Elevating Your Home: Affordable Luxury Furniture & Decor

TRAVEL DIARIES: THE SIAM HOTEL, BANGKOK

On today's travel edition, we visit a beautiful gem tucked on the edge of the historic heart of Bangkok. In it are treasures of nature and beauty of art deco furniture pieces that will help you immerse in tranquility.

The Siam is a long way from downtown, but for those who are into sightseeing, the location offers easy access to the city’s main temples and museums and guests can get just about anywhere in the area by hopping on the hotel’s river boat.

An exquisite luxury hotel, the building seamlessly marries classic Thai influences with Art Deco aesthetics, and its interior is decorated with beautiful antiques and exudes sumptuous serenity. You get an impression upon check in that huge efforts are made to offer guests complete privacy and a unique experience.

Just a quick forty minutes from the international airport, this urban resort is a haven and escape from the hustle and bustle, including Bangkok’s galling crowds and infamous traffic.

Founded in 2012 by Krissada Sukoso Clapp and designed by celebrated hotel guru Bill Bensley, The Siam offers plenty of panache — silent marble corridors ooze Art Deco and classic colonial-style aesthetics, making this hotel a one-off experience. It’s a perfect synergy between east and west and the grounds are so spacious that the property feels like one’s luxury home, even when it’s booked out.

Elements of colonial-style aesthetics immediately transports you to a time where old world glamour reigned supreme.

The 28 standard rooms are in fact suites with high wooden ceilings, massive beds and large bathrooms with stylish tubs. Plenty of original artwork and 19th and early 20th-century documents and photographs grace the walls, complemented by heavy dark wood furniture and giant bronze ceiling fans, all of which creates a near-silent, luxurious ambience. Modern amenities aren’t lacking either, but they blend in with grace.

At the end of the day, take the time to enjoy the majestic Chao Phara sunset view with a cold drink in hand.

The Siam has three restaurants - the Chon Restaurant serves classic Thai haute cuisine by the banks of the Chao Praya – the pomelo prawn salad is excellent. The Deco Bar and Bistro, its walls covered in brass instruments, offers a great selection of western dishes. The Café Cha is a classic patisserie, ideal for afternoon tea. The perfect pre-dinner drink location is the Bather’s Bar by the pool.

The Siam Hotel

3/2 Thanon Khao, Vachirapayabal, Dusit, Bangkok 10300, Thailand

Love the look? You may like these too:

1. THEA MOTHER OF PEARL MIRROR

2. CLAUDETTE WHITE GLASS GOURD LED TABLE LAMP

3. FINN COLLECTION SCREEN 246

4. NOLIE & FINN: FAIRY PLACE LOUIS XVI ARMCHAIR

5. ANGELO SURMELIS DESIGNER COLLECTION: HAND LOOMED BLACK-SILVER WOOL RUG

6. PARAMOUR ROUND SOFA

7.CANDICE OLSON COLLECTION: GRAY LINEN-VELVET DOWN FEATHER CUSHION

Images featured in this post are from here.

3 EXPERT TIPS ON STYLING WITH STATEMENT RUGS

We love how easy it is to refresh the look of a space just by adding a statement rug. Designer furniture pieces go well particularly with statement rugs. Though pulling an interior look with them and avoiding looking tacky or like a kid’s funhouse may take some effort, we can assure you that it will be all worth it at the end of the day.

Up on the blog today, we have 3 expert tips that will help you incorporate statement rugs in your interior to a T. Read on!

1 MATCH A COLOUR FROM THE RUG TO YOUR DECORATIVE PIECES

Pick a colour from your rug and bring in some accessories to match. Throw cushions, lamps and vases or flowers are great to start with. By adding these accent pieces, it helps with fusing your rug beautifully with your space, and gives a sense that the space is being styled in unison rather than a rug that is placed in just for a pop of visual texture.

You may like:

2 MUTE YOUR FURNITURE IN THE ROOM

To keep a balance in the space (and for your visual sanity), pick a neutral hue like black, grey, brown or white for most of your furniture. Not only will this help draw attention to the statement rug, this style tip will also help minimise having to change your big ticket items should you give your space a quick update in the future.

