The Decisions We Made While Designing House Sola — and Later Changed

When a hotel project starts on paper, many decisions look quite clear.

Where the room will be is set.

The bathroom layout is drawn.

The furniture is planned.

The lighting is chosen.

How the common areas will be used has been thought through.

But no matter how detailed a project is prepared on paper, you can only see how certain decisions actually work in real life once execution begins.

That was one of the most important lessons for me during the House Sola process.

Designing a hotel doesn't mean the decisions made on day one never change until the last day.

Quite the opposite — sometimes changing a decision makes the project better.

What matters isn't constantly changing your mind.

It's correctly understanding why a decision needs to change.

While designing House Sola, we thought about some decisions differently at the start, reevaluated them during execution, and changed some of them.

Some changes were made for purely aesthetic reasons.

Some came up to improve the guest experience.

And some came from needs we only noticed once we started seeing the space at real scale.

In this article, I'll share what the decisions we made while designing House Sola — and reconsidered along the way — taught me.

This isn't a "list of correct design decisions."

It's more field notes on how a real hotel project can change as it moves from drawing to execution.

The Hotel on Paper and the Real Hotel Aren't the Same Thing

On an architectural plan, everything works within certain dimensions.

A room is a certain square footage.

The furniture is placed on the plan.

The circulation space is calculated.

The bathroom is sized.

But once you actually start experiencing the space in real life, different questions come up.

For example:

• Is this corridor really comfortable?
• Can two people move here at the same time?
• Is there enough space once you walk into the room with luggage?
• Is circulation around the bed comfortable?
• What space is really needed in the bathroom?
• Does the lighting give the feeling we expected once evening comes?
• Where does the guest look first when they walk into the room?

Some of these questions can be answered on the drawing.

But some are hard to understand without actually being inside the space.

For me, the important point during the House Sola process was this:

A plan is necessary for making decisions. But sometimes you can only tell whether a decision was actually right once the space exists.

That's why you need to stay flexible during the design process.

But that flexibility shouldn't mean being unplanned.

Changing the project for every new idea makes both cost and the process unmanageable.

If a change is going to be made, you need to evaluate whether it genuinely produces a better result.

1. The First Plan May Not Always Be the Final Plan

One of the things I learned as the House Sola project progressed was that not every decision made at the start needs to be treated as final.

Because more information emerges as the project moves forward.

At the start, you only see:

• plans
• dimensions
• renders
• technical drawings

Later, you start to see:

• the real walls
• the real ceiling height
• how light enters the space
• how the rooms relate to each other
• how people move through the space

This new information can lead you to reconsider certain decisions.

What matters for the investor here is not getting stuck in the mindset of "the first decision was made, nothing can change now."

But the other extreme is dangerous too.

Constantly changing things.

Reopening the project every time you see a new idea.

Choosing a different material every week.

This approach increases project cost too.

So the right balance is this:

Decisions should be made as early and as correctly as possible — but you shouldn't be afraid to make a change either, when a genuinely better solution emerges for real-world use.

2. You Need to Evaluate a Space With a Usage Scenario, Not Empty

A hotel room can look big or sufficient while under construction.

But once you add:

• the bed
• the nightstand
• the wardrobe
• luggage
• the minibar
• a chair

the perception can change completely.

That's why one of the most important perspectives I learned during the House Sola process was not evaluating spaces as empty volumes.

I started asking myself this question for every space:

"What will the guest be doing here?"

For example, when the guest enters the room:

• where will they put their key card?
• where will they put their suitcase?
• where will they put their clothes?
• where will they charge their phone?

When they enter the bathroom:

• where will they hang their towel?
• where will they put their personal items?
• will they be able to use the mirror comfortably?

These questions look simple.

But a significant part of what makes up a hotel experience is exactly these small details.

Design sometimes isn't made up of big architectural gestures — it's made up of small decisions the guest is comfortable with without even noticing.

3. Not Everything That Looks Beautiful Is Practical

One of the easiest traps to fall into when designing a hotel is focusing only on visual impact.

A design can look very impressive in a render.

