offering an elevated, all-day dining space,” the studio added.
      Glossy red table lamps and pendants are also scattered through the space, uniting a palette that feels rich and warm against the building’s grey terrazzo flooring.
      Pink marble tables are accompanied by wicker-backed chairsPink marble is similarly used at Melbourne’s Pentolina restaurant, designed by Biasol.
      Other dining and drinking establishments with notable interiors around Australia’s second-largest city include Studio Esteta’s Via Porta and Three Blue Ducks by Pattern.
      The photography is by Eve Wilson.

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      Valentino Architects transforms Malta art studio into modern home

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      Valentino Architects has converted the studio and home of late post-war painter Frank Portelli in Malta into a contemporary residence for his granddaughter.

      The home, named La Serenissima, is located in the village of Attard in the centre of the Mediterranean island.
      La Serenissima now features an open-air sun terracePortelli, who is known for his cubist artworks and murals, originally designed the house in 1995 and incorporated numerous windows and skylights throughout the building so that it could serve as the ideal place to paint and live.
      Local practice Valentino Architects was tasked with transforming the existing structure into a home for the artist’s granddaughter, starting with adding a raised sun deck to the southernmost point of the house.
      Adjacent to the terrace is a modern kitchen with black cabinetryThis was achieved by removing the glazing from a number of the angled skylights and adding timber decking, creating a kind of open-air terrace that is separated from the interior using sliding glass doors.

      A short flight of wooden steps doubles up as seats and leads down into the kitchen, which features jet-black cabinetry and a large open-fronted island for storing tableware.
      The study is finished with petroleum green wallsJust across from the kitchen is a dining area. Here, Valentino Architects preserved one of Portelli’s original plywood mood boards, with some of his hand-written annotations and markings still intact.
      On the east-west axis of the home lies a small indoor courtyard and a blue-painted study surrounded by pointed archways.
      Geometric tiles nod to Portelli’s cubist paintingsMost of the mid-century furnishings and light fixtures featured in this space were Portelli’s own, before being carefully restored by Valentino Architects.
      The floor was also inlaid with geometric tiles in reference to the cubic shapes that frequently appear throughout the artist’s paintings.
      The bedroom and bathroom are tucked behind sliding doorsOn the northern end of the home is a huge gridded window that extends outwards from the building and then tapers to a point. To one side of the window lies a bedroom and to the other a white-tiled bathroom.
      Both spaces are closed off by sliding doors, punctuated with cut-out handles that nod to La Serenissima’s diamond-shaped window.
      At the northern end of the home is a huge pointed windowValentino Architects was established in 2015 and is based in Malta’s capital Valletta.
      Other striking homes on the tiny Mediterranean island include Casa B with its glass-bottomed rooftop pool and The Coach House by AP Valletta, which features a “woven” stone facade.
      The photography is by Ramon Portelli.

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      The Malin is designed as a vibrant but homely New York co-working space

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      The Malin is a design-led co-working space in Manhattan that blends contemporary colours and textures with original architectural elements that are “quintessential to the iconic Soho loft-style”.

      Located at 32 Mercer Street in New York City, the workspace’s interior design was led by Jordan Trinci-Lyne and Jean Morana, in collaboration with Fettle Design.
      The Malin was designed with homely touchesDescribed as having an “adaptable floor plan”, The Malin is made up of 38 individual desks as well as a library, three office spaces, three conference rooms, four booths reserved for video calls and various other meeting areas, including a barista kitchen.
      According to its designers, the co-working space intends to maintain the building’s traditional elements – such as existing columns, high ceilings and large windows – and combine them with vibrant colour and material palettes that are designed to reflect the creativity of its members.
      Colour and texture are blended with pared-back, original elements”Architecturally, we kept several things intact that are quintessential to the iconic Soho loft-style,” The Malin co-founder Ciaran McGuigan told Dezeen.