You may like:

3 GO WITH PATTERNS INSTEAD OF COLOURS

Note ready to go all out with colours? Make a statement with a bold patterned rug instead. They are versatile in matching any interior looks without calling too much attention to itself, in comparison to a vibrant and colourful rug. Pieces like the Labyrinth Taupe Rug and Lattice Earth Rug is subtle and ideal to kickstart this bold journey with.

You may like:

Ready to start styling? Our collection of rugs, including curated pieces from Ted Baker, Candice Olsen and Julie Cohn Collections may just be the perfect fit for your space. Take a closer look here!

3 STYLISH LOOKS WITH FAYETTE CHESTERFIELD SOFA

If you love the ever charming Chesterfield sofa designs but do not want the old-fashioned interior design frills that are usually tied with it? Fret not. Up on the blog today, 3 stylish and modern looks that you can achieve effortlessly. Read on!

MUTED OPULENCE

This stylish mix exudes sophistication and class, which is perfect for your living room and executive lounge. Style with accents of gold, beige and ivory atop the base of warm grey tones.

Get the look with:

1.      ANNICK MERCURY GLASS CANDLESTICK LED TABLE LAMP

2.     CANDICE OLSON DESIGNER COLLECTION: MODERN CLASSICS ~ MORPHOLOGY IVORY RUG

3.     CIRCLES OF LIFE HAND-CARVED MIRROR

4.     FAYETTE CHESTERFIELD 3 SEATER SOFA - GRAY

5.     CANDICE OLSON COLLECTION: WHITE-STARDUST COTTON VELVET DOWN FEATHER CUSHION

6.     BROWN-GOLD FUR COTTON DOWN FEATHER CUSHION

MINT ELEGANCE

Always have a penchant for pastel colours? Nail the look by layering your space with an array of white accent pieces and mirrors or silver pieces for shine.

Get the look with:

1.   SIMPLE PERFECTION MIRROR

2.   IBERIAN-MOROCCAN BEAUTY CABINET

3.     FUR FUR IVORY DOWN FEATHER CUSHION

4.     JOI 1-DRAWER MIRRORED END TABLE/ NIGHTSTAND

5.     FAYETTE CHESTERFIELD 3 SEATER SOFA - SKY BLUE

6.     CANDICE OLSON DESIGNER COLLECTION: MODERN CLASSICS ~ INFINITY LIGHT RUG

7.     WHITE-SILVER LINEN DOWN FEATHER CUSHION-MODERN

ECLECTIC CHARM

Taking things to the dark side in style, this curated look features vibrant blues, warm tones of wood and a touch of gold is not only charming, but extremely fun to be in too!

Get the look with:

1.     GAUTHIER ANTIQUE MERCURY GLASS LED TABLE LAMP

2.     FLORENCE DE DAMPIERRE COLLECTION - AQUA-LIME COTTON DOWN FEATHER-CUSHION

3.     TEAL VELVET DOWN FEATHER CUSHION

4.     FAYETTE CHESTERFIELD 3 SEATER SOFA - BEIGE

5.     THIERRY NESTING TABLES (SET OF TWO)

6.     TED BAKER RUG COLLECTION: PLAID NAVY RUG

The Fayette Chesterfield 3-Seater is specially designed to also allow homeowners of smaller apartments to get the look without feeling overwhelmed with size. This unique 3-seater settee measures 1.9m with a perfect depth of 78cm and comes in a 2-seater option.

How To Choose A Good Sofa

Guide to Buying a Good Sofa

With so many choices of sofa in the market, it is sometimes hard to make a good decision. Lack of choices and being flooded with choices are equally challenging. This is especially true in a market where majority of products are made “not to last”. There is a tendency for factories to make something with 20% of the quality in the past, and vendors then sell them at 50% of the price in the past. So beware that whilst you get a 50% discount, you may be getting 20% of what you used to get in terms of quality, durability and enjoyment.

Here is a useful guide with simple to follow steps for you to make the wise choice for your sofa.

