Studio Visit: Designercarpets Drechsle

We collaborated with Designercarpets Drechsle in nearby Lörrach, Germany, to create a colorful kilim carpet for a galley kitchen. A kilim is a lightweight, flat-woven, reversible textile without a pile. Wool is ideal for a working kitchen because its long stable fibers and high lanolin content make it exceptionally durable and dirt-resistant. It also has a positive effect on indoor climate and acoustics.

For our project, the Drechsle team translated our initial conversations and concept visuals into detailed weaving plans and color wool samples. The carpet was handwoven in Nepal by Tibetan artisans with whom the Drechsle family has worked for more than thirty years, and is Fair Trade certified. Direct from the Himalayas to Kathmandu, the wool was locally sheared, washed and hand-spun, then dyed with organic dye pigments.

Neighborhood Visit: Paulusquartier

The building at the corner of Steinenring and Bachlettenstrasse is a Paulusquartier landmark. Built in 1904, it originally housed a Bell grocery store—an early example of retail integrated into residential architecture. Today it’s home to a café that serves as one of the liveliest gathering places in the neighborhood.

We were commissioned to redesign the café's interior to improve comfort while highlighting the building's turn-of-the-century character. The unique panoramic glass fassade creates a bright, open space but also presents acoustic challenges. Our proposal introduces sound-absorbing curtains and textile floor coverings in key areas, with new upholstered furniture pieces and built-in banquette seating. Together, these elements effectively reduce high-frequency noise while maintaining visual connection to the street, and create a comfortable neighborhood ‘living room.’ Read how sound-rated textiles work.

The cafe’s panoramic glass fassade creates a bright, open space but also presents acoustic challenges.

Designing with sound absorbing materials reduces high frequency noise and creates a comfortable neighborhood ‘living room.’

Studio Visit: Kvadrat

At a workshop at the Kvadrat Studio in Zürich, we learned how yarn fibres, construction and finishing influence both the appearance and performance of carpets.

For a TV room in one of our projects, we sourced Kvadrat’s made-to-order Silhouette rug designed by Hella Jongerius. Woven from Kvadrat's Bravoure yarn, it has a plush fringe border that blends four yarn colors in a gradual transition from one tone to the next. We chose the rug for its tactile presence: it grounds the room without drawing attention to itself. Its deep pile, extra-soft texture and custom sizing made it an ideal choice for a TV room, adding warmth, comfort and acoustic softness.

Made to order Silhouette rug: its generous pile height and naturally soft texture made it an ideal choice for a TV room.

Paris Déco Off Visit: Liberty Fabrics

Supported by the City of Paris, Paris Déco Off is an annual design event bringing together leading international textile, wallpaper and furnishing producers. Showrooms across the city present new collections alongside established classics, with a focus on craftsmanship and the decorative arts.

At Liberty Fabrics, we discovered their Botanical Atlas wallpaper collection which proved to be the perfect choice for a client who wanted to bring references to landscape and gardens into her home. Inspired by nineteenth-century botanical illustrations, the collection introduces a sense of nature and discovery into the home's architecture. Used selectively, it creates surprising moments of connection between the interior and the surrounding landscape. Read more about Liberty’s Botanical Atlas collection.

Installing Liberty Botanical Atlas collection on our Dornach project.

Paris Déco Off Visit: Vandra Rugs

We first encountered Vandra Rugs at Paris Déco Off, an annual design event where international textile, wallpaper and interior houses present their latest collections across Paris. Vandra is a Swedish producer that combines traditional röllakan weaving with contemporary geometric design, and makes each rug to order by hand in southern Ukraine.

For the living room of one of our projects, we sourced Vandra's Rettangolo rug, designed by Ami Katz. We were drawn to its linear pattern, pixel-like framing and textured linen rya details, which give the surface a unique three-dimensional quality. The rya technique was originally developed in Scandinavia to provide warmth and insulation. Its cut wool pile creates a soft, textured surface that is both comfortable underfoot and well suited for a compact sized living room.

Rettangolo rug in the living room of a project: The tactile linen rya stripes create a three-dimensional quality, while the color choice is a nod to the home’s exterior fabric sunshades.