Budget Residential Project Achieves Luxurious Result

Project of the Week

This week’s instalment of the #SBIDinspire interior design series features a residential design by 2020 SBID Awards Finalist, XBD Collective. Located in Jumeirah Golf Estates, this luxurious 10,600 sq. ft. villa was designed for a young, new to Dubai European family of 4. The overall design brief was to create a family-friendly home in the signature XBD luxury style on a very restricted budget. By keeping a neutral palette but also introducing bursts of colour, XBD Collective fulfilled one of the main requirements to create a sense of serenity and peace with elegant accents.

Using an array of high, mid, and low materials, the design practice opted for high-end marble – but used clever veneer techniques and mixed metals and mirrors to create stunning reflection effects. Artwork from locally commissioned artists was also used and textured wallpapers were sourced from trusted suppliers. XBD succeeded in creating a gorgeous luxury home, perfect for entertaining both family and friends that went above and beyond the client’s expectations

SBID Awards Category: Resi House Under £1M Finalists Sponsored by Sans Souci

Practise: XBD Collective

Project: Jumeirah Golf Estates 

Location: Dubai, United Arab Emirates

What was the client’s brief? 

The overall design brief was to create a family-friendly home in the signature XBD luxury style. We fulfilled the main requirement to create ‘a sense of serenity and peace with elegant accents.

What inspired the design of the project?

The inspiration was to create the ultimate balance between ‘tranquillity’ and ‘elegance’ for our clients. With the villa situated on the edge of a luxury golf course, we created an indoor/outdoor feel to flow throughout the space and take advantage of the picturesque landscapes.

What was the toughest hurdle your team overcame during the project?

We faced the challenge of creating a sophisticated masculine space for the office that blended softly into both family and formal areas. We used soft wooden flooring dressed with a pattern monochrome rug, to keep the room professional yet homely.

What was your team’s highlight of the project?

Working in partnership with Rosewood was a delight, largely thanks to our shared passion for creating. Exceeding our clients’ expectations was our highlight! Design-wise we love the use of elegant layers and contemporary finishes in the master bedroom which amplifies the opulent sensation in the room.

Why did you enter the SBID Awards?

Taking part in the SBID Awards is always a delight as it provides us with the opportunity to reveal our evolving style and inspire other creators in the industry through entering the SBID Awards. We enjoy taking part in such a well-renowned competition!

Senanu Arkutu is the director of pan-African interiors company Daar Living. Here she shares the best ways to incorporate African elements into existing décor and tells us about the burgeoning interiors scene in her home city of Accra, Ghana.

Hi Senanu, tell us a bit about your interiors business…

Daar Living is a specialist interior design online store and styling service located in Osu, Accra. Our style is vibrant and fun, and also really Pan African because things come to us from all over the continent. I love our colonial furniture, which I refinish, and it sells in the online shop. Due to rising demand – including international enquiries – we recently pivoted from a physical shop to e-commerce.

What are the hallmarks of African interior design?

Because African interior design is yet to be defined by African designers themselves, I believe there is a lot of flexibility. Generally speaking, there is a bared back aesthetic. I like to think of African interior design as product or element-based so that I can essentially create any already known style I want – for example, Afro-minimalist or Afro-eclectic.

What are some simple ways to add African style to your home?

It’s easy to add African elements to any interior space. I believe you could put an African piece into anything, whether you’re incorporating it into modern styling or a more traditional look. The best place to start is accessories. For me, what really injects African character into the room would be textiles and basketry.

In West Africa, we all have a woven fabric, such as Kente and Baoulé, and these can be used for making cushions and throws, or in the upholstery of stools, chairs and sofas.

African interior design also leans heavily on natural elements and textures including raffia, straw and wood. Certain types of wooden elements are easily recognised such as our handwoven baskets and bowls, and these are a nice easy first step if you’re looking to inject African style into an existing space.

What are the trends you expect to see in 2021?

To some extent, we follow US trends, and given the pandemic era we are in, I sense that clean and minimalist style is becoming even more popular. It’s interesting that the colour Brave Ground was chosen as Colour of the Year by Dulux in the UK, and they’ve brought this out along with an earthy palette of shades. People in Ghana have been using the equivalent of Brave Ground for years, so trends-wise we are already there!

