KLD 2019 Year in Review

Well it has been another incredible year at KLD HQ. Our international press coverage reached new heights, there were awards, Presidencies, travels and lots of amazing projects.

The new year got off to a great start when, in February, our beautiful Bolton Coach House appeared in Australian Vogue Living. This is the stuff dreams are made of and it kicked off what was to be an incredible year for the Coach House. It would go on to appear in Elle Decoration Netherlands, Architectural Digest Italy, Interior Design Magazine, IDEAT Contemproary Life Magazine, Sweden’s Plaza Deco, Germany’s SCHÖNER WOHNEN, Yatzer and Yellowtrace.

Bolton Coach House featured in Vogue Living Australia

 

 

Elle Decoration Netherlands Cover
Our Bolton Coach house featured in Elle Decoration Netherlands in 2019

 

Meantime hot on its heels our Donnybrook Residence was featured in the amazing Design Anthology UK, Architectural Digest Russia, Departures MagazineDeco Idées, Actief Wonen, Sunday Independent Life Magazine, House and Home Magazine

Design Anthology UK Cover
Donnybrook Residence featured in Design Anthology UK

In June we found out the our Vaults Parlour design was nominated in the Restaurant and Bar Design Awards in two categories, International In Another Place and Heritage categories. The design would go on to win the International In Another Place category, meaning KLD had gone on to win two Restaurant and Bar Design Awards in a row, having won in 2018 for Pot Bellied Pig.

VAULTS FULL VIEW
The Vaults Parlour

 

In June we had the long-awaited launch of Hatch Student Accommodation and Hatch Living. This had been a labour of love over the past year or so and we were thrilled with the results. Our beautiful and innovative project was featured in Wallpaper Magazine and Yellowtrace which was simply the icing on the cake.

BOdy Painted Models at launch of Hatch Cork June 2019
Abigail Russell and Dee Power at the launch of Hatch Student Accommodation Cork, compromising Marsh’s Yard and the Steelworks on Copley Street, Cork.. Photo Kieran Harnett

 

In July we got the amazing news that Kingston Lafferty Design had been longlisted in the Dezeen Awards 2019 for best Emerging Designer. It was a long wait to find out if we were shortlisted, and it wasn’t to be this time. However, being longlisted was a great achievement and honour and we were humbled to be amongst such amazing international talent.

Kingston Lafferty Design Longlisted for Emerging Interior Designer at Dezeen Awards 2019
Kingston Lafferty Design Longlisted for Emerging Interior Designer at Dezeen Awards 2019

 

Also in July KLD founder and Creative Director Róisín Lafferty assumed the position of President of the IDI Institute of Designers in Ireland, its youngest ever President. Speaking of the appointment Róisín said:

 

“It is an incredible honour to take on the role of President of the Institute of Designers in Ireland and to follow in the footsteps of designers and practitioners who have inspired and trail blazed over the years. I am humbled with the trust that has been put in me to lead the organisation and I look forward to working with the IDI and the Irish design community to not only showcase and promote the exceptional work of Irish designers but to bring design to the forefront of the Irish cultural narrative.”

August saw KLD design House of Peroni at the RHA Gallery. KLD Creative Director Róisín Lafferty was approached to design the aesthetic and she would be joined with two other leading creatives, Killian Crowley, chef extraordinaire and Kev Freeney Creative Director of Algorithm to complete the whole House of Peroni experience.

House of Peroni at the RHA by Kingston Lafferty Design
Peroni at the RHA

 

Team KLD at House of Peroni

 

In September Kingston Lafferty Design were delighted to be announced Architecture Master Prize (AMP) Medium Firm of the Year Award in Residential Interior Design for 2019. The following month KLD directors Róisín and Becky would collect the award at a ceremony in the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao.

Becky Russell and Róisín Lafferty accepting award for Medium Frrm of the Year
Becky Russell and Róisín Lafferty accepting award for Medium Frrm of the Year

 

October saw Kingston Lafferty Design bring home another prestigious award. Our Vaults Parlour project won the International In Another Space category at the Restaurant and Bar Design Awards.

Becky Russell and Roisin Lafferty from Kingston Lafferty Design, interior designers
Becky Russell and Roisin Lafferty from Kingston Lafferty Design picking up the Restaurant and Bar Design Award

 

Rounding off a great year in November Róisín won the Interior Designer award at the inaugural House and Home Interior Influence Award. A fantastic nod to Róisín and KLD. On announcing the winner, Kirstie McDermott told us the judges said:

“they are the best in the country, they editorialise their feed, they care about their projects and the content they share. They have a beautiful feed and are head and shoulders above the rest. They are producing next-level interiors.”

