Hacin + Associates [architecture + design in boston]

Preview: 2013 ICFF

Several designers here at Hacin recently traveled to NYC for this year's International Contemporary Furniture Fair. The 2013 ICFF was host to over 500 exhibitors this year and our designers came back excited about color. Stay tuned for a full story.

 

Boston Home: Fresh Take

Fresh co-founder Alina Roytberg was recently featured in this month's issue of Boston Home Magazine. Boston Home took a behind-the-scenes peek at elements of her Brookline apartment completed in 2004, praising the neutral color palette and gray-stained ash floors designed by our team.

We here thought it was time we took our own fresh peek and show you some of what we love about her Brookline apartment. 

Built-in bookcases are deep and wide enough to accomodate Roytberg's many "art/design/architecture/travel/passion" books.
— Boston Home

The large, traditional floor plan was completely redesigned for the stylish family into a modern, open plan defined by walls of cabinetry, sliding screens and distinctive materials. The gray-stained floors and furniture in warm neutrals are accessorized with color.

The apartment is organized on a long axis running from the street facing living room through a sky lit open kitchen.

The home continues to the park facing bedrooms in the rear, which are bathed with light and provide a youthful retreat.

The original article about Alina Roytberg's home can be found in the Summer 2013 Boston Home magazine.

The Buttery 2 opens on Clarendon Street

On December 13th the South End Buttery opened its 2^nd location on Clarendon Street. H + A was asked to transform the once staid office space into a sophisticated urban market with old world charm. The space features handmade cement tiles by Granada Tile in Nicaragua. Check out the video 'Granada Tile revives the fine art of making cement tile' to see how they create these well-crafted works of art.

 

The Buttery, brainchild of Richard Gordon with Joanne Gregory as Executive Chief, opened its first location in 2005 on Shawmut Avenue, expanding in 2012 to include the additional market (also designed by H + A). In keeping with the original Buttery's history, the shop features a warm but sophisticated color pallete, materiality, and texture. Painted tin ceiling panels were used to mimic those found in original South End building, polished carrara marble line the counter surfaces, and glistening glass display cases showcase the Joanne's delectable menu of food made from organic and locally grown ingredients and provisions supplied by local producers. It’s a little bit of culinary heaven. 

Sneak peak: Chandler Inn Studios

H+A is delighted to announce the grand opening of one of our current projects the Chandler Studios a boutique hotel, located in Boston's historic South End neighborhood.

The Chandler Studios, an annex to the adjacent Chandler Inn, offer a unique twist to the boutique hotel experience. Guests of the hotel check into their reservation remotely via the internet and are given a key prior to arrival that provides direct access to the hotel parking lot, entry, and their individual Studio. Each of the twelve Studios, complete with full kitchenette, offer an ease-of-accessibility useful for a variety of guests - from those traveling on business, seeking a no-nonsense escape, to long-term guests looking for intimate accommodations with the comforts and resources of a large-scale hotel. 

The design challenge of this boutique hotel was to balance the old with the new; translating the idea of a hip, urban traveller into the context of a historically rich building and neighborhood. Thoughtful consideration was taken into account with the architectural details -- refurbishing window casings, the historic stairwell, and other features to maintain the charm and character of existing structure. The contemporary look is introduced within each individual guest suite. Walnut flooring, modern integrated millwork, custom furniture and "pops" of accent color create interesting juxtapositions, simultaneously paying respect to the historic context of the inn while providing the sophistication of a high-end hotel, comforts of home, and vibrant energy of an urban city. Each suite features an image of Boston's historic elevated Orange Line, which used to run through the South End, blown up as a large-scale wall graphic mural.

Enjoy this sneak-peak of a few of the suites from our recent photo shoot. 

New office + research lab for Living Proof

Earlier this year, we finished construction on an office + laboratory space for Living Proof, a startup of world-class Cambridge scientists solving tough beauty problems through advanced medical and materials research. Living Proof products have received countless awards and praise for revolutionizing skin + hair care technologies and they like to think of their customers as "living proof" of the results they can bring.




The bright, open office has lots of breakout space where teams can meet to collaborate away from their desks. The kitchen is the social center of the space, with a large blackboard nook and a big central island that has become a popular meeting location.