Staycations are always a great idea for a few days of uninterrupted bliss but having a resort look for your home? You’d probably won’t be in the mood for holiday-making when you’re back at work. Plus, the Balinese resort look can get pretty dated and impractical in the long run. Designer Joey Khu from Joey Khu Interior Design foresaw these issues when he was engaged for the renovation of this cluster home. The homeowners, a married couple, their mom and their daughter, wanted a tranquil resort-style home to come home to.
As this is a family home and not a short-term holiday home, Joey envisioned a sophisticated colour palette of warm neutrals to anchor the resort style. He also conceptualised modern design details to create a timeless design language. The luxury of space permits him to work with open and airy communal areas which resonate with the homeowners’ desire to host large gatherings. Noting his clients’ design and lifestyle preferences and along with his timeless design vision, Joey was all set to turn the resort style into something more.
With the living, dining and dry kitchen sharing the same confines, Joey’s job was to separate these three areas without making it look visually disjointed. He shares, “I decided on dark-coloured wallpaper to helm the dry kitchen and this provides a good colour contrast between the neutral paint treatments for the other walls.” A modern interpretation of raw, rustic wood pieces is represented by the strips of veneer wood panels which flank the living area’s wall. Not only is it much sleeker in terms of appearance and also easy to maintain, the design feature flawlessly conceals the entrance to an outdoor compound.
To ensure there is good design symmetry in both sides of the large communal area, Joey used laminated coverings to fill the dining area’s wall. “This creates a warm yet sophisticated backdrop and helps to visually separate the dining space from the rest of the zones”, he explains. “I then hung up two framed mirrors as a focal point and as an alternative to the usual paintings. It helps to bring the light and the idyllic view from the outdoors in.”
Speaking of outdoors, the ground level where the communal zones reside is privy to a gorgeous lap pool and flourishing greenery. It would be a pity to mask this outstanding view so Joey had automated roller blinds installed. That helps to blur the connection between indoors and outdoors, and lets the homeowners enjoy the natural scenery from the comfort of their living and dining areas.
For the furnishings, Joey also had a hand in designing some of the centrepieces in the living and dining zones. The sofa, coffee table, dining table and dining chairs have all been customised by him and are fit to serve the homeowners and their occasional guests in good order. The coffee table for instance, hosts tray-like compartments that allows easy organisation and also act as a protective guard.
The private areas, namely the master bedroom, are outfitted in a similar colour palette and design touches as the communal areas. A row of veneer wood strips embellishes the room’s entertainment console and hides a good amount of storage within. Other custom-built carpentry works include the storage bed, bedside tables and a vanity table and mirror. All these matching bespoke touches create a cohesive and streamlined design flow which makes the bedroom feel soothing and inviting.
While it is tempting to go for a full-fledged resort style that is easy to love at first, Joey and the homeowners definitely made the smarter choice with a timeless and toned down resort look. The family can grow with it and expect to live in it for a long time.
This was adapted from an article originally written by Disa Tan published in the March 2017 issue of SquareRooms. Photo credits: Joey Khu Interior Design