If people are following this colour trend in the UK or US they will find it easy to achieve an African aesthetic, especially through adding fabrics and textures. The traditional African colour palette is neutral/ natural and earthy, so the colour palette fits right in with our traditional and original interiors and most of our handmade handcrafted pieces that can be used for decor fit in beautifully.

What process do you follow when you work with clients?

Residential interior design is still relatively new here in Ghana. Unless it’s for a hotel or an office, or for a film or television set, the architect has typically handled the interior design. Hiring your own interior designer is just starting to become more common.

When I work with a new client, I begin by booking a one-hour consultation. What’s most important is that I discover how the clients want to feel when they are in that space. How do they want their visitors to feel in that space? We dig deeper and deeper, then I’ll propose a mood board, and I also give a list of stores to shop in Accra, as we work with people having wide-ranging budgets.

How important is natural and artificial light to your design concepts?

When it comes to lighting, there’s obviously a lot of natural light pouring into the room all day. We need to take full advantage of this light but balance this with the need to reduce heat indoors. Letting natural air come in to create that cross breeze is important too.

Artificial lighting is another thing that is done as part of the build, and homeowners might find that it’s too late to make significant changes to the lighting scheme once the build is complete. Sometimes the designer is called in far too late into the project, so for me, it’s a question of building awareness of how a designer can contribute to the look and feel of the home, and when to bring them into the project.

In my own home, and when I complete interiors projects for clients, I like to create a soft, warm, intimate feel. I always encourage my clients to use the city’s artisans, who refurbish old items into lampshades.

What I help them to create, through thoughtful design and one-off pieces from my shop and from local artisans, is something truly unique that delivers that visually interesting yet homely environment – a style that will make them feel really good about the space they’re living in.

Project of the Week

This week’s instalment of the #SBIDinspire interior design series features a residential design by 2020 SBID Awards Finalist, Knox Design. This villa was an investment project built in Mallorca to be sold as a second home. As this property was for sale, the aim was to create enough interest to make a lasting impression in the potential buyer’s mind, while still leaving enough space for them to mentally move in themselves.

SBID Awards Category: Residential Budget Up To £50k Sponsored by Sans Souci

Practise: Knox Design

Project: Villa Sol De Mallorca

Location: Mallorca, Spain

What was the client’s brief? 

The brief was to create a holiday home for grown-up families with an air of luxury as opposed to the typical, seaside blue and white themes often seen here.

What inspired the design of the project?

The living area stretched along the full-frontal section of the villa, calling for the definition of spaces and the creation of a sense of flow between them all. Once I defined the purpose of each of the living areas, I selected soft caramel and sandstone hues as a running theme to join them with each other, reflected in the use of marble, oak and artwork in these tones.

Sprinkles of mint, fuchsia and emerald were present in strategically placed soft furnishings and decorative items, all set against a sumptuous wallpaper in the stairwell, silky rugs, stunning overhead lamps and evocative artwork. I chose Rounded shapes in décor items and furniture to counterbalance the sharp geometry of the architecture. The overall effect is one of luxury elegance and comfort, space and luminosity.

What was the toughest hurdle your team overcame during the project?

As in a lot of open plan living spaces, there was no entrance hall, so to speak, and the dining area felt exposed and cold. To solve this issue I asked for a partition wall to be added between the entrance lobby and the dining space in order to add intimacy to the dining area and provide a focal point opposite the front door.

What was your team’s highlight of the project?

The highlight is always installation day when all the visions come to reality and the house gains its soul.

Why did you enter the SBID Awards?

I entered the SBID awards for the first time in 2020, having been a recognised design professional for several years as although I am based in Mallorca Spain, the majority of my clients are British second homeowners.

Project of the Week

This week’s instalment of the #SBIDinspire interior design series features a residential design by 2020 SBID Awards Winners Roncarati + Zaffera.

