MANILA, Philippines - When one meets Blue Carreon, one feels a certain peace and experiences a tranquil moment. Blue Carreon, with all his successes as a journalist, an author, editor, and home accessories designer, has a calming effect. In his calmness lies a strong passion to excel.
Blue, who graduated from the University of the Philippines with a degree in Business Administration, started his career as a fashion and lifestyle journalist for Philippine Tatler. He became an editor and a contributor to several international publications. Now, he has a column for Hong Kong’s China Morning Post and he writes for online platforms like the Huffington Post and Forbes.com. He says his work as a journalist exposed him to interior design and décor.
“(It was) when I started writing for the Huffington Post that I get to interview decorators from the US. Just getting to meet these important designers who shaped interior design really exposed me to the industry. What I like about fashion and interior design is they inform each other. They borrow from the same trends,” says Blue, who also studied Interior Design at the Philippine School of Interior Design.
Driven by ambition and passion, Blue expanded into design with his brand Blue Carreon Home. His products, which include home décor and furniture, exude modern elegance. These pieces, available online, at Bergdorf Goodman and other boutiques in the US, are carefully handcrafted by artisans using materials like brass, shell, stone and shagreen. His best-selling pieces are the Galapagos Brass Ants that can be used as paperweights or wall décor. He followed it up with his recent butterfly objet d’art called Mariposa inspired by the beauty of Mother Nature, Daniel Hirst’s paintings and a Valentino collection. “I get my inspiration from books. I love to read design books. I also get inspiration from my travels abroad. When I travel, I like going to the museums, looking at old architecture. Fashion inspires me as well. Whenever I go to Fashion Week, something there sparks an idea,” shares Blue.
When Blue started his business, he consulted with individuals who motivated him to believe in his designs. These individuals, whom he has forged friendships with, include bag designer Fiona Kotur and fashion designer Tory Burch. “I went to them with all my samples, when my business was still nothing. They were the ones who told me to go ahead and do it. What I learned is you just have to bite the bullet and just do it,” Blue relates.
Regularly shuttling between three cities — Manila, Hong Kong and New York — Blue says it is important for him to go home to a nicely decorated home, hence the concept of his brand. When he is in the Philippines, Blue finds his Hidalgo Place unit in Rockwell his sanctuary. His unit, where an exotic room fragrance wafts in the air, is like a treasure trove of well-curated pieces of décor and art, books, including his coffee-table book titled Conversations: Up Close and Personal with Icons of Fashion, Interior Design, and Art. This space in the Rockwell community is what he considers his home for 20 years. “I like that there’s a sense of community here. I play tennis here regularly and I already know the people. I can walk around the whole complex, which is something that I love to do,” says Blue.
With all the things he is into right now, and a solid plan for a bigger US presence in the future, Blue always goes back to his mantra — to always do good at work and be kind to people. “That’s what has always stayed with me. It’s so much easier to be nice. Even if there are a lot of obstacles in life, I’ve always been a positive person, someone who has looked at the brighter side of things. At the end of the day, things will happen the way they are meant to happen. I’ve always believed in that,” Blue concludes. Photography by RITA MARIE • Creative direction and overall styling by Luis Espiritu Jr. • Shot on location at HIDALGO PLACE