But once the hotel starts operating, different problems can surface.

For example, a surface might look very stylish, but:

• be hard to clean
• show marks constantly
• get damaged easily.

A piece of furniture might be beautiful, but:

• not offer enough storage
• take up unnecessary space in the room
• create difficulties for housekeeping.

That's why, while designing House Sola, the balance between aesthetics and usability became something I cared about more and more over time.

In a hotel room, the guest doesn't just take photos.

They sleep there.

They shower.

They unpack.

They charge their phone.

They put their clothes away.

They use the room for days.

That's why, in design decisions, this question matters:

"Does this really work?" matters just as much as "Is this beautiful?"

4. Some Decisions Need to Be Thought Through Hundreds of Times Before Execution Begins

I saw this more clearly than ever during the House Sola process:

Some decisions aren't very easy to change once they're executed.

For example:

• the electrical wiring
• the plumbing
• the drains
• the AC infrastructure
• the dimensions of fixed furniture
• the bathroom layouts.

The more you think through decisions like these before execution, the better.

Because a small mistake made during construction can later require:

• breaking things open
• tearing things out
• redoing the work

which increases both cost and timeline.

On the other hand, some decisions can be changed more easily later.

For example:

• certain decorative objects
• textile products
• wall accessories
• small furniture pieces.

That's why you need to weigh all design decisions differently, not equally.

The simple approach I ended up with was this:

Resolve the decisions that are expensive to change later first. Leave the details that are easy to change later for last.

5. Lighting Decisions Look Different in the Real Space

Lighting can be shown on a plan with certain symbols and dimensions.

But it isn't always possible to understand light's real effect on a space just from the drawing.

In particular:

• how the light hits the wall
• how it looks on stone or different surfaces
• how it changes the nighttime atmosphere
• what feeling it creates in different parts of the room

only become truly clear once execution is finished.

That's why I realized, during the House Sola process, that lighting shouldn't be evaluated only through the question "is the space lit enough?"

Lighting also shapes the character of the space.

In a hotel especially, you need to think through the different hours of use throughout the day.

Mornings might call for more functional light.

Evenings might call for a warmer, more restful atmosphere.

That's why having the flexibility to make small revisions to lighting decisions later matters too.

You need to think about lighting not just as a technical need, but as part of how the guest feels the space.

6. Small Details Take Up a Bigger Place in the Guest Experience Than Expected

While designing and executing House Sola, I noticed that certain small details mattered more than I expected.

For example:

• the position of the outlets
• a small surface to put down a phone
• enough hook space
• a suitable spot for luggage
• the storage areas in the bathroom
• the mirror's position
• how accessible the towel hooks are.

None of these are the first things that catch your attention in a hotel's Instagram photo.

But the guest notices right away if even one of them is missing.

In a well-designed hotel room, certain things don't grab the guest's attention.

Because they're already exactly where they should be and work the way they should.

But they're noticed the moment they're missing.

That's why, alongside the big decisions, you need to ask this question during the design process too:

"Will the guest run into a small problem here?"

Sometimes that question can be more valuable than a major design change.

7. Not Every Change Means Improvement

Changing something in a project doesn't automatically make the project better.

Sometimes the first decision is already good enough.

Wanting to change it just because you saw a new alternative isn't a good enough reason on its own.

Especially as a project progresses, the urge to "find something better" can go on forever.

You can always find:

• nicer lighting
• better tile
• different furniture
• newer technology.

But a project needs a decision made and progress kept at some point.

That's why the question I tried to keep asking myself during the process was this:

"Does this change genuinely improve the guest experience or the quality of operations, or are we changing it just because we like the new thing more?"

That distinction matters a great deal, especially for budget control.

8. Change Decisions Need to Be Evaluated by Their Total Impact, Not One by One

A change can look small on its own.

For example, the lighting cost in one room might go up a little.

But if the same decision is applied to every room, the total cost changes.

Similarly, changing a piece of furniture's dimensions might not just affect the furniture.

Electrical points.

Wall coverings.

Lighting.

Labor.

All of these can change.

