And that’s exactly what architect Roland Andres and wife Andrea "Annie" Robles-Andres got for their new home. Wooden chairs by Benji Reyes, the famous skeletal chair by Kenneth Cobonpue for Interior Crafts of the Islands, occasional chairs and a spherical shelf by Val Padilla from Legends, rugs by Yola Perez-Johnson’s Soumak, sofas by Claire and Arles Feliciano for Restoration.
No imported furniture for this home, thank you very much. They wanted to highlight Filipino craftsmanship, especially Annie Andres, who runs the department store of the family-owned Sta. Lucia East Grand Mall in Cainta, Rizal. Roland, for his part, was familiar with furniture makers, particularly Restoration in Glorietta. A client of his had acquired his furniture from the store, so he got the big pieces like beds and sofas from them.
Influenced during his UST days by Frank Lloyd Wright, and Filipino architects Claro Florentino and Caloy Calma, Roland Andres designed a house for his family that is both an urban modern enclave and, thanks to the furnishings, a house that surprises with its dramatic angles and shapes.
"We considered a lot of themes when we were building," he says. "The difficulty of being an architect designing your own house is that you want to adopt a lot of themes, you want to experiment with each room." When he decided to do just that, he was told by colleagues "the house might look like chopseuy," but in the end, Roland’s ingenuity produced a cohesive look that is far from dull.
The wonderful part, of course, was that being the owner, architect, designer and contractor himself – not to mention having a wife who supported his vision a hundred percent – he could do whatever he wanted. "Walang kumokontra sa kanya," says Annie. Thus, the house was finished in only a year.
The first strong statement the Andres house makes is openness. Glass makes up most of the walls around to bring the outdoors in. This is a house that doesn’t use up electricity for lighting during the day, it’s not afraid of sunlight, rather it welcomes it with open arms. On entering the living room, one is greeted by a huge picture window in the center of the west wall. Low plants and shrubs outside round out the scene, giving one incentive to just sit back, read a book and relax – especially on a rainy day. The room is dominated by a large light green sofa designed by Restoration, and two wood and upholstered occasional chairs on one side. To the north are two other glass windows – narrower this time – giving a view of the undulating garden in front. This space is occupied by a pair of Benji Reyes’ wooden chairs and a circular shelf by Val Padilla holding miniature Versace teapots. To the south of the room are sliding glass doors going out to the lanai and garden, where the wall is equipped with waterfalls. The dining room and the kitchen also have views of the waterfalls and the soothing sound of cascading water.
"At night, frogs in the pond make for a noisy chorus," adds Annie. "At first friends thought it was artificial ambient sound, the way some gardens have these fake birds that sing. Unfortunately or fortunately, a trio of frogs seemed to have made our pond their home."
At first, the couple thought that maybe they had overdone the house with glass, but when they saw Benji Reyes’ home, the couple knew they had made the right decision.
"Wow, bow kami sa bahay niya," says an awestruck Annie. "His house is more open – all glass, walang kahoy. It made us feel better because we were a bit worried like how would it be during a strong typhoon or an earthquake?"
Water is also a big thing for the Andreses. A pond goes around the front of the house and the only way to get to the front door is by crossing a bridge – unless, of course, one tramples on the manicured lawn (hardly anyone ever does). The idea for the bridge, according to Annie, came from the house of one of her seven siblings. "They had a bridge at the back garden. We thought sayang naman if nobody sees or uses the bridge. Actually, we picked up ideas from their houses to incorporate into our own."
Furniture on the ground floor is made mostly of wood. The single chairs and two-seater in the violet-colored and purple-lighted media room are by Val Padilla who designed them for Legends, a furniture store on Pasay Road owned by Richard Reynante and Jun Matias, both TV writers and entrepreneurs. These pieces are actually famous, having been used in the poster of the "Bare Essentials" summer exhibit of CFIP (Chamber of Furniture Industries in the Philippines). This room is an interesting juxtaposition of a modern karaoke room and a private family room. A silver Dimensione wall piece stores the CDs – its shape and look is of a futuristic piece of accessory, the kind alien life form would bring to earth.
Nothing, however, is as dramatic as the chaise below the mini-grand staircase. (Roland wanted a simple U-shaped stairs in the beginning; Annie wanted a more impressive one. So they compromised on a semi-grand staircase.) Designed by Kenneth Cobonpue, the skeletal chair draws attention to itself. It’s design at its most inventive. The chair has been exhibited in several trade exhibits abroad, including Germany and France, participated by Movement 8. The Andres couple bought it from designer Budji Layug’s Be Home store in Makati and were told it was done by an artist from Cebu.
"We had no idea the chair is famous," they say with a laugh. It is obvious, however, that it is Roland Andres’ favorite piece for the drama it brings to an otherwise ordinary space.
"We wanted pieces by Filipino artists," says Annie. "The only one missing is a Claude Tayag because we didn’t know where to find his work." (Some of Claude’s furniture designs are available at the top floor of the ABC Galleries in Remedios Circle, Malate.)
