Period peiece

It’s the period in Japan known as the “Period of Enlightened Rule,” when the country began its modernization under Emperor Meiji. Taking inspiration from the country that invented the most used and abused term in interior design nowadays — “very Zen” is used so randomly by everybody to describe just about anything that the term has almost lost its meaning — the Tokyo Mansions phase at South Forbes Golf City in Sta. Rosa, Laguna, recently unveiled a stunning model house designed by such a low-key architect that we were requested not to name him.

Those who know of his work might not even recognize this house as his, because according to Cynthia and Ivy Almario, the interior designers who worked with him on the “Meiji” project, he doesn’t have a signature look; every project is different.

This one is no exception, though the architecture, of course, had to conform to the Japanese theme of this section of Cathay Land’s South Forbes City. The house is set on a 460-square-meter lot, with a floor area of 339 square meters.

The house is very spacious, as are the old houses in Japan, and this posed a “happy problem” for the interior designers.

I first met the Almario sisters about 10 years ago. They had just moved back to the country from their designing lives abroad and had just finished a condominium unit for businessman Atom Henares. Then and now, the ageless sisters are brimming with enthusiasm, humility, laughter and life when talking about their projects.

It’s fascinating watching the two sisters. One, because they talk a mile a minute with a lot of giggling between sentences; two, because they operate on the same wavelength that they seem to read each other’s minds; and three, because they are so generous and open with their knowledge that an interview with them is always a learning experience for me and I inevitably come away feeling excited about architecture and design.

With the Meiji house, Cynthia and Ivy heap praise on the architecture of the space they worked on. Ivy says one of the biggest challenges of designing the interiors of such a house is, “First, you have to respect the concept of openness. It cannot be too empty and you cannot fill it up either. But with this space we could indulge in oversized furniture.”

Indeed, there is so much open space in this house. Yet even given this, there is no feeling of grandness, no overdoing it  — just the lovely quietness of space, space, space. On the ground floor, there are no walls to separate the formal living room from the dining room or from the sitting room. Instead, there are sliding glass panels that create pocket rooms.

The entire ground and second floors are wrapped in windows from ceiling to floor that you don’t need artificial lighting during the day  (there are Roman shades to provide privacy). It’s almost like a Japanese lantern, and at night it’s lit up just like one.

Even the three bedrooms upstairs are wrapped in windows, so one of the design dilemmas Atelier Almario had to solve was the lack of walls — how do you create privacy — in the bedrooms, in the bathrooms — when they’re wrapped in glass windows?

That’s where creative interior design comes in. For the guest washroom on the ground floor, they used a frosted glass wall; for the master’s bedroom they reoriented the placement of furniture.

Cynthia says, “Because the rooms are surrounded by windows, we had to be clever with the lighting. The DNA of the bedrooms is that the rooms are surrounded by recessed lighting. All the closets also repeat the design of the windows — vertical slats backed by glass.”

The sisters have collaborated with the architect on several past projects and Ivy says, “Right away he gives a good volume, he knows how to make use of the land. His architectural gestures are very subtle but very impactful. He knows how to distill the essence of a theme geometrically that it translates powerfully.”

The way the sisters work is this: Ivy designs the “skin” or the architectural details of the interiors, and Cynthia takes over in the second phase of the project — designing or choosing the furniture, fabrics and accessories.

For the Meiji house, they decided to pick “pedigreed furniture” (that’s how Ivy puts it) by the best Filipino designers. In this case, they chose Milo Naval, Kenneth Cobonpue and An Pamintuan.

Cynthia and Ivy went to Milo Naval’s Evolve showroom and chose the furniture. And indulge they did — Cynthia chose a 13x8-foot sofa set with the bottom covered in abaca weave. It’s a huge set that’s perfect for guests to hang out and converse. 

I remember seeing a CITEM show many years ago, not very long after Eli Pinto had organized Movement 8. I wandered into one of the booths and saw really spectacular low furniture pieces. I began talking to a guy who was very quietly explaining the furniture to me and only later realized it was Milo Naval, owner and designer of Evolve.

“I love his furniture,” says Cynthia. “I wanted something very Asian but not necessarily Japanese, something with a Zen feel to it, and that’s the quintessence of Japanese design — it tends to be minimalist. And if you notice, the Japanese are not feminine at all — when you see their homes and restaurants they’re very tailored, neutral looking.”

For the sitting room, Cynthia chose Kenneth Cobonpue’s Yin Yang sofas — another iconic design that’s become synonymous with Filipino artistry.

Right beside the stairs is An Pamintuan’s Cresenti chair with the ottoman turned on its side to double as a side table. If you’ve never sat on any of An Pamintuan’s chairs but have seen them in pictures, you’ll be surprised at how comfortable her pieces are. They may look — and feel — very hard what with the material she works with (wire, metal) but the Cresenti chair is so well designed you feel like it’s hugging your body when you sit on it and lean back.

In the dining room, Cynthia chose a table by Louie Arrozal and matched it with chairs designed by Kenneth.

Upstairs, the black-and-white master bedroom is the dream room of any home owner: it is spacious enough to accommodate a separate sitting room with a wall and glass sliding doors between the two. It can be open or closed off for privacy.  The entire bedroom floor is covered in sisal carpeting to simulate the look of tatami flooring. The bedroom also has a spacious bathroom and closet space.

The second bedroom was designed for a daughter/son that has space for a guest — a sleeper sofa right beside the windows (with an optional pull-out trundle) that can be for reading or just hanging out with friends.

The third bedroom was designed into a study with the couch wide enough to serve as a bed.

As for the colors of the house, the designers kept it to a minimum: black, white, silver gray, browns.

Just outside the house is an infinity lap pool that’s so ingeniously designed it has two separate depths —  for adults and children.

For the small accessories in the bathrooms and dining rooms, Cynthia chose pieces from Landmark Department Store’s home section: white trays, cruets, plates and even pepper mills.

That’s another mark of great design solutions: You’re able to mix high and low pieces — and the entire look is upscale and livable.