olamide, Author at DHK Designs

Timmy Davies Residence , Abuja , Nigeria

Who says a home is only allowed to be shiny, colourful and bright, when you can have the rich royal touch of a dark atmosphere and still call it a home. After a day’s long work at the office, one deserves to come to home that brings the feel of comfort and relaxation, therefore, DHK Designs fulfilled the purpose of the dreamy atmosphere in the project work done in Abuja.

Working with dark colours can be tricky, especially with a template that doesn’t sit well when put together, however we at DHK had no issues in being spontaneous with darker shades and well thought of patterns.

The ambience of the home as you walk in gives the eerie yet sophisticated look it deserves. With the pun intended shades of grey, black and green, not to forget the textures seen around the house and how well they compliment the look.

Focusing on the living room, dining space and bedroom in particular was where the magic happened. As you walk into the living area (entertainment room), you’d find the layout quite basic yet accentuated in a unique way, with a grey coloured cosy sofa placed in an L-shape manner, along with a single brown vintage leather chair and the petite sized cuboid centre table, all mounted on the well textured smooth rug that pops the colours of the furniture. The television floating console cannot be left out, as it is seen placed against the textured black wall, with a touch of green plants and raffia flowers on the console.

Walking away from the living area brings you straight to the dinning space, where the full length draped black curtains steals the spotlight, with the white blinds to give it layers. This dinning area comprises of a Nordic style of 4 sitting dinning table set and a plant just beside the curtains.

And for the elephant of the project is the intimate bedroom space. From the detailed bed frame to the rug, the lighting beneath the bed and above the bedhead all bring to proportion the reason to stay huddled up in this inviting cosy room.

It is concluded, that even with a dark themed space, the team at DHK Designs made sure to work with natural lighting also peaking its way into the room through the lengthy curtains, as should be.

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Level Lagos Restaurant, Herel Play, Lagos , Nigeria

Hospitality

The concept behind project Herel Play was to integrate modern aesthetics with the serene functionality of its compound by creating a space where fine dining and lounging can be done pari-passu other activities which take place in the environment.

With the inviting ambience as one walks in, are placed versatile seating arrangements that are carefully curated to aid everyone and anyone pick their desired spot as they come in. From the well crafted counter stools stationed at the bar, to the three aisle seating arrangements, the dining setting facing the outdoor view as well the comfortable semi-circular seating booth for larger groups, these were chosen peculiarly to the intent of the restobar.

Amongst the many beautiful decor pieces lies the plants and flowers placed at corners of the room as well as the wall, to give the colour pop in the midst of neutral colours.

Utilising a blend of high-quality materials and contemporary design trends, DHK Designs curated a space that reflects the upscale nature of its location. In navigating the challenges of a tight schedule, our team has embraced pre-fabricated solutions for certain components, facilitating quicker installation without sacrificing the integrity of the design. Constant communication and decision-making have been integral to the success of the project, ensuring that every aspect align with the vision for Herel for Level.

As we worked with a timeframe, that best meets the client, settling low on quality was not considered. Also we leveraged on current relationships with other professionals in the field, we’ve optimised the construction workflow, collaborated closely with contractors, and strategically sourced materials and components to ensure timely delivery.

DHK Designs takes pride in delivering a restobar that not only meets the expectations of the client but also stands as a testament to the Palette, even with the constraints of a demanding timeline.

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Risevest HQ Office, Lagos, Nigeria

Commercial

THE CONCEPT OF THE SPACE

The client reached out to us to create a workspace that’ll accommodate its total workforce ( as its workforce at that time were remotely distributed all over the country due to insufficient workspace at their existing office facility).

The project was developed in an abandoned office space in Yaba, previously owned by “Bridgestone”.

The proposal aimed to create a “Rise” world of its own, maintaining the diverse activities and company’s assets, and projecting the brand’s values and identity in its space.

One of the major project design themes was the construction of a colorful playful environment to give employees a better working psychology thereby enhancing productivity and positive work culture. This was achieved through the integration of multiple greens in the workspaces, wall arts, brand colors, lighting interplay and creating less boring/conventional workspace aesthetics.

Among these are the pockets breakout lounges and alternative workspace creating a revealing resource of diverse experiences and artistic interventions based on colors, textures and themes.

Another is creating a working environment that speaks more of the brand culture and projects the work culture of the spaces.

“By far the biggest workplace design factor in boosting productivity is giving employees the ability to control their own work environment”. We worked closely with a senior management member of the Rise team to give us more insight on the working requirements of each department of the firm. In return , we carefully carved out varieties of working environments ( individually and as a unit) that would not only give a comfortable workspace but also enhance productivity of its staff. This is expressed with the introduction of private work pods, private work booths and collaborative work booths and collaborative workstations as well as private offices partitions .

