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A New Side to Medical Design: Skin Clinics as Places of Luxurious Calm
Skin clinics are reimagining the spatial design of medical institutions, moving away from traditional sterile environments. In 2025, BluPrint covered various clinics that subvert this design trope.
Belo Nexa
Inside Belo Nexa, the design prioritizes luxury, comfort, and a seamless patient experience. Designed by Budji Layag, the space offers a sense of openness, with a design language rooted in contemporary elegance. Drawing from the Belo Medical Group’s dedication to transforming medical spaces into welcoming environments, the spatial atmosphere is one of calm and comfort.
From floor to ceiling, the space establishes a luxurious ambiance. Designed by Kenneth Cobonpue, the lighting installation is a focal point of the clinic. Its custom chandelier blends organic form with intricate craftsmanship: wire mesh was woven into delicate, net-like structures, which are contrasted with perforated metal accents. In addition, the striking glass walls and marble floors further set the tone for an elegant medical experience.
Whether it is the reception area or the consultation rooms, the clinic’s commitment to luxury is evident. These rooms blend technological innovation and elegant design: sleek stone finishes, glass and metal accents, and curated artworks. In doing so, they create a warm, inviting atmosphere in the medical experience.
Read More: Belo Nexa Reimagines Medical Design in the Philippines
Aivee Skin Spa
The Aivee Skin Spa, led by doctors Aivee Aguilar-Teo and Z Teo, brings premium, dermatologist-designed care to a wider demographic. As a leader in the wellness industry, the brand opened a new spa that embraced spatial softness, natural materials, and elegant detailing. To bring the brand’s vision to fruition, it worked with Malcom Chua, co-founder and design director of AVID Design Collective, and Benjamin Kim, co-founder and creative director of Genius Loci, collectively known as AVID GL.
Defined by large curved walls reminiscent of Tuscan columns and the use of organic materials, the spa’s spatial atmosphere embodies its commitment to providing an intimate yet sophisticated escape for patients. With the intent of building a sanctuary, the spa balances elegance and ease.
Each room was conceptualized with a neutral color palette, soft lighting, and calming tones. Within private treatment areas, the ceilings featured lighting installations that recalled the image of a celestial night. Concurrently, herbal fragrances were employed to foster a multi-sensory environment. From the reception desk to the individual treatment rooms, a common design concept prevails: a setting where the design language elicits calm and wonder.
Read More: Aivee Skin Spa: Glow Up
CARA Laser Skin Care
Located in Shangri-La Plaza, the newest clinic of CARA Laser Skin Care offers luxury that centers on ease, authenticity, and emotional well-being. Designed by Barchan + ArchitectureArchitectureThe art and science of designing and constructing buildings, structures, and spaces that are functional, safe, and aesthetically pleasing. It encompasses the planning, design, materials, and techniques used to createGo to Architecture Glossary, the space reimagines luxury. Inside, it is not about exclusivity but about comfort.
Choreographed to form a cohesive story, the space’s materiality, form, light, art, and utility converge to ensure that wellness feels both personal and transformative. Inside, patients are enveloped by walls that have a warm peach-beige lime-based finish. Throughout the space, a pink color palette is present, paired with a brass finish on mirrors and fixtures.
To further enhance the space’s sense of comfort, original paintings by artist Yana Ofrasio, with nature-inspired motifs, were placed on the hallway walls. In pursuit of experiential luxury, the design is defined by softened volumes. When patients are inside CARA Laser’s Shangri-La clinic, they are made to feel relaxed and secure.
Read More: CARA Laser Skin Care: A New Kind of Luxury
A Place of Calm
Welcoming a new era in medical aesthetics, these skin clinics are at the vanguard of this progression. For them, design and hospitality work together to craft the patient experience.
Frequently Asked Questions
Designed by Budji Layag, Belo Nexa utilizes a material palette of marble floors, striking glass walls, and sleek stone finishes. The technical focal point is a custom lighting installation by Kenneth Cobonpue, featuring woven wire mesh and perforated metal. This “organic-meets-industrial” lighting softens the medical environment, creating a sense of “contemporary elegance” that feels more like a luxury hotel than a surgical center.
Developed by AVID GL (AVID Design Collective and Genius Loci), the Aivee Skin Spa utilizes large curved walls reminiscent of Tuscan columns to create a sense of scale and permanence. Technically, the design prioritizes “spatial softness” through organic materials and a neutral palette. To enhance the medical-wellness hybrid, they integrated celestial night-sky lighting on treatment room ceilings, providing a calming visual anchor for patients undergoing procedures.
At its Shangri-La Plaza clinic, Barchan + Architecture moved away from exclusivity toward “emotional well-being.” The technical design relies on softened volumes (rounded corners and fluid transitions) and walls finished in a warm peach-beige lime-based plaster. Paired with brass finishes and nature-inspired art by Yana Ofrasio, the space uses color psychology and tactile surfaces to make patients feel “secure” rather than “exposed.”
Beyond visual design, these clinics employ multi-sensory layers to distract the nervous system from the clinical nature of the visits. For example:
Olfactory: The Aivee Skin Spa uses specific herbal fragrances to lower cortisol levels.
Auditory/Visual: Soft, indirect lighting and “celestial” installations provide a focal point that aids in patient relaxation during laser or injectable treatments.
Tactile: The use of lime-based finishes and velvet-like textures in CARA Laser creates a “residential” comfort level.
A key technical feat in these clinics is the concealment of medical utility. While each room is a “technological innovation” hub, the sleek stone finishes and curated artworks hide the bulk of medical machinery, gas lines, and sterile supplies. By integrating the utility into the “architectural story,” the design ensures that wellness feels personal and transformative rather than industrial.
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