Welcome to my home!

Two years after the completion of my condo, it's still a work in progress. I've recently replaced my desk and I thought it would be cool to take some photos of it so I could finally show you guys. Obviously I did the interiors and the construction was done by our company. We also did all the furniture except for the ones I'll be mentioning along the way. I had to work with a budget so this was what I could come up with...
[you can view my concept board/post here]

I did a multi-level dining table since I thought it would be fun - meals on the standard table and drinks on the higher part. True enough, most of my friends like sitting on the bar chairs. I've been designing multi-level tables for more condos nowadays. Some people like working on their laptops while standing but they like eating on a normal table height. 

Real Good chairs from Blu Dot, bar chairs from Dimensione.

It's also nice that the table doesn't completely obstruct your view when you enter.

The wood we used for this table came from a Narra door recovered from a church that burned down! My dad hoards recovered wood so it's neat that we have materials to work with for projects. They have their own stories, too.

Also designed this part so I didn't have to keep my cutlery in the kitchen. I line the bottom with paper towels now and replace them often just to keep it clean. 

Used some frames given to me by friends. Yup, I asked for frames on my birthday. The intricately-carved ones are narra frames by our company, I used them since they were just in my dad's office. Sorry for painting them white, dad!

My friends draw photos and stick them in the middle of the frames just for fun sometimes. I just don't like keeping photos on walls since I get tired of looking at the same thing over and over again. I think it's also a very Filipino thing to have a whole wall of photos. My mom has so many photos of us at her house so I think that's why I never liked it, growing up I got sick of looking at them. 

The mirrored door to the left is actually storage space for my office supplies, files, workout equipment and shoes! It's also a really good spot for selfies- my friends love it. 

Floor lamp from Sifra, Borge Mogensen Couch from Living Space (LRI) 

That couch is the best thing I own. The leather is super soft and it's stuffed with goose down. My sister would rather sleep on that thing than my bed. 

Can you tell that this is my favorite spot? The 27" iMac also serves as my TV since I don't have cable (my TV is just there to fill up the space on the wall, LOL). I spend most of my time here so I thought it would be practical to get an office/swivel chair instead of a pretty, upholstered one. I'm not exactly happy with how my shelves turned out (you can see the "spine" or main support) but I didn't know any better when I designed this entire unit- that was before I worked for the design firm. 

The LED strips on both sides of the TV wall are perfect at night. It gives just the right amount of light for when I'm working on my computer and it's such a calming glow! Perfect for movie nights and it also sets the mood when pregraming or even when I'm having chill movie nights.

My bedroom's small and it's really more like my walk-in closet with a small wardrobe. I apologize for my ugly beddings (or lack thereof), I just like keeping it white!

Condo Living magazine featured my wardrobe for a before and after some time ago. View it here. Surprise, surprise! Most of my guy friends have more clothes than I do. :) 

My bed is really simple, bare and low. I don't even have blankets and my guests always ask why I don't keep any whenever they sleep over (I can have up to 4 girl friends on that queen-sized mattress). I sleep without the AC on so I just never use blankets. 

The guys at Mandaue Foam were really kind enough to sponsor my mattress. I never mention this but each time I have a friend over they always say that my bed is SUPER comfy. Last year I had 5 friends on that bed instead of my living room because they kept saying it was hard to get off it. So trust me, Mandaue Foam is #RaleeneApproved. 

I think if I designed it to be a bit nicer I wouldn't have a reason to get out of my bedroom. I keep thinking about adding a headboard (on the side) but I just can't think of a design I can stick to for a long time. I just get sick of those types of details easily. 

I am in love with my flooring- engineered wood planks from Pergo. I will probably fill my future house with engineered wood. They're just easier to maintain. 

I haven't really bought any trays/organizers for accessories so I keep them in the cute boxes from different brands. 

Nothing fancy on the ceiling since it was the last thing I thought about. The track on the left is missing 2 LED pin lights and I haven't replaced it since I like my room dark. It makes me prepare my body to sleep even if they're on. 

My kitchen's really simple, too. I never intended to get a microwave but last year I won that after playing a game of beer pong during our office Christmas party (sponsored by Kibu). I'm not an expert, it was beginner's luck! 

I had Trends & Concepts help me with my kitchen since my workers weren't trained to do modular cabinets yet. Right across that counter is my refrigerator and a huge portion with more cabinets. The graphicote backsplash also serves as a whiteboard for recipes and my grocery list.

At the end of the counter there's a door to the utility cabinet which has my washer/dryer, a fan, 2 clotheslines and my cleaning supplies.

I like my food simple- boiled and poached or cooked in water since I hate the idea of cooking with oil. This is brunch on a typical Sunday. Usually it's steel cut oats for breakfast (with stevia and organic coconut oil from the Green Grocer), poached salmon with boiled veggies for lunch and anything for dinner. My pots are all ceramic and I like adding a lot of gluten-free spices to my food. 

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The best thing about being an interior designer is being able to create spaces that can influence people's moods. This is why you should design your space to your own liking- if you love it, you become really productive. If you hate it, you'll end up sad, lazy and grumpy most of the time. In my case, my place has really influenced my spending habits since I'd rather stay home and work on things than go malling. I also wanted to design a space that was "chill" so I could invite friends over. My friends love coming here to drink, eat and watch movies. Sometimes they even take naps here when they're in the area and I don't mind since I live alone. 

What I love about my place is that it's easy to maintain even if it's all white. Semi-gloss paint on the walls make them easy to clean when someone accidentally smudges something on it. I clean every other day (sweep and mop) and do a thorough cleaning on Sundays or Saturdays, but even without the excessive mopping I think the floors generally don't look too bad. The mirrors are the only fussy part about this space but I love them anyway. They add the illusion of space and add a lot of light during the day. After two years I think this place is still in a great state! I don't have a maid but I call our workers when I have to get things repaired. I'm just not ready to clean a grease trap yet. 

Some people may find it bare but I like that I don't have much decor. Designing spaces for a living really makes it easy for me to get tired of trends. Coming home to a clean slate is refreshing! My 1-bedroom flat is tiny but the design makes it look bigger. For David's birthday I was able to fit 14 people in so I guess it's not that tiny. I also don't think I would enjoy cleaning and maintaining a bigger space! 

They say that your home reflects how you are as a person. #PleaseDontJudgeMe But I would love to know what you guys think! 

Hope you liked this post! 

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Some before photos just to give you an idea of how the place looked after turnover


Notice that they used bathroom tiles for the flooring. LOL.

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