      “The space is very open, with tons of natural light that is filtered throughout. We also incorporated custom arched doorways in solid oak and glass, which are a nod to windows that are typical to buildings in the neighbourhood.”
      White walls and hardwood floors form the backdrop of the workspaceFamiliar white walls and hardwood floors form the backdrop of the workspace, which is dressed with more colourful accents such as low-slung bouclé seating arranged in vibrant clusters, as well as touches of Calico Wallpaper.
      McGuigan explained that each of The Malin’s areas was led by “the psychology of colour, designed to inspire our members’ best work”.
      Blue-on-blue tones were chosen for the solitary libraryCalming, blue-on-blue tones were chosen for the library, which was designed as a refuge for silent work, while the remaining areas favour a palette of bright, bold and saturated hues that stand out against their neutral backdrop.
      “Energy equals productivity and that’s a fundamental output we want the design to facilitate,” said McGuigan. “Elevated materials like mohair, leather, and rare marble were included as an aspirational touch to contrast the typical work-from-home experience.”

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      Individual desks framed by Eames Soft Pad office chairs are crafted from solid oak and are subtly separated from each other with recycled crystal dividers.
      Pared-back, diner-style pendant lights are suspended above plump, emerald green booth-like sofas, which make up an informal space for The Malin’s members to gather.
      Individual desks are separated by recycled crystal dividersA curated art collection decorates the walls, while design elements from brands such as Flos and Orior – another of McGuigan’s ventures – also feature in the space. Charging outlets are positioned close to every piece of custom furniture to create an accessible working environment.
      The team explained that The Malin was created to encourage its members to return to a public workplace in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, balancing quieter areas with those built for socialising within an eclectic interior design.
      “It has all the functionality of an office space, but with the comfort of a home,” said McGuigan.
      Pendant lights are suspended above plump seatingThe Malin opened in October 2021, joining a host of other colourful co-working spaces around the world. These include Note Design Studio’s Douglas House, an office building in London with contrasting bright hues; and Spatial – a Montreal mint green and burgundy co-working space by Ivy Studio that features a zinc reception desk with a rainbow-coloured finish.
      The photography is by Thomas Loof.

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      Inventing Anna interiors “richer” versions of their real New York counterparts

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      Production designer Henry Dunn drew on locations across New York to create a set that reflects the different social classes that the protagonist of the Netflix series Inventing Anna traverses.

      The head office of media publication New York Magazine, Rikers Island jail and the 11 Howard hotel in Soho all appear as exaggerated versions on the 11-episode series which was released on February 11 2022.
      “Our thinking all the way through this was the different varieties of wealth and the different types of socio-economic classes that Anna travels through,” Dunn told Dezeen.
      “We’re trying to sort of hit all of these different types of wealth and the disparities as best we could.”
      Henry Dunn created lavish sets for the upper-class charactersThe series is a dramatisation of journalist Jessica Pressler’s quest to write How Anna Delvey Tricked New York’s Party People, an article for the New York Magazine that went viral after exposing the antics of the now-convicted fake heiress Anna Delvey, who’s real name is Anna Sorokin.

