One by Nine Hong Kong

This Hong Kong condo has much to recommend it, but its game-inspired walls are perhaps the most playful part of the overall renovation from OneByNine design studio. Alerts, booms, error messages and aliens deck out the walls of the bathroom in otherwise-modest black and white. Sure, these highly customized pop culture tiles might be a pain if the owners go to sell someday, but they’re certainly fun for the condo’s current geeky occupants.

Space Invader bathroom design

Space invader bathroom tiles close up

Paying homage to the classic 1978 arcade game by Tomohiro Nishikado, the Space Invader-themed tiles actually make reference to the game in a way that’s relatively subtle (at least, compared to some people’s themed apartments, like the Captain America and Star Wars interior design themes by HAO Design Studio.) Nor would they be particularly hard to replace, if it came down to it. But why would you want to?

Space Invader Tiles in Living Room

Space Invader Tiles in Kitchen

The Space Invader tiles that creep outside the boundaries of the bathroom are a little harder to spot, but they’re present, carrying the theme through the rest of the house. Check them out in these images of the kitchen backsplash and tiling above the grill on the back terrace. It’s a fun way to bring some humor and personality into a space that otherwise feels quite chic and grown up.

Aside from the themed tiles, the subdued lines, nice furniture and subtle greenery make for great living and dining spaces influenced by Western Mid-Century Modernism as well as Eastern decorative traditions.

“One By Nine is an architecture studio founded in 2009 by Łukasz Wawrzeńczyk and Konrad Grabczuk. Our portfolio covers architectural projects, commercial and private interior design. We offer broad experience gained in numerous local and international projects, innovative solutions combining aesthetics and functionality, professional consulting, project supervision and most of all passion to create the space in original forms.”