New York City hotel opening: Inside the Refinery Hotel

Don your vintage fedora and head to this fashion-conscious New York City hotel in the Garment District. Stonehill & Taylor Architects, the firm behind the 1912 building's conversion and design, took inspiration from its neo-Gothic architecture, as well as its former life as a hat-making hub: In the headpiece heyday, garment manufacturers and milliners toiled on the upper floors while the ground level was devoted to showrooms and a genteel tea salon for shoppers. “It created this duality, almost an Upstairs, Downstairs kind of thing,” explains Stonehill & Taylor principal Christina Zimmer. “We thought that was really interesting and brought it to bear on our new hotel.” (The firm’s CV also includes The NoMad Hotel and Ace Hotel New York.)

With exposed pipes, concrete ceilings and oak floors, the rooms have an industrial aesthetic that echoes the former factory space, while the public areas on the ground floor are more—dare we say it—refined. Eating and drinking options include an elegant lobby lounge, American bistro Parker & Quinn and—bumping up the number of great rooftop bars in NYC—a sprawling indoor–outdoor space with a direct view of the Empire State Building. 63 W 38th St between Fifth and Sixth Aves (646-664-0310, refineryhotelnewyork.com). Rates start at $399.