QT Sydney: A Hotel With a Twist

Posted on Posted in Travel

QT Sydney exterior

Situated in what were the Gowings department store and State Theatre, QT Sydney is the newest addition to the boutique hotel scene. In the heart of Sydney’s central business district, art, design, cuisine and culture surround the hotel making it an optimum place to stay and experience the best of what the city has to offer.

The interiors of the hotel aim to convey a modern aesthetic, while still remaining reflective of the past. Art Deco style has a heavy presence throughout the areas, and original stone cladding, gargoyle statues, original timber floors and retail showcases have been restored to show the history of the buildings.

The Rooms

QT Hotel room corridor

Local designers Nic Graham and Shelley Indyk have teamed up to create 200 uniquely styled rooms, reflecting the individuality of the QT brand. Most rooms feature a signature oversized bathtub, and include fittings and fixtures from the iconic buildings, allowing each room to revive the history that is contained within the walls of QT Sydney.

The rooms also include all the amenities you would expect from a five-star hotel. Luxurious bedding, high speed internet, walk in showers and 24/7 room service ensure that anyone staying at QT Sydney will be comfortable for the entirety of their stay.

QT Sydney bedroom

QT Sydney room study

QT Sydney room two

QT Sydney room one

QT Sydney suite bathroom

Food and Drink

QT Sydney Gowings Bar and Grill

Nic Graham and Shelley Indyk are also the designers of Gowings Bar & Grill, as well as the Gilt Lounge. Opting for a more subtle interior in the brasserie, neutral colours have been used to create a more elegant atmosphere.

In the Gilt Lounge, a perfect middle has been met using similar colours as the restaurant, and quirky coloured furniture to create an exciting, and simultaneously relaxing vibe, perfect for a rendezvous with friends or workmates.

Gowings Bar & Grill

Gowings Bar & Restaurant

Robert Marchetti is the creative food director of Gowings Bar & Grill. Marchetti has been working in restaurants since the age of 13, and is now the co-owner of three critically acclaimed restaurants in Sydney. Working with him at Gowings Bar & Grill is executive chef Paul Easson, who has over 20 years’ experience in kitchens in Australia, England and Japan.

The open kitchen in Gowings Bar & Grill includes a wood fire rotisserie and a glass seafood room, which has a large piece of yellow fin tuna hanging ready for tartare and steaks. The restaurant sits 120 people, and is the perfect venue to start an evening, or to end a day full of endulging in all of what Sydney has to offer.

Gowings Bar & Restaurant

Gowings Bar & Restaurant

Gowings Bar & Restaurant

Gowings Bar & Grill private dining room

Gilt Lounge

Gilt Lounge bar

Upstairs you can find Gilt Lounge, QT Sydney’s cocktail bar. One of the main features of the bar is the barrel-aging of their cocktails. The drink is mixed, poured into a barrel, and left to be infused with the natural flavours of the wood. The cocktail menu focusses on brown spirits and bitters, meaning the cocktails that go into the barrels won’t be spoiled as they age.

Standards don’t stop with the drinks. Robert Marchetti also designs the bar snack menu. Be it hotdogs with both raw and cooked onion, raw ocean trout or caviar, after quenching your thirst with the expertly made cocktails, you will undoubtedly be able to satisfy your hunger with the delicious food available to patrons of the Gilt Lounge.

Gilt Lounge VIP

Guilt Lounge

Guilt Lounge

spaQ

spaQ reception

Ranging from massages to brow and lash grooming, visiting spaQ is a great way to relax and unwind. Facial therapies and manicures are also available, which makes for a perfect day out with the girls. For the men, an in-spa barber offers haircuts, traditional wet shaves, and a “no-nonsense, yet thoroughly modern approach to men’s skincare and grooming”.

For more information, visit the spaQ website.

spaQ private treatment

For enquiries:

Website: http://www.qtsydney.com.au
Email: reservations_sydney@qthotels.com.au
Phone: +61 2 8262 0000

Cityscapes Painted with Oils

Posted on Posted in Art

Cityscapes Painted with Oils by Jeremy Mann 01

With the ability to convey atmosphere, emotion and weather in his cityscapes, Jeremy Mann possesses an exceptional talent which is evident in his work. Whether it’s using light and dark blues to portray the mystery of a city in the night, shades of grey to capture the stunning scenes of overcast evenings where cabs are the only sign of life, or an array of colours to show rain pouring down on the abandoned footpaths of a business district during the cold peak of the winter months, Mann brilliantly translates the essence of the intriguing, unconventional romance of stormy city weather into captivating scenes upon his canvasses.

