In an impressive coup, Brisbane-based interior designer and architect Renee Popovic beat stiff international competition recently to take out the top prize in the Victoria + Albert 2018 International Design Award, for a bathroom she designed.
Renee’s winning design
Entrants were asked to create a 3m x 3m boutique hotel bathroom that ‘inspires, relaxes and reinvigorates the guest’ and Renee beat over 140 other international interior designers and architects in the process.
Renee Popovic
The bathroom combines honed marble, lime wash render, terrazzo and brushed brass and the judges were particularly impressed with Renee’s use of curves within a square space. “My design approach is based on formal principles, but with a modern twist,” says Renee who was sent on an all-expenses-paid trip to see her winning bathroom recreated (using imitation materials) at the recent Salone del Mobile in Milan.
“I was faced with a relatively compact space, so felt it was important to utilise symmetry to create a coherent bathroom. I also chose to mix modern and traditional elements in the bathroom, opting for a modern bath with more traditional basins. Adding the Stone Grey exterior paint finish to the products was also an important detail,” says Renee who relished the opportunity to create a high-end experiential space.
“I was particularly inspired by the brief for boutique hotel design as it gives the designer the chance to create something truly unique that the guest wouldn’t usually experience at home. I was absolutely delighted to see my design come to life at Salone del Mobile,” says Renee.
“Renee’s design was truly original and it created a lot of conversations at Salone del Mobile about the nature of compact space design and how innovative interiors can shape a guest’s experience in a boutique hotel,” says Victoria + Albert’s marketing director Jonathan Carter.
Is anywhere more known for its coffee than Italy? Probably not! Having visited Milan, Venice, Tuscany and Rome last year, I can tell you it’s all true what they say! From city to city, Italians enjoy their coffee in different ways and with different traditions, but like the English do tea, they all take their hot beverages just as seriously!
In 2013, Nespresso celebrated this diversity through the cities of Naples and Trieste, with two unique and contrasting coffees. This month, they continue to pay homage to the rich heritage of Italy’s coffee culture with two new Limited Edition ristrettos, inspired by the emblematic cities of Milan and Palermo.
Last year, I visited Milan for the famous Salone del Mobile furniture fair and with so many huge halls to traipse around, a regular caffeine fix was high on my agenda! Remember though, no messing around with your coffee when you’re in Italy, Il Culto del Caffè is a serious business and you don’t want to get laughed out of the cafe! No cappuccinos or other milky coffees after breakfast, in many places expect to drink standing up, and as any purist knows, no flavoured syrups or any of that nonsense. Oh no, not in Italia!
Here in Australia, we’re lucky to benefit from the knowledge of our many Italian immigrants, whether it’s around coffee, fashion, style or food. I thought it would be fun to look at how you might take inspiration from Milan and Palermo in your interiors.
MILANO
Milan is Italy’s city of finance, business and fashion. Some would say it’s the global capital of fashion! My Milan-inspired interior would super sleek and high end but relaxed enough to be fashionable. Think elegant lines and great bones like timber floors, panelled walls and tall windows. It’s grand like the huge Milan Cathedral and the stunning Galleria shopping arcade and impressive like a da Vinci painting! But a little undone like a young, off duty supermodel!
Image via Fanuli Furniture. Click through for details
Tribute to Milano (Intensity 9) is Nespresso’s interpretation of the hustle and bustle of the vibrant city of Milan, where coffee is enjoyed at a fast pace, whilst standing at the bar. Inspired by the perfect balance of elegance and intensity at the architecturally impressive Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, Tribute to Milano is also a perfect equilibrium of elegance and intensity. A highly aromatic ristretto, Tribute to Milano transports you to a traditional gelateria in the heart of Milan with its fine fruity aromas and sweet cereal notes.
PALERMO
For all Milan’s sophistication and gloss, Sicily’s Palermo is altogether more relaxed and sunny, but just as bustling. My Palermo interior would be casual and colourful to reflect the city’s richness of culture, music and food. This interior is perfectly imperfect and a little rough around the edges. Raw materials and natural light feature heavily in this look. Furniture is mismatched in a charming way.
Image via Air Bnb. Click through for details.
Nespresso’s Tribute to Palermo (Intensity 11) is inspired by the relaxed and social coffee culture in Palermo and pays homage to the Sicilians’ love of a strong coffee. It is a powerful, intense and full-bodied ristretto with a silky texture reminiscent of a leisurely afternoon in the sun. Nespresso’s coffee experts were also inspired by the vibrancy of the Sicilian outdoor markets, alive with colourful spices, fresh produce and flowers so the cacao aromas and spicy peppery notes evoke an experience in amongst the locals at the market.
