I live and breathe Melbourne almost every day of the year and this blog is my way of sharing a bit of Melbourne with my local, interstate and international readers.
However, I think possibly an even better way to share the best of the city is to create an experience which is all about Melbourne.
The Lost & Found Hotel Room is a novel concept from Right Angle Studio, the people behind the Lost & Found e-newsletter for Tourism Victoria. The premise is fabulous – a hotel room at the rather shabby 70s style Little Collins Hotel which has been especially appointed by curator Georgina Hobart with all things Melbourne – from the bathroom products from Aesop (each lucky guest receives a Jet Set pack, one of my favourite Aesop products) and ceramics by Shelley Panton…
….the Miranda July pillowcases from quirky Fitzroy store Third Drawer Down, bed linen from Linen & Moore and bedside lamp by furniture makers Pierre and Charlotte…
…a cosy reading chair and tripod lamp by Temperature Design…
…and assorted artworks from gallery Utopian Slumps.
If you’re feeling peckish as you listen to the curated collection of vinyls of Melbourne bands (including Crayon Fields, My Disco and The Emergency) or flick through the culturally enriching reading material, you can delve into the nibbles from Mount Zero, pour yourself a glass of red by King Valley’s Pizzini Wines or sip tea from Brunswick specialist tea purveyors Larsen and Thompson.
Two of the four walls comprise floor-length windows streaming sunshine into the room and provide expansive views of Little Collins Street and the succulent balcony planters built by Flatland and planted by Melanie Stapleton from Cecilia Fox (who also changes the interior flower arrangements once a week).
If you fancy leaving the room (and I’m not sure I would, it’s just such a relaxing city sanctuary) then the cultural concierge is there to help you make the best of Melbourne. Before you check-in you are asked to complete a questionnaire to provide some information about your interests, and the cultural concierge will give you a list of suggestions and ideas for your stay.
Guests are also invited to contribute to the guest book by taking the provided camera and to uploads snaps and descriptions of the places they visit.
What total bliss. And the price for such a wonderful stay? It’s free!
All you have to do apply for a reservation between 1 June and 31 August. The only catch – as it’s ultimately a tourism promotion you probably have a better chance if you’re from interstate, have a strong social media/online presence and work in the creative industries. They’ve received 2500 applications for every week, so competition’s tough!
Thanks to Lost & Found Hotel Room for allowing me to access the room before it was open to the public. Note that I didn’t get to stay there (my application has been rejected twice, boo) so I can only vouch for the beauty of the interior decoration and can’t attest to the comfort of the bed or whether it gets really cold at night. I got to stay! Here’s a review of my mini-break in the city.
This is crazy exciting! Totally got hyped up reading this post, and am definitely going to apply – though if even you didn’t get in, what chance would us mere mortals have! I do have a guest from interstate though – wonder if that could tip the balance at all in my favour…
.-= Vee @ Munching (in) Melbourne´s last blog ..Espousing Esposito =-.
Hi Vee
Perhaps you need to get your interstate guest to apply (and let you share the bed – there’s only one queen size bed available)”
Jetsetting Joyce
love it. so much character that works so well together. love the concept. i want to revisit Melbourne again now
.-= Simon Food Favourites´s last blog ..Grasshopper: Sydney’s first true lane way small bar, CBD Sydney (27 May 2010) =-.
Twitter: simonleong
| June 1, 2010, 6:20 pm
Love Melbourne, been here most of my life.
But do we really need more piss and wind? I mean, it looks like a cute ‘higher budget’ room, made obvious by the Ikea pic 3. The room looks tiny, which is OK if the rate reflects this.
This looks like the hotel room ‘Melbourne’ should have 20 years ago.
Please cut the hype if you want to overtake dead tree media.
Hi Merchant
Thanks for your comment. Just to clarify a few things. The room is actually very spacious as it is considered a ‘suite’ with a sitting area, dining area, tea/coffee station and sink, separate bedroom and bathroom with bath and shower. Sorry my pictures didn’t reflect this.
The IKEA bed you spotted is existing furniture provided by the Little Collins Hotel – everything else in the hotel room was moved out and the Lost and Found sourced objects moved in. If you checked out some of the providers I would actually consider them to be high-end goods and not the IKEA price-range.
Finally, the room is free to stay in if your application is accepted. It is only available for 3 months, after which time it will all be packed up and reverted back to a Little Collins Hotel room at their regular room rates.
Jetsetting Joyce
Hi Simon
You might have a good chance as you’re from interstate and write a blog. Worth a try, I think!
Jetsetting Joyce
What a great post. Am dying to review it!
.-= MsCritique.com´s last blog ..I’ve fallen so hard, I have gravel rash. =-.
Twitter: ms_critique
| June 1, 2010, 7:53 pm
Hi Ms Critique
Good luck with your application! Would love to hear about your experience if you get to stay in it…
Jetsetting Joyce
Oh my birth town! In all its glory and wow this is a typical style that is uniquely Melbourne. I am ready for a home dash!