03. Developing the design scheme

Following the feedback discussed during our group crits, I was ruminating on was the guest experience when entering the room. In my initial design scheme, the guest would immediately be confronted with the bed, partially obscuring the views from the windows (half of the site faces Edinburgh Castle). Taking this as a point of development, I reflected on the elements of the design that I felt were quite either crucial to retaining the sense of being within the film, and those which I felt were working well. I also researched some additional studio apartment plans, thinking further about how these often small living spaces accommodate the necessary features required for day-to-day life, as well as some Junior Suite plans from other hotels – using these as the basis for further development.

Paris studio apartment floor plan by Rebecca Bénichou and Florence Jallet at Batiik Studio, via Architectural Digest France


Junior Suite floor plan at The Peninsula Hotel, London

After spending some time hand sketching possible alternatives, I felt the key elements of the design were: a long, slightly curved corridor separating the bathroom from the living/sleeping space, a centred entry point to the bathroom, and an expansive view across an open plan living/sleeping space. The spaces within the film are also rather boxy and free of soft lines (aside from the curved hallway) which felt important to mimic.

Testing the Parisian studio apartment plan as a jumping off point to develop the design scheme further – a plan I ultimately abandoned.

Having tested some options without this combination, I felt I was losing the “essence” of the film. I had experimented with some options incorporating two long corridors within the room, really emphasising this feature as it was so present throughout. In the end, I felt it excessive to dedicate this much valuable floor space to such a cumbersome feature which didn’t seem to be adding to the guest experience – particularly when there would be scope to play with this element in other areas of the building. Thinking of my own time working on reception at a hotel chain which prioritises quirk over practicality, I’ve seen and heard firsthand how an otherwise positive guest experience can be memorable for all the wrong reasons. There is a fine balance between features which are eccentric, and those which can be (at best) impractical, inaccessible or even potentially hazardous.