As the famous saying goes , all work and no play makes jack a dull boy, we introduced multiple breakout spaces with varieties of comfort conditions to enhance collaborations and productivity. Lounges,Nap rooms, Games room, and kitchen are introduced to take them out of the conventional workspace and give its users a breather.

EXECUTION

The first impression of a space tells us more about what is to be expected in the remaining area of the building.

The existing condition of the building posed both a problem and somewhat an opportunity for us as designers. Due to the structural condition of the building, we could only make fewer structural adjustments in our design. The reception area, we converted the existing structural recesses in the building to waiting booths for visitors, thereby maximizing the use of the space. The backdrop of the reception wall we created had an interplay of visual continuity with vertical lines concealing the entrance door into the main space. Embedded in this panel is a moss wall housing the company’s Logo.

Interior and exterior shoot of RISE HQ Office at Yaba, Lagos.

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Rooom XIX – The Gold Store, Lagos, Nigeria

Hospitality

Located in Lagos, Nigeria The Gold store- Room XIX is a sophisticated piece of interior design with the gold statement, blending with lights that illuminate every component in the making. In our attempt to disrupt the design norm of the fashion industry, we partnered with sketch lab to execute this design masterpiece alongside our clients, this presented the result that users of the store would admire and harbour a sense of luxury, arts, and culture.

Our intention was to create a luxurious space with a perfect blend of minimalism, achieving balance and rhythm in our composition, where each component is meticulously crafted and designed purposefully to give the users an exciting shopping experience, from the golden shiny metals to the crystal-clear glasses.

At Room XIX, the standard of tastefulness is set to achieve an attribute of being unusually effective and simple. The design adopts a balance of minimalist yet ornamented pieces that reflect its richness and simplicity likewise.

We want our users to encounter pure metallic lustre so closely that the experience makes a remarkable difference and to also use colour effectively, it is necessary to recognize that colour deceives continually- Joseph Alber.

The quality of design and work put into crafting each hanger to taste is a perfect interpretation of our aim to make each piece a strong statement “The goal is to always make a statement”. And in this masterpiece, we were able to define light and shade with a clear cut of smooth transition as expression of bond; to create both an experience of light and the bold golden lush.

The details are not the details. They make the design- Charles Eames

The distinguishing character created by the murals transforms the space in the stylish and creative ways. Like the unique idea to place the murals above the ceiling and in the changing room adds a personalised touch to the design, despite the patterned form it blends well still with the bright gold. Also, there was the idea of making a mounted glass frame that allows for the owners and designers of each outfit to put out their pieces in form of an art exhibition, making it a very stand out design in the store.

The gold store precisely made its brand colour stand out by using gold plated pieces like the full mounted mirror with a golden frame, the wall paintings depicting gold, the cylindrical stands for shoes and bags to be placed on as well as the curtains in the changing room. The thoughtfulness to go all out gold was put to perfection and Room XIX became what was envisioned. It is in the experience of the art, we can tell a story of form, colour, and shapes, while defining our idea of a perfect blend of beauty and elegance.

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Inpath Technologies Office, Accra, Ghana

Commercial

As a working environment on our own, coming up with a design that sits well with employer and employees was an easy project to do. Your working environment has great impact on how you perform your duties in the office, so making it suitable, would do greater good for whatever organisation it may be.

Inpath technologies located in Accra, Ghana, reached out to us at DHK Designs to come up with a working space that reflects ‘the excitement to work’ and would generally improve its employees’ work ethics. After an insightful deliberation of the plan with its owner, we came up with this colourful aesthetics that is centred around the company’s image colours and made due to give the best in creativity, collaboration and productivity.

The design process commenced after an analysis on the brands core values, which was, cutting-edge innovation and environmental stewardship. The minimalist concept provided a balance between modern designs and simplicity while keeping in touch with eco-friendly resources to beautify the space.

The simple yet well designed conference room has good sought out office chairs of great quality to keep workers comfortable while having meetings, the smart TV and projector diagonal to each other are mounted against an asymmetrical wooden board to give texture and a bit of colour to the dark themed room.

Keeping in mind that those who work with this brand are humans, we incorporated an area of the building where debrief and re-evaluation of ideas are done, but in a comfortable relaxing space and also a space to while away time and interact during lunch breaks or idle moments too.

“There is enthusiasm to work when you walk in an appealing workspace”.

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Medplus Flagship Store, Lagos, Nigeria

Hospitality

A Dose of Unique Style

Medplus Pharmacy, a leading healthcare facility in Nigeria, underwent a distinct transformation that points out its brands colours in a fun and functional way, for its customers to feel comfortable and have an approachable environment. Our goal was to create a unique store that would sell the story of the brand and serve as a flagship for future stores. The design concept was strategically to take key elements of the MEDPLUS brand, integrate elements of biophilia to create a standout Pharmacy design that emphasizes their status as the leading line in the industry.