Woodside Loft is a residential loft conversion to what was originally a modest 1930s three-bed semi. The property already benefited from a large two-storey side/rear extension. The owners wanted to create a unique loft space, which took advantage of the views to the front of the building and the existing extension’s small pitched roof. This was to be an expansive, multi-use space, with a modern-retro style.

SBID Awards Category: Residential Budget Up To £50k Sponsored by Sans Souci

Practise: Roncarati + Zaffera

Project: Woodside loft

Location: London, United Kingdom

What was the client’s brief? 

Crucial to the design brief was that the space feels bright, spacious, organic, and comfortable. It should be a haven. It should act as a living room with a view, a guest room, a project space, a place to relax, a place to be alone, or a place to be together. It should be several things all at once.

The space was to be bright, multi-functional and take full advantage of the view. It was important to utilise the awkward/small existing pitched-roof area from the previous side extension and include a shower room – which should be as small as possible, whilst still offering a large shower enclosure and full-sized basin.

Another aspect of the brief was to use natural materials wherever possible. In terms of the design, we featured contemporary styling with a retro/mid-century twist. The project, first and foremost, was all about maximising the liveable space, including the storage space.

What inspired the design of the project?

Spaceships from 1970’s sci-fi shows; meet modern, mid-century retro.  More than anything, the project’s overarching design was the result of a steadfast determination to meet the myriad practical demands of the client’s brief – which dictated an optimum (and unique) solution.

What was the toughest hurdle your team overcame during the project?

The toughest challenge was to find a layout that allowed full-height access to the “cave” area (at the rear) whilst also allowing room for the staircase and w.c./shower room – but to do so without taking a much bigger chunk out of the main living space.  This was very much a challenge in three dimensions and with very tight tolerances.

What was your team’s highlight of the project?

Although it might seem insignificant, the biggest highlight was the creation of the wooden planter surround. This was made using offcuts from the oak battens used on the opposite wall. This came right at the end of the project after all the difficult problems had been solved. Crucially though, this was approached as a piece of art. Its creation – especially coming at the time that it did – gave nothing but pleasure.

Why did you enter the SBID Awards?

Because of a late-career change, I am an unknown in the design world. I entered Woodside Loft into the awards because I thought it might get shortlisted – which would have been something nice to talk about. (I’d not considered actually winning. Big bonus!)

Project of the Week

This week’s instalment of the #SBIDinspire interior design series features a residential design by 2020 SBID Awards Finalist J.Lykasova Studio. ONYX is a modern minimalistic interior of a spacious residential house for a family of three.

The concept is based on soft, timeless minimalism. A blend of wood, concrete, stone and metal balanced by neutral shades makes a background for artistic architectural forms. The rhythm of the space is driven by a sequence of gypsum panels, drop-down zonal lightning, and laconic brass columns. Bronzed mirrors expand the apartment, reflecting the play of lines and shapes and filling the rooms with air.

Natural materials in geometric shapes softened by chic design elements and décor create a calm and peaceful atmosphere, just what the clients were looking for.

SBID Awards Category: Residential House Over £1 Million Sponsored by Schneider Electric

Practise: J.Lykasova Studio

Project: ONYX

Location: Minsk, Belarus

What was the client’s brief? 

The clients were looking to create a calm and peaceful home that would become a real temple for their family, a place full of loving and positive energy. Soft pastel palette with bits of terracotta, mustard or bordo was their colour choice. The couple preferred sophisticated decor pieces to hyped well-known replicas and expected to have lots of mirror surfaces in the rooms.

As for the interior style, they opted for modern minimalism. ‘We would like to have a timeless minimalistic interior, calm and warm, yet with a twist! We don’t want it to be yet another featureless interior from a magazine, so we are looking forward to unconventional solutions that would make it distinctive and personalized.”

They also paid particular attention to functionality expecting to have a functional home, where everything is in its place. They loved the idea that less is more, yet wanted their home to be cosy and comfortable so that it did not feel empty and uninhabited.

What inspired the design of the project?

Actually, our clients, a married couple, are the major source of inspiration for this project. Regardless of their senior positions at work and corresponding responsibilities, they still take good care of their wellbeing and mental health. They work out a lot, they travel a lot and they never stop learning. Their vision of aesthetics and beauty resonated with us from the very start.

