Over the last three years, I've undertaken small-scale yet painstaking renovations. The biggest triumph, among all the trials and errors, was stripping off the carpet and installing wood flooring. Despite the daunting strata procedures, the outcome has absolutely transformed the entire space in an overarching sense. There's nothing more rewarding than seeing my ultimate vision come to life after three years of hard work. As I'm not a trained designer or artist, decorating my place has been an intuitive process. Even now, I find it hard to encapsulate or define my interior style. I guess it's a bit of mix-and-match approach, layering materials, textures, color palettes, and lighting to achieve a dynamic yet balanced look with a fun twist and juxtaposition. But if I do try to fit it into a box of interior style, gazing upon the current finished look, I see a blend of borrowed styles. It features Scandinavian clean lines and natural materials, accent steel, wood flooring, woven and rattan textures, and greenery. Complementing this are rustic edges, free-flowing silhouettes, asymmetrical compositions, and raw material accessories that evoke a sense of Japanese wabi-sabi—imperfectly perfect—with playful elements referencing Japanese culture through subtle styling details.

I celebrate the unique qualities found in natural materials, which create a tactile and organic feel in home decor. So, maybe it's where East meets West—Japandi, perhaps? I also embrace aesthetics that prioritize comfort and natural trends, touching on the heart of the Organic Modern trend, you know, delicate balances between sleek, crisp modern lines and raw, earthy elements.

And I am not a minimalist at this stage of my life. Three years ago, when kicking off this project, I thought to myself to catch up with this trend, wabi-sabi, as I am heavily influenced by Japanese aesthetics and sensibility. But very quickly, I was like, who am I kidding? I am in this solitary living. The last thing I need is a minimalist, restrained, and understated approach. I guess that explains my choice of artwork featuring very characteristic Art Deco motifs: female figures, animals, foliage, and floral elements, infusing my space with dynamic and vibrant energy.

Here, I want to shine the spotlight on my Chinoiserie-inspired wallpaper, which brings exoticism, color, pattern, and movement to my living room. Wallpaper really brings personality, energy, and whimsy to a space. I also want to point out that exterior architectural detailing and the outside environment pretty much dictate how my interior unfolds.

My place is a brick-made unit built in the early 90s, nestled in a big, lush park neighborhood. Every day I walk through the forest, and I just touch on this awe emotion; it's awe-inspiring every day. The soft green wallpapers with botanical motifs function as an extension of the outdoor gardens and scenery, seamlessly inviting the outdoors in to connect with nature. Post-COVID, outdoor and indoor living is a big trend, right? Speaking of trends, there's definitely a rising sentimental longing for something past. With a big focus on thoughtful, sustainable design in 2024 and a nod to nostalgic styles, we're not just shopping smarter but also celebrating handmade, artisan crafts from around the world. Nostalgia always has a special place in my heart, and I always appreciate quality and craftsmanship.

One of my favorite pieces is my Tiffany pendant that reminisces about the Art Nouveau movement, adding a hint of heritage and historical appeal. This stunning piece is made with an imperial bronze base and 100% handcrafted Tiffany stained glass lamps with a multi-color shade. I'm amazed by its intricate ironwork, epitomizing craftsmanship at a high level of execution, evoking a sense of retro opulence and adding a bit of medieval gothic touch.

Mid-century modern has always held a soft spot in my heart, which definitely influences my choice of furnishings: geometric shapes and forms, streamlined looks, rich textures, and above all, being bold with color and pattern, as you can tell.

Again, it's very intuitive, yet more intentional later down the road over the span of the project, figuring out color composition and layering of materials, textures, and lighting.

Green, hands down, is the protagonist in my color palette. These pretty green hues strike a perfect balance—they’re bold enough to make a statement and create energy, yet muted enough to bring a sense of serenity and tranquility. Different shades and tones of green are embellished through styling objects and ornaments (paintings, teal pillows, moss vases, a velvet armchair, faux greenery, glassware, wall treatments, etc.). It was a very bold and rewarding move to paint my living room in Mint Circle, reaching my pinnacle design point upon completion of the wall painting and wallpaper.

My interior course teacher once said, “Painting your place in a primary color—I’ve seen enough white—if you want to impress me.”  An acclaimed interior designer also said, “Nothing transforms a space as radically and profoundly as painting it.”  In 2024, I finally took a leap of faith to paint my living room green. The process was far from linear. First, you spend years standing on the fence before pulling the trigger. Then you spend a few months searching for enough reference points to make that color call. Then you're torn between different shades of green, getting up at 6 a.m. to go to Bunnings to pick color samples many times. Finally, options were narrowed down between Mint Circle and Spring Green. You decided to flip a coin and landed on Spring Green but changed your mind at the last minute when placing the order. Such an emotional roller coaster ride it was! The same process applied to selecting the wallpaper, by the way.

I spent a few more weeks bonding with the finished look until I wholeheartedly embraced this transformative space. To avoid overwhelming the space, I kept the ceiling white and chose neutral tones for larger pieces of furniture like the sofa and curtains. I paired greens with yellow undertones and added metallic gold, brass accents, and bronze touches for warmth and shine. A pop of red and a touch of black added unexpected visual drama, elevating and grounding the living room.

I'm a big visual and tactile person, obsessed with tactility. Layering a mix of materials and textures in a scheme adds depth, interest, and rich tactility to my space, as each texture brings its own quality and arouses my different senses—a hint of sumptuous velvet, luxe brass, woven texture, raw ceramic, glass, etc. It turns visual interest into a sensory experience.

Texture in interior design is all about creating tactile moments that invite touch. Without texture, a space can feel flat and one-dimensional.

Upgrading the lighting turned out to be a debilitating dilemma when trying to apply decorative lighting to a low ceiling. Long story short, I was defeated by the lighting dilemma to the point where I paused my project for a year. Now, I’ve cracked the lighting code (sounds so cocky, but you know what I mean LoL) in a very expensive way. The simple lesson I feel compelled to share here is this: flush mounts or semi-flush mounts are the most optimal choices for low ceilings, but before going down the rabbit hole of sourcing any decorative lighting, please, first and foremost, install recessed lights or downlights to ensure the primary source of illumination. And always take firm control of the number of lights you actually need for a small living space as opposed to going with the number of lights your electrician advised. You simply don’t need that many lights.

Luckily, all my pain paid off, and I am very content with the lighting composition layered by two pendants, a table lamp, and a floor lamp.

I feel the lighting upgrade has added a touch of European sophistication and refinement to my living room. Along with my new gallery wall, it brings in a hint of Parisian chic that I always gravitate towards. The way the ambient light blends with the freshly painted mint green walls and forest green wallpaper creates an enveloping and immersive atmosphere, making the space feel warm and soothing.