Stories On Design // Empty & Abandoned Buildings.I've always had a profound fascination with empty buildings and abandoned spaces. It's difficult to look at these sorts of images without a whole bunch of mixed feelings rising to the surface - a sense of wonder, confusion, awe,...
At Home With GamFratesi in Copenhagen.I feel incredibly excited, honoured and humbled to share with you one of my greatest personal highlights since starting Yellowtrace 6 years ago. Massive statement, I realise, as there have been so, so many, but spending a morning with...
SAMF Arquitectos’ Reinterpretation of a Traditional Portuguese Farmhouse.SAMF Arquitectos have designed a residence set in a vineyard with traditional agricultural buildings nearby. The property replaces an existing farm building and is part of the gradual regeneration of the site to improve its potential for...
Fab-Union Space by Archi-Union Architects // Shanghai, China.As more designers play with, experiment and adopt new technologies and create new techniques to implement them, this brave Chinese jewel starts revealing a future face of architecture that is frankly, pretty cool. Springing up in...
Mr & Mrs Fox, Hong Kong.Designed by Charlie & Rose, Hong Kong-based company owned by Australian designer Ben McCarthy, Mr & Mrs Fox is a 250-seat multi-level bar and restaurant with a craft beer-house at street level, raw bar and steakhouse on the first floor and...
Studio McQualter Transforms Melbourne Literary Icon into MECCA’s Most Ambitious Flagship.In Melbourne's bustling retail precinct, a heritage building with a serious literary pedigree has found its most spectacular incarnation yet. MECCA's ambitious 4,000-square-metre flagship creates authentic dialogue between eras, with over...
Pattern Studio Creates Intimate Retail Haven for Deiji’s Sydney Expansion.Pattern Studio has transformed a compact Paddington heritage shopfront into an inviting retail destination for independent fashion brand Deiji. The 35-square-metre store prioritises warmth and accessibility over exclusivity. Custom oak...
Peter Marino Brings Parisian Sophistication to CHANEL’s New Sydney Boutique.CHANEL's new Sydney boutique occupies a redeveloped Market Street landmark featuring Australia's first dedicated Watches & Fine Jewellery space. Peter Marino recontextualises CHANEL's architectural codes through a sophisticated interplay...
Audo’s Monuments Installation Proves Restraint Can Be as Powerful as Ornamentation.Monuments showcases Audo Copenhagen's evolution beyond traditional showroom concepts. The installation spans Audo House's diverse environments—café, restaurant, concept shop, exhibition rooms and courtyard—each reimagined to explore...
DualSpace Studio Transforms a Kuala Lumpur Store into a Cinematic Experience.For Kuala Lumpur's Calaqisya Store, DualSpace Studio drew inspiration from Wes Anderson's meticulous aesthetic. The space features custom wood panelling that conceals functional elements, membrane ceiling lights casting golden warmth, and...
At Above The Clouds Melbourne Store, Pattern Explores Restraint as a Form of Richness.Above The Clouds' Melbourne expansion showcases Pattern Studio at their most considered. The young practice has refined their signature "unexpected dualities" theme into something more nuanced for the Collins Street store. It's retail...
Le Dorian: Geneva’s Legendary Brasserie Shows How to Change Everything by Changing Nothing.This 1950s Geneva brasserie, originally gifted to actress Mademoiselle Dorian by her wealthy admirer, retains its romantic theatrical DNA while embracing fresh artistic energy. Ykra Architects' approach was surgical: preserve the...
Bucharest’s Communist-Era Apartment Block Becomes Romania’s Coolest Music Venue.Romania's first listening bar occupies a historically significant 1960s apartment block. The design embraces original socialist features through contemporary materials: birch plywood, marble mosaic flooring, and a striking mechanical glass...
Studio Plenty and Sarah Ellison Crack the Code on Urban Dining with Light Years Perth.Studio Plenty and Sarah Ellison have translated their Byron Bay concept to Perth's CBD context. Light Years Asian Diner overcomes significant heritage building challenges through strategic planning and clever material selection. The...
