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Say Architects‘ Parlor19 jewellery shop in Hangzhou unfolds with the familiarity more akin to a living room rather than a conventional retail store. The interior has been designed around the unique jewels themselves – architects viewing each piece as the main user of the space rather than the humans that will come to buy them. This project turns the process of shopping into a sensory experience, as guests are guided through a labyrinth of different atmospheres to view the pieces on offer.

Parlor, meaning ‘living room’ in French, becomes the appropriate name for an interior that fuses the domestic realm with a retail store. Say Architects explain they have ultimately created a three-level living room, with an outer hall, the middle room, and the inner chamber.

Related: Lika Lab Boutique in Hangzhou by Say Architects.

Progression through the store begins outside on the street. The creamy, neutral colour palette is established on the façade – the engraved sandy-coloured tile with Parlor19 sits alongside similar toned walls and flooring. Moving inside, guests enter into a space reminiscent of a living room. A light-coloured fireplace sits alongside a wooden shelving unit and a large round marble table. The interior is layered with different textures of the same colour tone, creating a beautifully layered, neutral scheme. This beige language is momentarily interrupted with pops of dark black marble and deep-stained wood acting as a counterbalance to the neutrality.

Entry into the centre chamber sees customers move from a square room into a rounded space. White shining tiles meet beige clad walls that orbit around a reflective bench that sits in the centre of the room. The bench designed to hold jewellery could be mistaken for an altar in a church or a fragment of a spaceship. Its highly reflective silver form allows it to become the glowing focus of the room, absorbing and reflecting the ceiling lights.

“The opening in the centre of the parlour led to the Chamber, the ending space of the tri-layer design,” explains the team. “Inspired by Villa Rotunda designed by Palladio, the chamber, constructed with eggshell sandstone, reflective ceiling, and floor serves as a spatial hub, not only hiding the shear wall but also connecting the counter, warehouse, restroom, and fitting room.”

“The Chamber space is a tranquil and elegant ending of the route as we hope it forms an intimate and private atmosphere,” conclude Say Architects.

Related: Angelot Patisserie in Hangzhou, China by Say Architects.

| The article An Homage to Palladio: Parlor19 Jewellery Store by Say Architects. appeared first on Yellowtrace. |

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We are so excited to announce that custom framing is now available for every Overview in our Printshop! Just click “Buy It Framed” to explore all of the colors and design options that make it easier than ever to get a finished Overview print for your home. You can see what’s available here:

https://www.over-view.com/shop/prints/#

Today also kicks off our annual spring sale where you get 20% off your entire order! Just enter the code “SPRING20” at checkout.

Print seen here is Crescent Dunes Solar. Sale ends 4/18. Unfortunately framing is available for US orders only at this time. Email us for international frame requests.

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With a touch of sun-kissed summer dreams layered with the taste of strawberries and cream, Studio Prineas’ Bona Vista house excitingly awaits to embrace a family of five. Located in Sydney’s inner-west, Bona Vista is a heritage protected Federation Bungalow fenced with many tight regulations. Welcoming the historic overlay as an envelope of opportunities, architects Eva-Marie Prineas (pictured below) and Jacqueline Lindeman collaborated closely with the clients on an extension and a renovation that would continually allow the house to grow as their forever home.

The brief for this two-storey residence was catalysed by the clients’ search for a house that could accommodate their three growing children. The property was purchased through sheer determination to raise a family in the area, cemented by the connection the architects felt the moment their eyes were set upon the heritage envelope.

With thorough study and careful planning, the existing structure went through a slight refurbishment, with circulation shifted for a better connection, while the rooms remained. Along with the downward sloping landscape of the property, the layout served as a welcoming opportunity for a methodical extension.

From the entrance, a corridor extends down to a formal living space with two bedrooms attached on each side. Where a kitchen would be normally found in the traditional layouts, it was replaced with two more bedrooms, a bathroom, and a children’s retreat. Studio Prineas also introduced a stair connected to the extensions of the kitchen, dining, and a cosy sunken lounge. This space is also accessible via the garage with a mudroom and laundry conveniently attached. Behind the house exists a large stretch of lawn that’s been landscaped with a luxurious swimming pool plus a pool house made especially for the children.

