The Whiteley, once the home of London’s first department store, has undergone a remarkable transformation into a 1.1-million-square-foot residential and hospitality destination. Just recently, The Whiteley unveiled its first completed residence, a stunning three-bedroom apartment, curated by renowned New York City-based designer, Kelly Behun.

Behun’s design philosophy beautifully blends old-world charm with contemporary vibrancy, drawing inspiration from both the building’s rich history and its surroundings. The color palette, featuring rich golds, verdant greens, dusky roses, and lavenders, takes cues from Hyde Park’s proximity, creating a warm, modern environment.

The Whiteley’s transformation is led by development managers Finchatton, in collaboration with investment partners MARK and C C Land. This unveiling marks a milestone in the £1 billion regeneration project, set to be completed in 2024.

The apartment’s design philosophy emphasizes tactile and inviting atmospheres, with natural fabrics and organic shapes, creating a harmonious living space. Notable pieces include an offset sunburst pattern rug by fashion designer Mary Katrantzou for The Rug Company, and hand-sculpted torchiere style sconces by artist Chris Wolston, that enhance the tall ceiling heights.

Marcus Meijer, Founder and CEO of MARK, expressed the significance of The Whiteley, stating, “The Whiteley is iconic. The sheer size, grandeur, and history of the building is what makes it unique, and we had to ensure we appointed a designer who celebrated that.” Behun, featured in the AD 100 list of top interior designers, was a natural choice to bring the loft-style open plan apartment to life.

The 3,193-square-foot residence boasts high ceilings exceeding 14 feet and heritage windows that flood the space with natural light. Design details, like the fluted millwork columns and herringbone floors, pay homage to the building’s original architecture, preserving its history while imbuing a fresh, contemporary feel.

Behun’s commitment to craftsmanship and individuality is evident throughout the apartment. Bespoke and handmade furniture pieces, such as a custom walnut dining table by Belgian artist Benoit Viaene, add a distinctive touch. The guest bedroom features a wallpaper designed by Behun for Calico Wallpaper, creating a dreamy forest landscape.

“As a diehard New Yorker, if I think about the one other city in the world where I could see myself living, it’s always London,” says Kelly Behun. “The volume of the space, the abundance of natural light, and the fact that this apartment sits behind the original façade – there’s no other building I’d want to debut in London for.”

Each of the three spacious bedrooms has its own enviable design style.

The Whiteley exterior

Designer Kelly Behun

The first residents of The Whiteley are expected to move in starting the first quarter of 2024, with the rest of the project aiming for completion later in the year. The Kelly Behun-designed apartment is currently on the market for £12.5 million, inviting discerning buyers to experience the perfect blend of history, luxury, and contemporary living.

Photography by Paul Raeside.

Caroline Williamson is Editor-in-Chief of Design Milk. She has a BFA in photography from SCAD and can usually be found searching for vintage wares, doing New York Times crossword puzzles in pen, or reworking playlists on Spotify.

What’s refined and slim-lined, with a better design than ever? That would be Discommon’s The Wallet 3.0. The third generation of the cult-favorite luxury accessory features improved card pockets – two that fit three cards each – for easy insertion and removal, as well as a “flip lip” for ease of use. Look closer and you’ll notice the compact, thermoformed stitch-less form that gives an effortlessly sleek, elevated look to a daily necessity.

We love the unexpected pop of color in the wallet’s interior that says “don’t take me so serious.” Three new vibrant color pairings are available to choose from: Black and Oslo, Gray and Ruby, and Tan and Mango. The exterior is crafted using top grain nappa leather, while the interior is soft micro suede. Which is your favorite combo?

Design Milk’s Senior Editor, Gregory Han, shares his hands-on experience with The Wallet 3.0:

I abandoned a traditional wallet/billfold for a minimalist design years ago, but recently my minimalist sleeve-style wallet finally gave up the ghost after many years of use, giving me the opportunity to try out Discommon’s The Wallet 3.0.

Unlike my previous wallet – essentially a leather stitched sleeve that could hold 3 cards comfortably, 4 cards with some effort – The Wallet 3.0’s thermoformed nappa leather opens like a traditional billfold. It has a tiny flip lip that reminds of a tiny laptop. The two-side clamshell design is much easier to access than my previous wallet, easily holding up to 6 cards, yet isn’t any thicker than my previous single, slide-in design.