Spacegram Serves Up Italian Hospitality With a Twist at Scusa Restaurant in Lisbon.In a city and time where restaurants often chase the latest trends, Spacegram has taken a different approach with Scusa in Lisbon. This contemporary Italian restaurant reimagines the interior without falling into stereotypes—no checkered...
Swiss Architect Leopold Banchini Crafts Entire London Pub Interior From One Oak Tree.What happens when you build an entire pub interior from one oak tree? Leopold Banchini's Goodbye Horses in London's De Beauvoir Town shows exactly how powerful single-material focus can...
Euro-Inspired Design Meets Burleigh Beach Charm at the New Mondrian Hotel.Australia's first Mondrian hotel has transformed Burleigh Beach's hospitality landscape through Alexander CO’s sophisticated design approach. The 24-storey tower houses two distinct venues: LiTO ground floor restaurant featuring dramatic...
Smart Material Moves Transform This Fragmented Madrid Apartment.Plantea Estudio transformed a fragmented 1970s Madrid apartment into a serene refuge through intelligent spatial planning and material restraint. Timber flooring extending up walls to create a nest-like embrace that unifies daily...
Neglected London Car Park Transformed into Striking Family Home.Small-scale developer Flawk has partnered with NIKJOO architecture to transform a forgotten car park into a striking three-bedroom family home. The project unlocks the potential of an overlooked urban infill site with sustainable building...
Salvaged Bricks Transform Mount Coot-tha House in Peter Besley’s Material Masterstroke.Peter Besley doesn't just design houses—he solves problems. His latest project is perched on the ridge of Mount Coot-tha's numerous spurs, emerging from Brisbane's steep terrain like a series of sculptural objects. Birdwood tackles...
Studio Karhard’s Nightclub-Inspired Berlin Apartment.Twenty years after designing Berghain, Studio Karhard brings nightclub vibes home in this Berlin apartment renovation. The project transforms a two-room Kreuzberg space into a three-room layout featuring their signature curved glass brick...
Alexander Design Reimagines a 1979 Ronald Goldman Malibu Coastal Classic for Modern Living.California coastal architecture reaches new heights in this Point Dume transformation. Alexander Design's comprehensive renovation of Ronald Goldman's 1979 post-and-beam residence honours architectural legacy while meeting contemporary...
20-Year Friendship Creates Design Magic at Currumbin Valley Retreat.This Currumbin Valley retreat emerged from five years of collaboration between Grace Loves Lace founder Megan Ziems and Ellison Studios' Leigh McKeown—friends since high school who share an intuitive design language. Architect Harley...
Daytrip Transforms Historic London Buildings Into Cloisters Workspace.Daytrip has transformed a collection of historic brick buildings near London's Silicon Roundabout. Built around a central courtyard with a spectacular living green wall, Cloisters celebrates original features while introducing contemporary...
How Lammhults Built Sustainability into Their Design DNA Decades Before it Became Mainstream.While most furniture companies were still figuring out recycling basics, Lammhults was already reimagining entire product lifecycles. Their approach goes beyond using recycled materials—they design for disassembly from day...
Bundarra Building Shows Heritage Restoration and Modern Design Can Be Best Friends.The corner of South Dowling and Fitzroy Streets in Sydney’s Surry Hills has had a major glow up thanks to Bundarra. This collaboration between Smart Design Studio and Those Architects combines meticulous heritage restoration with bold...
Singapore’s Brutalist Library Becomes Dynamic Workspace Thanks to Nice Projects’ Expert Touch.Nice Projects has turned a former Brutalist library in Singapore into The Lo & Behold Group's new headquarters. The brief was tricky—how do you make massive concrete vaults work for a hospitality company? The answer: smart moves...
Tabula Studio Transforms Client Experience Through Tactile Design in Bilbao Office.Architect Nerea Apraiz has transformed a 92-square-metre former consultancy into an immersive client experience where materials, finishes, and design solutions can be touched, tested, and experienced firsthand. From showcase toilets...
1970s NoMad Building Gets a Contemporary Makeover as Financial Firm HQ by Float Studio.Smart design decisions define Float Studio's NoMad headquarters project. Working within the historic building, the team created a financial firm workspace that honours 1970s architectural...
