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Roman & Williams revive eclectic Americana with a redesign of Freehand Miami's restaurant and bar

Roman & Williams revive eclectic Americana with a redesign of Freehand Miami's restaurant and bar

Ah, the elusive art of tasteful mismatching. Design studio Roman & Williams exhibited the skill in spades in their recent redesign of Freehand Miami hostel’s restaurant and bar, 27.

The lounge-style eatery is dappled in the bright motifs of their custom hand-drawn pieces, hand-selected local artwork, and vintage wallpaper in keeping with the hotel’s eclectic Americana vibe. In place of cookie-cutter tables and chairs is lounge seating, couches and even wicker furniture draped in textiles and upholstery that clash brilliantly.

Housed in a classic 1930s art deco building and inspired by the now-defunct Indian Creek Hotel, the Freehand is one of those places where you’ll find a pineapple-shaped table lamp and bunk beds draped with woven threadbare coverlets.

Working together as set designers for prominent Hollywood films, Stephen Alesch and his wife Robin Standefer founded Roman & Williams in 2002 after actor Ben Stiller asked them to design his home in Los Angeles. Alesch and Standefer drew on their experience designing the interiors of iconic boutique hotel destinations such as Ace Hotel New York, The Standard Highline, and the historic The Highline Hotel.

A far cry from the over-polished, antiseptic feel of most hotels, the Freehand Miami’s new restaurant reads like a residence whose owner brings home a few too many souvenirs from his  South American sojourns. With its distressed wooden ceilings and hodgepodge though nonetheless precision-selected furniture, the Freehand is redolent of a coastal summer camp where everyone is on first-name terms and the margaritas flow freely.

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