What I appreciate most is this wallet’s ease of accessibility. I used to struggle pulling out a specific single card because my minimalist wallet’s tight stitched design was optimally suited to hold 3 cards at once, and adding any more meant I’d have to use a precise pinch ‘n pull technique that usually would result in pulling all the cards out to get to the one I wanted. Now, I can pull out a single card without requiring the assistance of tweezers.

The Wallet 3.0 is also shockingly light… so much so I thought it was made of molded cardboard when I first handled it. I even sniffed it to make sure I wasn’t just inspecting a piece of the packaging. But, The Wallet 3.0 later proved its weight in gold (or molded leather) when I accidentally left it in a pocket and it went through an entire wash cycle, and came out looking just as new and structured as it did prior to its dip. Consider me a convert of this 3.0 version of a wallet.

To learn more about The Wallet 3.0, visit discommongoods.com.

Kelly Beall is Director of Branded Content at Design Milk. The Pittsburgh-based writer and designer has had a deep love of art and design for as long as she can remember, from Fashion Plates to MoMA and far beyond. When not searching out the visual arts, she’s likely sharing her favorite finds with others. Kelly can also be found tracking down new music, teaching herself to play the ukulele, or on the couch with her three pets – Bebe, Rainey, and Remy. Find her @designcrush on social.

It’s a bummer realizing by the time this post publishes designer Yinka Ilori’s pop-up shop in Shoreditch, East London will have shuttered its kaleidoscopic framed doors with the start of the new year. Stocked with homeware and lifestyle products of his own making, Ilori conceived the pop-up as an ode to small independent businesses and their placemaking within communities the world over – a message delivered with a joyful vibrancy colored by the legacy of West African design. I can only hope this pop-up is first of many.

It’s hard to erase the memories associated with the too-soon experimental wearables known as Google Glass from a few years back. The limited capabilities paired with dork-grade styling left a mark akin to the imprint of ill-fitting eyeglasses across my bridge. That’s why I came with very low expectations – if not also a mild level of disdain – for these new Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses. Let me say, these smart glasses are the antithesis of the Google Glass experience. They look good, keep things simple and thus operate with ease, and capture video and stills with surprising clarity. Although I still worry about issues of use in public spaces and privacy, and probably would benefit upgrading to some larger sized Wayfarers –  I came to really enjoy being able to record video and snap photos while hiking without reaching for my phone. And once Multimodal AI graduates from beta to a more polished feature, the promise of wearables going mainstream seems closer to becoming the reality we’ve been promised for years.

As many interests in my life, I came to Kate Crawford’s book circuitously. It began with a viewing of the film After Yang (one I highly recommend for both its narrative and sublime art direction; it’s directed by the same filmmaker behind the architecture-orbiting, Columbus). The film delves into the themes of identity, intelligence, memory, and what exactly makes us human with a quiet introspection often absent when exploring the social ramifications of artificial intelligence. The film was based on a collection of 13 short stories by Alexander Weinstein titled Children of the New World, which I read immediately after being enamored by the film. That in turn eventually delivered me to the Atlas of AI. As someone who believes every great piece of fiction has its foundation in fact, Crawford’s investigation into the history and ramifications of artificial intelligence shines as a lighthouse across a turbulent sea of hyperbole. I haven’t finished the book yet, but that’s partially because I keep going back to reread pages invigorated by its insights.

David Rager, creative art director at NASA, is both a neighbor and friend,  which made it very exciting to see and hear him speak amongst other notable figures, including Pentagram designer, Michael Bierut, and NASA’s entertainment and branding liaison, Bert Ulrich, about the history of one of the most iconic logotypes with its creator, Richard Danne. There are few logos I would want to adorn myself with these days, but that curvilinear 4-letter combination still does it for me as a symbol of science, curiosity, and typographic elegance – an enduring emblem of humanity’s potential.

