Designed by Pedra Líquida (Liquid Stone), Casa do Conto (House of Tales) began over three years ago, however a fatal fire interrupted the project in March 2009. The owner and the architects went on to complete the hotel and subsequently collect several design awards in 2011. I am particularly intrigued by the interesting approach to ceiling design – covering six separate rooms, each ceiling is engraved with text that narrates a little story. Each quote was created by a different author, and related to the city and its architecture. These six “tales” were spatially organised by the architects and designed by graphic designers from R2 Design.

BUT… there’s always a (big) but somewhere. Once I get over the cool-town ceiling, part of me starts to feel like this interior is a bit of a missed opportunity…

01 | Zona Tortona – Moroso, Neoreal Wonder, Foscarini, E15, Dedon, Design Junction, Moooi, Tom Dixon | MILAN 2011. 02 | Salone del Mobile | MILAN 2011. 03 | Baccarat Highlights | MILAN 2011. 04 | Bisazza, InterfaceFLOR, Established & Sons, Cassina, Cappellini, Poltrona Frau | MILAN 2011. 05 | Talking Textiles: An Initiative Curated by Lidewij Edelkoort | MILAN 2011. 06 | ‘This Way’ by Design Academy Eindhoven | MILAN 2011. 07 | Brera Highlights – Moroso, Missoni, Boffi, Nodus, Hermès, Fritz Hansen, Paola Lenti, Agape, Seletti | MILAN 2011. 08 | Spazio Rossana Orlandi | MILAN 2011. 09 | Rotor: Ex Limbo Installation at Fondazione Prada | MILAN 2011…

The genius of Dutch design studio Ina & Matt strikes again (I previously blogged about their work here) – this time in the form of a concept hotel in Amsterdam called Hotel The Exchange. Conceived and presented more like an art installation rather than a conventional interior, this hotel has rooms which are dressed like models on a catwalk. Engaged by Lloyd Hotel & Cultural Embassy (see previous blog post), Ina & Matt collaborated with students from AMFI – Amsterdam Fashion Institute to deliver the project. Man, imagine how trilling it would have been for AMFI students to work on this…

Well, well, well… I must admit that am both excited and a little bit sad to welcome you to this Travel Tuesday and the fifth and final post in the Barcelona Travel Guide Series. Like they say – all good things must come to an end, but before I get all emotional and shi… I mean stuff, let me just tell you about a few excellent places where you can spend you hard earned cash (or display restraint unknown to myself, and enjoy a good dose of window shopping, although that’s never as much fun, right?!)

One thing to keep in mind when planning your day is that shop hours are approximately 10am – 1:30pm and 4:30pm to 7:30pm Mon – Fri (and Sat mostly am). And when I say approximately, I mean very approximately, as you need to give or take …

¡Hola Y’all!

Welcome back to Travel Tuesday and this fourth post in the Barcelona Travel Guide Series specially curated for you by yellowtrace. Hooray! Are you ready to hear about some fantastic places to eat and booze up in the fine city of Barcelona? Yes? Perfect – you’ve come to the right place. Let me just start this post by saying that the food in Barcelona (and Spain in general) is extremely awesome. And I mean extremely extreme awesomeness, freshness and deliciousness. You are pretty much guaranteed to have an excellent meal just about anywhere you eat.

Most restaurants offer Menu del Dia (Menu of the Day) which typically includes an entree (soup or salad), main course with a side dish and dessert – all for one price. Menu del Dia is the most economical way to eat in Spain, and a great way …