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<TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=452><TBODY><TR><TD vAlign=top width=452 colSpan=2>Published December 5, 2009
</TD></TR><TR><TD vAlign=top width=452 colSpan=2>Lofty living
Power couple Dennis Shen and Alicia Yi turned an Orchard Road apartment into a Manhattan-style loft. By Geoffrey Eu
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<SCRIPT type=text/javascript src="http://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#pub=xa-4ae026ba0e05c08d"></SCRIPT><SCRIPT type=text/javascript> var addthis_config = { username: "xa-4ae026ba0e05c08d", services_compact: 'facebook, twitter, favorites, myspace, google, digg, live, delicious, stumbleupon, more', services_exclude: 'print', data_use_flash: false } </SCRIPT> <!-- AddThis Button END --></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>WHEN Dennis Shen and Alicia Yi found the perfect home in Singapore, there was only one small problem - somebody else was living in it. So they waited until the place - a large, light-filled apartment in a brick-clad building near Orchard Road - finally came up for sale, and then they bought it.
<TABLE class=picBoxL cellSpacing=2 width=100 align=left><TBODY><TR><TD>
</TD></TR><TR class=caption><TD>TOUCH OF CLASS
In addition to the living area (above), there is a more informal family/recreation section and an open kitchen with a large island counter which has evolved into the social centre of the household. The master bathroom features a designer tub with views over the neighbourhood
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>There was still an obstacle or two to navigate before they could move in, such as tenants who were still occupying the apartment and the subsequent need for extensive renovations but Shen and Yi, a modern-day power couple who first moved to Singapore from Chicago in 1996, know what they like and were prepared to wait to get it.
They had been living in a house in the Katong area and before that had always lived in houses in Chicago, but they decided to make the switch to city living and looked specifically for a space that would come close to matching their requirements for a Manhattan-style loft. They then worked with Singapore-based interior architect Antonio Eraso to come up with the proper design aesthetic.
It was worth the wait. The couple and their two young daughters, Alexandra and Jacqueline, moved in about two years ago and have adjusted to life in the city. 'Here, we're in the centre of things, with a very comfortable New York-type lifestyle,' says Shen, managing director of Cisco Business Solutions Group Asia-Pacific, an IT networking company that is part of multinational giant Cisco Systems.
Yi, the partner-in-charge at Heidrick & Struggles, a high-end executive search firm, says, 'We went from a three-storey bungalow to a city apartment so we knew we had to maximise the space. The square footage (about 4,300 square feet) is slightly smaller here but we utilised every single square inch.'
<TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=5 align=left><TBODY><TR><TD bgColor=#ffffff>[FONT=Geneva, Helvetica, Verdana, Arial, sans-serif]<!-- REPLACE EVERYTHING IN CAPITALS WITH YOUR OWN VALUES --><TABLE class=quoteBox border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=144 align=left><TBODY><TR><TD vAlign=bottom>
</TD></TR><TR><TD bgColor=#fffff1><TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=124 align=center><TBODY><TR><TD vAlign=top>'We're fairly social and we entertain regularly but everyone just gravitates towards the counter. The living room is for people who want to take a rest from the social activity at the kitchen area.'
</TD></TR><TR><TD vAlign=top>
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR><TR><TD height=39>
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>A short corridor leads from the private lift lobby to the apartment entrance. Upon entering, a voluminous living area extends far into the home, while on sunny days the entire room is bathed in natural light, courtesy of picture windows lining one side of the room. The main living area has been reconfigured and designed in such a way that there are still well-defined spaces, just no physical walls dividing them.
In addition to the living and dining area, there is a more informal family/ recreation section and an open kitchen with a large island counter which has evolved into the social centre of the household. A wall-to-ceiling glass partition separates the kitchen from an outdoor wet kitchen. The sense of space and light is further enhanced by wide floorboards of blond Tasmanian oak throughout.
Shen and Yi are college sweethearts who are also best friends, so they have plenty in common and are also pretty attuned to each other's individual tastes. 'It was a very interactive partnership between us and the architect,' says Shen. 'He understood how we wanted to live, and then incorporated our needs into the apartment - it turned out that he was always right.' Adds Yi, 'Every closet, every drawer is designed taking into account the way we live.'
It was a deliberate move to make the kitchen an integral part of the living area, and it has become the focal point of the room. 'We're fairly social and we entertain regularly but everyone just gravitates towards the counter,' says Shen. 'The living room is for people who want to take a rest from the social activity at the kitchen area.'
Even the beautifully appointed dining table takes a back seat during family meals, and no one likes to have dinner there anymore, he says. 'The kitchen island is always the centre and the gathering place - it's a fluid living space,' adds Yi. The original bedrooms have also been redesigned so that the children, who are less than a year apart, have a two-bedroom suite between them - accented in strong pink, no less. 'Alicia wanted to create a different world for the girls,' says Shen.
Meanwhile, the master bathroom features a large bathing area and a designer tub with views over the neighbourhood - it was created in deference to Yi's Korean background and love of the Korean spa culture. 'It's an amazing oasis and one of the best investments we made,' says Yi.
Shen's connection to the wired world - his work requires him to look at new business models for the Internet - means the home is completely plugged in with the high-speed infrastructure required for downloading the latest in digital media content, such as podcasts, YouTube videos and Apple TV.
'The whole experience in the living room is now about niche TV,' he says. 'You search for what you want and just download it. The content is great - I can't remember the last time I watched regular television.'
There is also a grand piano in the living area - a legacy of Yi's days as a young concert pianist. She went to college on a music scholarship but decided to switch to economics instead. Now, family music time involves all the girls playing the piano, accompanied by Shen on the guitar.