Have you heard? Those silver shiny platters of 1s and 0s known as compact discs are making a comeback. Out of curiosity, and spurred by the ample availability of affordable used CDs locally, I recently added a CD transport from British hi-fi specialist Cambridge Audio. Paired with their Evo 75 all-in-one system alongside matching speakers I purchased during the heart of pandemic, it felt both exhilarating and a little weird placing a disc into the transport’s tray and pressing play again after so many years of the medium’s absence. The muscle memory may have atrophied, but the pleasures of sitting down and listening to music with presence and purpose felt revelatory only a few minutes in. It also helps that the EVO CD pairs perfectly – sonically and aesthetically – to Cambridge Audio’s other EVO components, right down to the changeable side panels. I still stream music, but listening to CDs is something akin to the ritual of preparing coffee yourself: slower, requiring your presence, and ultimately resulting in a more gratifying experience.

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Gregory Han is a Senior Editor at Design Milk. A Los Angeles native with a profound love and curiosity for design, hiking, tide pools, and road trips, a selection of his adventures and musings can be found at gregoryhan.com.

Your dog’s collar is essentially its primary accessory, so when it’s time to choose one or upgrade the one they’re wearing, look no further than Park’s Best. This newly launched design-driven brand is bringing vibrant colors and graphic patterns to dog collars. With its inaugural collection, there are six stylish designs that will definitely turn heads at the dog park.

Park’s Best plays up classic designs in fun colorways, including a bright green houndstooth pattern, an awning stripe of mint and red, a neutral navy and white gingham, timeless stripes in blue and black, a mustard and black half-moon motif, and a mix of circles and stripes in magenta, black, and white. Each collar comes neatly packaged in the brand’s signature verdant green box to store when not in use. But let’s face it, with accessories that are this much fun, you’ll likely never want to store it until it’s time to swap out a new Park’s Best collar.

To shop the new collar collection, visit parksbest.com.

As the Senior Contributing Editor, Vy Yang is obsessed with discovering ways to live well + with intention through design. She’s probably sharing what she finds over on Instagram stories. You can also find her at vytranyang.com.

Acoustic technology continues to break barriers, including in the world of lighting. Impact Acoustic, provider of sustainable acoustic solutions, and renowned design studio atelier oï, have combined their expertise to present Oloïd, a luminaire bringing together acoustic excellence with intuitive design. The lighting features Impact Acoustic’s high-performance absorber, ARCHISONIC® Felt, which is a versatile material made from upcycled PET bottles. In this way, Oloïd delivers exceptional sound absorption while promoting sustainability and responsible material sourcing.

“At atelier oï, we often begin our creative process with an encounter with the material,” Aurel Aebi says. “Our goal was to find a way to make the sustainable material speak in a new way.” To create the organic shapes used in Oloïd, the designers had to work with the material’s stiffness and flatness. Using the right tools and processes, they were able to give the finished panels new character. The design is available in a curated selection of all 32 colors in the ARCHISONIC® Felt range, allowing for personalized spaces and immersive environments.

“The collaboration fascinated us as we witnessed the metamorphosis of our material. This was made possible using a distinctive cutting technique at specific angles and the skillful folding of the panels. This creative approach seamlessly transformed the two-dimensional panels into fascinating three-dimensional entities, transcending surfaces to tangible bodies,” Sven Erni, co-founder of Impact Acoustic, says.

With its sustainable design, the collaboration sets a new standard for sound-absorbing luminaires. Oloïd offers a lighting experience that seamlessly blends functionality with artistic expression. Its innovative design, coupled with sound absorption, redefines the way light and sound interact, enhancing the ambience of any space.

To learn more about Oloïd acoustic lighting, visit impactacoustic.com.

Kelly Beall is Director of Branded Content at Design Milk. The Pittsburgh-based writer and designer has had a deep love of art and design for as long as she can remember, from Fashion Plates to MoMA and far beyond. When not searching out the visual arts, she’s likely sharing her favorite finds with others. Kelly can also be found tracking down new music, teaching herself to play the ukulele, or on the couch with her three pets – Bebe, Rainey, and Remy. Find her @designcrush on social.

Global Swedish brand IKEA is set to take us all back in time with the third release of it’s iconic Nytillverkad collection. Hitting stores worldwide this month, this latest edition pays homage to the carefree and creative spirit of the 1960s and early 1970s. Reviving timeless designs by influential IKEA designers Karin Mobring and Gillis Lundgren, the Nytillverkad collection offers a modern reinterpretation of the era’s relaxed and playful aesthetic. (Check out the first release of the Nytillverkad collection here.)

