Rita Chraibi

Rita recently previewed an exciting upcoming project with Haute Design. The massive structure is set to result in an exceptional and unprecedented exterior for Miami.

Haute Design: What does a project of this magnitude mean for your firm?

Rita Chraibi: This means a lot. This kind of project is a big challenge because it is an existing house that we have to completely reconfigure. The residence is more than 30 years old. For the exterior of the house, we have redesigned all the facades. This completely affects the interior as well as it alters the distribution and rearrangement of the layout. Therefore, the interior design of the home has been completely redone.

Taking into account all the constraints of the existing house, it's a lot of parameters to take into consideration and a lot of constraints to manage at the same time. From a scale and size point of view, it requires a lot of time and very experienced interior design teams to manage a huge project - which also implies teams to manage and coordinate on-site.

It also implies a lot of creativity because this type of mansion has to be completely rethought and reconfigured, not just on an aesthetic level, but on a technological level as well. There are plenty of constraints to manage since we have an existing house with all the structural and architectural limitations. So yes, it’s a very large project in terms of its size and importance and it's a wonderful opportunity to be able to express my creativity and expertise on such a project.

HD: What is the most exciting part about tackling a project this large?

RC: It's very exciting to compare the before and after aspects of a project like this. You have a house that's over 30 years old and you have to completely changes its style and redesign it. Unlike new house built from scratch, we will benefit from this before and after concept and it's very exciting. Aside from the size (42,000 sq. ft built-up) and importance of the project, what will be most exciting is to see the house at the beginning of the project and then see its gradual transformation toward the final result. We're expecting to get the sense that it's not the same house at all and it will be somewhat of an extreme makeover.

HD: What will be the main inspiration for the design of this home?

RC: It's a house that was built in a Mediterranean style in the 80's on a private beach. The location of the house is exceptional. The owners wanted it to be modern but in a classic style that respects the shape of the house. Knowing that we were redesigning the interior as well as the exterior of the house, I proposed to my clients to do something unique and outstanding, never seen before in Miami, so we designed the exterior of the house in a “French chateau-style” as we often see in France - My clients are very refined and loved the idea of having something completely different and brand-new - it's unprecedented in Miami and the result of the exterior of the house will be truly exceptional!

The interior of the house is definitely very modern and this is often the case with renovations in France for all the old buildings and even in the “Haussmanian” style apartments in Paris. The character and the old architecture are preserved while matching it with a contemporary interior design.

I find the result very interesting as a kind of respect for the past with a foot in the future. It is a kind of confrontation between the old and the modern that gives an unparalleled result.

The post International Designers’ Rita Chraibi Teases Benchmark Residential Design Project in Miami appeared first on Haute Residence by Haute Living.

Rita Chraibi

Photo Credit: Juan Pablo Castro

Rita Chraibi launched International Designers in 2013, introducing her European design expertise and French “Art de Vivre” influence through modern, luxury designs to residential and hospitality projects in the United States, Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa.

Rita recently took the time to share a bit more of her design background as well as predict design themes for 2022 and beyond.

Haute Design: Could you share a bit more about your upbringing and your background in design?

Rita Chraibi: My background is one of opposition between art and discipline, creativity and duty. Growing up in Morocco, my father was one of the few officers in the Moroccan Army to have studied at Saint Cyr, in France, which is the highest training available for the military.  In fact, it is the same education General de Gaulle had. My mother on the other hand, had a degree in philosophy. So, while it was always my dream to be a fashion designer, my parents felt I needed to study in a more intellectual field. My dreams to draw, create, and work with colors and textures were dashed when I acquiesced and got my law degree. I felt my artistic soul had been crushed.

I worked at a law firm for two years until an opportunity to work as a design intern presented itself through a family friend, Hugo Torrico at Villarroel Torrico, a renowned design firm with offices in Spain and China, and I took it!