Image via booking.com. Click through for details
COMPETITION
To celebrate the launches, we’re running a competition over on Instagram. To enter, you’ll need to style and take a photo of your own tribute to Milan or Palermo and hashtag it either #tributetomilano or #tributetopalermo and tag us and @nespresso.
One winner will receive the new Nespresso Pixie Clips machine and a 10-sleeve Limited Edition Italian Inspired Assortment Pack, with additional accessories. Enter by midnight on 30 September 2015.
Last week saw THE event of the interiors calendar Salone Internazionale del Mobile (the international furniture fair) in Milan, and I was lucky enough to go for the first time. Within this mega fair sits Eurocucina, a kitchens-only showcase bigger than most Aussie trade fairs and full of beautiful things (read about the top trends I spotted here).
A display at Eurocucina in Milan
Freedom Kitchens sent a team of 10 of their designers to Milan to be inspired by Europe’s latest trends, innovations and materials in kitchens. Because they have their own Australian factory, this inspiration can become reality in customers’ kitchen within months — weeks even. This flexibility and freedom to move fast is what keeps their kitchens cutting edge and fashionable, as you may have seen on The Block Sky High.
Matt and Kim’s Freedom Kitchen from The Block Sky High
At the fair, Freedom Kitchens’ national sales director Susan Hasler said the kitchens at Milan were darker and moodier than last year with a lot of highlights in timber veneers and more matt than gloss finishes. “Some of the Dekton surfaces were very interesting and there was a lot of the concrete look and feel. It’s all a lot about texture. Touch and feel is really important.”
Cabinetry was perhaps more vertical than horizontal with taller pull-out drawers containing several internal drawers. Another trend she noticed was for integrated handles rather than a completely handle-less look.
Large drawer storage seen at Eurocucina
Freedom Kitchens will be able to translate these innovations and trends to the local Australian market very quickly, while remembering that not everything will be popular or appropriate to our lifestyle. “We will be able to update some of our designs within a couple of months due to us manufacturing in Australia. We can do smaller runs, move quickly and see if things work and are popular,” Susan says. “It’s really important for us to come here to things like Eurocucina. Australia is sometimes thought of as being behind the times. You’re going to have a kitchen for a very long time so it’s important we’re ahead of the game. You don’t want to invest in something which is already a couple of years out of date. We have 10 kitchen designers here which is a big investment but it’s worth it for what we can bring back and the level of credibility it gives us. It’s about us bringing that fashion look at a value price.”
It’s not as simple as copying a load of ideas and expecting Australians to accept them as the latest and greatest, by any means. “It’s about adapting ideas to the Australian market and our way of life,” Susan says. “In terms of the differences between Europe and Australia, we entertain outside a lot, with kitchens often leading out onto decks or yards, or other entertaining areas. This lends itself well to the single wall and island design of kitchen.”
Kitchens were moodier, with more timber veneers and matt surfaces at Eurocucina
While people are often tempted to play it safe on a room which costs a lot of money and they hope to keep for years, Susan says a good kitchen designer can help them to be braver without wasting money or making an unwise investment. Her advice for a ‘safe’ yet fashionable kitchen is to stick to neutral cabinets and be bold with things you can change every couple of years (if desired) like wall colours (wallpaper even!), pendant lights and even splashbacks. You can make a real difference with how you accessorise (the great thing about Freedom Kitchens being that you can pick up Freedom homewares in store too). “We love being able to show customers how to accessorise and style their kitchens with our examples in our showrooms,” Susan says.
In terms of the strong presence of timber veneer at Milan, Susan doesn’t think many Australians will opt for that look in a big way. They may, for example though, choose to do their base cabinets in timber veneer and top cabinets in white, or just their end panels for example. These are all flexible options Freedom Kitchens can offer. “We also have to bear in mind that something that looks great here in Europe may not translate well in Australian light. It’s very different.”
Timber veneers seen at Eurocucina in Milan
The previous snobbery about veneer is disappearing these days, due to the huge advances in quality. “The new ones are so good you can’t even tell they’re not solid timber. They’re also more durable and hygienic which makes them a smart choice for kitchens.”
Look out for more expert tips on kitchen storage and how to get the most out of working with a kitchen designer on the blog next week.
Last night, I went to a beautiful Caesarstone event in Milan as part of the international furniture fair Salone del Mobile. The crowning glory of the installation was a 19-metre long, super sleek and modern ‘island’ for cooking and food prep, looking striking in the middle of one of the historic Palazzo Clerici’s ornate old rooms, with a lemon tree springing from its centre.
