Image courtesy of the Opus Hotel.
The last assignment I took on for 2010 has now been published — a piece about how good hotel design principles can be used in residential homes. As you can imagine, it was pretty darn fun to research — applying a critical eye to the hotel rooms that travellers can often take for granted, and living vicariously in the boots of a high flying tourist.
What I guess is most notable for me is how incredibly different each of the hotels profiled is in character, yet they all still succeed in making guests feel comfortable. If they didn’t, of course they wouldn’t be in business anymore.
Here’s how my story for the Vancouver Sun begins.
Remember when “hotel luxury” made a splash as a decor trend? In the early 2000s, it was all about every imaginable shade of white on white, with bits of beige creeping in. Thousand-count thread sheets and fluffy towels were also an important part of the design scheme. But reducing the look to paint and linens ignores the true rationale of hotel design. Designing for durability and functionality, while being constrained by small spaces and tight budgets, is something many can relate to.
You can find the rest of the story here.
