Air France Madame
LIFESTYLE PARIS GUIDE
By Elsa Margot-AmariBEAUTIFUL STARS
Five new locations – private or grand – for nights with a difference.
Between Port-Royal and Les Gobelins, fashionable hotels are rather thin on the ground – an oversight remedied by the arrival of a hotel well up to the task and set in a quiet little street. As with other new Parisian hotels, the Five has invested in colors, forms and materials to emerge as a unique set of premises with a futuristic feel. In this designer treasure-trove, carte blanche was given to Vincent Bastie, expert renovator of high-fashion hotels – namely the Murano and the Hotel du Petit Moulin. Laid out on six floors, each of the 24 rooms possesses a unique character (from wall-color to lighting) and plenty of variety (from furniture to bathroom tiling). From the moment you enter the lobby, you can choose your own ‘olfactory ambiance’: five Diptyque signature fragrances (Delicious, Zest, Relaxing, Natural and Sensual) that are diffused through bedroom lamps. The adventure continues in the elevator, which is upholstered in cushioned red leather and has an integrated flat screen. And then it’s time to switch off completely once your reach your room – narrow but remarkably well fitted out in abstract designs, and where the emphasis has been placed firmly on lighting: embedded in the ceilings, headboards and bathroom, fiber optics diffuse light like a shower of stars in a cocoon-like atmosphere. The thick curtains filter the daylight, the furnishings are fine and comfortable (fabrics and textiles by Kenzo and Missoni, furniture by Vitra), and in each room the furnishings revolve around one dominant color: black and white in Room 101, mauve in Room 202, and turquoise, pistachio, red, orange or chestnut in the others. On the ground floor, the suite gives onto a little garden and outdoor Jacuzzi for some Scandinavian-style bathing.