Two further islands, also made of various Caesarstone surfaces, comprised a table tennis table and a stunning bath with built-in record turntable!
Islands is a collaboration with London-based Raw Edges designers Yael Mer and Shay Alkalay. In their eight years, the young duo have designed for Cappellini, Established & Sons, Moroso, Kvadrat, Stella McCartney, Arco, Mutina, Lema and more, and their many works have been showcased in museums and exhibited in expos in Milan, London, Paris and New York.
The main idea was to look at the Caesarstone product differently; beyond simply a surface that you put things on top of. The main island had cut-outs for sinks, dishes, chopping boards and much more, showing just what’s possible. The only limit is your imagination!
Caesarstone Australia marketing manager Andrew Dixon explains the idea is to really inspire people to think outside the box, and while it’s unlikely many customers will go as far as putting a turntable in their bathroom, the many possibilities available to customise the flexible and super strong product are not fantasy.
“We’d like people to think ‘do I really need all these cupboards?’ for example. Caesarstone is so user-friendly and so much more than just a bench top. I personally love the idea of creating a raised appliances station on top of the bench top where you keep appliances out, but out of the way of the main preparation surface,” Andrew says.
“Innovation is really important to us and we like to provide the customer with direct inspiration.”
Two exciting new products should hit the market around June/July: Sleek Concrete and the marble-inspired Calacatta Nuvo (I’ve seen it and it’s great).
I’ve spent many hours at Eurocucina today, the kitchen section (I say section, but it’s bigger than most standalone trade fairs) of Salone del Mobile in Milan. I thought I’d share the top trends I noticed and some photos from day one.
I should preface this by saying the combination of swarms of super-keen visitors and lighting designed to create atmosphere and mood, don’t make for the best photos I’ve ever taken!
Timber and timber veneer were everywhere, mostly muted cool greige tones which I found surprisingly warm and interesting. For me, this was the most obvious and overarching kitchen design trend at the fair.
The new timber kitchen is modern and sleek and just a touch industrial. Although the timber finishes tend to be pale, the look isn’t Scandi as you might expect.
I love the texture and warmth in these kitchens.
Timber and stainless steel was a popular combo.
There’s also very little gloss. It’s all about the matt surfaces on cabinetry.
Many kitchens incorporated some kind of open shelving. This makes the kitchen feel like more of a dressed room than ever before and not just a functional space. Seeing as it’s the heart of most homes these days, this makes absolute sense!
Large pullout drawers for storage, replacing cupboards, are still big, with many featuring lights which automatically come on when opened.
Touch-open cabinet doors are here to stay with very few doors with handles seen.
I saw a lot of glass fronted cabinets (and poor staff constantly polishing fingerprints off them!).
Cabinet doors folded up or back on themselves. I loved some of these smart features.
This looks like a splashback until it lifts up to reveal the storage behind. Neat.
Low hanging multiple interesting pendant lights over kitchen benches and dining tables were popular; another way to dress the kitchen, as mentioned above.
Where I saw a few pops of colour against the timber it was almost always red.
Bench tops were super slim in many cases; just a few mm.
I spotted many gloss white appliances, like ovens, and some black ones too, making a change from steel. Isn’t it funny how appliances (and electricals like TVs) go through colour trends like this? The white works well with the timber, I must say.
This is my first ever trip to Salone del Mobile and Eurocucina. It is huge and rather mad, especially on opening day. You can feel the buzz of excitement around and there are people from all over the world everywhere. There is a lot of ground to cover. Literally! It was an exciting day, getting a look at what will no doubt become common trends in Aussie kitchens in the not too distant future. Tomorrow, I’ll be chatting to two experts from Freedom Kitchens to get their take on what’s going to be big.
I’m flying to Milan tomorrow which is UBER exciting, to experience the HUGE international furniture fair Salone Internazionale del Mobile, for the first time. It’s every interiors addict’s dream, surely? My trip will be very kitchen-centric, and I’ll spend most of my time at Eurocucina, so I’ll be bringing you back all the latest trends and products. I’ll also be visiting some kitchen showrooms around the city and going to some no doubt glam parties with Smeg and Caesarstone.
Everyone keeps telling me it’s impossible to envisage just how big it is until you go for the first time. Suffice to say, I’m packing my comfy walking shoes! Looking forward to sharing it all with you very soon.
Timber and stainless steel was a popular combo.
