Boutique Hotel

This project was showcased at Boutique Design West Trade Show in San Diego, 2015. 

Guerlain is a French perfume company, which is among the oldest in the world. It has traditionally been held in high esteem in the perfume industry.  The wife of Napoleon the third adored Guerlain perfume and which was her majesty’s patent perfumer. 

I tried about 30 different Guerlain perfumes while working on this project. Once I sprayed the Guerlain perfume, the fragrance wrapped all around and enveloped me. One time, it smelled like roses and irises that evoked romantic feeling, and once it smelled like very sophisticated city fragrance which reminded me of a busy, yet completely free single life I had in Tokyo. And once, it made me want to travel right away with foreign and exotic fragrance. While I was trying them, I noticed feelings and emotional changes within myself. Therefore I decided to make my project concept, EMOTION.

Guerlain’s perfume is sold for around $600 per bottle. Unlike inexpensive perfumes, you can notice the deep and rich fragrances which were created by carefully selected layers of ingredients. I chose six different emotions and designed this hotel so that you can experience layers of different emotions throughout the hotel.  

Entry - "Anticipation"

Lounge - "Wonder"

Hallway - "Awakening"

Bar - "Passion"

Guest room - "Tranquility"

Rooftop swimming pool & bar - "Excellence"

The facade design is with glass and mesh materials. I used a lot of glass material at the entry area but placed them higher and lower than eye level, and added angles so that you can not see inside easily unless you come around a certain corner of the entrance area. It is designed this way to stimulate curiosity and anticipation.

Guerlain manages spa in New York city. I used that as inspiration for designing a relaxing yet sophisticated space.

Once you enter, you will notice that there is a strange looking object hung from the ceiling. As you walk toward the reception, you will find an even larger, cloud like object right above the lounge area. The lounge is recessed 3’ from the ground like a pool and has built in benches around the edges. I designed this space to be used for meeting and waiting for someone comfortably or just relaxing while looking at the unique lighting fixture. 

I designed the wall which was inspired by Guerlain’s beautiful quartz bottles. The lighting that is placed randomly on the wall here and there looks dimly lit yet strong like fireflies making you feel like you are awakening into a new world. 

As you walk deeper into the building, you will find a bar. I used sparkling cut glass as an accent wall, textured red wall paper, and a chandelier which is made using strands of metal beads to create sparkling moving shadows. 

Marble Tile: Reflective white surface creates refreshing, virgin feeling. It is a luxury material.

Porcelain Tile: Horizontal pattern adds calm and quiet, relaxed and comfortable mood. Suitable for bedroom.

Hard Wood floor: It is a timeless material and adds warmth and comfortable feeling to the space. It is also a hypo allergenic material which improves air quality.

Porcelain Tile: Used in bathroom wall, adds great contrast with white marble floor. Earthy texture and pattern create natural feeling.

Bamboo Floor: Natural, strong and sustainable material. It is cool and comfortable on bare foot. Creates ZEN space and suitable for the Meditation Area.

Wall Paper: “Mother of pearl” by Maya Romanoff.  Seashell natural look adds calmness. Shiny surface adds luxury look.

I started developing form inspired by Guerlain’s rich and long history.  The very first form I made was based on historical women’s dress called Crinoline.  The fabric first appeared around 1830, but by 1850, the word had come to mean a stiffened petticoat or rigid skirt-shaped structure of steel designed to support the skirts of a woman’s dress into the required shape.  Guerlain was founded in 1828, so I was imaging the very early time of their company and how women used to dressed at the time of the period.   

Experimenting while creating different forms inspired by the “Bee“ of Guerlain’s logo.

Kitchen and Bar Counter_

These sketches are drawn based on hotel experiences.

Kitchen & Outside_

Bathrooms_

This brand bible establishes the voice and personality of a company, as well as who the public will see, and it governs every aspect of communication from the company. 

A brand bible book is placed inside and a Guerlian sample perfume bottle is placed inside for everyone to try their wonderful product.