1. Know the available space

Give your space a good measure. People generally make the mistake of buying a sofa too small for their space because they are afraid to cramp up their living room. Most designers will tell you, “small sofa makes your place look smaller than it really it”. So try to buy one that is big enough; the likelihood is that it will never be too big if it fits into the space.

2. Understand your style

Everybody is talking about being riveted by Downton Abbey. You realize that it is because of the backdrop of every scene, the landscape and the interior, which is filled with style of the glorious past that resonates with your heart – Chesterfield, Knole sofas, nail head trims etc. You have to find what appeals to your inner voice – perhaps it is a plush, nature-soft genuine leather, or black-and-white stripes, or an coming-to-trend gray Chesterfield, or an elegant silver New York style tufted sofa. Whatever it is, avoid run-of-the-mills sofas without an appealing design.

3. Keep an open mind on colour

Some well intention advice mongers tell us “always choose a neutral color” i.e. beige, because it goes with anything. Whilst in some cases, beige can be the perfect choice for a certain frame, a certain look in your living room etc, in many other cases, it simply means it will be boring or inconspicuous. Consider midnight blue, red, black-and-white, gray, black, blue, silver etc Striking color brings out the vibrancy in an otherwise lethagic setting – so you could feel lively even whilst you are snoozing on the couch!

4. What is a good choice of sofa fabrics?

Choosing your sofa fabrics is different from choosing your bed linens. Whilst silk is a perfect choice for bed linens, designers typically prefer fabrics with a high polyester content; yes, polyester. This is because it is more durable. To have a sofa look elegant, for some fabrics, a small amount of cotton, linen or viscose is used. But the polyester constitution allows your sofa to be “evergreen”; too much of other materials such as linen or cotton may make it age prematurely.

If you minded to choose leather – and there is no reason you cannot afford it – buy only leather couches which are imported from places such as Italy or at least somewhere in the EU – as many leather sofas use synthetic, engineered leather that makes it look like genuine leather, or passing of lower quality leather as top grain leather. Leather is expensive and there is no escaping from it – so if a leather sofa is cheap, then likelihood is that it is not made of genuine top grain leather.

5. Pay attention to the sofa frame

This is simple – but often mistaken by people who after all buy a sofa once in say five to six years or even ten years. If the frame is very light, it is likely not made of solid wood – try using your palm to push the sofa backward, and if the sofa can be tilted by such a simple action, then avoid it like a plague. Have you not heard furniture that are too light falling on toddlers or pets with serious injuries? However, some sofas are so heavy that you can hardly move it – this is equally bad because it is likely it is made of engineered wood (i.e. wood pulp bonded together chemically), rather than solid wood. The problem with engineered wood is that they are very heavy – but they can given way one day without any warning. Solid wood frame is what you should go for.

6. Seat cushions of the sofa are important

This is somewhat a personal choice. Designers generally prefer “not to soft, not too hard” – so a medium firm is usually a good choice – you can sit comfortably on it, and you can use it as a daybed at the same time. Feathers or downs are great – but because they are highly costly, most couches that come with feather seat cushions are not sufficiently padded, and very quickly you will find they are not comfortable to sit on or sleep in. So medium firm is ideal, best is if it has some pocketed springs, of course.

7. Depth of the sofa

A sofa is often not just something to sit on, but a place to take a nap. So it is almost unforgivable to have a couch that looks like one you find in a dentist’s clinic that you cannot even put your whole butt on. Always make sure the sofa is at least 82cm deep; but ideally it is more than 90cm.

8. Buying “a sofa set” or “mix and match”

In the market, many sofas are sold as a set i.e. you get a three-seater, a two-seater, and perhaps even an armchair. This may seem like a bargain – but often it is not what you need, and yet you have paid for them all. It is far better to get a good three-seater for $2,000 than to pay the same for three-piece set which tend to be of lower quality. Most apartments really only need one good three-seater and perhaps an armchair. If yours is bigger than that, then you are one of the fortunate souls – and you can well afford splurging to “mix and match” a three-seater, with some beautiful accent pieces.  Always consider a lovers seat!