That's why one of the important lessons I learned during the House Sola process was not evaluating changes based on just one line item.

These questions can be asked for every change:

• What other areas does this decision affect?
• What will the total cost difference be?
• Will it delay the work schedule?
• How many rooms will this same change apply to?
• Is the outcome genuinely worth the extra resources it will cost?

A change can start small but turn into a chain of costs across the project.

9. When You Design a Hotel, You're Also Designing the Operation

House Sola showed me this once again:

Designing a hotel isn't just designing the building and the rooms.

You're also designing how the hotel will run day to day.

For example, from housekeeping's perspective:

• where will the cleaning supplies be kept?
• how will movement between floors work?
• where will the sheets be stored?

From reception's perspective:

• where will guests be welcomed?
• what will the first experience at the entrance be like?
• is there space for what staff need?

From the guest's perspective:

• is it easy to reach the room?
• are the common areas easy to understand?
• can they comfortably reach what they need?

That's why, during the design process, you need to look not just at architectural drawings, but at daily operational scenarios too.

I think one of the most important questions in hotel design is this:

"Once this hotel is open, what will a day here actually look like?"

From the guest's perspective.

From staff's perspective.

From the manager's perspective.

Evaluating with these three different perspectives can help catch certain design decisions earlier.

10. Sometimes the Best Learning Starts After the Real Hotel Opens

When a hotel project is finished, the design process isn't actually completely over.

Once the hotel opens, real users start experiencing the space.

And real use provides new information about the project.

The areas guests use the most.

The small problems staff keep running into.

Areas that get used more than expected, or barely used at all.

All of this creates valuable information for future projects.

One of the most valuable parts of House Sola for me was exactly this.

Not just finishing a hotel project.

Building a real learning ground to make better decisions on the next hotel investment.

Because you can learn a lot from books, drawings, and other projects.

But some things you can only experience in your own project, with a real guest and a real operation.

The project doesn't end when a hotel opens. In fact, that's when the most valuable learning process begins.

10 Design and Execution Notes I Learned From House Sola

When I look back at the House Sola process today, here are some notes that stand out to me:

1. The first drawing isn't the final decision.

Once the real space exists, some decisions may need to be reconsidered.

2. Every space needs to be thought through with a usage scenario.

An empty-looking room and one with real furniture and guest use are not the same.

3. A balance needs to be struck between aesthetics and function.

Every beautiful-looking solution may not work well in the long run.

4. Decisions that are expensive to change later need to be made early.

Topics like electrical, plumbing, bathrooms, and technical infrastructure need to be thought through in detail.

5. Small details can create a huge guest experience.

Things like outlets, storage, hooks, and luggage space matter more than expected.

6. Lighting needs to be evaluated in the real space.

Drawings and renders don't always show light's true effect.

7. Not every new idea should be applied.

You need to evaluate whether the change genuinely adds value to the project.

8. A change's total impact needs to be calculated.

A small change can create a big cost across many rooms or different line items.

9. When you design the hotel, you're also designing the operation.

Staff and operational needs need to be thought through at the project stage.

10. Real learning continues after the hotel opens.

Guest and staff experience is one of the most valuable feedback sources for future projects.

Conclusion: Some Decisions Are Only Understood Once Tested in Real Life

One of the most important things I learned while designing House Sola was that a hotel project isn't a purely "draw it once and execute" process.

Good planning matters enormously.

In fact, as many decisions as possible need to be made before execution begins.

But new information emerges once the real space comes into existence.

What matters at that point is avoiding two different mistakes.

The first:

"We decided this at the start, we can't change anything now."

The second:

"Let's add every new idea to the project."

I think the right approach sits between the two.

Start the project as prepared as possible.

Resolve the decisions that would create expensive, fundamental changes in advance.

But evaluate a change when a genuinely better solution emerges for real-world use.

House Sola wasn't just a hotel investment for me.

It was also a process where I experienced how design decisions, drawings, and ideas actually work in real life.

And maybe the most important conclusion is this:

You don't learn whether every decision you made on a hotel project was right on the drawing — you learn it once people actually start using that space.