Yacht Project Opal “Looks Like She Was Sculpted by the Wind”

“What we have aimed to achieve is a look that appeals to a lot of people and therefore isn’t something too crazy,” explains Bas Mulder, Mulder Design’s owner. He’s describing the yacht Project Opal, a concept design capable of construction thanks to a proven engineering package. More so, “rather than screaming for attention,” the design immerses the owners in inventively relaxing, villa-like Caribbean living.

It starts with the exterior lines for the 230-footer (70-meter). The design studio drew inspiration from the way that waves flow and clouds stream. “The yacht looks like she was sculpted by the wind,” Mulder notes. It was important to carry this impression of being touched by nature inside the yacht, too. Particularly effective, the yacht Project Opal reveals aged teak, weathered leathers, unpolished stone, and linen, along with sandy tones, throughout her decks. Essentially, the design team wants guests to feel they’re enjoying a beachside island villa with suitably chic nautical touches.

For instance, rather than a typically arranged saloon, the yacht Project Opal has a long teak walkway between two lounging areas, each with wave-patterned custom carpet (below). Just forward, leather straps “anchor” a low settee, much like a sailboat at the dock. Even before getting to this, though, guests are greeted inside the aft-deck doors by a bar made from rough stone and worked wood.

The most striking example, though, is overhead. It’s much like an outdoor pergola with louvers (top). In fact, automatically adjusting wood slats cast different lighting moods. They simultaneously hide lighting while allowing the light to play off the furnishings and other surfaces.

With a volume upwards of 1,400 gross tons, the concept yacht Project Opal affords the owners and guests with more creatively different spaces. The beach club has glass doors, making it an all-weather lounge. For the sunny, warm days that every cruiser expects to wake up to, the beach club is in ideal proximity to the transformer-fitted swim platform. Speaking of waking up, all 12 guests have staterooms on the main deck, while the owners have a suite on the upper deck. Furthermore, the upper deck can be an entirely private owners’ apartment if desired.

With the lower deck primarily for crew’s quarters, their mess, the galley, and of course equipment, Project Opal isn’t necessarily a displacement cruiser. Mulder Design created her with its high-speed cruising hull, which can both prioritize better fuel burn and exceed hull speed reportedly by up to 30 percent. Mulder deliveries like the superyacht Spectre have proven the capabilities.

Finally, as for the name, it’s a deliberate choice. Opals, which display a kaleidoscope of colors, symbolize good fortune, hope, protection, beauty, vitality, and, not surprisingly, creativity.

Mulder Design mulderdesign.nl