The homeowners wanted to have a stylish minimalist interior, yet bring in comfort and warmth along with unconventional interior solutions that would make their home truly special. So, we got inspired by the minimalistic concept: clean lines and forms and modern furnishing materials. The onyx stone seemed to reflect this idea in the best way: the texture and colour gradient of this natural material became a perfect foundation for designing a chic, lightweight and sophisticated interior.

What was the toughest hurdle your team overcame during the project?

Probably, one of the biggest challenges we came across was the slight difference in taste. Initially, the clients sincerely leaned towards the classic vibe, regardless of the initial brief for the minimalist interior, and so wanted to use corresponding finishing and decor items, such as mirrors. However, our vision of the space was different – we saw a minimalistic, yet classy interior in it. So, it took us some time to prove that rough materials such as concrete and aged metal can look truly noble and stylish. But we succeeded!

What was your team’s highlight of the project?

Our clients rely on our vision completely, so it’s easy for us to collaborate with them on this project. When they wanted to change some of the aspects, e.g. the staircase, we discussed potential alternatives and shared the updates. Funny enough: they preferred the initial version after all.

Why did you enter the SBID Awards?

SBID Awards provide a great opportunity to gain invaluable insights into the industry trends, exchange professional experience and get feedback from a community of passionate architects and designers. We learn from each project presented by other nominees. All that inspires us to explore new directions and master our expertise so that we can continue creating exceptional projects for our customers.

Project of the Week

This week’s instalment of the #SBIDinspire interior design series features a public space design by 2020 SBID Awards Finalist NBBJ. The client for this project wanted to create a world-class campus that would attract and retain the very best students and academics.

SBID Awards Category: Public Space Design Sponsored by Sans Souci

Practise: NBBJ

Project: American International University 

Location: Jahra, Kuwait

What was the client’s brief? 

Armed with the client’s vision, the design team crafted a concept inspired by a young group of Kuwaitis, dedicated to rebuilding their natural landscape after decades of upheaval through the planting of 350,000 trees. The interior design embodies the attributes of these desert trees through the exploration of warmth, pattern, canopy, and dappled light.  The campus’ interstitial spaces pull from the qualities of middle-eastern seed pods (vibrant colours, unique forms and textures) resulting in environments that promote creative thinking and informal collaboration.  These spatial elements combine to form a campus that feels established and firmly focused on the country’s future leaders.

What inspired the design of the project?

The client wanted to create a world-class campus that would attract and retain the very best students and academics. A series of key design drivers was established to enable a strategy to achieve this from a spatial standpoint. These four design drivers were the primary inspiration for the final design of the campus:

Fostering Community: The Student Union offers a mix of environments that encourage this community of commuters to stay on campus and foster connections.

Oasis for learning: In response to the region’s harsh climate, the library serves as a campus destination that is fueled by natural light, plantings and comfortable learning environments.

Flexibility and Adaptability: The project was designed to use space efficiently while being ready for change. AIU is designed with the future in mind, able to adapt to support an evolving curriculum.

Wellness: The college is inspiring a cultural shift centred around physical fitness by opening an on-site fitness and health centre. Additionally, the feature stairs throughout the campus encourage movement.

What was the toughest hurdle your team overcame during the project?

Accelerated Schedule: The client bought out the University rights from another group. Once this was purchased, the shell and core of the building were already being constructed. In order to open for the autumn 2019 school year, the interior fit-out schedule needed to be accelerated. From visioning through Stage 4, the design team only had 20 weeks to execute the project. The scope included full interior design and FFE services.

Commuter Culture: The location of the University is located one hour from Kuwait City. The University’s competitors are located in the heart of Kuwait City. Being a commuter campus, we took this obstacle and turned it into opportunities to foster campus community and provide amenities; this was paramount to the project’s success. Amenity highlights include a 2-story library, collaboration hubs in student focused areas and a large work cafe to provide opportunities to learn and connect.