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
</TD></TR><TR><TD vAlign=top width=452 colSpan=2>Lofty living
Power couple Dennis Shen and Alicia Yi turned an Orchard Road apartment into a Manhattan-style loft. By Geoffrey Eu
<TABLE class=storyLinks border=0 cellSpacing=4 cellPadding=1 width=136 align=right><TBODY><TR class=font10><TD width=20 align=right>
</TD><TD>Email this article</TD></TR><TR class=font10><TD width=20 align=right></TD><TD>Print article </TD></TR><TR class=font10><TD width=20 align=right></TD><TD>Feedback</TD></TR><TR class=font10><TD colSpan=2><!-- AddThis Button BEGIN --><SCRIPT type=text/javascript src="http://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#pub=xa-4ae026ba0e05c08d"></SCRIPT><SCRIPT type=text/javascript> var addthis_config = { username: "xa-4ae026ba0e05c08d", services_compact: 'facebook, twitter, favorites, myspace, google, digg, live, delicious, stumbleupon, more', services_exclude: 'print', data_use_flash: false } </SCRIPT> <!-- AddThis Button END --></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>WHEN Dennis Shen and Alicia Yi found the perfect home in Singapore, there was only one small problem - somebody else was living in it. So they waited until the place - a large, light-filled apartment in a brick-clad building near Orchard Road - finally came up for sale, and then they bought it.<TABLE class=picBoxL cellSpacing=2 width=100 align=left><TBODY><TR><TD>
</TD></TR><TR class=caption><TD>TOUCH OF CLASSIn addition to the living area (above), there is a more informal family/recreation section and an open kitchen with a large island counter which has evolved into the social centre of the household. The master bathroom features a designer tub with views over the neighbourhood
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>There was still an obstacle or two to navigate before they could move in, such as tenants who were still occupying the apartment and the subsequent need for extensive renovations but Shen and Yi, a modern-day power couple who first moved to Singapore from Chicago in 1996, know what they like and were prepared to wait to get it.
They had been living in a house in the Katong area and before that had always lived in houses in Chicago, but they decided to make the switch to city living and looked specifically for a space that would come close to matching their requirements for a Manhattan-style loft. They then worked with Singapore-based interior architect Antonio Eraso to come up with the proper design aesthetic.
It was worth the wait. The couple and their two young daughters, Alexandra and Jacqueline, moved in about two years ago and have adjusted to life in the city. 'Here, we're in the centre of things, with a very comfortable New York-type lifestyle,' says Shen, managing director of Cisco Business Solutions Group Asia-Pacific, an IT networking company that is part of multinational giant Cisco Systems.
Yi, the partner-in-charge at Heidrick & Struggles, a high-end executive search firm, says, 'We went from a three-storey bungalow to a city apartment so we knew we had to maximise the space. The square footage (about 4,300 square feet) is slightly smaller here but we utilised every single square inch.'
<TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=5 align=left><TBODY><TR><TD bgColor=#ffffff>[FONT=Geneva, Helvetica, Verdana, Arial, sans-serif]<!-- REPLACE EVERYTHING IN CAPITALS WITH YOUR OWN VALUES --><TABLE class=quoteBox border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=144 align=left><TBODY><TR><TD vAlign=bottom>
</TD></TR><TR><TD vAlign=top>- Dennis Shen [/FONT]</TD></TR><TR><TD vAlign=top>
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR><TR><TD height=39>
In addition to the living and dining area, there is a more informal family/ recreation section and an open kitchen with a large island counter which has evolved into the social centre of the household. A wall-to-ceiling glass partition separates the kitchen from an outdoor wet kitchen. The sense of space and light is further enhanced by wide floorboards of blond Tasmanian oak throughout.
Shen and Yi are college sweethearts who are also best friends, so they have plenty in common and are also pretty attuned to each other's individual tastes. 'It was a very interactive partnership between us and the architect,' says Shen. 'He understood how we wanted to live, and then incorporated our needs into the apartment - it turned out that he was always right.' Adds Yi, 'Every closet, every drawer is designed taking into account the way we live.'
It was a deliberate move to make the kitchen an integral part of the living area, and it has become the focal point of the room. 'We're fairly social and we entertain regularly but everyone just gravitates towards the counter,' says Shen. 'The living room is for people who want to take a rest from the social activity at the kitchen area.'
Even the beautifully appointed dining table takes a back seat during family meals, and no one likes to have dinner there anymore, he says. 'The kitchen island is always the centre and the gathering place - it's a fluid living space,' adds Yi. The original bedrooms have also been redesigned so that the children, who are less than a year apart, have a two-bedroom suite between them - accented in strong pink, no less. 'Alicia wanted to create a different world for the girls,' says Shen.
Meanwhile, the master bathroom features a large bathing area and a designer tub with views over the neighbourhood - it was created in deference to Yi's Korean background and love of the Korean spa culture. 'It's an amazing oasis and one of the best investments we made,' says Yi.
Shen's connection to the wired world - his work requires him to look at new business models for the Internet - means the home is completely plugged in with the high-speed infrastructure required for downloading the latest in digital media content, such as podcasts, YouTube videos and Apple TV.
'The whole experience in the living room is now about niche TV,' he says. 'You search for what you want and just download it. The content is great - I can't remember the last time I watched regular television.'
There is also a grand piano in the living area - a legacy of Yi's days as a young concert pianist. She went to college on a music scholarship but decided to switch to economics instead. Now, family music time involves all the girls playing the piano, accompanied by Shen on the guitar.
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
