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    Linehouse adds tactile textures and warm tones to coastal home in Hong Kong

    Chinese studio Linehouse has designed the interiors of Cape Drive Residence in Hong Kong to respond to the surrounding coastal views.

    Located on the south side of Hong Kong Island, the three-floor home is a short walk from the beaches of Stanley and Chung Hom Kok and has panoramic ocean views to the east and west from its elevated position.
    “The design harnesses a costal essence through materiality, light and an easy flow, seamlessly connecting the interior and exterior spaces,” Linehouse explained.
    The home is located on the south side of Hong Kong Island with expansive ocean viewsAn open living area on the ground floor connects to the kitchen and dining space while an internal courtyard was inserted between theses areas and includes a centralised tree and surrounding seating.
    The living area extends to the main terrace with full-height windows that frame the expansive ocean views.

    Clad in stone, the terrace forms a sunken seating area with pockets of greenery surrounding it, which shelters the sea wind.
    A timber staircase framed by a shuttered screen connects all three floorsWhite timber louvers were used as a continuous ceiling plane in the living area which also extends to the terrace as a canopy.
    “The design of the home reflects the relaxed and laidback lifestyle of a beach setting,” said the studio. “Warm tones, tactile surfaces and textures, a clean and simple material palette, and a seamless flow between inside and out.”
    An outdoor terrace was clad in stone with a sunken seating area”Cape Drive Residence offers the fitting backdrop for coastal living,” it continued.
    A warm oak timber staircase was punctuated by a shuttered screen that runs vertically through all levels of the home while arranging more private areas such as bathing and dressing.

    Linehouse designs Hong Kong guesthouse to evoke the comfort of home

    The whitewashed timber material of the screen echoes the coastal location and reflects light through the spaces.
    A white metal rod screen can be slide open at each level, offering transparency and light through different spaces.
    An internal courtyard was inserted between the dining and kitchen areaBedrooms, a second living area and a study were placed on the upper two levels, all with coastal views.
    The same whitewashed timber material used on the shuttered screen was adopted to form storage, seating and shelving in these private spaces, providing a textural contrast to the hand-raked plaster walls.
    The bathrooms add a fresh moment of colour into the space, using patterned tiles handmade in Portugal by Elisa Passino.
    Shelving and storage spaces were created from whitewashed timber materialLinehouse was founded by Alex Mok and Briar Hickling in 2013 and the duo went on to win emerging interior designer of the year at the 2019 Dezeen Awards.
    The studio has recently completed a guesthouse in Hong Kong that evokes the comfort of home and a Mediterranean restaurant in Shanghai with natural, tactile materials.
    The photography is by Jonathan Leijonhufvud.
    Project credits:
    Design: LinehouseDesign principal: Briar HicklingDesign team: Ricki-Lee Van Het Wout, Cindy Pooh

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    Studio Noju renovates curvy apartment in brutalist Torres Blancas tower

    Local firm Studio Noju has updated a two-storey Madrid apartment within the Torres Blancas high-rise with a renovation that remains “in constant dialogue” with the original apartment design.

    Designed in 1961 by architect Francisco Javier Sáenz de Oíz, Torres Blancas is a 71-metre-high exposed concrete tower featuring cylindrical shapes that create bulbous balconies on its facade and curved rooms inside.
    Studio Noju renovated the largest apartment in Torres BlancasStudio Noju overhauled the 1040 unit – the brutalist building’s biggest apartment – to balance its history with contemporary design details, according to the firm.
    “Our interior design proposal for the apartment takes inspiration from the original ideas that the architect came up with for the building,” studio co-founder Antonio Mora told Dezeen.
    Recovered terrace space is characterised by green tilesA key part of the project involved expanding the apartment’s exterior area on the first floor from 15 to almost 80 square metres to create the amount of outdoor space that existed before multiple past renovations of the tower.

    This expansion added terraces that are characterised by curved floor-to-ceiling glazing and slatted crimson shutters. These open onto gleaming green ceramic tiles that take cues from 1960s interiors and form built-in benches, fountains and planters that follow the terraces’ meandering contours.
    Visitors enter at a semi-circular foyer”The outdoor spaces have been once again consolidated into a continuous terrace that follows the outline of the original plan,” explained Mora, who set up Studio Noju with Eduardo Tazón in 2020.
    “There is a constant dialogue between many of the solutions we have proposed in the interior design of the apartment with those proposed more than 50 years ago by Sáenz de Oiza.”
    White walls and ceilings create an airy open-plan first floorVisitors enter the apartment at a semi-circular foyer featuring Segovia black slate and wine-red panelling – the same materials used in the building’s communal areas.
    The open-plan ground floor is interrupted by snaking white structural walls, such as a partition in the living room that features repetitive circular openings.
    The kitchen was formed from a continuous countertopA continuous custom-made countertop with a subtle green hue forms the kitchen area, which includes a statement bulbous sink that echoes Torres Blancas’ cylindrical facade.
    Light reflects from the original glass-brick tinted windows and illuminates the smooth resin floor and metallic wall accents.
    Studio Noju salvaged an original brass banister for the staircaseWhite geometric treads create a floating staircase with an original polished brass banister that leads to the first floor. Upstairs, a sequence of bedrooms is characterised by oak ceilings that contrast with the bright white ceilings on the ground floor.
    Each bathroom is playfully colour-coded with individual mosaics of bright tiles, complete with sconce lights, mirrors and cabinetry that follow the rounded shapes found throughout the apartment.
    Each bathroom has colour-coded tiles”The [mosaic] material allowed us to solve all the elements of the bathroom such as shower areas, vanities, walls and floors, referencing a similar material strategy used in the original design,” said Mora.
    Adjacent to the main bedroom, the first-floor terrace includes a large green tile-clad outdoor bathtub cloaked in a sheer curtain, which is flanked by plants that were positioned to absorb the water produced by bathing.

