Design Lessons from the American Trade Hotel
Step inside the American Trade Hotel!
Article By Coastal Living
Tucked in Panama City’s historic Casco Viejo district, the American Trade Hotel gets top marks for its design, the result of a collaboration between Atelier Ace (the creative force behind the Ace Hotels), Panama City-based Conservatorio (a real estate developer committed to the preservation of Casco Viejo), and L.A.-based Commune Design. Here, we’re highlighting the ten design lessons you’ll want to bring home from this overwhelmingly Instagram-able hotel, plus the products you’ll need to pull it off!
Pictured here, the killer interior courtyard, complete with graphic tile, stylish umbrellas, and benches outfitted in chic white-and-black cabana stripes and red-hot upholstery.
Classic, meet contemporary.
Wake up dark woods and traditional shapes by pairing them with sleek forms in zippy hues. Just outside the hotel dining room, six modern, X-base chairs in a splashy aqua loosen up a rich wooden trestle table and a pair of studded leather end chairs, making the polished pieces feel a little more playful and inviting.
Mixing materials + textures = design gold.
Using a mix of textures, materials, and patterns is what makes a space sing. In the hotel dining room, curved wooden table bases are topped with tiny metal, and mod wooden chairs are treated to supple leather seats and straw-wrapped backs for a collected, curated look that’s devastatingly hip and assuredly homey. The banquette keeps it fresh, too, pairing pretty tropical print cushions with a velvety neutral cushion.
A good night’s sleep calls for simplicity.
While the hotel’s common areas pull out all the pattern-happy stops, the guest rooms play it cool with crisp white bedding, ivory curtains, and creamy shiplap. Warm wood floors and paneled wainscot, plus moody blue throw pillows, invite a serenity that lulls you to sleep as gently as a straight-off-the-ocean breeze. Glossy black trim and a mod metal sconce in a sharp leafy green add a handsome, industrial punch.