Knowing that brand colours play a vital role in establishing a company’s identity and recognition, the role of colours as used on this project has the psychological wellbeing of an individual in mind and that cannot be overemphasized. Playful use of the brand colours was introduced to create visually appealing space as opposed to the conventional store accustomed to the brand. These colours are repeated on the various components of the store to continually communicate and celebrate the brands’ identity. The combination of these colours and the greenery that ushers you into the space creates a welcoming, calm ambiance to incoming customers.

Diving into the symbolism of the colours, Pink being Medplus’ primary colour, it means to bring forth good health, nurture, compassion, and comfort which by so doing a pharmacy with what it stands for gives off that aura, and not to leave out the green which generally means nature, growth, health, and wellness, which all perfectly aligns with the pharmacy’s purpose. That is why we incorporated these two colours repeatedly around the store, to make its purpose not just inviting but also passing the right information.

Integration of green as its secondary colour were used in areas like, the natural moss wall as the counter area backdrop, as well as the suspended artificial greenery in the middle of the pharmacy ceiling biophilia enabling customers connect conveniently with nature. This colour as well can be found at the walk in of the pharmacy where natural plants are placed in vases to keep it growing and healthy as well as keeping the down to earth feel in plants.

One of the most intentional and creative pieces on this design journey with Medplus are the carefully crafted and sculpted shelves, made to take the shape of a conventional capsule, a form that is very much familiar in the pharmacy world. With that customers get to spend more time carefully picking out what they need from the shelves while admiring the concept behind creating a well-structured and inviting pharmacy such as MEDPLUS.

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Prissy Micheals Fashion Store, Lagos, Nigeria

Hospitality

Welcome to Prissy Michael’s Collection new store, where the oasis of fashion has been crafted with luxury and style. As requested by the client, DHK Designs created a space where exploring fashion trends in the store comes with ease and comfort while keeping you visiting as often as unexpected.

Further into the compound is a lounging area accompanied by an umbrella tent, with wooden chairs that has mint green cushions and backrest pillows that blends well with the green scenery of plants around it.

Stepping into the building presents the realm of a gold coloured theme that gives warmth and luxury, from the bright yellow-gold painted walls, to the chandeliers hanging from the ceilings, the warm lighting that is installed all around the corners as it ignites the beauty of the floors and walls. The beautiful hangers, racks, ornately carved gold-framed mirrors and wooden shelf in the office, all pleated in gold, giving off the richness in quality designs.

Taking a closer peek at the interiors of the building, DHK Designs implemented everything it stands for, by bringing to light, exquisite ornaments to beautify the space, pieces of plants and flowers (to bring nature into the room), quality furniture, well stationed glass shelves (to keep the bags and shades), beautiful walk-in shoes and bags closet that has side stools which one can sit and try them on.

Going up the beautiful stairs with marble tiled floors is the office & work section, where the brainstorming takes place and private team meetings.

Moreover, as the CEO of Prissy Michael’s Collection, we did our very best create a working space that gives her the opportunity to be creative and think freely as well as feeling congenial while at work. Same goes for the co-workers, as we made available sectioned out rooms for relaxation & pep talks; implementing the vision, values and work ethics of the brand was smooth ride for us at DHK Designs.

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MyFurex Head Office, Lagos, Nigeria

Commercial

A workspace design for a tech company requires one to incorporate the elements that fosters creativity, collaboration and productivity, that is why the work done at MyFurex by DHK Designs implemented these elements to make working at the company smooth.

Designing the workspace with a flexible layout that creates ease of movement and accommodation for its staff was a priority of the client, from the seating structure of each staff to a desk to the spacious aisle for easy access to other areas of the office.

Standing our ground on investing in high quality furniture and pieces, the team at DHK Designs sourced for ergonomic chairs, adjustable desks, that supports employee comfort and well-being, especially for those spending long hours at their desks. You can also find at some corners of the office, a sofa for one to sit and brainstorm whilst being cozy, a bean bag for a more relaxed time-out off work, a cubic side foam stool that adds a unique style to the room.

Introducing the elements of nature into the workspace, such as the smaller green plants found on the corners of the work desks and the taller plants at each corridor, to improve air quality and stress reduction. The project requirements to infuse the designs with elements that reflects the company’s brand and culture was greatly put to use; such as the colour scheme, graphics, picture frame that speaks words of technology and the logo displays, to create an inspiring environment.

Making sure to give keen attention to details in the design of MYFUREX HEAD office involved selection of high-quality materials, with thoughtful placement of the furniture and design pieces all to incorporate the values and identity of the company.