The Nytillverkad collection has been a testament to IKEA’s commitment to celebrating its design legacy. The third edition of the collection draws inspiration from a period marked by youth culture, pop music, and political protests that shaped the world. During this era, IKEA introduced new materials like painted particleboard and plastic, paving the way for furniture that exuded a youthful expression. Bold shapes, optimistic colors, comfortable seating, and soft high pile rugs defined the style of the time, and the new Nytillverkad collection invites design enthusiasts to revisit those dynamic days.

Karin Mobring, the first female IKEA designer, left an indelible mark on the brand’s style. Her iconic CROMI side table is reborn in the Nytillverkad collection as the BAGGBODA side table, featuring a white or light yellow tabletop and a chrome-plated frame. Gillis Lundgren, who played a pivotal role in IKEA’s journey after joining the company in 1954, sees his MILA armchair transformed into the DYVLINGE swivel armchair and the spacious PUCK armchair from 1969 revived as SOTENÄS.

Sven Fristedt and Ehlén Johansson are contemporary Swedish designers who also contribute to the Nytillverkad collection. Sven Fristedt’s eye-catching patterns from the 60s and 70s make a comeback on STRECKFLY cushion covers and ÄNGSFIBBLA pre-cut fabric. Ehlén Johansson, a popular Swedish designer renowned for winning The Red Dot Design Award, introduces the SKOGSTUNDRA vase – a sleek piece with a high neck that’s designed to support cut flowers.

Johan Ejdemo, Global Design Manager at IKEA of Sweden, expresses the company’s excitement about the resurgence of vintage furniture: “Vintage furniture has made a big comeback lately, and there’s been a growing demand for certain IKEA products that have become collector’s favorites. That is why we decided to bring back a selection of our design icons, and we are excited to see interest coming from customers of all ages, especially young people who are discovering our design legacy and using these vibrant solutions to express themselves at home. To us, these products are the essence of democratic design; they are timeless, as they combine a beautiful form, great function, sustainability, an affordable price, and quality that lasts long.”

To learn more about or to purchase pieces from the Nytillverkad collection, visit ikea.com.

Caroline Williamson is Editor-in-Chief of Design Milk. She has a BFA in photography from SCAD and can usually be found searching for vintage wares, doing New York Times crossword puzzles in pen, or reworking playlists on Spotify.

Bringing the spirit of relaxed Mediterranean living home, the new Colle Sofa designed by BIG – Bjarke Ingels Group for Natuzzi Italia, is comfort in its most luxurious form. The seating design is inspired by some of Natuzzi’s first globally recognized designs, collections that imbue the sense of hospitality that portray the Mediterranean lifestyle. Available in a wide selection of fabric and leather coverings, Colle beckons onlookers to sit and stay awhile with its unusual shape and soft curves.

The seat and back cushions of the Colle Sofa are gently tucked into an internal frame. The side cushions that form the armrest are repeated in a similar matter, revealing more of the hidden interior. The wrinkles of the sofa are not an accidental flaw but contribute to the casual, inviting nature of the entire collection.

The Colle Sofa is also part of “The Circle of Harmony,” an ongoing stylistic exploration by Natuzzi Italia to collaborate with renowned artists, architects, and designers. Each person in this project, which consists of over 20 participants, was tapped to expand the brand by examining its core values in Mediterranean flair, design, harmony, Italian character, innovation, comfort, and sustainability. The Colle Sofa is part of the 2023 iteration of this philosophy.

Jakob Lange and Bjarke Ingels of BIG Photo: Flemming Leitorp

To learn more about the Colle Sofa, visit natuzzi.com.

As the Senior Contributing Editor, Vy Yang is obsessed with discovering ways to live well + with intention through design. She’s probably sharing what she finds over on Instagram stories. You can also find her at vytranyang.com.

With over 70 million daily active users, the online game platform and game creation system Roblox is practically a virtual nation unto itself. Even so, consider us surprised  – pleasantly so – discovering that Italian high-performance automotive brand Automobili Lamborghini chose Roblox as their preferred venue to invite the public to check out their all-electric Lanzador Ultra GT up close… even promising players the opportunity to get behind the wheel of the twin electric motor Gran Turismo 2+2 concept long before it ever hits the streets.

