Hotel Vermont Attracting International Attention

We were pleased to see a wonderful review of the recently opened Hotel Vermont in this past weekend's Montreal Gazette. The hotel is gaining national and international attention as more people experience this unique, independent, Very Vermont hotel.

The Montreal Gazette calls it a "woodsy and trendy" hip venue. "An artisan project from furniture to food." The author was a guest of the hotel and goes on to write: "Burlington’s first contemporary boutique property, the Hotel Vermont opened this year with a singular dedication to regional products, individual craftsmanship and eco-consciousness."

You can read the whole Montreal Gazette article online.

Hotel Vermont was also earlier previewed in Lodging Magazine, the official magazine of the American Hotel + Lodging Association.

The May 2013 issue featured a rendering of the Deluxe King guestroom, released before the hotel opened. "A Vermont Vignette" provided a sneak peak of the guestroom with its custom bed and casework furnishings, overlooking Lake Champlain.

A longer article was published on the Lodging Magazine website: Hotel Vermont Opens as Burlington's First Independent Hotel.

Topnotch Resort Opens New Restaurant and Lobby

This is opening weekend for many of the new spaces at Topnotch Resort and Spa. TruexCullins has been working with the Stowe resort as they undertook a multimillion dollar renovation to transform many of the key places within the property.

A new exterior porte-cochere improves the arrival experience and now leads guests into the main lobby overlooking Mt Mansfield. The new lobby features a communal living room, café, and bar, and is home to The Roost, a refined but playful restaurant and lounge. In the center of the space sits a 16-foot custom designed shuffleboard table. A large banquet room provides additional seating.

 

 

TruexCullins Interiors also spearheaded a design overhaul on the Topnotch guestrooms. Renovations include a coordinating color palette with new furnishings and finishes.

We are excited for all the changes and hope to see many people enjoying the new Topnotch Resort on this opening weekend!

Furnishings for Introverts Revealed at Neocon 2013

by Matt Bushey

At NeoCon 2013 in Chicago last week, the contract furniture industry rolled out their latest products, and I noticed one major recurring theme: furnishings that create private spaces for individuals and small group meetings, free from the distractions of the open office:

These plush booths by the contemporary Swiss furniture company Vitra are perfect for a cozy meeting with colleagues when a little more privacy is called for.  Named the Alcove Cabin, this high-backed booth creates a room of its own that wraps around you on all sides.  This is one line in what Vitra refers to as "Meet and Retreat" spaces in the modern office.

In the Business section of today's Burlington Free Press, I talk about the need to design workspaces like this that are appropriate for both extroverts and introverts.  And based on what I saw in Chicago, many of the furniture manufacturers are getting the message.

Read on for the full story, with more examples of furniture for introverts and extroverts at the end of the article:


Space for Introverts and Extroverts
Workspaces increasingly strive to provide a balance between collaboration and concentration 

Every company is comprised of individuals, each with their own personalities, work styles, and preferences. So how do we craft one space that meets the needs of such a diverse group?

At the recent Vermont Businesses for Social Responsibility spring conference, I led a workshop on designing workspaces to provide a balance between collaboration and concentration, and one of the most compelling questions we heard was how to provide space that is effective for both introverts and extroverts.

True extroverts are gregarious, social, and assertive. Extroverts are outgoing and comfortable expressing themselves, and they tend to be good at multitasking and handling large amounts of information at once.

However, an estimated 30- 50% of the people we work with are introverts. In general, introverts prefer one-on-one conversations to group activities, tend to think before they speak, and work best focused on a single task with few interruptions.

In business, as in life, we need both types of people: those who speak freely and those who think deeply. Studies have shown that the most productive teams are those that combine both introverts and extroverts, and the most effective leaders are those who can bring out the talents of all.

The modern office has become more open and fluid to promote teamwork and collaboration but this has introduced challenges for meeting individual’s needs since introverts and extroverts exhibit different work styles and react differently to their physical surroundings.