    Casa Olivar is a Madrid apartment designed as a “sensorial refuge”

    “The element that we are most proud of is the feeling of a house-patio that has been recovered in the apartment,” reflected Mora.
    “The unit once again revolves around the exterior spaces, and these seem to blend with the interior through the curved traces of green tiles that enter and exit the living room and dining area,” added the architect.
    “Our biggest challenge was striking a balance between honouring the building, but at the same time imbuing the interior design with our language.”
    The first floor terrace features an outdoor bathtubStudio Noju showcased a similar colourful style in its debut project, which involved the renovation of an open-plan Seville apartment.
    Torres Blancas was among the buildings captured by photographer Roberto Conte in his series of brutalist buildings in Madrid.
    The photography is by José Hevia. 

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    Yuko Nagayama & Associates creates trapezoidal glasses shop and community hub

    Tokyo studio Yuko Nagayama & Associates has completed a copper-clad eyewear store for brand JINS in Maebashi, Japan, which contains a cafe and rooftop terrace.

    Named JINS Park, the shop in Gunma Prefecture was designed to act as a space for the community to gather whether they are shopping in the store or not.
    Yuko Nagayama & Associates has created a glasses shop in Maebashi”We proactively created public spaces that are not part of the sales floor, which encourages community members to come for reasons other than shopping,” the studio explained.
    “In stores of this type, the second floor is typically not open to customers, [we] utilised it as a terrace and also included a bakery-cafe in the store.”
    The shop contains a cafeYuko Nagayama & Associates envisions the space being used as an indoor community plaza with food and coffee served along with glasses being sold.

    A large triangular staircase divides the space in two, with the glasses store located on one side and the cafe on the other.
    The large central stairs lead to a first floor terraceThe widening staircase, under which the cafe’s servery and the shop’s consultation rooms are located, leads to an additional seating area and a triangular, outdoor terrace.
    This space is intended as another community area, offering benches and a generous amount of open space where children can run around.
    Timber units were used to display glassesBroadly lit by floor-to-ceiling windows with the roof supported by angled columns, the interior is broken up by a number of freestanding timber units.
    For the eyewear shop, these are used to display the glasses on sale, while for the cafe they contain pastries and other food
    The trapezoidal building is topped with a roof terraceThe trapezoidal building is topped with a sulphurised-copper facade that was designed to mimic the reddish-brown Mount Akagi that can be seen from the shop.
    Visitors approach JINS Park through a neatly landscaped garden, before being greeted by the central fan-shaped staircase which provides seating with views of the store, garden, and street.

    Stephanie Thatenhorst bedecks kid-friendly optician in graphic patterns

    “We began by reversing the typical layout of roadside stores, with a parking lot located in front, and instead located the parking lot behind the building,” said Yuko Nagayama & Associates.
    “As the landscaping matures and the copper facade blends more fully into its surroundings, we hope the store will become part of everyday life in the neighbourhood,” said the studio.
    The ground level opens onto relaxed outdoor spacesRecent glasses shops featured on Dezeen include Stephanie Thatenhorst’s playful pattern-filled interior for a children’s opticians in Munich and a shop clad in colourful sheets of locally sourced plastic waste by sustainable materials company Plasticiet and Amsterdam eyewear company Ace & Tate.
    Other recent developments include eyewear stores by Child Studio for Cubitts, a company that asks for each shop to be designed in a unique style that reflects the history of its local neighbourhood. The studio’s Leeds store is inspired by Victorian joinery, whilst another store is based on Soho’s colourful postwar reputation.
    The photography is by Daici Ano and Tomoyuki Kusunose.

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    Ten homes with welcoming terraces to spend a summer night on

    For our latest lookbook, we’ve rounded up 10 homes from the Dezeen archive with inviting, inventive or unusual terraces each offering a pleasant place to while away a warm evening.

