Boutique Design - June 2018 - 14

the buzz

5 TIPS: RENOVATIONS
Following her firm's redesign of LaPlaya Beach & Golf Resort (shown) in Naples, Florida, Andrea Waldrop, vice
president of waldrop+nichols studio, dishes secrets on how to execute the perfect revamp.

DO YOUR HOMEWORK
Research is the foundation for good design. We ask
the owner and operator many questions about
their current asset "as is" and as they envision it
after the renovation. Are they expecting to maintain the same guests or attract a different psychographic? Do adjacencies work or do they need to be
rethought? Our research is based on conversations
with the owner and the hotel staff, reading guest
feedback and TripAdvisor reviews and conducting
digital research. These strategies all produce
surface-layer information.
In our storytelling, we concoct spatial mythologies that provide a second layer of depth adding
uniqueness to the design. Sometimes this involves
engaging with local historical societies, reading a
novel or watching a movie set in a certain period, or
studying fashion at London's Victoria and Albert
Museum, for example. We do whatever it takes to go
off the beaten path and dig up a story worth telling.
STAY ON TRACK
A great project manager or owner's rep is vital to
every project. It's important for designers to ensure
they receive a budget and schedule from the beginning. Creating an internal team schedule from the
master schedule is next. Weekly team meetings with
good communication are essential to advancing the
project without delays. Be proactive, invested and
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responsible. If you sense scope, budget, schedules or
consultants are deviating from the given parameters,
set up a phone call so it can be discussed and
resolved immediately rather than lingering. We
believe in actual conversation to keep things moving.
Email has its purpose, but other times a phone call
can take the place of 10 emails.
ART WORKS
Art gives everyone the right to not make sense to
everyone all the time, and that's the fun of it.
Expected pieces don't draw the guest into the hotel's
atmosphere and can miss an invitation for them to
mentally participate in the property's design. Our
goal with the art collection at LaPlaya was variety-
from sculpture to encaustic on board or canvas in a
float frame to canvas framed in acrylic boxes.
Framed art with a mat is perfectly acceptable in
some areas, just not everywhere. We find it acceptable that, sometimes, a piece of art has nothing to do
with the concept or the surroundings. It's that offbalance approach that keeps it exciting. Common
mistakes often relate to scale. The spacing and
height of the installation itself is key. Where possible
spot the art in person rather than relying on a CAD
elevation, which can be deceiving.
ACCURACY MATTERS
The recipe for success with renovations is accurate

as-builts. If there's any doubt, strongly make the
case for an architectural survey. Unfortunately, this
is a lesson learned too late on many projects
resulting in change-orders, inaccurate FF&E
dimensions, delays and unplanned project costs,
often leading to the expenses outweighing the
initial surveying cost. A site survey is great insurance. Be aware of the client's budget during a renovation; ask if the budget supports moving/adding
electrical, plumbing and walls or if you need to
design around current locations.
THINK INSIDE THE BOX
A good designer can always achieve a great layout
within any footprint. It's all about scale, proportion
and volume. Think not only of the furniture but the
interior architecture itself. Add built-in millwork to
a very large space. Designing large spaces with just
FF&E lacks a sense of purpose. Think dimensionally with floors, walls and ceilings. Lowering a
ceiling over a particular area in a large space invites
intimacy. Inferring boundaries with the size of an
area rug can justify a furniture vignette. Historic
renovations do pose challenges designers need to
be aware of. Be sure to check the elevator cab sizes
in historic hotels. Decades-old walls often aren't
smooth enough for metallic wallcoverings with no
texture, as they highlight every bump and patch the
wall has ever received.

R E AG A N R U L E ( L A P L AYA ) ; C O U R T E S Y O F WA L D R O P+ N I C H O L S S T U D I O ( WA L D R O P )

BY CHRISTINA GREEN

http://www.boutiquedesign.com

Boutique Design - June 2018

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