Let the sky fall

Some property porn from Florida for you today.

These pictures are of a new collection of 26 super-luxe homes which will sit on top of, and next to a, refurbished 1950s hotel in Miami Beach. Designed by minimalist architect John Pawson, The Residence at The Miami Beach EDITION are off-the-scale luxury homes with vast ocean views, private lap pools, outdoor kitchens and access to the concierge services of the hotel. 

The project is the brainchild of the hotelier Ian Schrager (of Studio 54 fame) who brought the glitzy Delano Hotel to South Beach, Miami in 1996. Back then he was partnered with designer Philippe Starck and together they pretty much invented the nineties trend for the 'boutique hotel' with places like the Mondrian in LA and the St Martin's Lane Hotel in London. These were hotel lobbies you remembered walking into - and that was the whole point, they were design with a capital D. 

Fast-forward to 2013 and things have changed a bit, as have the clientele. Today he's catering to a new breed of super-rich globetrotter with highly sophisticated tastes and expectations. Schrager has hooked up with Pawson, whose style is the exact opposite of look-at-me design, to create a kind of home/hotel. It comes fully kitted out (right down to linens, dishes and towels) and has all the amenities of hotel (someone else to do all the drudge work), but you actually own it.  

It's the sort of thing you might like to purchase with the spare change from your superyacht. The cost? Pah! If you have to ask . . .