Note down your room number should you particularly adore its every detail. Lee points out that there are as many as 34 different room configurations within the hotel. Each room in The Warehouse Hotel is styled differently to best utilise its compact space, as the room sizes range from 27  to 57sqm (290 to 613 sqft). “We had to customise the design and layout for most of the 37 rooms,” shares the creative.  Lee personally favours the river view suite, as seen above; the hotel’s largest room proffers river views, a loft-like setting and a standalone bathtub.  Its open plan layout also creates a seamless transition between the living and bedroom areas, while making the suite more spacious. 

Nothing spells luxury as much as customised details, which the hotel has plenty of. The creative agency has designed furniture and accessories specially for different sections of the hotel. These include leather-lined desks in the rooms, as well as bird cage-shaped tiered tray that’s well stocked with mini bar staples and other treats, themed according to three vices: gluttony, lust and vanity. The reception, retail and bar counters in the hotel lobby are also designed by Asylum, along with the dining and communal tables in the back hall and the host stand and service station in Po.

For frequent visitors who have been there and done that, localised details are the little things that set boutique hotels apart from being facsimiles of others abroad. “We try to inject a lot of Singapore identity and history into this project, as much as possible,” explains Lee. “The whole idea is to stay in a hotel that you can only find in Singapore, that’s not similar to other boutique hotels in Paris, New York or London.” There will soon be no shortage of reading material with a local flavour either; books related to Singapore history, art and culture will be added to the hotel’s lounge area. Within the rooms, the mini bar will be well stocked with locally produced products as well as Singapore brands such as Paper Lantern (a homegrown gin distillery) and Tiger Balm. Ceramic tableware found within the room are also handmade by local kiln Mudrock. Chairs in the rooms are selected are the works of Asian design practices such as Neri and Hu from Shanghai, while the restaurant’s rattan seats are from Japan’s Feelgood Design (seen in the image above).

Take a closer look around The Warehouse Hotel and you will find the hue subtly featured just about everywhere within the premises. Lee shares that forest marble is used on the furniture and surfaces of the rooms, lobby area and even within the restaurant and bathrooms too. Guests can also expect to see foliage within the hotel soon, as planters will be brought in to decorate its corridors and other spaces within the coming weeks.

Artworks that will soon stream into the hotel include a new light installation by Dawn Ng, artist wife of Wee Teng Wen, managing partner of The Lo and Behold Group; she had also designed the “Perfect Day” light installation  at rooftop bar Loof. The pool at The Warehouse Hotel will be flanked by a luminous arch, designed by the same artist with the words in Chinese, “dui mian de niu hai kan guo lai” (‘Hey girl, look over here’); an art piece which Lee considers as one of his favourite design details at the hotel. “A lot of the art were curated by us,” shares Lee. “Local heritage was always at the back of our mind, from sourcing products, artworks to the restaurant concept, and everything was about working with local artists and designers.” Photo prints by Robert Zhao Renhui and works by other local and Asian artists will also decorate the walls of the hotel, in time to come.

The Warehouse Hotel is located at 320 Havelock Road. Visit www.thewarehousehotel.com for more information.