Design firm: Space & Matter, Amsterdam

The details: Old, unused spaces, including  former crane tracks, wharfs, and iconic bridge houses, are the foundation for the new Sweets Hotel in Amsterdam, the handiwork of local firm Space & Matter, which envisioned “a network hotel that would spread all over Amsterdam,” says founding partner Tjeerd Haccou. Because the bridge houses were built nearly a century ago, each of the 28 cozy spaces “has its own architectural style from classic to modern,” Haccou says. “We had to improvise a lot with the first houses because drawings were not correct and the walls of the houses were crooked due to age,” he explains. Stripping the houses to their bare shells, they now offer eclectic interiors with pops of bold color to match their individuality. Space-saving techniques were also employed, like wall shelving and integrated en-suites. The Amstelschutsluis house, for instance, features a bed that can be raised to the ceiling, exposing space for a dining table, while for the Nieuwe Amstelbrug, the firm removed the entire original flooring to create a split-level house, where now the bed sits atop the bathroom.