How do these differences manifest themselves in the workplace? One theory is that extroverts excel in the open plan because they thrive from the multiple interactions within one space. They draw creative energy from chance encounters and group collaboration. Introverts, on the other hand, prefer to retreat to a secluded space where they can focus on individual tasks without distraction.

An opposing theory claims the exact opposite: that introverts actually work better in an open plan because they have an innate ability to block out noise and distractions. They can shut out their surroundings and look into themselves to accomplish their work. According to this theory, extroverts are at a disadvantage because they are more easily distracted by all of the activity surrounding them.

Whichever may be the case, I am increasingly recommending "flexible", open plans with a mix of spaces to support different tasks and personalities. This concept was evident last week in Chicago at NeoCon World Trade Fair, North America's largest design expo for commercial interiors. Here, more than 700 manufacturers release their new products each year, much of it based on research related to ergonomics, human psychology, and work styles.

In past years, the emphasis was on ‘benching’, long open tables where rows of workers sit side-by-side with no separation. This year, however, the focus was on furnishings and systems that provide greater individual privacy, such as 4-person booths with tall panels that wrap around three sides, and chairs with felt-lined canopies that can muffle a private phone call.

Some of these solutions are practical and some are playful, but they all aim to create peaceful spaces that offer visual and acoustical privacy within a louder open plan. This is a clear acknowledgement that workers have varying space needs as they perform different tasks throughout the day, and people perform better in different environments depending on their personality type: introvert, extrovert, or something in between.



Coalesse, a division of Steelcase, released the Massaud Lounge chair at NeoCon this year.  This "privacy pod" features a flip-down hood that masks your vision and voice.  Inside, an iPad mounts to the felted canopy for some private facetime or Skype sessions.

Another example of space-making for introverts: This high-backed booth by Bretford, where 4 people can meet in relative privacy.  The furniture is embedded with power and USB ports for charging your mobile devices.

A View Inside Burlington's New Hotel Vermont

Another week and another TruexCullins project profiled on our local WCAX TV news.  In case you missed it, here is a copy of the video report of the new Hotel Vermont.

The hotel has been open for about a week now, and the initial feedback of the TruexCullins-designed interiors has been great.  Watch the video for a tour thru the lobby and guestrooms.

And because your Memorial Day barbeque will most likely be rained out this weekend, we suggest you change your plans and head over to Hotel Vermont for dinner or cocktails at Juniper bar!

WCAX.COM Local Vermont News, Weather and Sports-

You can also read the story from the WCAX webpage here.

Capturing Vermont in Metal and Wood

You've heard us say that the interiors of the new Hotel Vermont will be all about Vermont, reveling in all its funky, earthy, independent spirit. This is true both in style and execution.

Case in point: see if you can figure out what this is a photo of:

Stumped?  These are the legs of the lounge chairs that will grace the lobby in the new hotel.  We based our original design of these chair bases on the rails of a classic winter sled.

They are being made by our friends at Beekon Parsons, a woodshop run by a couple of talented furniture makers who have been creating fine wood furniture in Vermont for 30 years. We think you'll agree that the wood and metalwork on these chairs is coming out beautifully.

We have worked with Bruce and Jeff on many projects, and we are thrilled that their work will be featured in Hotel Vermont.  Here are a few more photos from their studio workshop in Shelburne where this furniture is taking shape:

Tips for Collaborative Workplace Design published in Free Press Business pages

by Matthew Bushey

The following article appeared in the 'Innovate' Business section of the Burlington Free Press on Thursday March 21, 2013.  It is also available for viewing online.


Creative Corner: Not Behind Closed Doors
Designing for teamwork in the workplace
 
In today’s workplace, one of the biggest challenges we face is how to foster creative teamwork while allowing for privacy and concentration. Most office workers spend their time split between group meetings and individual tasks, so it is difficult to apply a one-size-fits-all solution and expect good results.

Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer recently announced plans to eliminate her company’s work-at-home policy, ordering everyone back to the office. In explaining the change, the company cited the need for greater communication and collaboration.

This rationale follows the general industry trend toward a more open and collaborative workplace. There is an increased recognition that the most creative problem-solving does not occur by an individual behind closed doors, but rather by a group effort of people putting their heads together.

Over the past few years the walls have been coming down, and more people are moving out of the private office into an open office setting. The problem here - and the reason many Yahoo employees had chosen to work from home – is that the visual distractions and noisy interruptions of the office prevent them from focusing on their work.

This is one of the biggest challenges we face with the design of the workplace: How to provide a comfortable balance between teamwork and individual privacy.

The first place we start is with the design and planning of the open office workstation. Repetitive rows of Dilbert-style cubicles do a poor job of providing privacy, and they are not conducive to group work. One solution is to break out of the box and think about alternative planning modules, or scatter workstations in a layout that gives each person a unique boundary and line of sight. The in-between spaces then become additional opportunities for impromptu collaboration, while promoting individuality.

Another method to support conflicting work styles is to provide a variety of spaces that people can use throughout the day as their needs change. Working in an open office is more accepted if other spaces are available for a private phone call or a quiet one-on-one meeting with a colleague. These are not scheduled rooms. They are free for anyone to use on a moment’s notice.

Finally, we look at the design of group spaces that maximize the benefits of working together. Often the most creative problem solving comes not from scheduled meetings but from spontaneous interactions among coworkers. Conference rooms are still necessary, but informal, social spaces are becoming more important. A cafeteria or lunchroom can double as a social meeting space, with furnishings and technology that can turn a casual encounter into a productive work session.

The move by Yahoo is a sign that companies are starting to rethink the role of the workplace. In this age of remote access and virtual meetings, the message is clear that face-to-face interaction is still valued for successful teamwork. Ultimately to be effective, our spaces need to be flexible and responsive to meet the needs of groups and individuals alike.


Matthew Bushey, AIA, LEED AP is a registered architect and the lead project manager for the Workplace Interiors Studio at TruexCullins Architecture and Interior Design. www.truexcullins.com

A Sneak Preview of the Hotel Vermont guestrooms

We are counting down the days until the opening of Hotel Vermont.  As you may know from past posts, TruexCullins is designing the interiors for this LEED-certified hotel going up on Cherry Street in Burlington.  Last October we shared some renderings of the proposed bar at Juniper Lounge, located on the lobby level of the hotel. Check them out here if you missed it the first time.

Now we have new renderings of the hotel guestrooms, courtesy of our in-house digital wizards.  The rooms are all very modern and clean, with natural wood casegoods, dramatic lighting, and full-height doors and headboards.

In the Whirlpool King room, guests will enjoy a luxury bath that opens to the bedroom by a sliding glass door and an in-room fireplace facing the bed.

All of the guestrooms, including the Deluxe King, feature custom wood casegoods and furnishings.  The centerpoint of the room is the floor-to-ceiling headboard crafted from character-grade White Oak.  A built-in window seat makes maximum use of the space in front of the window and integrates seamlessly with the adjacent desk and dresser unit.

In this view, looking back towards the entrance, the guestroom bathroom is visible as a cube within the space.  Wood doors with translucent panels slide away on both sides of the bathroom so that when open, all the spaces flow continuously as one.

Some rooms have a larger entry, with a console unit as seen here.  A sliding door opens to the bathroom, with backlit mirror and vessel sink.

TruexCullins Interiors is responsible for the design and specification of most everything you see in these images, from the finishes and furnishings right down to the artwork and room accessories.

The Hotel Vermont guestrooms promise to be as unique as our state itself, and we can't wait to see the finished product!

Spur Grand Opening

Last summer we shared photos with you of the completed lounge at the Cascade restaurant at Teton Mountain Lodge in Jackson Hole.  This was Phase One of a two-part project, and the remaining work is now complete and open for business.  Rebranded as the Spur Restaurant and Bar, the new space recently opened its doors and held a grand opening celebration on December 21st.

