Mr Low, a former banker, has been collecting colonial marquetry furniture, old Laotian textiles and Burmese lacquerware since his army days.
Most of the pieces have been with him for over two decades, so he told the interior designers from ICIA that he wanted a large living and dining area where he could display his precious antique collection.
Dining Room
Mr Low says: “I wanted it to be like a ‘meeting place’ where most of the family activities will be held.”
Instead of built-in display cabinets and wall shelves, the ICIA designers carefully planned out the placement for each and every piece of furniture.
They would become displays housing Mr Low’s collection.
![88819-dac49062](https://sonadecor.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/88819-dac49062.jpg)
Open Concept Dining Room
The interior designers proposed that the living and dining area be an open-concept space and were able to fit in a 3 metre long Suar wood dining table.
“This is where we spend most of our time as a family, doing work or eating together. We also enjoy having good friends over for a nice meal,” shares Mr Low.
![88820-dac49074](https://sonadecor.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/88820-dac49074.jpg)
Hacked Walls
After hacking some walls, there is ample room for an L-shaped sofa in the living area that the Low family of three use for reading; it explains the bookcase that takes the place of a television set.
![88821-dac49085](https://sonadecor.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/88821-dac49085.jpg)
Floor to Ceiling Glass Doors
The sense of modernity is achieved by extending the doorways all the way to the the ceiling.
Glass doors also help to maintain visual flow between the living and cooking spaces, while still keeping them separated for functional reasons.
![88822-dac49116](https://sonadecor.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/88822-dac49116.jpg)
Timeless Interior Design
Right from the start, Mr Low felt strongly about not wanting a particular style for his home because “it may become outdated”. Pieter says that viewpoint fitted ICIA’s design philosophy to a T.
The result is a timeless and practical home that is independent of current trends.
This article was first published on Sona Decor in June 2018.
![88823-dac49124](https://sonadecor.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/88823-dac49124.jpg)