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    Pastel colours and textured concrete decorate Stockholm hair salon

    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.

    Nordic functionalism informs Stockholm beauty clinic by ASKA

    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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    Nordic functionalism informs Stockholm beauty clinic by ASKA

    Swedish architecture studio ASKA has drawn on the existing 1930s architecture for its refurbishment of Stockholm beauty salon MBS by Malika, adding arched shapes and oak veneer panelling.

    The beauty clinic in central Stockholm is located in a building designed in the Scandinavian modernist style known as Nordic functionalism – or simply funkis in Swedish.
    Doorways were given subtle arched shapesASKA, which is led by Polina Sandström and Madeleine Klingspor, made a number of structural changes to the space as part of the refurbishment, but wanted to keep the interior design both functional and stylish.
    The studio tore down most of the interior walls in the 70-square-metre salon to make more space for private rooms for its beauty therapists.
    The designers used oak veneer in reference to modernist designsAdditional walls were designed with the building’s modernist architecture in mind.

    “The new walls were designed in a way so they would go hand in hand with the rest of the architecture with oak detailing and structured glass, which also helps the daylight to get through the whole space,” Klingspor told Dezeen.
    “The centrally-placed dividing wall with the pseudo three arch was also an addition by us,” Sandström added.
    “From a functional aspect, it helps separate the public part of the clinic from the more private one.”
    A pale blue shade lines doorways and skirting boardsWood was used throughout the space, with oak veneer chosen as it was popular during the era when the building was constructed.
    The material added “the right nostalgic association” to the interior, while balancing out the otherwise clinical aesthetics and the salon’s cool colour scheme.
    ASKA aimed to create a light, clean atmosphere for the salon and chose to work with blue and white hues, with a pale blue shade lining the wooden skirting boards and door frames for a stylish contrasting detail.
    Colour was used to contrast against the abundant wood”We chose to add the popping blue colour because it works as a good contrast against the warm oak adding a fresh and clinical touch, while at the same time being a somewhat unusual choice for a beauty salon – adding a surprising element to the design,” Klingspor explained.
    In addition to changing the layout of the space, the studio also created a new showpiece for the salon, a tile-clad reception desk that greets visitors and references Finnish modernist architect Alvar Aalto.

    ASKA draws on Wes Anderson films for pastel-coloured Cafe Banacado design

    “The reception desk is something of a key element that captures the essence of the concept in one piece – a homage to the functionalist era with a modern twist,” Sandström said.
    “The white tiles were inspired by Aalvar Alto’s interior designs and help define the shape of the desk-corners thanks to their slightly rounded aesthetic.”
    A tiled desk with a contrasting laminate tabletop was designed for the receptionBoth the shape of the desk and the materials were also chosen to evoke the era.
    “The compact laminate was also a material choice that is true to the mid-century design era, whilst the blue colour and dark blue grout add a bold, unique element to the expression,” Sandström added.
    “The different heights of the desk helps to create two different areas in a true ‘form follows function’ manner.”
    Cream-coloured manicure tables are dotted throughout the spaceASKA also designed cream-coloured lounge tables and nail manicure stations for the salon.
    The studio has previously created a hair salon in Stockholm that features an undulating ceiling installation that looks like dripping shampoo, as well as a pastel-coloured cafe that references Wes Anderson’s film aesthetic.
    The photography is by Mikael Lundblad.

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    Yellow desk made from concrete-injected balloons features in Hem headquarters

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