April 4, 2009
home & garden
Holiday at home
A bungalow at Sentosa Cove feels so much like a resort the owners do not need to go elsewhere
By tay suan chiang
Most city folk would enjoy a relaxing break overseas at a sandy beach resort, but when the owners of this bungalow at Sentosa Cove want a holiday, they stay home.
The home owners, an English couple, find no need to go away as they live in what feels like a resort.
Their two-storey, 9,800 sq ft bungalow is in Sentosa's luxury residential enclave and looks out onto a golf course and a lake.
'We can see the city skyline in the distance,' says the wife. The couple declined to be named.
To give the home a resort feel, architect Shaun Shahrome, director of home-grown firm Soho Design Partnership was careful in his selection of materials.
He used natural materials such as stone and wood - usually employed in tropical resorts - to build the house, which also has an attic and a basement.
Other 'tropical holiday' touches include putting a low wooden fence around the house and planting mature coconut trees in the garden. Wooden benches in the garden add to the relaxed, natural ambience.
The garden also has a 16m lap pool and a pavilion where the family can enjoy barbecues.
While the bungalow has the look and feel of a resort on the outside, it meets the needs of a young family inside.
The owners - he is a businessman and she a housewife - have two boys, aged five and 10. The couple, who declined to reveal land and construction costs of their home, are expecting a baby girl this month.
'When you're building a house for yourself, you want to put all that you've wanted in it,' says the wife.
The family had previously rented an apartment in Bukit Timah.
On their list were a swimming pool, two maids' rooms, two bars, a big audio-visual room, four bedrooms, walk-in wardrobes for the couple and a large playroom for the children.
Yet, with their requests, 'the house must have a warm family feel', says the wife.
'I don't want a museum. The home must be comfortable for the kids, us and guests,' she adds.
As the house sits on a triangular piece of land, Mr Shahrome designed the house in a similar way to maximise the 10,700 sq ft site.
'The wider areas are used as bedroom space, while the narrow end is for storage space such as for the wardrobe and cupboards to store laundry items,' he explains.
The ground floor is where the living and dining areas are, together with a kitchen and laundry area.
Private space for her
The bedroom of the couple's eldest son is also on this level.
Three more bedrooms are on the first floor. There is a bedroom for the younger son and another room which has been decorated in pink for the baby to come.
There is also a study which leads to the couple's bedroom. A sliding door between the two rooms allows the husband to work late into the night without disturbing his wife.
At the back of the bedroom is a spacious bathroom and a his and hers walk-in wardrobe area.
'This is where I have my own private space,' says the wife, of her walk-in wardrobe, which comes with customised shelves and drawers for clothes, bags and shoes. It even has a fabric wall from which jewellery is hung for easy reach.
Upstairs is an attic where the children have their play area. To allow light to enter, Mr Shahrome created a skylight in the pitched roof.
'It's covered with a wooden lattice to help block out direct sunlight,' he says.
Downstairs in the basement is an audio-visual room for the husband, who is a movie and music buff.
It is not just the couple who enjoy staying home.
The younger son often protests to his parents when they mention going on vacation.
'He asks, 'Why don't we just stay home,'' says the wife with a chuckle.
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