In order to paint the scenes of the San Francisco based artist’s work, several techniques are involved. Surface staining, the use of solvents to eradicate undesired paint, and prominent marks created from the use of an ink brayer all help to produce the mystifying paintings of the enticing cityscapes. Jeremy Mann also pays an extraordinary amount of attention to detail, be it small lights intertwined throughout the city, or the reflections of the rain-covered roads and the scenes that surround them.

The combination of these aspects creates visually pleasing settings which allow viewers to temporarily get lost in the allure of the rainy days and nights as envisioned by the artist.

For more of Jeremy Mann’s paintings, click here.

Images: Jeremy Mann
Source: Colossal

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Bugatti Gangloff Concept

Posted on Posted in Transport

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The Bugatti Gangloff concept is the work of Paulo Czyżewski, a designer from Lublin, Poland. The concept takes its influence from the one-of-a-kind 1938 Type 57 SC Atlante Coupe, which was designed and built by French coach-builder Gangloff. As is to be expected, the Gangloff concept also draws a lot of design cues from the Bugatti Veyron, which assists greatly in connecting the concept to the brand.

“In times of commercial trash and plastic it is hard to see something that has a soul and is able to squeeze out a positive mark on the heart.” – Paulo Czyżewski

Perhaps what is most impressive about the design is that Paulo Czyżewski has had no formal training in automotive design, and is completely self-taught. Given that this design has come from a man who is in no way affiliated with Bugatti, we can only hope that the automaker notices this stunning concept and has a go at developing and manufacturing the Gangloff.

For more of Paulo Czyżewski’s work, click here.

Images: Paulo Czyżewski

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How to Make a Classic Martini

Posted on Posted in Food & Drink

Four parts gin. One part dry vermouth. Olives or a lemon twist. This is the classic martini as we know it, though it hasn’t always been that way. While the two main ingredients have always been gin and vermouth, a ratio of 1:1 was the norm in the late 1800s. During the conflict in the first half of the 20th century, the ratio increased to 3:1 or 4:1. Following suit, the mid to late 1900s led to an even higher ratio of 6:1, 8:1, and on occasion, 12:1. Since then, the standard ratio has returned to 4:1.

While many books have been published on the martini, the true beauty of the cocktail is its simplicity. Its rise in popularity, however, was due to its availability. During Prohibition, gin was one of the easiest alcohols to produce, meaning it was also heavily distributed. Because of the easy access Americans had to the spirit, martinis became a regular drink during the era, eventually leading to the prominent status the drink carries.

The Classic Martini

Ingredients:

60ml (2oz) of gin (popular choices being Gordons, Bombay Saphire and Tanqueray)
15ml (1/2oz) of dry vermouth (Noilly Prat or Martini)

Garnish:

Either 1 or 3 olives or a lemon twist

Method:

Start by filling both the glass section of a boston shaker and a cocktail glass with ice. Pour the vermouth into the shaker so that you coat not only the bottom of the shaker, but also the ice. Stir the contents with a bar spoon lightly, and then strain the vermouth out of the shaker.

Pour the gin into the shaker and stir. Take your time, stirring steadily to give the ice time to dilute the gin and vermouth

After stirring the contents for about a minute, empty the ice out of the cocktail glass. Proceed to strain the contents of the shaker into the cocktail glass, avoiding any form of long pour.

The martini is traditionally garnished with either one or three olives, though a lemon twist is also a popular choice. Sit the garnish in the bottom of the glass.

Sit back, put on some good jazz, and enjoy your classic martini. Click here for a great video tutorial following the same method.

House on the Cliff by Fran Silvestre Arquitectos

Posted on Posted in Architecture

Perfectly situated on a cliff facing the Mediterranean Sea, this house makes for an incredibly comfortable lifestyle. Located in Alicante, Spain, Fran Silvestre Arquitectos designed the house to be constructed as one monolithic structure consisting of reinforced concrete slabs and screens, so as to reduce the earthwork. The concrete structure was then coated with stucco in order to create the smooth white aesthetic of the exterior.

Another reason for constructing the house using a single concrete structure was so that the bedrooms and living areas could be contained in one level. Below the dwelling is a level which features the terrace, a garage and also a swimming pool overlooking the Mediterranean Sea. It would be hard to grow tired of such a spectacular view, especially when it is the first thing you see as you wake up each morning.

View the video below to take a virtual tour of this stunning home.

Photographs: Diego Opazo via ArchDaily
Architecture film: Alfonso Calza