      Created by American television producer Shonda Rhimes, Inventing Anna follows the lead up to Sorokin’s trial, while simultaneously going back in time to illustrate her actions.
      To recreate the main locations Sorokin visited and lived in while galavanting around New York, Dunn decided to make sets both in-situ and from scratch at Steiner Studios in Brooklyn, New York, a feat which Dunn describes as “a balancing act”.
      Expensive furnishings and finishes symbolize wealth”We started at the very beginning of 2019 and we had some big beautiful stages at Steiner Studios but we realised that we didn’t have enough space for all of the things that we needed to build,” Dunn explained.
      “We were very much trying to illustrate that there’s old money and then there’s art money and then there’s real money, which is the tech billionaires.”
      For the wealthiest character, the production team sourced six different wallpapersThe home of one of the wealthiest characters in the series belongs to Nora, a woman who Dunn refers to as “a real art person who’s loaded with dough”. It is one of the most featured sets in the series.
      Using research gathered from people who reside in New York apartments, Dunn built a duplex designed to look like a large townhouse in New York.
      According to the designer, Nora’s status is best symbolised in the furnishings and decor that adorn the set.
      “The way we really nailed her [Nora’s] place on the socio-economic ladder was in the finishes: whether it was the Venetian plaster, the antiques, the wallpaper or even the backsplash in her kitchen which is a tile that isn’t affordable to normal humans,” Dunn explained.
      “Nora’s house had maybe five or six different wallpapers, including the ones up in the up in the guest bedroom, where Anna is living,” he added.
      Some sets were created in buildings in New YorkTo further establish Nora’s status in the upper echelons of society, the designer worked with an art specialist to source paintings by artists such as Michel Basquiat and Yves Klein for the interior decoration.
      “We had a wonderful person working with us for arts clearance and so we were able to get all these artists that would have been untouchable that we had to build,” said Dunn.
      “Obviously, it’s not the real thing but they would send us a high-resolution file and then we would repeat over it so you could see the brushstrokes,” he continued.
      “Having that sense of legitimacy meant that people understood that this well-curated piece of character-dressing is meant to tell you who this woman is.”
      Others were built at Steiner StudiosBy contrast, Dunn wanted the journalist’s home to seem “a little dumpy” to help viewers recognise her lower social status. Her home appears cluttered and ordinary – serving to cement her position in New York society.
      “We built Vivian’s house on stage – it’s not a very big apartment and we were trying to make it as realistic as possible for two people who are expecting a baby,” he said.
      The journalist’s home is designed to contrast the expensive homesCreating sets from scratch gave Dunn the freedom to embellish the sets and to elaborate further than what would have been possible if they filmed everything in its original place.
      For example, he constructed the bedroom and lobby at the 11 Howard on stage, drawing on interior designer Kit Kemp’s chintzy work at the Crosby Street Hotel for inspiration.
      “The 11 Howard, which was the hotel where Anna stayed has a minimalist style that we thought would look pretty threadbare on screen so we went for something that would read as much more rich on stage,” he remembered.
      “We were going for with something that was more tactile and sort of a more layered look to it.

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      Another technique Dunn implemented was to mix high-end furnishings and homeware items with cheaper replicas that still gave the illusion of wealth.
      Placing something from a high street brand next to a luxury designer can make the scene feel and look expensive on television while in comparison to reality, said the designer.
      “A magic trick is if you put something in the right setting on television, you can get something like glasses at H&M or Target that will look incredibly deluxe while actually not being practical at all,” he explained.
      “Place them next to plates from Van Cleef & Arpels and they look perfect.”
      The Manhattan Magazine headquarters is based on the New York Magazine officesDue to legal reasons, the series had to create a fictional version of the New York Magazine, but Dunn wanted the made up magazine’s office to look similar to the real magazine’s headquarters.
      Again, he took the opportunity to create an exaggerated “expanded and blown up” version of the real workplace, this time adding a bright red wall to the backdrop.
      “We got to tour our location manager got us in there to walk around and see how the journalists lived,” said Dunn. “And so we researched it closely and then we really tried carefully create those offices as closely as possible.”
      “We’re trying to do something a little more, a little extra – there is a big red wall that says New York Magazine that you see when you come in and we took that and we sort of expanded it and blew it up,” he continued.
      Half of the prison scenes were shot in a real prisonThe main challenge for Dunn came as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. Halfway through filming the series, restrictions meant that the team had to change locations and delay some filming, meaning that many scenes had to be shot in two places.
      “We began shooting at the prison here in the city called Rikers Island jail and when the pandemic came, we still had 50 per cent of our scenes to shoot,” he recalled.
      “I don’t think anybody at home has any idea but the waiting room and the room where Anna and Jessica meet were in completely different spots,” he mused.
      Other Netflix series with elaborate sets include the playful arenas by art director Hwang Dong-Hyuk for the popular series Squid Games and production designer Grant Major’s set for the award-winning film The Power of the Dog which featured a prominent house.
      The images are courtesy of Netflix.

