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A Tea Bar That Reinvents the Teahouse Concept

Interior designer Matt Woods took the tired cliche of traditional teahouses and reinvented it with The Rabbit Hole – Organic Tea Bar. The design plays off the former industrial space with its polished concrete floors, discovered herringbone strutted wood ceilings, and original brick walls that were unearthed. To soften the look, some of the newly exposed details were painted white giving it a fresh, light-filled feeling. Overall, the design blends highly conceptual with modest design details to create a comfortable place to enjoy tea.

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A mixture of leathers and upholstery fabrics were used on seat cushions, while reclaimed oak was used to make the banquette seats and table frames.

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Broken ceramic tiles were used on surfaces showing the beauty of imperfect ceramic objects. Above the service area, a chandelier made entirely of tea bags, by Chilean artist Valeria Burgoa, was installed.

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Based on the Japanese art of Kintsugi (a celebration of the imperfect beauty of ceramic objects), the specialty tea area is decked out with what looks like spinning plates on top of wood poles.

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Styling by Lucia B.
Photos by Dave Wheeler.

Caroline Williamson is Editor-in-Chief of Design Milk. She has a BFA in photography from SCAD and can usually be found searching for vintage wares, doing New York Times crossword puzzles in pen, or reworking playlists on Spotify.