Unique Methods: As our scope did not include someone from our design team full time on site during construction, high expectations for quality needed to be met in working with local fabricators. As a result, we were able to add site visits to ensue craftsmanship and quality were appropriately met.

Flexibility and Adaptability: During the design process, Stage 1 – Stage 5, there wasn’t an established curriculum. The project was designed to use space efficiently while being ready for change. AIU is designed with the future in mind, able to adapt to support an evolving curriculum.

What was your team’s highlight of the project?

It was incredibly rewarding to see student use (and love!) the space the way our design intended — from social interactions in the cafe to learning in the classrooms.

The built-in banquettes in the cafe were designed with larger groups in mind. The week our team visited for photography, bespoke banquettes designed to hold four-to-six students had eight students crammed in laughing and enjoying a meal together. Our client also told us that during student tours, the design has greatly helped with recruiting and retaining students.

Why did you enter the SBID Awards?

As the SBID International Design Awards is one of the most prestigious global interior design award programs, we thought it was the perfect platform to showcase a project we are proud of — that makes a difference in the lives of young people and creates a welcoming environment for the leaders, creators and innovators of tomorrow.

Art as a form of communication

Specifying artwork with purpose & meaning

The first step to making it right when placing artwork in a home is to understand the relation of the owner with art: Is it decorative? Is it an intellectual/passionate relation with its meaning and expression? Is it pride for having many pieces he/she have accumulated? or Is it the display of a well-shaped collection?

Interior design as a frame to enhance artistic works

If you are lucky enough to have one of Monet’s waterlilies or a Rothko (let’s dream) you want to be able to immerse yourself in the expansion that these artworks offer, one of beauty and nature, the other of eternity so the position chosen for them has to be one that allows contemplation, that removes distractions, with the right lighting and a space from which you can imagine, think and feel.

Art helps us to appreciate the tangible and intangible from different perspectives allowing ourselves to expand our horizons while we enjoy it visually; Interior design has the duty to understand this, incorporating them wisely, thoroughly and sensitively in the design scheme and flow of the space. We cannot forget that Interior design can be either the frame that enhances communication or the zero-multiplying factor; for an art lover, the latter should not happen.

Want to submit your own content? Click here to find out more.

Project of the Week

This week’s instalment of the #SBIDinspire interior design series features a residential design by 2020 SBID Awards Finalist Chains Interiors. The Taiwan-based design practice worked on this high-end project which was inspired by a song written by the owner.

SBID Awards Category: Residential Apartment Over £1M Sponsored by Vectorworks

Practise: Chains Interiors

Project: Write A Song For You

Location: Taipei, Taiwan 

What was the client’s brief? 

Our client is a professional Musician. Since music is such a big part of his life,  he wanted music to flow in all corners of the home, while remaining functional.

What inspired the design of the project?

The concept of this design is inspired by a song that a house owner wrote for his beloved wife. While the tunes and tempos of the song transform into lines on the walls, the spontaneous melodies also turn into colours in the space and the twists and turns of the notes into topographic curves on the ceiling. Together these elements become a manifestation of the tenderness conveyed by the song.

What was the toughest hurdle your team overcame during the project?

Finding a balance between aesthetics, design concepts, actual usage requirements and budget. We also wanted to make the intricate ceiling lines perfect, so we made several versions to make sure the final design achieved this.

What was your team’s highlight of the project?

The highlight of this project was successfully fitting the final design with every part of the song that the house owner wrote.

Why did you enter the SBID Awards?

The SBID Awards have always celebrated international certification and we wanted to showcase our work to a wider audience by participating in this competition.

Hitzig Militello Architects share the inspiration and process behind their high-end Buenos Aires cocktail bar and restaurant project; Osten.

Osten, the high-end cocktail bar and restaurant, is located in Puerto Madero’s distinguished neighbourhood in Buenos Aires. The generating idea and initial design concept stems from the era of the economic crash in 1929. Inspired by the novel The Crack-Up by Scott Fitzgerald, and the decadence of glamour from The Great Gatsby.

At first glance, a large corridor is built with scaffolding and the name Osten hangs on perforated metal located in the main entrance that also functions as a waiting room. This sets the scene and atmosphere in an alluring effect to inspire desire to discover the space step by step.