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      Pastel colours and textured concrete decorate Stockholm hair salon

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      Westblom Krasse Arkitektkontor has designed the interior for a minimalist hair salon that was informed by architect Carlo Scarpa’s geometric designs and the muted colours of 1920s swimming baths.

      Called Little Faktory, the salon was designed and renovated by the local architecture studio for hairdresser Sofia Geideby and is located in a former office in Stockholm, Sweden.
      Circle and square shapes define Little FaktoryWestblom Krasse Arkitektkontor overhauled the 220-square-metre basement space, which is over one hundred years old, to reveal its original textured concrete walls and exposed steel structure.
      As the salon is located underground, the studio explained that it also had to be “very careful working with artificial light”.
      Round mirrors hang above black chairsIts design for Little Faktory was intended to be minimalist and streamlined.

      “Our aim was to declutter the former office and create one big open space, making its four pillars the heroes of the main room again,” studio co-founder Jesper Westblom told Dezeen. “The challenge was to reduce, rather than to add things.”
      The salon features four original pillarsIn line with this pared-back approach, the firm painted the salon’s walls in a delicate, light yellow hue that intends to brighten its basement setting and maintain but soften the space’s industrial feel.
      Circles and squares are dotted throughout the salon in the form of mirrors and furniture. According to Westblom, they were informed by the geometric shapes seen in the late Italian architect Scarpa’s designs.
      The studio also drew on Scarpa’s use of contrasting colours.
      A washing station is located behind a perforated metal screenFreestanding haircutting stations are arranged in the centre of the salon’s main studio. These feature thick side tables shaped like plus-signs, as well as round mirrors mounted on powder-coated steel tubes.
      On one side of the main space, black leather chairs sit opposite a floating table that lines the concrete wall, above which embellished circular mirrors and square-shaped display shelves are positioned.
      Gustaf Westman recreated one of his mirrors in a bespoke colour for the projectA washing station can be found on the other side of the room, which is subtly separated from the rest of the area by a cloverleaf perforated metal screen that echoes the plus-shape used elsewhere.
      “The customer and the hairstylist represent one square each, on both sides, resulting in the plus shape,” Westblom explained.

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      A colour lab, VIP area and private office space are located behind bespoke, glazed double doors, while the entrance stairwell is illuminated with spidery neon lights by designer Josefin Eklund.
      Also among the salon’s bespoke elements is a rectilinear mirror with a bulbous blue frame by Gustaf Westman, a design that the Swedish artist recreated in a custom colour specifically for the project.
      LED lights illuminate the stairwell in neonAll of Little Faktory’s interiors are created in a muted combination of the primary colours of red, yellow and blue, which Westblom explained is an ode to the salon’s slogan, “the colourful kind”.
      “We looked at some early, inspirational images that set the tone of the project,” he said.
      “One image, in particular, was of 1920s public baths with beautiful cream-coloured tiles, orange and red details and, of course, a blue swimming pool. This ended up forming our main colour scheme.”
      Mirrors shaped like paint splashes liven up the customer toiletThe project’s emphasis on colour is repeated in the customer toilet, where playful mirrors shaped like paint splashes are arranged opposite each other in an attempt to create an infinity effect.
      Little Faktory’s material palette includes rubber flooring, reeded glass and dyed fibreboard, which intend to complement the salon’s existing elements and provide functional solutions to its customers’ needs.
      Little Faktory is a basement hair salonJesper Westblom and Robin Krasse founded their eponymous Stockholm-based architecture firm in January 2021.
      Other recent hair salon designs that have colour and texture at their core include Danielle Brustman’s Mitch Studio – a Melbourne salon that features yellow accents and glass partitions – and Mood, a hair studio by Casa Antillón in Madrid with bold mint-green ceilings sprayed with insulation foam.
      The photography is by Mikael Olsson.

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