Interior-wise, it’s a bit difficult to distinguish the old and the new – a sign of Prineas’ eye and reverence for the original materials of the house. Existing colours of the façade, terrazzo and vitrified tiles are deconstructed in the new styling. Against the white canvas, pops of signature colours decorate the window and door frames, the boundary of the sunken lounge and the datum of the extension. Bathrooms are lined with glistening accents of burgundy, punchy terrazzo flooring, and cream mosaic tiles offset by pink grout – enough to leave any visitor speechless. The language of bricks matches the pool house, connected by a linear alignment of the pool decking – offering an illusion of seamless integration.

Bespoke joinery and overall home styling exude an additional touch of magic such as the fine Tasmanian oak used for the built-in shelving in the sunken lounge area, and kitchen cabinetry that culminate with a rattan-lined bulkhead at the junction with the ceiling. Coupled with the sand-coloured marble island bench, this space feels like it belongs to a finely restored and preserved mid-century home.

A sound practice of fourteen years and counting, Studio Prineas’ holistic approach to the project, from architecture to interior styling, achieves an outcome that unassumingly celebrates this heritage home’s narrative. An extension that impressively tricks the eye, Bona Vista – true to its translation – is a happy sight indeed.

| The article Bona Vista House by Studio Prineas. appeared first on Yellowtrace. |

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Serra de Santa Bárbara is an inactive volcanic peak on the island of Terceira in the Azores, Portugal. At 3,350 feet (1,021 m), it is the highest point on the island. Just below the peak is the Santa Bárbara Caldera, which is roughly 0.6 miles (1 km) in diameter and has two smaller peaks in its center.

See more here: https://bit.ly/3rvi9qj

38.729723°, -27.333654°

Source imagery: Maxar

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This Overview gives us a bigger picture of the situation unfolding at the Suez Canal. In the upper-left corner, we see the “Ever Given,” a 1,312-foot-long (400 meter) container ship, stuck across the width of the canal. The rest of the frame shows the resulting traffic jam, with dozens of ships waiting outside the canal in the Gulf of Suez. The Ever Given has been stuck here since Tuesday, when strong winds pushed it aground on one of the canal’s banks.

See more here: https://bit.ly/31lXutZ

29.942874°, 32.547150°

Source imagery: Planet

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A large container ship has been stuck in the Suez Canal since Tuesday, after strong winds pushed it aground on one of the canal’s banks. The 1,312-foot-long (400 meters) “Ever Given” is large enough to block the entire width of the canal, leaving hundreds of other vessels stuck at both ends. The canal, which connects the Red to Mediterranean Seas, facilitates the passage of roughly 18,000 ships per year, or 50 ships per day.

Picture 1: Low-Angle Overview of the stuck “Ever Given”.
Picture 2: On-the-ground photo from current efforts underway to dislodge the ships from the canal’s bank.

30.862907°, 32.315920°

Source imagery: Airbus Space, © CNES 2021, Distribution Airbus DS / Suez Canal Authority

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Those who’ve practised or at least had the chance to experience the joys of Yoga would be aware this is a physical (and spiritual) activity that centres on the concept of breath and flow. This very beautiful and calming, somewhat unconventional, yet somehow still familiar-looking boutique studio in Berlin, dubbed Original Feelings, is based on the idea of flow – a term used in Yoga practice to describe a sense of fluid movement and meditation.

Designed by Some Place Studio, the 300-square-metre interior manifests the ideas of flow through extended, smooth transitions between spaces and the extensive use of malleable materials such as textiles and Hempcrete.

The studio entrance opens up onto a large reception area with a central desk doubling up as an occasional bar. An arresting reconfigurable sofa (appearing as an homage to Ubald Klug’s 1970s Terrazza for De Sede) follows the soft curve of a large screen acting as a space divider. On one side, a large water fountain reminds visitors to wash their hands, while the other side leads into the practice rooms.