The corridor has 6 different accesses to the general space – this was fundamentally designed so each of the areas can be made independent to divide the areas as private spaces when required.

Access to the bar is at the end of the corridor, crowned by metal perforated structures to frame the identity and design of the bar. The corridors separate the entire space into two large areas of use against the backdrop of this large, statement bar.

The presence of scaffolding acts to support the design theme, representing the  era that could no longer support itself. The essential characteristic of scaffolding devices throughout the scheme is ultimately the temporality of their use, and it is this word “temporality” that defines the end of that era of over indulgent elegance. These scaffolds underpin large sheet metal arches painted in gold, but without the glitz or bombast, their appearance is instead rather aged.

The language of the arches is carried throughout and used house all the most representative areas with the bar at the epicentre; the access through a large corridor, the bar itself and its setting, as well as the staircases and perimeter seating area. Knots hold each encounter of the aged scaffolding with old bronze paint.

Modernity is essentially represented by the inner skin, built with cementitious plates and marble organised in pieces in different areas. These marble slabs are arranged in between the scaffolding structures, seeking a relationship between the elegant and the temporary. All Carrara and dark green marble slabs are arranged linearly and held in an ethereal way.

Modernity also makes an appearance through the acrylic tubes that are part of the lighting system where the two worlds are combined; the modern and its acrylic packaging with art deco drawings. In the same way, large lamps that simulate spiders, hang with acrylic tubes and chains representing the beads.

The graphic identity developed from the naming typography was applied in different spaces, in the form of a stencil on walls and through cut-outs in plates to achieve devices that function as dividers. As a result of typographic development, graphic pieces of feminine profiles have been developed and applied in the form of artistic paintings held by the scaffolding system.

The scaffolding system extends to the outdoor spaces to support the seating area, with a large mural designed by the branding team through the development of the typeface family. The tonality of the old bronze, dark green, light and blue was the result of a sober and elegant composition.

Project of the Week

This week’s instalment of the #SBIDinspire interior design series features a retail design by 2020 SBID Awards Finalist 4SPACE Design. The Dubai-based design practice was tasked with bringing to life the 140 square metre fashion retail store Tutus Kurniati.

SBID Awards Category: Retail Design Sponsored by Garrett Leather

Practise: 4SPACE Design

Project: Tutus Kurniati

Location: Dubai, UAE

What was the client’s brief? 

The client wanted to develop her e-commerce platform with its first flagship store, for a more intimate shopping experience. It was important that the design reflected the brand as a luxury resort wear. The client envisioned the space to be modern and very feminine.

What inspired the design of the project?

Since the logo speaks highly of the character of the owner, 4SPACE focused on the featured colours; pink and beach-sand. The interior design was inspired by the waves on the shoreline, rocks, and seashells.

What was the toughest hurdle your team overcame during the project?

Completing the project on time for the grand opening of the Mall. We had a hard time with our terrazzo floor as it was installed manually, placing the terrazzo aggregates one by one to ensure that the outcome will be the same as the design.

What was your team’s highlight of the project?

The Instagram booth inspired by the beach showers with a neon sign and perfect lighting for an insta-worthy status – a notable design concept that is totally chic and canny.

Steps seating lounge that would appeal to social media-savvy females who enjoy retail culture.

In a cash-free COVID future, Tutus Kurniati was designed with no cash desk where technology works at its best.

Why did you enter the SBID Awards?

We’ve been participating in the SBID Awards since 2016 and we’ve heard nothing but praise. The process for submitting the entries has always been easy and all the coordinators are very helpful. Having a good review and been very consistent in promoting the interior design profession makes us a keen follower and member of SBID. Our founders and Interior Architects of 4SPACE started becoming Accredited professionals of SBID. We’ve also won the “Overall Winner” for SBID Awards 2018.

Questions answered by Firas Alsahin, Design Director, and Amjad Hourieh, Managing Director, 4SPACE Design.

We hope you feel inspired by this week’s design!

If you missed the last instalment of Project of the Week, featuring an office renovation in a pre-war building, click here to see more.