 

Róisín Lafferty collecting her award from John Smigielski of Linwood Fabrics at the House and Home Influence awards on association with DFS held at the Alex Hotel photo Kieran Harnett

And so we look forward to 2020, and already it looks set to be another fantastic year at KLD HQ. We have some very exciting projects that will be completing in 2020 including Urban HQ in Belfast and a wonderful beach house on the Wild Atlantic coast in Kerry. We also have some fantastic and exciting projects that will be starting in 2020, which for the time being remain top secret. Keep an eye out for KLD projects featuring in some of the most international publications. Watch this space.

 

Finally, Happy New Year to one and all. We wish you health and happiness for 2020 and beyond.

 
 
KLD and DFS at Maven46 Be Conference

KLD and DFS teamed up earlier this month for the Be Conference from Maven46 which was held at the beautiful Richmond event centre in Smithfield Dublin.

Part-conference and part-experiential extravaganza, ‘Be’ 2019 featured four stages (styled by KLD), 10 rooms filled with exciting surprises, and 20 inspiring female speakers to motivate and learn from. On the agenda was fashion, beauty, life and inspiration with a full day of interactive talks, live panels, masterclasses, and experiential activity—led by top females in their industries, including KLD’s own Róisín Lafferty.

 

Róisín speaking at the Maven46 Summit
Róisín speaking at the Maven46 Summit

 

Roisin took to the stage and told us all about her rise in the interiors industry and also gave some tips on how to make your home work for you.

But before the day, KLD designer Vicki McGahon was tasked with styling four stage areas and a chill out room with furniture provided by DFS. The location was the Richmond Event Centre which has been recently been refurbished to a beautiful standard and completely modernised, yet keeping a lot of its original features.

KLD Designer Vicki McGahon
KLD Designer Vicki McGahon

 

The rooms we were assigned were the Tea Room, The Banquet Room, The Lecture Room and the Auditorium. The biggest challenge was that none of these spaces actually had a stage so although we had to pick furniture for function for each of the speakers and interviewers we also had to create some sort of back drop for the eye to focus.

 

The Tea Room.

Probably the easiest as this room name really reflects the feel it is long with high ceilings and a beautiful balcony to the end. So much light comes into this space. The existing set up was perfect here with dark mahogany tables and chairs. So there was no question really that the Bailey deep button sofa in burgundy was the option here it complimented everything already in the space but gave an element of contrast with the deep vibrant burgundy. Then to sit along side that we chose the Lucy Chair in Blush Pink. As a finishing touch we added a beautiful cherry blossom tree to draw attention to the space and furniture.

The Tea Room Kingston Lafferty Design
Before Pic: The Tea Room

 

The Tea Room Stage by Kingston Lafferty Design
The Tea Room Stage

 

The Banquet Room,

This space is on the first floor, directly above the tea room, similar in size and flooded with light. The furniture in this space were soft pastel blue chairs which was the only colour everything else within the space was neutral soft greys and silver pendant globe lights. We very much took inspiration from the pastel blue and carried that onto our stage set and furniture selections. Scandinavian and pastel was the theme so we chose the Hoxton 3 seater in and ocean pastel green we complimented this with our 3rd pastel colour Pink and chose the Zinc armchair to sit along side this. For the stage set we actually used clothes rails and got the very talented Gingko Florists to create some amazing dried displays that we hung from the clothes rails to create that stage set. Also used here was the Isna rug from DFS in small and medium and layered them.

 

The Banquet Room
Before Pic: The Banquet Room

 

The Banquet Stage by Kingston Lafferty Design
The Banquet Stage by Kingston Lafferty Design

 

The Auditorium

Probably the most difficult space to create a stage the space at the top of the room was narrow and obviously with the seats rising it was going to be difficult to create impact. The windows and nearly 3m tall so it was about thinking of a way to dress the space. We decided to hang drops of fabric between the windows which very effectively changed the feel of the space. And we chose to create a linear layout of the Zania sofa with and open arm chaise end. The colour choices here reflected the fabric we used between the walls.

The Auditorium The Auditorium design by Kingston Lafferty Design
Before Pic: The Auditorium

 

The Auditorium by Kingston Lafferty Design
After Pic: The Auditorium

 

The Lecture Room.

Not the most visually appealing space of them all very much screamed lecture room. For this one being the smallest we felt a 3 seater and chair composition would overcrowd the front of the space and we opted for two of the Marl cuddlers which we love in a bluey grey leather. More of a masculine feel to this space it was darker than the rest. What I loved about this was that we just decided to do an array of floor lamps to create a back drop and it worked out amazingly we just chose the largest floor lamp from Dwell.co.uk.