    Terraces can be an effective, low-maintenance way to provide an outdoor spot for relaxing or entertaining without requiring an abundance of space. Typically they take the form of a raised, flat outdoor area adjoining a building.
    The examples collected below range from the fairly familiar to the distinctly unconventional, including roof terraces, back garden terraces and enclosed terraces.
    This is the latest in our series of lookbooks providing curated visual inspiration from Dezeen’s image archive. For more inspiration see previous lookbooks showcasing homes centred around interior courtyards, interiors with conversation pits and buildings that make use of Mediterranean-style tiling.
    Photo is by Alex Shoots BuildingsTerrace with a House by the Lake, Poland, by UGO

    Sliding doors open onto a 120-metre-long wooden terrace enclosed by this U-shaped holiday home, designed by Polish architecture studio UGO to create the feeling of being immersed in the rural surroundings.
    “Its slightly raised platform was intended to allow the household members to commune with nature, without interfering with it,” UGO said of the terrace, which is lined with Siberian larch.
    Find out more about Terrace with a House by the Lake ›
    Photo is by Markus LinderothVilla MSV, Sweden, by Johan Sundberg Arkitektur
    This T-shaped house in southern Sweden, designed by Lund-based studio Johan Sundberg Arkitektur, has not one but three terraces around its living spaces so its users can follow the sun throughout the day.
    They are shaded by canopies made from zinc and larch with varying sizes and forms to respond to the direction of the sun, some with timber slats to filter light and others blocking it out completely.
    Find out more about Villa MSV ›
    Photo is by Marie-Caroline LucatMaison 0.82, France, by Pascual Architect
    A huge, round hole punctures the concrete roof above this terrace at a villa in southern France by Pascual Architect, causing a shaft of light to move across the space during the day.
    Wooden benches and a dining table occupy the patio, which wraps around the southern side of the house and is accessed by floor-to-ceiling glass doors.
    Find out more about Maison 0.82 ›
    Photo is by Ståle EriksenNorth London House, UK, by Cathie Curran and O’Sullivan Skoufoglou Architects
    As part of their overhaul of this house in north London, Cathie Curran and O’Sullivan Skoufoglou Architects added a roof terrace connected to the kitchen and dining room on the first floor.
    In order to retain privacy from the windows of neighbouring houses, the 18-square-metre terrace is lined on three sides with a series of solid-ash posts supporting opaque glazing.
    Find out more about North London House ›
    Photo is by Filippo PoliFuzzy House, Thailand, by SO
    Architecture practice SO topped this bunker-like concrete house in the Thai city of Chiang Mai with a stepped terrace where residents can sit and look out over the square below.
    Inside, the shape of the rooftop terrace forms a stepped ceiling peppered with skylights above the living area and bedroom.
    Find out more about Fuzzy House ›
    Photo is by Yasuhiro TakagiWeather House, Japan, by Not Architects
    External staircases wrap around two sides of this three-storey corner house in Tokyo designed by Not Architects Studio, creating multiple terraces linked to the home’s open-plan living areas by sliding doors.
    These outdoor living spaces are screened with chain-link wire mesh, up which plants will eventually climb to form a layer of vegetation offering privacy from the outside world.
    Find out more about Weather House ›
    Photo is by French + TyeAmott Road house, UK, by Alexander Owen Architecture
    Alexander Owen Architecture added a colourful terrace to the back garden of this house in London, attached to the kitchen by arched double doors.
    It was informed by the owners’ love of modernism and pop art including Jasper Johns, Peter Blake and Terry Frost, with geometric shapes and bold pigments.
    Find out more about this Amott Road house ›
    Photo is by Ivar KaalVilla Aa, Norway, by CF Møller Architects
    Villa Aa, designed by Danish studio CF Møller Architects, is a 375-square-metre home half-buried in a shallow hill on a Norwegian farm overlooking a nearby fjord.
    A pair of stepped terraces with almost double the footprint of the villa’s entire interior sit alongside the house. One is occupied by planted beds and seating and the other, lower terrace comprises a rainwater pool and a swimming pool.
    Find out more about Villa Aa ›
    Photo is by ONI StudioPortable Cabin, Poland, by Wiercinski Studio
    This 25-square-metre roof terrace emerges out of a portable house made from two shipping containers stacked on top of another two containers used for garden storage.
    Polish practice Wiercinski Studio decked the terrace, which has views over a nearby river, and wrapped it in a curved metal balustrade.
    Find out more about Portable Cabin ›
    Photo is by Adriâ Goulá.Curved House, Menorca, by Nomo Studio
    Architects Nomo Studio suspended this terrace in the top of a cube-shaped Menorcan villa which is arranged over six stepped levels on a small footprint.
    Two sides of the terracotta-tiled patio are fully glazed, allowing sunlight to flood down into the home’s interior while keeping the outdoor space sheltered enough to use for stargazing or open-air film screenings.
    Find out more about Curved House ›
    This is the latest in our series of lookbooks providing curated visual inspiration from Dezeen’s image archive. For more inspiration see previous lookbooks showcasing homes centred around interior courtyards, interiors with conversation pits and buildings that make use of Mediterranean-style tiling.

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