City Notes
It's been said that Lodz is the "Manchester of Poland", once a hive of successful industrial businesses it's experienced the troubles that have followed their demise yet remains a culturally rich city. As one of the cities many up-and-coming venues,...
City Notes
Hong Kong's new Ritz-Carlton is lavish. Very lavish. Perhaps what you'd expect from the world's tallest hotel; it's elegant, grand, opulent and oh-so luxurious. The ghost of Liberace may have been haunting the hotel's interior designers in some of...
Journal
Munich-born, Berlin-based; Sarah Illenberger is a visual artist whose three-dimensional illustrations are in high demand. Having created spellbinding commissions for the likes of Wallpaper*, Nike and the New York Times, Illenberger turns the mundane...
City Notes
Chances are, if you're not from Australia that is, you may not have heard of Melbourne's Jardan. Which is a bit of a pity, as the family-owned design specialists have a somewhat impressive collection of sofas, tables, beds and accessories that are...
City Notes
Leaving a trail of super-cool venues across California and beyond, Oakland's Mr. Important Design clearly know a thing or two about what puts the hip into a hip-nightspot; and their latest oeuvre does not disappoint. Chambers Eat and Drink is the...
City Notes
Taking something from nature, giving it depth and warmth and turning into something special. It's a simple, age-old process. Coffee dates back as far as the thirteenth century, and espresso so the early 1800s. Melbourne's Slowpoke Espresso is not...
City Notes
Exposed concrete; check. Retro fittings; check. Floor to ceiling windows; check. Super-cool branding; check... It may well be months behind schedule, but Nolita's very own boutique/design/style/luxury (*delete where appropriate) hotel fits the bill...
City Notes
Inspired by M. C. Escher's famous experiments with perception and perspective, Roman architect Francesco Gatti has created an ALTERnative - you see what they did there? - fashion store for the usually conservative retail streets of Shanghai....
City Notes
Whilst the city of angels' hoards of ramen noodle fans will have to wait until September to sample Tsujita's famed specialty - the chain has built a solid reputation with outposts in China and Thailand, as well as several in its native Tokyo - the...
City Notes
Press releases. Funny things they are. Some are big, bolshy and corporate, quoting facts and figures and making you feel all insignificant because you haven't achieved nearly as much as the subject. Others are badly written, lackadaisical and limp,...
City Notes
Situated waterside on the Bosphorus Straits – the frontier separating Europe and Asia – is the immaculately appointed Sumahan Hotel. The chic design hotel was converted from a mid-nineteenth century building that was originally a distillery...
City Notes
We're loving NOPI, the new Soho based restaurant from the team at Ottolenghi's for two reasons. First, for the array of fresh and innovative sharing plates and the second for the interiors of clean white, brass and gold designed by award winning...
Stuff Crush
Weirdness is a notion long entwined with the concept of creativity. Mocked by the strait-laced confined to their boxes of conformism, celebrated by the bold and the brave who pursue the outré as a means of pushing beyond the banal. In Weird...
City Notes
In Montreal’s Little Italy, a new arrival is making waves with a fresh take on Italian dining. Pasta Pooks, which opened in March 2025, is a compact five-seat takeout counter serving pasta and natural wine in a space that marries Old World charm...
City Notes
A once-forgotten 19th-century residence in Savannah’s historic district has been brought spectacularly back to life, reincarnated as The Douglas; a refined 16-room boutique hotel at 14 East Oglethorpe Avenue, where design meets old-world...
Dispatches
In a country where club floors open with Buddhist chants and Ladyboys offer dawn alms in corsets and stilettos, Elizabeth Waterman has found a world of contradictions too vivid to ignore. Over the past three years, and across four extended trips,...
Dispatches
There's a paradox about self-care, which is that those who need it most are probably the least likely to practice it. If you're one of those people, you might even be put off by the term self-care. Maybe it sounds too self-indulgent to you. If...
Dispatches
Looking for a Japanese tutor in Chicago without breaking the bank? You’re not alone. Whether you’re aiming to order ramen with confidence, ace a language exam, or shape your skills for business or travel, one thing’s clear: good private...
Dispatches
If you’ve ever looked at your balcony and thought, “What a wasted space,” you’re not alone. Many of us live in homes where every square foot counts, yet balconies often remain underutilized. Whether it’s too small, too plain, or simply...
Dispatches
Recognising the world’s most inspiring work across design, innovation and creativity, the A’ Design Award & Competition stands as one of the most respected and far-reaching international design accolades. Each year, a diverse panel of academics,...