Interior Design Singapore

Interior design is the turning of a space into a home.

No, it is not an art; no, it is not a science. So often interior design is defined to be the “art” or “science” of space planning. Sure, it comprises artistic ideas, and its implementation benefits from methodologies or scientific innovations. However, interior design is not to turn your apartment into a gallery, nor to create a apartment with strict adherence to some scientific methodologies.  It is about turning your new condo into a home.

Interior design is everything about taking a space that has no character and turn it into a place that you can call your own, so that you can use it for your purposes, and enhance your enjoyment living in it.

These are the 3Ys:

Your own: infusing your character and personality

Your purposes: creating structures and spaces for your functionalities

Your enjoyment: adding something that simply pleases you

With the 3Ys in mind, here are the questions we need to ask ourselves when we are about to renovate our home:

1. What is your perfect home style?

It is important to have a very rough idea of the style you aspire to have for your new home. That said, you don’t have to have an exact replica; it is good though to have a picture or two that shows the interior designer what kind of styles you like. Pictures tell a thousand words – even the word “resort” can mean very different things; a Balinese resort is vastly different from a W resort hotel.

Here are some search words: “minimalist”, “modern vintage”, “modern country”, “industrial”, “Scandinavian” etc.

2. What is your lifestyle?

It is important to consider whether home is to you more of a place for rest or a place for activity. If it is a place of rest, then what would give you a good rest? Is it a tucked away daybed in the corner? If it is a place for activity, does it mean having a big coffee table for your puzzles?

It is important also to consider whether you are likely to have family members or friends over at your new home often, and whether you are likely to spend time with them over TV or over dinner.

3. What are your hobbies and favourite pasttimes?

If you like to watch TV and it is your favourite pasttime, then consider how your multimedia will be set up e.g. whether you would like a projector screen. Or if you like to read, consider whether you would like to have a full length bookshelf. Or if you like to cook, consider whether you need a mobile island attached to your kitchen.

4. What is your family structure?

Needless to say, you need to consider whether how many people are going to live in the apartment. Whilst this is obvious, it is good to consider the likely changes in the coming years. For example, if your parents will likely live with you in the future, or if you are going to hire a domestic helper.

5. How much storage do you need?

This is probably what most people ignore or underestimate. Most people think they do not have a lot of stuff and they assume whatever comes with the apartment when they buy it from the develper is sufficient. This is especially so when they are young and living on their own for the first time. In reality as time passes, anyone and everyone accumulates things and possessions. In time to come, without sufficient storage, you will tend to find your apartment becoming cluttered. So do consider it seriously your storage requirements and there is no hard in having some stylish extra space for storage.

6. How tidy or messy are you?

Do you like to have everything “off the surface”? No newspaper lying on the table, no juicer on the kitchen top, no magazines lying around, or toothbrushes sitting on the vanity top? This is a personal choice – if you like to have everything “off the surface”, then it is advisable to plan carefully before starting out your renovation – go through your day mentally and think of every item you use on a daily or regular basis, and start consider how you would them to be kept “off the surface”.

7. Which part of the apartment are you most likely to spend more time?

Is this the living room, or the study, or the entertainment room, or the master bedroom? This will help you to allocate your budget and direct your priorities accordingly.

8. Is there something that has always irked you in your parents’ home?

Sometimes it is not having the thing you want, but not having the thing that you do not want, that makes you most happy. Was it a lack of a dishwasher in the kitchen, or was it poor lighting, or was it a noise from the TV when you are trying to sleep?

9. Is there something you always dream to have in your own home?

To some, it is a staircase, or a fireplace mantle, a large mirror, a projector screen, or a dining side board, a large comfortable sofa, a beautiful credenza, an unique dining table with gorgeous dining chairs or anything at all, there is no better time to have them included in your interior design.

10. What is your budget?

Having a clear idea of your budget helps you plan how much to do, and how to execute a given plan. Whilst we don’t want to burn a hole in our pockets, it is important to set the right budget as we are going to live in it, and having a properly designed home gives us the quality of life not even a splashy car can.

Enjoy embarking on making your apartment home!