Upsizing and downsizing your living space

MANILA, Philippines - Home decorating requires imagination as well as ingenuity. As the experts say, add too much to a small room and it will appear crowded; don’t put enough and it will not be inviting.

Many of today’s new homes are designed for Filipino families with need for ample floor space for their growing children to move around or to combine their living and work spaces. Though there is a natural tendency to equate comfort with more space, experts advise designing a cozy rather than a simply cavernous home.

“Decorating one’s house should not be a scary concept, even for those on a tight budget. It’s a matter of keeping in mind what you want to do in a certain space, and you’ll be amazed at how using the proper paint color or putting shelves in an empty space can give the interior a new, refreshing look,” says interior designer Alex Balistoy, who worked in Manila for five years and is now affiliated with a Singapore-based firm.

Space planning

Proper space planning is one of the secrets to maximizing a limited floor area, says interior designer and visual merchandising artist Stephanie Loren Tan, who considers designing residential units a “baptism of fire” in her field.

Tan shares a number of tricks in managing limited space, among them “the strategic use of mirrors or reflective spaces” to give an illusion of a bigger area.

For a bungalow, a single-detached home, or a duplex structure where there are horizontal spaces, the goal is to direct vision and attention vertically.

Interior decorator Maricon Pasamanero, who practices office design and trading, offers sound advice that applies to residential projects. “Paint your walls with stripes; it would also help if you paint the ceilings and walls with light colors to prevent the space from looking like a tunnel. Using decorative dividers or a tall furnishing can also work wonders,” she says.

Your choice of color palette is also crucial in determining your home’s look and feel. Interior decorating experts say you don’t need to use solely light colors to compensate for the room’s size. Painting an opposing wall a deeper shade will also make it seem further away, therefore, adding depth.

Your personality as a homeowner should come out in your decorating style. If you’re sociable and loves entertaining guests, don’t fill your living room with furniture; stick to small- or medium-sized pieces. Using a loveseat, in lieu of a large sofa, can make a lot of difference in space, but still allow guests to be comfortably seated.

Decorating with themes

If you are living in a themed property – whether Spanish, Mediterranean, Georgian, Victorian or tropical – home decorating could even be more creative and fun.

Filinvest Land, Inc., one of the country’s biggest and most diverse developers, has created a Spanish-Mediterranean themed property in Havila, a 300-hectare residential and farm lot community developed in Rizal. While Spanish-styled décor is known for its bold and vibrant elements, homeowners in Havila can also take inspiration from Mother Nature’s endowments: a lush terrain, panoramic views, the sunset at Laguna de Bay, and the cool climate in Antipolo. Decorate your walls with your own artwork or a nature-inspired painting to personalize your home, or choose big windows and sheer curtains to bring the outdoors in.

Filinvest also recreated rich Filipino-Hispanic traditions in the 350-hectare Ciudad de Calamba in Calamba, Laguna. The property includes the contemporary Asian-themed Montebello and Asenso Village, which attracts both families and those venturing in small and medium businesses and cottage industries. In keeping with the Fil-Hispanic theme, homeowners may use indigenous materials like abaca, coconut or banana fibers. Experts also advise using terracotta tiles for your bar counter and walls, and red and orange hues that blend very well with wrought-iron bar chairs, sconces, and chandeliers.