A Hong Kong house that makes a big impression: bold colours and high ceilings for a family of five
Keen to be shaken out of her comfort zone, a tenant who usually shies away from bright hues was happy to let an interior designer inject life into her 3,000 sq ft, four-bedroom home in Deep Water Bay
Compromises often have to be made when renting a home but, sometimes, a property comes along that ticks all the boxes. Offering 3,000 sq ft, high ceilings, a great layout and a private outdoor terrace, this Deep Water Bay house was a no-brainer for Australian couple Danielle and Marc Davies and their three children.
The absence of decor in the three-floor, four-bedroom house was a bonus. Although structural changes weren’t permitted, it meant the Davieses had a blank canvas on which to make their aesthetic mark.
“When we arrived in Hong Kong [...] we didn’t think we’d be staying long, so we bought cheaper furniture,” says Danielle. “Now that we have been living here on and off for 14 years, we consider it our home, so I wanted some ‘forever’ pieces. It helps that our children are older and have stopped destroying things.”
Danielle’s father is an architect and she has inherited a love of classic, clutter-free style. However, she needed help with the makeover, so she turned to Australian-born interior designer Aviva Duncan to shake her out of her comfort zone and inject vitality into the colour scheme. Duncan also helped choose a couple of “big-ticket” items (Minotti sofa, included), which could stay with the family for a lifetime.
Duncan divided the 1,000 sq ft ground-floor living room into two zones. The larger is dedicated to grown-up entertaining while the smaller is a chill-out space for the children. The dining room, on the mezzanine level, overlooking the living room, is also in two parts. A dining table dominates one end while a sofa at the other makes a comfy reading area for the book-loving family. Simply repainting the bookshelves gave them a new lease of life.
“We all fight over this space – even the dog is obsessed with it,” says Danielle. “I can sit here and supervise homework in the dining room as well as look down at what’s going on in the living area.”
All of the bedrooms, on the top floor, got the thumbs up. Jack, 11, will be able to grow up with a look suitable for an almost-teenager; Emily, nine, has bunk beds and soft furnishings in a sophisticated teal; and Luke, six, who is now accommodating his siblings’ old toys, is the beneficiary of the largest room.
Marc and Danielle upgraded their bedroom furniture. Although it looks expensive, their bed wasn’t a huge investment, thanks to Duncan’s design of a tall headboard in midnight-blue suede and a cover for the base in matching fabric.
When the family took possession of the house, a few naked bulbs illuminated the rooms, which gave them the freedom to go big on floor-level lighting.
“Playing with scale can be hard and we would have had to install a massive pendant light in the living room for it to work, which would have been fine here but what would Marc and Danielle have done with something so big if they had to move to a smaller home with lower ceilings? Floor lamps are eye-catching and practical,” says Duncan.
Statement rugs tie everything together. Duncan specialises in textile design and she worked with Danielle to create three distinctive rugs for the living areas and master bedroom.
“This house is really liveable and it has a wow factor about it,” says Danielle. “Aviva has helped me to embrace colour, which I shied away from in previous years; it is a fantastic outcome.”
Living room detail At the “kids’ end” of the living area, the sofa (HK$20,000) was bought from Attitude, a shop in Horizon Plaza, Ap Lei Chau, that has since closed. The desk (HK$12,000) was designed and made by Duncan. The chairs were HK$2,500 each from Tree but have since been discontinued.
Kitchen The kitchen, which looks out onto the terrace, was left as it was. The vintage “Eat” sign was a gift.
Tried + tested
Working under the table In the Davieses’ home, television boxes and routers have been screwed to the underside of a side table (HK$4,390, from Dovetail Living), keeping them accessible but out of sight. The family simply points remote controls at the table and, hey presto! This clever idea makes an audiovisual unit unnecessary.