Art deco interior design in Batumi: brass, mirrors and velvet by the sea

Art deco in a new build: two or three statement areas

Art deco takes its name from the 1925 Paris exhibition of decorative arts. It means geometry, sunbursts and stepped forms, a contrast of black and light colours, polished stone, metal, mirrors and luxurious fabrics. In an art deco interior in Batumi we keep these graphics but build them from materials that won't start to tarnish and fade after one season.

An apartment finished entirely in art deco is tiring and expensive. Usually we create a calm base, either light or in a deep colour, and two or three statement areas: a patterned floor in the hall, a wall with panels or a mirror in the living room, a bathroom with geometric tiles. The rest is carried by the furniture, lighting and fabrics, which are easier to change.

Geometry on the floor, walls and ceiling

We give the floor in the hall and bathroom a pattern: marble or porcelain tiles in two or three tones, herringbone tiles, a fan or a star at the entrance. We show every tile on the layout drawing together with the cuts, otherwise the pattern breaks off at the walls at random. We choose marble by the slabs in a batch and seal it, with more on the page about natural stone in interiors. A metal strip can be run between the tiles, but by the sea that means brass-coloured stainless steel, not brass itself.

The walls are carried by fluted panels, polished Venetian plaster, and arches and recesses with lighting. A stepped ceiling is typical of the style, but each step takes up centimetres. In a living room about 2.8 m high we usually keep one or two steps above the centre of the room and hide lighting in them, as in plasterboard multi-level ceilings.

Brass: lacquer, PVD and a single shade

Uncoated brass tarnishes by the sea, and this is a property of the metal, not a defect: you either polish it or accept the patina. In an apartment where the owner rarely stays, and in rentals, we use handles, taps and light fittings with a factory lacquer or a PVD coating, a thin layer deposited on stainless steel. Both hold their colour, but a scratch in lacquer can't be polished out, so for handles that are touched every day PVD is the better choice.

Brass from different shops almost never matches in tone: one is yellower, another leans towards pink or champagne. So the specification gives one shade for the handles, taps, light fittings and profiles, and we gather the samples together and photograph them side by side in daylight. Gold and bronze finishes are available in the Grohe and Hansgrohe ranges, but whether the colour you need is in stock in Georgia or has to be ordered is something we check with the supplier before the materials list is approved.

Mirrors and dark lacquer

In art deco a mirror works as a finish: a full-wall panel, a bevelled mirror, inserts in furniture. In an apartment with a sea view a large mirror repeats the view and adds light, but we place it so that the air conditioner and TV aren't reflected in it. Made-to-measure mirrors are cut to a site measurement and fixed with mirror adhesive, which doesn't damage the silvering, and in the bathroom we seal the edges against moisture.

Dark gloss lacquer on cabinet fronts shows every speck of dust and every fingerprint. For made-to-measure furniture we more often use walnut or ebony-tone veneer under a semi-matt lacquer: the depth of colour is the same, and hand marks hardly show. We keep gloss for one piece, such as a sideboard or a headboard that is rarely touched.

Fabrics and colour by a floor-to-ceiling window

Art deco loves emerald, sapphire, terracotta, mustard and black, and velvet in these colours. A saturated fabric by a floor-to-ceiling window fades in a stripe within a couple of summers, so we place the sofa side-on to the window and plan heavy curtains or blackout roller blinds for a window that gets the evening sun.

We choose fabric by its technical data sheet, not by feel: the sheet states the composition, abrasion resistance and lightfastness. If the colour you want isn't in stock at the supplier, the fabric is ordered, and we find out the delivery time before the specification is approved.

Lighting for a dark palette

Without well-planned lighting, a dark interior feels like a cave in the evening, and in the daytime the contrast with a bright window tires the eyes. So we hide light in the ceiling steps, put fan-shaped or frosted glass wall lights on the walls, light the recesses and pictures, and place a floor lamp by the armchair. There are more light points here than in a light interior, and we put the circuits on separate switches or dimmers.

Mirrors and gloss reflect every lamp, so in 3D we check what can be seen from the armchair and the bed: a downlight repeated in a mirrored wall is jarring. The plan of light fittings, circuits and scenes is part of the lighting design.

When art deco works for rentals and what to mix it with

For a short-term rental art deco is riskier than neoclassical, but in the premium segment it makes an apartment stand out in the listings. We put the statement pieces where nobody touches them: the pattern on the bathroom floor, the mirrored wall, the light fittings. Handles, worktops and armrests are made from materials that need no care, and velvet is kept for armchairs, not for the sofa by the entrance.

On the light base of neoclassical style art deco looks softer, and an apartment like this is easier to live in every day. It is combined with contemporary style through one or two pieces: a mirror, a chandelier, an armchair. It clashes with Scandinavian style and boho: light unpainted wood and woven pieces dull its shine.

Common mistakes in art deco

• gold on everything: handles, frames, light fittings, furniture legs and tiles with the same sheen;
• brass in different shades bought in different places;
• dark gloss lacquer on the kitchen fronts and the hallway wardrobe;
• dark walls in a room with a window onto the courtyard and no lighting plan;
• a mirrored wall opposite the bed or the air conditioner;
• a velvet sofa where the sun shines in all summer evening.

How much an art deco interior costs in Batumi

An art deco design project costs from 205 to 265 ₾ per m² of the apartment. For this the designer produces the layout, 3D with daytime and evening light, drawings of the panels, mirrors, ceilings and made-to-measure furniture, the stone layout and a specification of hardware and fabrics that will survive the sea air. Designer supervision isn't included in this price and is charged separately, from 48 to 66 ₾ per m².

The finishes also go into the renovation estimate, and with art deco it is best to price them before the project is approved. As a guide, Venetian plaster with labour and materials comes to 190–230 ₾ per m², marble as a material from 310 to 420 ₾ per m², and a made-to-measure wall mirror with installation from 480 to 720 ₾ per m².

The project price goes up with made-to-measure furniture, patterned floors in several rooms and stepped ceilings, and it comes down if art deco is limited to the living room and bathroom. The final cost is set after the measured survey and once it is agreed which rooms will have a patterned floor and made-to-measure furniture.