TruexCullins designed a new restaurant dining room and bar that, like the lounge before it, is a warm and casual space that celebrates the western mountain aesthetic.  The design of the interior evokes the Jackson Hole qualities of rustic nature with a touch of contemporary flair.  Guests can relax by the fireplace or saddle up to the large bar.

Spur serves three meals a day and plays host to a lively après ski scene.  Executive Chef Kevin Humphreys is highly acclaimed in the area for his ability to elevate traditional mountain cuisine into distinctive dishes using regional and organic ingredients.  The opening party was a huge hit, with the restaurant filled with people enjoying the new space and the great food.

TruexCullins Welcomes Marjorie Dickstein

TruexCullins Architecture and Interior Design welcomes seasoned architect Marjorie K. Dickstein, AIA, LEED® AP as Project Manager. She is a resident of Starkboro, and the daughter of Sue and Richard Dickstein of Williston, Vermont.

Dickstein graduated from Yale University with a Master of Architecture. She received her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Environmental Design from Parsons School of Design. She also has a Bachelor of Arts from Eugene Lang College of the New School for Social Research, with a concentration in Urban Studies. Dickstein was an adjunct faculty in the Department of Furniture Design at Rhode Island School of Design.

She is a licensed architect in Vermont and Connecticut, and a registered interior designer in Connecticut. She has served on the Development Review Board in Starksboro, Vermont since 2010. 

A Sneak Preview of the Juniper Lounge

Anticipation is mounting on the west end of Cherry Street.  You may have seen the 200 foot crane towering over the downtown block as the city’s newest hotel takes shape.  Hotel Vermont is set to open in Spring 2013, and we are looking forward to a very grand opening.

This photo, taken earlier this month, shows the progress being made on the exterior envelope.  The hotel, designed by Smith Buckley Architects, occupies a formerly underutilized parcel on Cherry Street, between Macy’s and the Courtyard Marriott.  The hotel will be in an ideal downtown location, halfway between the waterfront and the Church Street marketplace.

Meanwhile, our work on the interior is continuing, with the design of natural materials, custom furnishings and dramatic lighting.

On the main floor, the heart of the hotel will be the Juniper Lounge.

With juices and pastries in the morning, and creative cocktails in the evening, this is a fluid and flexible space that will change accordingly throughout the day.  We recently produced these photorealistic renderings of the bar area, with actual materials and colors.  The bar features a local wood floor and wall finishes of white oak and black slate.  The space looks out to an outdoor terrace with a fire pit and lake views. (Click to enlarge.)

You can see these and more images on the Hotel Vermont Pinterest site.

Cascade Restaurant, Phase 1 Complete

We just received these new photos of the Cascade restaurant renovation project. The Cascade is the on-site restaurant of the Teton Mountain Lodge, located in Teton Village at the base of the mountain at Jackson Hole. TruexCullins designed the Teton Mountain Lodge a few years ago, and we are now working on a new design for the restaurant interiors.

Phase One of the renovation is now complete, which includes a lounge and kids' area adjacent to the main bar. This is the first glimpse into what will be a casual and lively space that will provide a fresh interpretation of a comfortable warm mountain aesthetic. Our goal is to provide a chic and sophisticated design solution that will appeal to all ages, the après ski crowd and dinner guests. We are incorporating local materials and crafts to evoke a sense of place that is uniquely Jackson Hole: natural, rustic, yet cosmopolitan in its sophistication.

On the exterior, the project includes new windows and patio furnishings, which have already transformed these outdoor dining and lounge areas.

Now Hiring!

TruexCullins is currently seeking a high level Registered Interiors Architect/Project Manager or Certified Interior Design Professional/Project Manager with 10-20 years of experience to play a key role in Project Management of multiple residential, hospitality and institutional projects.

