Softly interweaving spaces characterise this home in Vietnam

Designed by 23°5 Studio, an architectural studio based in Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam, BQ17 house is a wonderfully refreshing look into the design and build of a project from scratch. Located within a peaceful and uncrowded neighbourhood of Binh Chanh, BQ17 is the dream home of a couple who spent ten years working and saving hard, in order to be able to realise their dream.

With urban planning laws requiring houses to have a certain unoccupied area around them, the architects were faced with the challenge of needing to provide enough comfortably livable space for a large family, including four separate bedrooms, on what was quite a tight block of land.

The solution that 23°5 Studio came up with was to treat the design as interlocking and interweaving spaces, all built around one central vertical space. This solution created tall voids and interesting, multi-level connections between the rooms, in turn creating unique visual snapshots from different vantage points within the house.

From the outside, the house serves viewers with distinct sharp and simple lines, and creates curiosity through its jutting cubes and misaligned facade features. Furthermore, in the evening, it offers the neighbourhood a beautiful lantern-like sculpture, along with subtle views of the sleek and minimalist interior.

Source - contemporist

Images - 23°5 Studio

Related Nest of Pearls post - The fun of function, Stacked House by Naturehumaine

CUT Architectures designs third PNY burger joint in Paris

A new, colourful and super dooper contemporary PNY burger joint has opened in Paris in the 3rd arrondissement Les Marias, designed by CUT Architectures. I'm guessing this is only due to the success of the existing two restaurants, PNY Oberkampf and PNY FBG St-Denis, both also in Paris, and both also designed by CUT Architectures.

A little bit about the PNY burger establishments... They're actually part of what is becoming a flourishing concept in Paris, that of digging into burgers. While devouring burgers has always been more of an American thing, the French, who are generally more choosy about the quality of their food, seem to slowly be coming across this concept.

And the success of the PNY concept probably lies largely in their philosophy around the quality of their food. They carefully choose only the very best meat and ingredients, all while serving up a culture that is a blend of NYC and Paris, but minus the typically, corny clichés.

Whereby the first two PNY joints, in Oberkampf and St-Denis, were less colourful and certainly darker, the Les Marais PNY is completely animated with colour and eccentricity. There are a couple of things that stand out for me in the photos here; I love the juxtaposition of the bright, metallic, shiny colours against the rugged, textured wall, and I also get completely lost in the rectilinear, geometric visual cues that pop up as one moves through the space.

So with my flying to Paris in exactly one week from now, this is a definite must do on the list. It ticks all the boxes; I love burgers, love NYC, love Paris, love the colourful interior... however, the waistline may suffer...

Source - contemporist.com

Images - contemporist.com

Photography - david foessel

Adorable Paris duplex, by Sarah Lavoine

As I prepare to fly to Paris in what is now less than two weeks (yaaaay!!), I can't help but keep an eye on what is happening over there in the city of art, culture, and wonderful wine. So here's a little project I stumbled across recently... 

We find ourselves in a fresh and light filled Parisian duplex. Located between Rue Saint-Honoré and Les Tuilleries, the apartment belongs to Sarah Lavoine, who is also the apartment designer. I particularly love the perfect mix of white, crisp freshness married with the vintage turquoise. The colour makes timely appearances in almost each spaces within this apartment, visually tying the user's journey through the home. I'm also a big fan of the contrast that is achieved between the white floorboards and the metal staircase, it gives the home a touch of a rugged warehouse feeling... 

The whole apartment is adorable, but there is one more subtle thing I'd like to point out that doesn't jump out immediately in these photos, and that is the use of the mirrors in the window coves. What a simple yet fabulous idea!! The mirrors not only give depth to the coves, but reflect and expand that beautiful light coming into the duplex. What luck, to have such an amazingly grandiose space to design... One day...

Source - sarahlavoine via turbulences-deco

Images courtesy of - sarahlavoine

Wonderland in the sky, by Steven Harris Architects

I absolutely love New York. To date, I've only had the pleasure of visiting this amazing city as a tourist, but I just know that one day I'll need to live there, even if it's for a short period of time. Maybe the calling will come one day when I'm a full-time design blogger and I'll be required to live in New York to rub shoulders and interview local design talent... yes, I'm sure that that's what it'll have to be...

So I guess, until then, I'm left to dream and plan... and what better way to dream about the perfect NY abode than this whizz-bang snazzy penthouse!! What a space, what a view, what grandeur!! Designed by the award-winning Steven Harris Architects, this incredible jewel of an apartment hangs in the heights of the 27 and 28th floor of a converted 1930's office building NY's TriBeCa.

The 743 square-metre home is rich with breathtaking design solutions, an abundant allowance made that much more attainable by the clients' very accommodating and generous budget. One of my favourite aspects are the simple and elegant floating stairs. Made out of stainless steel plates, each step is then wrapped in leather. What a unique and unlikely mix of material!! I can only imagine how comfortable it must be to sink one's foot in these immaculate stairs.

Where I think this apartment design really tugs at my heart-strings, though, is the large windows, impeccable views, and rich light streaming in at every possible opportunity. It is an absolutely perfect wonderland for lovers of rich, plush, boundary-less comfort, quietly looking down on the mesmerising lights of one one of the most magnificent cities of the world.

Source - steven harris architects

Images courtesy of - steven harris architects

Interior photography heaven, by Sean Fennessy

I first came across the work of Sean Fennessy late last year when I was perusing one of my all-time favourite, favourite Australian design blogs, The Design Files. The story that got my attention was on a Melbourne warehouse loft conversion, an exquisite abode owned by John Parker, founder of Format Furniture. And as seductive as the styling of the interior was, the photography took it that one big step closer to aesthetic heaven. I immediately fell in love with Sean Fennessy's photography because it was crisp, edgy, confidently defined, all while capturing the perfect contrast in the colours and the shadows. You can check out this tantalising interior project I speak of in the Nest of Pearls post Perfection, hidden in a Melbourne warehouse loft (original source The Design Files).

But back to Sean Fennessy. I've had a draft post sitting in my blog archives for some time, and I have no idea why it has taken me so long to post it but I'm so glad that I finally did. Just going over his work on his website makes my heart smile. I love, love, LOVE!! the cleanness of his shots, the vibrant pallet of texture, colour and tone, and his bold compositions. Every object in his photography seems to have been perfectly considered and included exactly where he wanted it. Nothing sneaks in by chance.

The collection of Sean Fennessy's work I'm showing you here comes from his interiors portfoilio. Projects include, Westgarth Hall, Jardan, Graeme Gunn House, Design Files Open House, and Adrianne Stramp. 

Images courtesy of - sean fennessy