Not only did this experience make me fall in love with the world of interior design and architecture but it made me realize that many of my passions found within fashion could be translated to interior design, in terms of colors, textures, fabrics, drawing and volumes. You can "dress up" an interior and evoke many feelings, create and reconsider space. It's magic!

Eventually, in 2013, I opened my own firm, International Designers by Rita Chraibi. I chose to not name it exclusively after myself because although many of the projects derive from my inspiration, there is an exceptional team of designers behind me and I wanted to pay tribute to them.

Photo Credit: Juan Pablo Castro

HD: How would you describe your personal design style?

RC: I am not a fan of giving my style a label or committing to one for my firm because I think every good designer knows that each project has a soul of its own. Whether it is a hotel, office or residence, each property has a story, which I want to help convey. While each project guides me by way of style, I do have core values which I always strive to respect.

My spaces must feel elegant regardless of the style in which they are designed. That said, I have a good mastery of classical European, contemporary, Art Deco and Arab-Moorish styles, perhaps in part due to my French and Moroccan roots. "Haute Couture" would be another way to attempt to describe my styles I do take plenty of inspiration from the world of Haute Couture fashion, be it Christian Lacroix or Chanel.

I look at interiors in a similar way a fashion designer would look at their models. This does not just mean using fashionable furniture lines like Hermès, although I do that as well, it is also a way to humanize the interiors and express their personality. Fashionable and chic homes should not mean cold. It is very important to me that interiors are warm, livable and friendly. Achieving interiors that are simultaneously chic, sophisticated, warm and cozy is a challenge that I enjoy rising toward.

Photo Credit: Juan Pablo Castro

HD: What direction do you feel that design is moving toward?

RC: We are all learning to live for longer periods of time at home than we were previously used to and this has to be factored into residential designs moving forward. Interiors will need to be arranged in a manner that is more family-friendly while also allowing for solitary moments in order to allow for reflections as well as real work done.

Design will probably move toward comfort above trendy, which is a good thing in my opinion. Anything that is too trendy is further from authenticity and truth. There is a certain hypocrisy in imposing a current color or style on everyone so I simply avoid to do so. I feel we are going to get closer to the "real" and have closer as well as more frequent connections to nature. Conversely, there will be more technology incorporated into design, which may, in some ways, help with these environmental connections.

Photo Credit: Juan Pablo Castro

The post Rita Chraibi of International Designers Predicts Design Themes For 2022 And Beyond appeared first on Haute Residence by Haute Living.

French-Moroccan interior designer Rita Chraibi of International Designers, Julien Bigan, Director of Roche Bobois, and Nicole Fuller of the international interior design firm Nicole Fuller Interiors were hosted by Haute Living's April Donelson. The topics talked about included some of their projects and collaborations, as well as the experiences they had individually and professionally as the COVID-19 pandemic took its toll on the industry.

Watch the webinar below.

Highlight quotes from the webinar:

Rita Chraibi: "The future of interior design is the future of architecture and development... I love to tell a story for a project; it's very important for me. I do not like to talk about style or about trends. It's a very particular relationship between me and a project. I try to understand and listen to a space."

Julien Bigan: "It's very interesting for me to see the complete look of a home [decorated] with Roche Bobois done by a designer because this is where the true essence of Roche Bobois [comes out] in terms of creativity, innovation, and quality. You can really see those values there. It's a journey for us to do that, and the results are very spectacular."

Nicole Fuller: "Design is always going to be based on beauty and what the client wants, whether commercial or residential. Today, it's even more exciting. We've been pressed to think of it in a different way. We want to think ahead for our clients... If people need to budget for something, I think a lot more of that is going into everyone's space."

Watch more webinars on the latest in real estate and interior design at https://dev.hauteresidence.com/.

Top: Rita Chraibi, Nicole Fuller. Bottom: Julien Bigan

The post A Conversation On The Importance Of Interior Design appeared first on Haute Residence by Haute Living.