Qualified candidates must have extensive Project Management experience, superior design skills, technical proficiency, and be capable of running multiple projects independently.  Proficiency in AutoCAD, SketchUp, Revit, and LEED AP Certification are highly desirable.

Those interested in applying for this position may contact Robert “Sparky” Millikin, Managing Principal, at smillikin@truexcullins.com

A Refined Vermont Office Interior

We recently completed this office fitup for a local asset management firm in Burlington, and we're happy to share these new photos of the completed space. We spent all day with Jim Westphalen, our go-to photographer, who captured these beautiful images of the space as the sunlight streamed in over the lake.

The space looks out over the Burlington waterfront, with views of the horizon over Lake Champlain and the Adirondacks beyond. Our design was therefore inspired by the surrounding landscape of the Lake Champlain basin and is a celebration of our Vermont culture and local community. Natural, local materials were used to give the space a true Vermont flavor, local craftspeople were engaged in the production of furnishings and casegoods, and the workplace was designed to support one of Vermont's strongest values: teamwork.

The reception area features hardwood Butternut flooring by Vermont Wildwoods which was salvaged from the Vermont forest floor and re-milled into an engineered product. The custom casework and reception desk flanking the reception area are faced with panels of Champlain Marble, quarried from the Lake Champlain Basin. A billowing ceiling of cloth panels provides a contrasting softness to the space and alludes to the gentle sailboats on Lake Champlain.

Much of the custom furniture and casegoods were made by Lyndon Furniture, a Vermont company that we have worked with on other projects of ours. The reception desk and lobby shelves are made from FSC-certified Red Birch which matches the beams above. Other tables and case pieces in the adjoining spaces are made of solid Walnut.

The space is also a good example of a design that promotes collaboration in the workplace, with open work areas and shared meeting and lounge spaces located in prime locations for adhoc team work. The library provides a quiet area for focused, concentrated work or small group meetings, and the War Room supports teams of 8 to 10 with interactive technology that fosters group discussion and out-of-the-box problem solving.

This project is on track to receive LEED certification under the LEED for Commercial Interiors program.

Hotel Vermont at the Vermont Expo

Visitors to the Vermont Business and Industry Expo last week had a chance to get a sneak preview of the interior design work we are developing for the new Hotel Vermont. We assisted the hotel with their booth at the Expo, with the arrangement of interior finishes that will grace the new boutique hotel in downtown Burlington.

The presentation of carpets, fabrics and greenery gave visitors to the Expo a sense of what the new hotel lobby and lounge will feel like. 'Stay Natural' is the tagline of the new hotel, and the interior design will deliver on this promise, with local, natural and healthy materials.

Some of our 3D renderings of the first floor lobby and lounge were also on display, along with this video from the groundbreaking ceremony featuring the owners and designers explaining the project.

The Vermont Business & Industry Expo is the region's largest business-to-business trade show and is hosted by the Vermont Chamber of Commerce. An estimated 3,000 people attended the two-day show held at the Sheraton Hotel and Conference Center in Burlington.

Designer Snapshot on New England Home

Today TruexCullins was featured on the New England Home Design Blog, the official blog of New England Home magazine.

Under the title “Designer Snapshot: No Boundaries”, the editors at New England Home chose three of our residential projects as examples of interior spaces that celebrate their natural surroundings and blur the boundaries between inside and out.

Read more about these three projects on today’s NE Home blog, then see the full article on the Shelburne home that was published in the magazine last year.

Restaurant Week Part 5: Norma’s

If you’ve been following us this week you know that we’re on a restaurant kick, with a new culinary design project posted each day. With summer right around the corner, we can’t think of a better way to enjoy a meal than sitting poolside with the Vermont mountain landscape opening around you. So today we are closing out our own Restaurant Week by coming back to Vermont and the Topnotch Resort in Stowe.

Norma’s is the signature restaurant of this four-diamond resort near the top of the Mountain Road. Opening in 2006, the restaurant serves up casual alfresco dining at breakfast, lunch and dinner.