Lamborghini originally unveiled their Gran Turismo 2+2 concept earlier at Monterey Car Week, a design intended to usher in the Ultra GT as an entirely new segment for the Italian automaker. But where that IRL event reached an audience traditionally associated with concept rollouts and traditional unveilings, the Lamborghini Lanzador Lab: The Official Design and Drive Experience on Roblox offers something completely new, allowing “attendees” to visit a replica of the Automobili Lamborghini museum online, then design and customize their own digital Lanzador via Lamborghini’s Ad Personam personalization program to race as an in-game experience.

Designed as an immersive virtual experience, the Lamborghini Lanzador Lab: The Official Design and Drive Experience on Roblox is not only a glimpse of the future of high-performance driving, but also an example of the future of marketing toward a new generation already living part of their lives within the metaverse.

Mitja Borkert, the Design Director of Automobili Lamborghini, considers the Roblox platform as just another viable social platform, one allowing the automotive brand the opportunity to connect with a generation already comfortable with attending events and participating in experiences hosted completely online and within a virtual environment.

Roblox players are invited to take their 3D replicas of the concept capable of “peak power of over one megawatt” – or the equivalent of 1,341 horsepower –  to race in time trials competitions. Lamborghini is also offering Roblox players special edition virtual racing helmets, backpacks, beanies, and other hats to adorn their avatars, with the most rare item being an Automobili Lamborghini Bull Head (only three of them will be made available, and sold for 1.5 million in Roblox currency).

The Lamborghini Lanzador Lab: The Official Design and Drive Experience may seem like a childish novelty to an older generation. But consider we’re now several generations into millions of drivers who’ve clocked thousands of miles racing vehicles in games such as Forza Horizon and Gran Turismo. Lamborghini might just be ahead of the game in identifying a ripe opportunity to connect with future auto enthusiasts long before the Lanzador concept goes into production in 2028.

Gregory Han is a Senior Editor at Design Milk. A Los Angeles native with a profound love and curiosity for design, hiking, tide pools, and road trips, a selection of his adventures and musings can be found at gregoryhan.com.

Design ni Dukaan subverts expectations of the architectural process from the creative brief to the fully realized concepts reflected in their fresh approach to interiors and space planning in an office project located in the city of Gandhidham in Gujarat, India. Through enhancing the intrinsic qualities of their material palette, the Ahmedabad-based architecture firm, helmed by Veeram Shah, seeks to elevate the level of craft one might expect in workplace design.

Built-ins to create seating for guests to remove and store shoes

“Let us make an attempt to use our knowledge and details to reimagine office spaces,” Shah says in his client briefs. “Can we use materiality as a means to find a solution for this? Can we use this process to create a warm work culture? Can art inserts become a seamless part of the volume?” As evidenced by this project, an atmosphere empathetic to user experience has the potential to induce positivity and in turn foster a more productive workplace.

Art-wall made with five layers of brown glass

Detail of the art-wall glass demonstrating transparency

The 1,328-square-foot space embraces the existing architectural structure, weaving material and programming together through a volume that feels more like inhabiting an art installation than a corporate headquarters. Much like adaptive reuse, this approach conserves resources by forgoing the need for a great deal of virgin materials while allowing the building’s unique imperfections to be sewn into the present with warm teak, brown glass, and terracotta microcement. “We are glad that the client’s vision is aligned with ours,” Shah says.

The reception table as guests turn the corner

Glass installation and reception table as guests turn the corner

Details in hall-wall viewing reception area

Traditional sliding shutters are traded for a folding door adorned with modernist patterns to avoid using commercial solutions upon entry to the building proper and foreshadowing the bespoke experience ahead. Visitors make their way to a vestibule seemingly carved out of stone, with ledges that serve as seating for rest and shelves to accommodate shoe storage, before turning the corner to be greeted by an art wall. The intervention is composed of 5 layers of 5mm thick brown glass that creates a halo effect when activated by daylight. A sculptural reception table pulls focus then moves the eye opposite to a sinuous curve wrapping around the waiting area and casual seating, which is flooded with daylight.

