Tactile is an up-scale retail shop which showcases handmade rugs. The shop is located within an apartment building community which includes several other luxury retail shops and restaurant attractions. Connected to the shop, on the level above, is a makerspace that is open to the apartment community and where these handmade rugs would be woven.
Interior Designer: Hannah McCarley
Location: Fayetteville, Arkansas, United States
Year: 2017
Status: Concept
The design concept for this project is to reflect the rug making process throughout the shop with a wood and copper woven structure, and to create volumes of space that vary the levels of intimacy in the space. The glass staircase on one end of the space connects the showroom to the makerspace. The staircase has a prominent position in the space, drawing attention to the rug making process which happens above, and allowing clients to see this process for themselves.
The woven structure creates three separate volumes of space across the shop as the ceiling plane lowers when you move further into the space. The first, most open volume, is the where the main entrance is located. This area will leave a grand, luxurious first impression on the client, and the high ceilings are another aid in drawing attention to the second level makerspace.
The Second volume of space is the main area for rug showcasing. In this space, the ceiling plane lowers to create a focus on the rugs. Clients are able to view the rugs attached to sliding panels which are integrated into the woven structure. This design detail facilitates viewing the rugs one by one, providing each rug with the full attention of the client. When not being viewed, the panels slide back into place, completing the wooden weave.
The third volume of space, located at the back of the shop, is an area for clients to discuss orders and make payments. A copper table ties back with the copper weave in the structure above, and having the lowest ceiling plane provides an intimate setting.
Hannah Mccarley
Hannah is a fourth-year interior design student at the Fay Jones School of Architecture + Design in Fayetteville, Arkansas. She believes that design has the power to impact lives through the creation of environments and experiences, and she hopes to combine her passion for people and design in the future. She is interested in all aspects of design, from large-scale commercial projects to the eloquent details of product design. She has studied the history of interior design and landscape architecture in Italy, France, and the United Kingdom during the summer of 2017. She is a member of the American Society of Interior Designers student chapter and is a part of the mentor program.