The restaurant pavilion maintains a low profile, with a sweeping roofline and radial plan that allows for maximum views. TruexCullins collaborated with Belle Maison Interiors on this project, which has a contemporary interior and natural earth tones. An open kitchen opens onto the dining room.

The entire west wall of the restaurant is lined with a broad bank of mahogany-framed sliding glass doors that open onto a pair of sparkling pools. Outdoor tables provide more seating on the stone-paved terrace. And on a warm summer evening, the firepit on the patio becomes the source for a refined roast-your-own S’mores experience sure to please the whole family.

To view the menu and make a reservation, visit Norma’s Restaurant online at topnotchresort.com/dining-normas.php.

Restaurant Week Part 4: La Bella Vita

Each day this week we are presenting a recently completed project from our portfolio of restaurants and bars. Today’s special is a new Italian restaurant that opened just last year. La Bella Vita is located at the Samoset Resort on the edge of Penobscot Bay on the Maine coast and features an authentic antipasto bar, a wood-fired oven and a marketplace for Italian specialty foods.

This new restaurant has a strong connection to the ocean. The sound of the sea combines with the aroma of the Italian cooking for an engaging sensory experience as soon as you enter the space.

We incorporated a variety of lounge and sitting areas, including fireside seating, a communal table, and club chairs overlooking the ocean. Exposed wood columns and beams throughout the space frame a series of views, both internally and to the ocean beyond. Interior finishes and materials reflect those commonly found in domestic Italian kitchens, such as marble, wood, and iron. And the color palate of the interior and patterns of the carpets and fabrics are derived from both the food and the rich Italian history.

 La Bella Vita is located at the Samoset Resort, just south of Camden, Maine. To view menus or make a reservation, visit LaBellaVitaRistorante.com

Restaurant Week Part 3: Sugar Hill Inn

We love working on restaurant design projects that allow us to create environments that support and promote the enjoyment of food. Today’s project is in northern New Hampshire at the Sugar Hill Inn.

The Sugar Hill Inn is located near Franconia Notch state park and a number of New Hampshire ski areas, such as Bretton Woods, Cannon Mountain, and Loon. It is a charming, romantic getaway in a beautiful corner of the state and well worth the trip.

The Inn features an award-winning restaurant that offers a unique four-course meal in a romantic setting. As stated on the Sugar Hill website: “We have a European philosophy about dining. The table is yours for the evening. Take your time to enjoy the candlelight, cozy fire and amazing views with the combination of great food, wine and conversation … Our four course menu offers a well-balanced symphony of flavors and leads guests through a leisurely, romantic and artistic culinary experience.”

TruexCullins recently assisted the innkeepers of the Sugar Hill Inn with the renovations to their restaurant. The completely refurbished dining room includes wing-back chairs and a flexible central table. A custom casework display cabinet holds the Inn’s wine collection while screening the service area behind.

The restaurant is open to both Inn guests and the general public. For more info and to make reservations, visit sugarhillinn.com.

Restaurant Week Part 2: Amuse

This week we are sharing stories and photos of our recent Restaurant projects. Today we head to Essex, right outside of Burlington, where TruexCullins led the renovations to Amuse, the signature restaurant of the Essex Resort & Spa.

The Essex is the Burlington area’s only AAA Four Diamond hotel and has a strong focus on culinary excellence. Our work included the interior renovations of Amuse and the casual dining and bar area of the adjacent Tavern restaurant.

The central feature at Amuse is the chef’s table, a community table for 12 where guests have a front-row seat of the culinary action. With a clear view into the open kitchen, guests are able to watch as one of the master chefs prepares their meal. The experience is fitting for a facility that bills itself as a culinary resort. And if you are sufficiently inspired by the artistry in the kitchen, you can sign up for one of the cooking classes offered at the resort.

The rest of the dining room is given equal attention, with custom banquette seating, delicate glass fixtures, and a palette of off-white and natural wood. It is a classic New England interior for a classic Vermont restaurant.