One of the great things about travel is the design inspiration to be found around every corner. Ask any designer—working in textiles, interiors, architecture, urban planning— and they'll likely tell you that travel, for them, is a font of new ideas.
One such source when on the road is your hotel: Though some of the wackier design ideas in the hospitality world don't necessarily have real-life applications, there are times when the spirit of an idea can actually guide your own ideas for redecoration and renewal (we're looking at you, spring) at home.
Case in point: The brand-new Milan outpost of Spanish boutique hotel group Room Mate, which also has locations in Mexico City, Istanbul, New York, and Madrid. Dubbed the Hotel Giulia, and designed by Milan-based Spanish designer Patricia Urquiola, the 85-room hotel's funky, vibrant interiors are decked out in more than a few trends we observed at last year's Salone home show.
Straight from the hotel's playful spaces, some tips for how to incorporate some 2016 trends into your next redecoration project.
1. Mix colors, patterns, and materials. Go bold!
The hotel's mix of iridescent-glass tables and graphic, woven rugs, as seen in its lobby, may be a bit much for the average Jane's living room, but considering a daring mix of colors and patterns (and materials!) isn't a bad idea.
2. Neon signs can be done custom.
If you don't live in a city where custom-designed neon signs are something you can buy in a brick-and-mortar store, you're in luck! There are Etsy stores for that. Here are a few.
3. Don't be afraid of colors—that means dark ones, too.
Though Pinterest's love of all-white Swedish interiors doesn't seem like it will dim anytime soon, dark colors, too, have some charms. Dark hues can instantly create a cozy atmosphere, for one, in spaces like bedrooms and bathrooms.
4. Things don't have to all be square or round.
We love the rounded edges of this geometric mirror hanging in a guest room. For some added visual interest in a typical rectangular space, add some unexpected shapes on the wall (triangles! parallelograms! whatever this shape is!).
5. Hang art high!
The conventional wisdom is that art should be hung at eye level, centered about 57 inches off your floor, but decorating rules were meant to be broken. If you have super-high ceilings, hanging art—textiles, framed prints, paintings—up high is an option. It won't work for everyone (if you have very low ceilings, this move probably isn't for you), but it's something to consider.
∙ Hotel Giuila, Milan [Room Mate Hotels]
∙ 5 Awesome Etsy Home Goods Stores You Should Know [Curbed]
∙ hotel giulia by patricia urquiola embodies milanese flair [Designboom]
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