Before Pic: The Lecture Room by kingston lafferty design
Before Pic: The Lecture Room

 

After Pic: The Lecture Room
After Pic: The Lecture Room

 

DFS Chill out Room

Some people are afraid to mix colour so we decided to give this space a serious pop of colour which in fact I don’t think deflected from the stunning original fire place of the vintage dresser. We chose the lovely Mya sofa from DFS’s new Sofa so Good range in a gorgeous teal wool fabric. We mixed this with navy, red, blue and some mustard it really was a statement of colour. And everyone loved it!

Before Pic: DFS Chill Out Room by Kingston Lafferty Design
Before Pic: DFS Chill Out Room

 

DFS Chill Out Room by KLD
DFS Chill Out Room by KLD

 

 

Here is a short video of Be Summit and the beautiful furniture from DFS and Dwell.

 

 

Our sincere thanks goes to both DFS and Dwell, their staff and crew for helping us out with this logistical feat. Thanks also to O’Carroll Consulting for bringing us all together and inviting us to be part of the event. Finally thanks to Tanya and Adina from Maven46 for organising such a wonderful summit. It was a fantastic day, inspiring and enlightening in equal measure.

 

 

 

 

 
 
Hatch Student Living and The Hatch Rooms

The Hatch Rooms and Hatch Student Living launch in Cork.

 

Hatch entrance
Hatch Reception

 

Hatch Cork is the flagship location for the new student living brand. In a highly competitive market, Kingston Lafferty Design were appointed to define the brand’s visual identity and tasked with creating an impactful, experiential and collaborative ground floor space, encompassing reception, co-working, chill out, study, canteen and interactive spaces to provide inhabitants with an exciting environment and ultimately to add significant value and visual appeal to the brand. KLD also consulted on the rooms, fixtures, fittings and palette, design and decoration.

 

Hatch Cork Kingston Lafferty Design

Nest Area including Cinema 

The Hatch Rooms and Hatch Student Living have launched in Cork city. The business model works in a similar way to co-working spaces with an entry base level cost which has additional extras to increase spend. KLD worked with the client on these aspects to increase the overall offering. These items to include gym, laundry, private cinema area, coffee kiosk, yoga studio space and a hotel offering for the summer months.

The 265-room property opened in June 2019 after having undergone an extensive €25 million upgrade.

The property at Copley Street in Cork city is controlled by Hatch Student Living with financial backing from Elkstone, a multi-family office based in Dublin. Hatch acquired the property in February 2018 and set about upgrading a co-living property for students driven by increased demand in the city.

Mirrors, Planting and Lighting used to maximise light and promote well being

 

The story of Hatch Copley Court was to create a happy and unique space, tailored to the students’ needs and wants by using flexible simple creative design. The vision of HATCH was to expand, create and inspire by employing a modular system and creating a template to enable HATCH to grow. This template can now be adapted to each location, creating brand recognition on a global scale.

Hatch Tunnel by Kingston Lafferty Design
Tunnel with hang out Nook

 

EXECUTION

With our design we energised and brought the space to life, making it not only aesthetically pleasing but also a nice place to be. Every perfectly framed space is a performance opportunity with the immersive design imploring interaction from its users, ensuring that every day tells a different story.

 

THE RESULTS

A garden zone connects the outside in, frequented with olive trees, hanging plants & floors covered in grass. The connection with the outside and biophilia was important as there was a lack of natural light in certain areas. Other finishing materials such as mirrors allowed light to bounce throughout, creating infinity spaces and allowing spaces to appear larger. The use of playful shapes in acrylic & perspex, with stripes enveloping walls/ floors and ceilings along with giant lollipop lights make for a magical Willy Wonka type mood.

 

Hatch by Kingston Lafferty Design
Private Nook

 

As well as the playfulness, it has also a grown up feel with a muted colour palette in tiling and upholstery details to counterbalance the childlike, sculptural elements. The apartments & corridors are an extension of the entrance social space, carrying the same design concept throughout each apartment but adapting it to make it more liveable. The bedrooms and living spaces have complimentary finishes with a muted colour palette to contrast against the slick rich charcoal coloured joinery finishes with subtle tiling detail. The element of playfulness was carried through with colourful and sculptural pieces of furniture added in the form of chairs, rugs and lighting. Large scale architectural artwork was hung to add a sense of colour and comfort.

 

Hatch Cork Bedroom
Hatch Bedroom

 

THE LAUNCH

The Hatch Rooms launched on June 19 2019.

