Many of you will know that my love of Italy knows no bounds. Yes, a lot of my work life revolves around the country’s dynamic design scene, but I’m also drawn to it when I’m able to snatch some rare moments of downtime. As I write this, I’m enjoying a short break, using these sunny, start-of-summer days to explore more of its intoxicating destinations.
As I make the most of Italy’s impressive train network, zipping along the shores of the Tyrrhenian Sea outside Rome to Naples and the Amalfi Coast, I’m musing on the joys of travel and the vital human need for escapism. It’s timely, as this is our summer special, a double issue with a focus on getting away from it all and expanding your horizons.
On my trip I’m staying in a variety of hotels. Some are minimalist havens dedicated to contemporary design (the sort of places you would expect the editor of a modern interiors media brand to gravitate towards). Others, however, are the opposite: grand palazzos steeped in history and filled with ornate features and opulent textiles. I find these environments equally thrilling. One of the most wonderful things about travelling is taking a holiday away from your usual style. Like experimenting with outfits, immersing yourself in an interior that bears no resemblance to where you live helps with that sense of moving away from your daily existence; it lets you try out another life, a different aesthetic. I love it.
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In a nod to our obsession with travel, this month we talk to the interior designers behind some of the year’s most anticipated hotel openings about how they bring their signature look to these spaces, creating destination stays that speak to a specific location, feel luxurious and lean into that sense of escapism. We also champion the fashion brands reinventing boujie beach clubs across Europe and beyond and, for those who prefer to avoid hotels entirely, we explore the trend for high-end house-swapping.
From my Frecciarossa-train window, I’m currently drooling over the views of the Italian countryside. Of course, ELLE Decoration is predominantly focused on style-savvy urbanites, but those who’ve been with us for a few years will recall ELLE Decoration Country, our biannual volume showcasing homes in remote or rustic locations where our modern aesthetic takes pride of place. While it’s been on hiatus since the pandemic, the plan was always to bring it back, so this month sees its welcome return, bound within these pages. I hope you’re as happy as we are to see it again!
And, wherever you’re spending the summer, be it in the city or the country, a modernist apartment or a dusty old building (or perhaps only going as far as your garden or balcony), I hope this issue is the ideal travel companion.