Details in hall-wall viewing waiting area

Beyond reception and adjacent to a waiting area is an open workspace for discussion

Office project head cabin

Flanking the public spaces are a variety of workstations with varying amounts of privacy. The southernmost end of the office houses the first executive cabin, kitchenette, and lavatory, while the opposite end features the second executive cabin and marble Mandir hidden behind doors with ornamentation to denote its significance. Furnishings like the tables take a cue from their context showcasing micro concrete punctuated by wood’s warmth.

Executive cabin 1 off the hallway with a mandir

Executive cabin 1

Executive cabin 1

Illustrated elements also echo through wall treatments, installations, and artwork. Successful solutions are just as much a collaboration between the client and design team as they are conversations with the visual language of the past and present. Pattern-making is a particular device employed by the studio taking inspiration from Burle Marx to inspire surface treatments for solid partitions and sandwiched glass details.

Executive cabin 1

Custom workstations

The firm also collaborated with artist Rutva Joshi for original pieces that hang in the executive cabins. “We deliberated upon the conceptualization of an office environment characterized by monochromatic aesthetics. As an artist, my creative vernacular is rooted in map making, and in this particular context, I drew inspiration from the intricacies of Gandhidham city where the office is situated,” Joshi says. “The resulting artistic expression manifests in the deliberate integration of geometric forms within a cartographic framework. It’s crucial to note that the mapped representation of Gandhidham is a result of imaginative exploration, not an accurate depiction.”

Custom workstation and view through adjacent office spaces

Executive cabin 2

Executive cabin 2

This peculiar assignment evolved into a creative exercise for the architect rather than a curation of furnishings at the client’s behest, typical of some interior design. “Every facet of this project from the lights, loose furniture, office chairs, handle details, murals, art and even the logo of the company was designed by Design Ni Dukaan,” Shah adds. “The sense of artistic fulfillment that permeates this endeavor is simply sublime.”

Executive cabin 2 detail

Photography by Kuber Shah, courtesy of Design Ni Dukaan.

With professional degrees in architecture and journalism, Joseph has a desire to make living beautifully accessible. His work seeks to enrich the lives of others with visual communication and storytelling through design. A regular contributor to titles under the SANDOW Design Group, including Luxe and Metropolis, Joseph serves the Design Milk team as their Managing Editor. When not practicing, he teaches visual communication, theory, and design. The New York-based writer has also contributed to exhibitions hosted by the AIA New York’s Center for Architecture and Architectural Digest, and recently published essays and collage illustrations with Proseterity, a literary publication.

The results are in! The A’ Design Award & Competition has announced its 2023 World Design Rankings (WDR), which ranks all the countries based on the number of designers that have garnered an A’ Design Award. Surprisingly, the rankings have not changed since 2022. China captured the coveted #1 spot out of 114 countries ranked, followed by the United States and Japan. However, across the board, the number of awards have grown across the top 10 countries, showing an increase in interest in the competition.

If you’re a designer looking to get their ideas out on the world stage and represent your country, the A’ Design Award & Competition gives you a platform to do just that. While some designers submit a prototype or a completed project, even if you have just a concept, you can share your design and get invaluable feedback from the international jury panel of esteemed design industry leaders. There are over 100 categories to submit your designs, from Architecture to Fashion, Furniture to Packaging, Lighting to Toys. If you’re deemed a winner, the prize package is significant, as it includes ample press coverage, the opportunity to sell your design, and more. To learn more about the A’ Design Award & Competition and submit your designs, visit adesignaward.com.

Need some inspiration? Take a look at a few of our favorite winning designs below:

Photo: Carolina Schwalb

Mocats Multifunctional Cat Furniture by La Jato del Gato

Insinuations Art to Wear Jewellery Collection by Barbara D’Ambra

Shadows Of The Sky Flower Troughs by Zsolt Szalai

Disco Oven Pizza Oven by Mark Cresswell

Spark Sofa by Wang Jun

Relax Chaise Lounge by Charlotte Abrahamsson Kwetczer

Lens Series Furniture by Eva Liu

Phantom Chair by Jun Wang

Greenery Bench by Shibing Yang

Water Ripples Chair by Kuo-Hsiang Kuo

As the Senior Contributing Editor, Vy Yang is obsessed with discovering ways to live well + with intention through design. She’s probably sharing what she finds over on Instagram stories. You can also find her at vytranyang.com.