The only place in the house where there aren’t wooden furnishings is the kitchen. Here, the Andres built a totally industrial-inspired kitchen. It was only by chance that the design became so. Roland wanted granite tops for the counters but found it too costly, so he chose an all-stainless steel kitchen design as a compromise, but when he asked an Italian kitchen specialist store for a quotation, he still found it too expensive. Thank goodness, he’s a contractor. He designed the kitchen himself, had his men build it and, voila, he got what he wanted for a third of the price.
"It is difficult to build a kitchen like this," he says. "You have to supervise every step of the way."
There is also a practical side in the design of this house. It is low-maintenance since the narra floors are varnished, making them easy to clean. The walls are colorful and therefore not given to dirt easily even with the presence of two young boys in the house. Speaking of colors, a 20-color palette was employed for the entire house, yet one doesn’t get the feel of a canvas dripping of paints. Instead, matte colors are mixed: neutral and bold, light and dark. Slate green for the living room, carnation for the kitchen’s ceiling, rust for the dining room, violet for the media room, yellow for youngest son Rebi’s room, and dark wood for oldest son Robi’s room.
The stone façade is very sensible, too. With just a protective coat, the stone is virtually maintenance-free. As Annie puts it, a house whose façade is painted needs a new coat of paint every few years. "This one doesn’t look that new (the couple moved in just two months ago) yet it doesn’t seem to grow old either. Stone doesn’t fade like paint, it doesn’t get dirtied by dust which is a major headache of homeowners."
River stones can also be found on the floor of the washroom downstairs. With its Philippe Starck Edition 1 sink and WC, this guest toilet has designer lines written all over it.
There’s no problem of space, too, when the couple hosts big parties. The large garage, accessible through large doors inside the house and through the automatic garage doors, was designed to double as a party hall. A light well and an air-conditioning system were installed, the floor was tiled, and the finishing makes it look like another room in the house, not a storeroom-slash-garage.
The three bedrooms on the second floor are where Roland’s desire for various themes came true. Seven-year-old Robi’s room has the barn look with ample height for a loft. Brick walls with walnut splashes on the wood give it the country look. Toys are kept on the loft that’s accessible by a ladder – which their young son finds amusing to climb up and down. Three-year-old Rebi’s room is the exact opposite. There’s no sign of roughing it up here. Instead, it is awash with mid-tones of light yellow and cream, of beech wood and white accessories.
Roland Andres reveals that the kids love their rooms even if they didn’t have a say in the design. "Kung ano ang gusto ni daddy," he laughs. That was his standard line during the construction. "Besides, they’re still too young and they still sleep with us in the master bedroom. Once a week though, we sleep in Rebi’s room while the two boys sleep in Robi’s room."
The master bedroom is spare and large. The color is a combination of white and wenge with little color accents on the furnishings. One also finds the water element here. Connected to the bedroom is a pocket garden with a custom-built Jacuzzi (which came out less expensive than having to buy one) with an overhead shower and waterfalls. The interesting thing about it is that old traviesas or railroad tracks were used as a design accent for the outer part of the Jacuzzi.
"One of my brothers asked us if the Jacuzzi was Victoria Court-inspired," says Annie with a laugh. "It’s more like Adam and Eve in the garden, stargazing while having a bath."
The garden is also connected to the bathroom with its Philippe Starck accessories. The walk-in closet, as the rest of the room, has high ceilings which gives them more space for clothes. "That," says Annie pointing to the loft, "is the ‘department store’ section of the closet." True enough, the clothes here are hung on movable metal racks, the exact kind you’ll find in department stores.
Roland and Annie’s professional lives helped them build the house of their dreams. He as an architect and she as a department store buyer and manager are now more conscious of costs and the value of craftsmanship.
Annie’s experience with the department store has made her realize that not all expensive brands are worth it, that one can have quality without having to pay a hefty price for it. You just have to know where to look.
A graduate of Economics from the University of Santo Tomas, she took up her master’s in Ateneo and enrolled in a merchandising course at Los Angeles’ Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising. When the mall opened its own department store, she became its buyer. "What has been developed in me is being both fashionable and yet a wise spender. When I was not yet involved with the store, I was so brand-conscious. The only things I found beautiful were either expensive or branded things. Now, after having done the buying for many years, I realized that there is a lot of merchandise that is cheap yet of good quality. I guess that helped in our marriage because when we first met he said magastos daw ako."
She relates that during her early buying trips to China and Thailand, she would pick clothes that would later not sell in the store while her assistant’s choices became fast-moving items. That’s when she learned a valuable lesson: One’s choices are not always what the masses want.
In the same way, building their home was also about value. "When we were furnishing the house, friends said, ‘Ay, siguro puro imported ang nabili nyo,’ which was not the case the all. Aside from the Filipino-owned stores, we did go to stores like Ethan Allen but we found the pieces so expensive. Now, we’re so happy and proud that all our stuff is Filipino-made."
"Now she finds it hard to leave the house to go on buying trips," Roland says. "Unlike when we were living in the townhouse, going out of town for the weekend has lost its appeal. We just want to stay home."
With a twinkle in his eyes, he looks at his wife and says, "After eight years of marriage, she’s become a homemaker."