Related: Warrior One Yoga Studio in Melbourne by Golden.

The colour palette is muted but joyous, with a focus on materiality and texture created in collaboration with two emerging artists. The front desk and water fountain were created by Yasmin Bawa using a custom process of a Hempcrete structure finished with pigmented lime plaster to achieve the surface texture. The large scale privacy screen separating the lounge area from the changing rooms was painted by the young Viennese artist Denise Rudolf Frank.

Designed and built during the good ol’ global pandemic, Original Feelings allows for plenty of personal space, ventilation and safety protocols to be put in place. Taking a constraint as a design opportunity Some Place Studio’s goal was to create an interior that will last beyond the current health crisis and allow for yogis and guests to feel welcome and find their flow.

Namaste.

Related: Mia Yoga Studio in Moscow, Russia by Crosby Studios.

| The article Original Feelings Yoga Studio Berlin by Some Place Studio. appeared first on Yellowtrace. |

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The medina quarter in Marrakesh, Morocco, is characterized by its winding, maze-like streets. Since the intricately connected honeycomb of alleyways narrows to less than a meter (~ 3 feet) wide in certain spots, the area is generally free from car traffic.

See more here: https://bit.ly/3lNPgnP

31.633083°, -7.986167°

Source imagery: Maxar

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Unearthly and seemingly metaphysical, this eerie cave takes us on a deep-sea odyssey, celebrating the power and beauty of our vast oceans. Designed by Russell & George, Sarah & Sebastian‘s first Melbourne boutique is an urban gesture and artwork that gives back to the streets and city of Melbourne.

This arresting design is indicative of the type of work Russell & George take pleasure in creating. Forming unique relationships with their clients and projects, their spaces go beyond the aesthetic to engage people fully in the site and social context.

Prompting a sense of discovery, the design takes cues from a personal encounter creative director of Sarah & Sebastian, Sarah Gitteos, had in an underwater cave while travelling. Moody and immersive, the fit-out is enveloped by an undulating cave-like landscape installation applied to the walls and ceiling.

Related: Space & Time in Melbourne by Russell & George.

A complex palette of all-black materials in varying sheens and intensity captures the spirit of the mostly unexplored world beneath the waves. Referencing a quote from Japanese manga creator Naoshi Arakawa – “Even in the depths of the darkest oceans, some light always pierces through” – the use of lighting is controlled and direct on the jewellery.

A coral reef is implied through hand-blown smoke grey glass pendants with colour changing bulbs that create colourful uplighting effects when the store is closed, amplify the association with the ocean.

The rest of the interior is comprised of three simple mirrored forms housing jewellery displays and a point of sale that enhances the existing typology of the space. A hidden consultation room for private jewellery discussions ensures the impact of the showroom isn’t crowded.

Not just an ode to Sarah Gitteos’ holiday, the design also seeks to engage the social conscious of the customers. As Russell & George express “…through its use of biophilic design principles, [it] gently reminds the customer of larger issues to do with the fragility of our planet.”

Beyond the biophilic nature of the interior, they also have ensured that 98% of the store fit-out materials can be recycled for use in another life. An effortless feat that I hope will inspire designers and consumers alike to consider how we can prioritise sustainability.

Playful and wondrous Russell & George have given me a convincing reason to get out of my pj’s and abandon that online cart to experience this space IRL for myself.

| The article Under The Sea: Sarah & Sebastian Armadale by Russell & George. appeared first on Yellowtrace. |

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Our thoughts are with the people of Boulder, Colorado and all those affected by yesterday’s tragedy there. This Overview shows a snow-covered Boulder at the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, where it sits at 5,430 feet (1,655 meters) above sea level. The city is home to just over 100,000 people, nearly triple the population it had 60 years ago.

See more here: https://bit.ly/3cfkEIJ

40.015000°, -105.270556°

Source imagery: Maxar