Do you know that your taste changes completely every 5 years? When I went through my Pinterest pins over the past years, I'd definitely agree so! When I designed my first home four years ago, I was very into Mid-Century Modern. Don't get me wrong, I still appreciate the style and will always do. But will I apply the style to my shophouse? No. So let's talk about the styles I have been consistently pinning onto my boards the past year or two, which I also think might suit the shophouse. Warnings for a large amount of beautiful pictures in front! (To see how the inside of the shophouse looks like now, visit my Instagram stories @thehomeodyssey) 1. Mediterranean My love for the Mediterranean style is very personal. We had our wedding in Tuscany, Italy and honeymoon in Amalfi Coast and Sicily, the best three weeks in my life. The villa where our wedding was held: When I think of the Mediterranean style I think of lots of sunshine, white rustic walls, natural material such as wood, ceramics, and stone, and a touch of terracotta colour. Oh the photo above (credit: Belmond la Residencia) makes my heart skip a beat every time. The colour palette, the texture, and floor tiles are everything. Since I'm renovating a shophouse and not an apartment this time, I want it to be more timeless, and I want the style to not to violate the natural charm of the historical building. And Mediterranean is that. It's calm, natural, and timeless. 2. California Casual California Casual has some overlap with Mediterranean, but more Californian (Thanks for stating the obvious, Vivienne). It's that effortless, laid-back, and eclectic look with tons of natural light, white wall/ceilings, and lots of natural elements. It's very suitable for a living room or a family room because it's comfortable, warm, airy, and inviting. It has some coastal vibe in it which brings some freshness into the house. A Californian Casual dining room would look like this: When I looked back to the hundreds of pictures I pinned to my boards last year, I realised how much I was into California Casual, without even knowing the name of the style! (The other name is "effortlessly expensive" but I prefer the former.) However it's a picky style which requires the house to be filled with natural light. It also requires a WHITE sofa to complete the look, and our fur baby warns us that it may not be a good idea. 3. Modern Farmhouse Almost every kitchen picture that had me swooned recently is with the modern farmhouse style. I'm sick of the trendy all-white kitchen and really hope kitchens look like a place for cooking again! (Said by someone who never cooks but hey her husband does.) Modern Farmhouse is this warm and organic place where traditional interiors meet contemporary touches. It's timeless but not fussy. It's cosy but not cluttered. 4. British Colonial This could almost be the default style for a trendy shophouse, given that the house itself has already incorporated with many colonial elements such as the dark timber and shutter windows. British Colonial is this style that blends traditional British with tropical decorations influenced by India, Africa and Caribbeans. Natural textures are key for the British Colonial style: rattan, bamboo, natural grass. The other eye-catching element that defines this style is of course the exotic prints. Palm trees, jungle mural, vibrant floral, or botanical prints create this luxurious and exotic holiday vibe. While in the bedroom, you can't beat a combination of a four-poster bed, shutter windows, and a ceiling fan. So there we go! Four styles i truly like and I can picture all of them work well for the shophouse. Knowing my eclectic approach to design though, I will probably not go down the path of having one clear interior style, I mean that's boring right? But in the end we can't just throw everything together, there is good eclectic and bad eclectic. Tell me please which style you love most and think will work best as the dominant style for the shophouse! xx