 

BOdy Painted Models at launch of Hatch Cork June 2019
Our fabulous painted ladies, Abigail Russell and Dee Power, at the launch of Hatch Student Accommodation Cork

 

Hatch Launch with Roisin Lafferty and Becky Russell
KLD Directors, Becky Russell and Roisin Lafferty

 

 

Aisling Fitzgibbon and Fiona Stone at the launch of Hatch Student Accommodation Cork, compromising Marsh’s Yard and the Steelworks on Copley Street, Cork. Photo Kieran Harnett
KLD superstars Aisling Fitzgibbon and Fiona Stone

 

 

Hatch Launch with Kingston Lafferty Design
KLD Creative Director Roisin Lafferty with Hatch Founders Robert McNally and Richard Brierley

 

Getting the Hatch Rooms open on time and on budget was a major feat.  The hotel was fully booked on its first weekend. Bookings continued to be strong and right now almost all of the student accommodation has been taken. The magic of this project is how well everyone worked together. KLD’s vision was bold, daring and innovative and required a lot of specialisation and commitment. Whether it was luck or whether you make your luck, everybody came on board and shared the vision. The devil was in the detail. Now each room in the hotel has beautiful finishes, art on the wall, stylish furniture and finishes. The common area is impactful, fun, suited to its audience and caters for a range of facilities. Hatch is the next evolution in student living.

 

Check our this article in Wallpaper Online magazine which features the The Hatch Rooms.

 

Collaborators

Client ………………………………………………Hatch

Architects…………………………………………Reddy Architecture

Contractor ………………………………………John Paul Construction

QS & Project Management………….. KSN

Joinery ……………………………………………Greengate Joinery

3D Render ……………………………………..3D Design Bureau

 

 

 
 
Fulham Development: Before and After Video

Check out this before and after video for our Fulham development completed in 2019. KLD were commissioned to undertake the interior design and architecture of this Fulham Development is a  located in the centre of Fulham, London.

 

 

 

To see more images from the project visit the Fulham Residence  and Fulham Duplex project pages.

 

 

 
 
Marianella Penthouse: Before and After Video

Marianella is a beautiful and luxurious development in Rathgar, Dublin City.

KLD were tasked with designing the Penthouse showroom with a focus on quality, tactility and timelessness. The refined design appeals to a wide market with a focus on craftsmanship and designer pieces that stand the test of time and eschew trends. The highly functional spaces are cohesively linked through the use of carefully designed joinery and a selection of atmospheric artwork. The overall colour and material palette exude sophistication and luxury in a calm and serene way.

Check out the video here

 

 
 
House of Peroni and KLD

Róisín Lafferty to design House of Peroni 2019 at Royal Hibernian Academy in Dublin this August.

We have been waiting for quite a while to share some amazing news with you. Earlier in the year our KLD Creative Director, Róisín Lafferty, was asked to design the House of Peroni installation which will be feature at the RHA in August 2019.  House of Peroni is returning to Dublin this summer for its fourth instalment, from Thursday, 22nd August, until Sunday, 1st September, 2019. Part of a global House of Peroni series, which includes events in Barcelona, Paris, Stockholm, Santiago and Johannesburg, this year’s Dublin residency will see the Royal Hibernian Academy on Ely Place, Dublin 2, transformed into a stylish Peroni inspired experience.

KLD Creative Director Róisín Lafferty
KLD Creative Director Róisín Lafferty

 

Earlier in spring, Peroni Nastro Azzurro took nine creatives, known as the Creative Council, on a trip to Puglia in Italy, including three Irish creatives – KLD’s Roisin Lafferty, multi award winning designer; Killian Crowley, chef de partie at Michelin-starred Aniar restaurant in Galway, and Kev Freeney, creative director of Algorithm, who are widely known for their highly technical and creative productions. They were immersed in the style of Peroni along with the beauty of authentic Italian design, culture, architecture, food and craftsmanship, and will bring this inspiration back to Dublin to create this year’s House of Peroni residency experience.

Stepping out in Puglia
Creative Director Róisín Lafferty stepping out in Puglia

 

Roisin Lafferty will be tasked with designing the aesthetics of the RHA interior. Following her trip to Puglia, Roisin commented:

‘Brimming with sophistication and elegance, Puglia’s aesthetic of refined arches, understated whites, and glistening jewel seascapes, framed the chilled and inviting environment. I am really excited to capture some of its charm and character in this year’s House of Peroni design’.

In Italy, Roisin stayed in Masseria Ceravolo, a farm house steeped in history and tradition that was lovingly restored and now is an elegant country house. Rosin will combine the style of Peroni with the beauty of Puglia in her creation. To say this is exciting is an understatement, all of us at KLD are looking forward to working with these great talents to create something incredible, and in such an amazing location the RHA.

 

Beach in Puglia
Beach in Puglia

 

Puglia Architecture

 

The following is a short video we made behind the scenes at a promo shoot for House of Peroni at the RHA.

 

The House of Peroni is open to the public from Thursday, 22nd August, until Sunday, 1st September, 2019, in the Royal Hibernian Academy on Ely Place, Dublin 2. No admission fee and no booking required for general entry. Over 18s only.

 

House of Peroni Poster
House of Peroni Poster