I love Hotel design, particularly when Hotels push the boundaries and break the mould. Yes, we all love to wander into a stylish hotel and marvel at how coordinated the furnishings are, how comfy the mattress is etc etc. But design, really imaginative design, works on a whole other level. These are the 5* hotels dreams are made of – the ones where an imaginative architect, interior designer and more importantly, a client willing to trust their designers, have worked tirelessly to make their hotel the one to which all others aspire. They’re not common and we average Joes will most likely never have the pleasure of staying a night in one, but that just makes them even more appealing. I’m talking the like of the Sanderson in London, The Hotel Puerta Americas in Madrid, and now included in the ranks, the Maison Moschino hotel in Madrid.
The Maison Moschino has a clear concept which is creatively expressed throughout the Hotel and inkeeping with the fashion brand.
“True to the essence of the Moschino brand, we completely reinterpreted the building, adding 65 contemporary hotel rooms and junior suites inspired by a visionary and contemporary fairy tale theme. Spread out across four floors, the rooms are sensuous visions of surreal diversity. Entering the Maison Moschino is like falling down the rabbit hole: after a while, you come to expect the unexpected.Highly imaginative and eccentric, we created the spaces to inspire the mind while the body relaxes – because to sleep is perchance to dream. The hotel features several luxurious amenities supporting the surreal Moschino theme: the imaginative menu served in our "Clandestino Milano" restaurant, the dreamlike drinks welcoming you in our exquisite ground floor bar, and the elysian atmosphere of our Culti Spa.Welcome to Maison Moschino, where four stars meet a few clouds – and the occasional teacup table, forest bedpost, and rose petal-covered bedspread.”
I really love how whole heartedly the theme has been implemented into the rooms. What pleases me most about this type of boutique hotel is how multiple room schemes are used and how varied these schemes are – they don’t simply opt for a different coloured scattered cushion, they re-invent the concept from scratch to produce a unique design. Hotels used to aspire to a create rooms of a better quality than at home domesticity but essentially, they sought to provide a home-away-from-home experience where familiarity would relax and comfort. These concept hotels look to abandon familiarity and instead seek to provide an experience far away from domestic design –a real “Alice down the Rabbit Hole” adventure.
Out of the Moschino rooms, I really love the Forrest concept - its simplicity in colour and quirky use of woodland creatures appeals to me, for sure. I also LOVE the rose petal bedspread and am truely baffled as to how that actually works in a Hotel environment (seriously, how do they wash that?!). I also love the Ivy room with matching striped wall and headboard - its like an optical illusion.
I think it’s only a matter of time before this "concept design" makes its way into our homes – we are already seeing products emerge on the high street of a quirky nature (Next have a beautiful Teacup & Saucer lamp i'm currently coveting). Will home design become akin to stage design in the near future?
M x
