First (Proper) Blog since I relaunched this website in January, 2019.

Finally. After spending a long time thinking what to write.

Then a dear friend of mine that I should write about how my background and my experience affect my interior design style. It’s my one year anniversary in Edinburgh on Saturday.. It was my yearning for space and my passion for creating personalised interiors that brought me to the Scottish Capital.

I was sitting quietly, reflecting on my growth and changes and I come to realise how much my childhood, my heritage affect my interiors style

Victorian Harbour in Hong Kong, where I lived before relocating to the Scottish capital. The busyness, the streets, the human connection have always inspired me,

Smart use of space

HK is one of the most expensive and packed city in the world. The average home size in Hong Kong is 484 square feet (45 square meters) so since childhood I’m taught to be clever with the use of space. I don’t recall having a home with dedicated study/ storage space. Utilising every space possible has been crucial to a comfortable living. As much as I dreaded it, I had no choice but to place boxes of letters, photos underneath my bed that I customised. Extra blankets, beddings are always stored at the top drawer, fully using all the height.

Although I’m now in a city where space is less scarce, this is still a very useful skill. I’m almost trained to organise things in a certain ways to maximise the sense of space. No one wants to go home to see things lying around. Just adding a drawer or a small box in the cupboard (and a bit of self discipline!!) could create a peaceful space without clutter

A set of storage boxes are useful to place things that are rarely taken out. Also, this set from Beautify is also very pretty to look at :) Making you more inclined to sort out your things !

When I was living with my parents we built a bar tables. To increase storage space we make cupboards next to it where we can also use the counterop for displaying bottles

The need for Sanctuary

As one of the economic centres in the world, Hong Kong is truly a city that never stops. Shops open till 9, if not 10pm everyday. Stress is basically something that everyone deals with on a daily basis. Everyday when I was on my commute, trapped in the MTR with my body right next to someone’s shoulder, I longed for the moment in my bedroom where I could recharge. It’s the busyness, the distractions that makes it even more important to have that moment, that space where you can feel truly connected, inspired. Because of my busy working life back home, I understand fully the importance of creating a comforting, calming, inspiring space and that’s what I wish to help my clients create the sanctuary

People at heart

I’m fortunate enough to work with interesting people globally. Going to rural village in Thailand opened up my eyes - they have a different attitude to art, life. They brought their beliefs into crafting some of the most beautiful ceramic vases I’ve seen. The different shapes and colours are almost a symbolism of humanity. In the design industry, it’s key to form a harmonious relationship with people, and space. To me, design is really about people;, how to inspire, energise them? How to make them happier when they are upset? I guess it’s also my background in an international busy city like Hong Kong that makes me put people in front of everything else. An interiors will only be a good one if it is actively interacting with the people within. As cliche as it sounds, does it spark joy?

Ilse Crawford is my all time favourite designer. She designed the Cathay Pacific first-class lounge in Hong Kong. She carefully considers the needs of airport passenger and create a place for them to relax and recharge

Fusion of different styles

Hong Kong is a mixture of old & new, eastern & western. We have old Chinese styles temples dated hundred years ago, and every year there’s seem to be a new tall skyscraper entering the already-busy Victorian skyline. I grow up watching both local and western movies and I’m intrigued by both Eastern and Western culture. I like how both cultures interpret nature in a very different way. This uniqueness affect my style - I really like to mix different features from both culture. For example, I like to put a traditional Chinese urn next to some western handcrafted ceramic vase with victorian pattern. As long as you give some careful thoughts while curating the collection, the result is often a very pleasing one (of course, you can hire an interior stylist! contact me if there’s anything I can help!)