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Faena Hotel New York 

Interior Design: Peter Mikic Studio
Photographer: Supplied by Faena
Product: House Of Heras bespoke rugs & Faena Design rugs
With rich interiors that echo Manhattan’s golden age, the newest Faena hotel exudes glamour and demonstrates the global capabilities of Designer Rugs

The Journey

From the moment the first Faena hotel opened in Buenos Aires, it announced itself in saturated reds, theatrical flourishes and unapologetic glamour. When the group expanded first to Miami and then New York, the expectation was clear: the design would be immersive, layered and art-led – a space where colour, texture and narrative collide.

To help realise that vision in New York, the team turned to Designer Rugs and collaborator Silvana Azzi Heras, founder of the House of Heras, to deliver quality, logistical excellence and out-of-the-box design solutions.

Silvana was no stranger to the Faena world. As a key creative contributor to the Miami project – working alongside Designer Rugs and long-time collaborators Baz Luhrmann and Catherine Martin – she had helped shape the brand’s visual language

And at the heart of the new brief? Rugs.



For Silvana, the choice of partner was instinctive and obvious – Designer Rugs. With global capabilities, technical skills and decades of experience in high-spec projects, Designer Rugs was the perfect collaborator.


“Anytime there are rugs or carpet needed in a project, I work with Designer Rugs,” she says. “They are amazing and so professional to deal with.”

Behind the scenes, Lia Pielli from Designer Rugs became the linchpin connecting with Silvana in Sydney, interior designer Peter Mikic in London and Faena in New York. From early sampling through to installation, Lia managed the intricate choreography required to deliver hand-tufted, New Zealand wool rugs into a building where geometry was anything but predictable.


Anytime there are rugs or carpet needed in a project, I work with Designer Rugs,” she says. “They are amazing and so professional to deal with.
Silvana Azzi Heras - House of Heras
Three-Bedroom Suite Living Room - Custom Hand Tufted Starburst Designed by House Of Heras

Creating Faena's Vision: 
Precision in Every Thread

The brief from Faena founder Alan Faena was deceptively simple.

“There were no design notes,” Silvana recalls. “Just these are the colours the hotel is working with.”

At the centre of it all was a very particular red. Not cherry. Not brown. A red that has become known internally as Faena red.

Working with Peter Mikic and Designer Rugs, Silvana developed a suite of bespoke designs for the guest rooms – Clouds and Rockpool in three colourways – as well as a distinct design, Webbed, for the Presidential Suite.

But this was no straightforward production run. The building itself twists and shifts in form. No two floors are the same. There are no simple rectangles. Which meant no two rugs were the same either. Every piece was custom designed in colour, scale, and shape.

The corridors proved the ultimate technical challenge. Unlike standard linear hallways, these were intersecting H- and P-shaped spaces, with bordered designs that had to align perfectly across irregular floorplates. Every pattern needed to visually flow, even though each section was produced and delivered in multiple pieces for installation.

It required forensic attention to floorplans, relentless coordination with onsite construction teams and a level of precision only possible through deep custom expertise – a Designer Rugs specialty.

“The twisted structure of the building meant the bordered corridor design had to join seamlessly,” Lia explains. “There was a lot of back and forth with measurements and details, but we achieved a beautiful outcome.”

And that outcome was entirely hand-tufted – including the corridor carpet – adding another layer of complexity to an already ambitious project.

Expanding the Story

As the project evolved, so did the brief.

Silvana was asked to design rugs for El Secreto, the hotel’s bar, and La Boca, the restaurant, expanding her creative footprint across the public spaces. The reception areas featured leopard print rugs originally designed by Catherine Martin for Miami and adapted for New York, while Juan Gatti’s living room rug designs added further artistic depth.

Through it all, Designer Rugs remained the constant – with Lia overseeing production, travelling to meet specialist artisans, ensuring quality control at every stage and safeguarding the integrity of the designs.

Despite three time zones and a constantly evolving scope, the project was delivered seamlessly to a very happy client – a testament not only to creative alignment, but to technical mastery.


Theatre Underfoot


Faena hotels are not restrained spaces. They are theatrical, art-driven and immersive – filled with sculpture, painting and layered decorative detail. It is an environment where the rugs cannot just ground a room. They must participate in the drama.

From the saturated reds of the guest rooms to the intricate corridor patterns and statement public spaces, the rugs are not background elements, they are architectural devices. They soften, define, direct and elevate.

“The rugs just looked amazing,” says Lia. “To see the size and scope of them was incredible. Silvana’s designs were perfect.”

Managed from Sydney, realised by specialist artisans and installed in New York, the project stands as a powerful example of Designer Rugs’ global capability – combining artistry with technical precision, and vision with delivery.

In a building where nothing was straight and nothing was simple, Designer Rugs ensured that everything, quite literally, fell into place.

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image of the Starburst rug Designed by House Of Heras
El Secreto - Custom Hand Tufted Starburst Designed by House Of Heras
image of the Rockpool Red Rug Designed by House Of Heras
Imperial Two-Bedroom Suite Bedroom - Custom Hand Tufted Rockpool Red Rug Designed by House Of Heras
No Usage Rights of Any Kind Granted Without Written Permission
image of the Rockpool Red Rug Designed by House Of Heras
image of Supper Club Rug designed by house of heras
image of the Starburst rug Designed by House Of Heras

Let us help you realise your next big project.

Our team will work closely with you from concept to completion.

Whatever the size of your next project, Designer Rugs can help you deliver outstanding results.


See more Case Studies

The Designers

Catherine Martin

Catherine Martin is an Oscar-winning film, stage and interior designer. The wife and chief collaborator of director, producer and writer, Baz Luhrmann, CM is more likely to be known as the woman who made Nicole Kidman resplendent in red in the costumes for Moulin Rouge!, for the lavish party scenes in The Great Gatsby and for collaborating on Baz’s extraordinary contemporary reinterpretation of Romeo + Juliet.

CM’s profound ability to become deeply and authentically involved in the very DNA of the projects she’s involved in has allowed her to segue into our world via brands like Prada, Chanel, Tiffany & Co, and of course Designer Rugs. Her design aesthetic for the home has resulted in elegant, timeless and yet always functional creations that can both inspire and transport.

CM’s first collection celebrates native Australian flora and fauna, children's patterns and lace designs, effortlessly combining unusual and striking elements so they work together in a sophisticated and complementary way.

Her second collection pays homage to the romance of the unique period that is ‘Art Deco’, while remaining imbued with a fantastical quality of their own that is undeniably the signature of Catherine Martin herself.

Our third collaboration a rich colour palette, intertwining animal prints, densely ornate foliage and floral patterns. Within the individual designs, vibrant hues interplay with a foundation of neutrals, delivering a lush collection of rugs suitable for a multitude of interiors.

See all designs by Catherine Martin
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