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Bohemian rhapsody in a permanent hom
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ROBYN Hung and Danny Yeh’s lane house hidden on leafy Yuyuan Road is a mix of old romance and modern comforts.
While many people find the search for a new home to be rather exhausting and time-consuming, the Taiwanese couple says they enjoyed the process of looking for their ideal family house. They had passed certain requirements on to real estate agents and went to as many sites as possible to see the properties with their own eyes.
“It was an interesting period that gave us the chance to see different styles of old lane houses and apartments. It’s always exciting to see how different people transform the old to modern living,” Hung said.
Their criteria were a simple, clean neighborhood close to a park, and the rather abstract requirement that the space had to give them a natural feeling of happiness and coziness when they were inside.
The three-level lane house they eventually opted for ticked off all the right boxes. Hidden on the leafy Yuyuan Road, Hung said that the building connotes a type of lifestyle “that we felt is very Shanghai.
“Another thing worth mentioning is the energy we felt when we first paid a visit to this house. Somehow both my husband and I just felt very comfortable when we were walking around inside,” she added.
The ivy that crawls all around the outer wall was the very first thing that the couple loved. The ivy naturally conceals some of the concrete, making the building look warmer and more welcoming than similar structures.
“So we elevated the outer wall by almost a meter because we love how the ivy are crawling all over the wall. We wanted it to be much more so you can feel like you are in the center of a garden,” Hung said.
They also took down a few interior walls. For example, they had the kitchen wall torn down, allowing a free flow of energy around the house. Opening up the space also added more natural lighting. The wall on the mezzanine has also been taken down.
“We call it the little red room. It is a space where we do our reading or where we have a tea. It also gives people a surprise when they walk up the stairs and feel this very cozy little space,” Hung said.
The little red room is filled with good memories from the couple, all of their favorite books, artworks and ornaments they’ve collected from all over the world. “We use this room for many purposes: we read, relax with drinks, and even gift wrap in this room. Taking away the pillows, the sofa instantly changes to a single bed for our guest,” Hung added.
The interior of the house is dotted with an eclectic mixture of styles and colors from different cultures. “Just like my namesake fashion brand Robyn, it reflects the same spirit with the modern Bohemian attitude,” Hung said.
“We hope to achieve an atmosphere that is both relaxing and spontaneous. We want our guests to come to our house and find their own little comfortable corners: they can chill around without us being there to take care of them.”
Hung said that during gatherings, their guests would simply scatter around the house and naturally start chatting in different corners that had compelled them to linger.
The couple are seasoned travellers, and many of the items that add atmosphere to the interior are sourced from their travels or stem from other cultures. The objects become part of their aesthetics. “We like objects with a history, a story and a memory. Mixing furniture and objects of unexpected styles, from different cultures and nomad’s lifestyle is a fun part of the job here. But we do it subtly. The look is bohemian with a touch of British colonial style,” Hung said.
The nomadic lifestyle becomes evident in the Moroccan-themed living room on the ground floor. An earthy feel is achieved with African textures and prints, as well as Moroccan furniture and rugs. For the couple, traveling and getting insights into different cultures and customs is a constant inspiration that is also vital in finding new ways to update the interior.
To achieve the interior’s relaxed bohemian spirit, the couple asked close friends who work in interior design to help them out. “We greatly appreciate their help because when we were brainstorming on all the ideas, they were able to organize our thoughts into an executable plan,” Hung said.
“We love mixing things up and creating surprises. I guess as long as the furniture looks vintage with a touch of hand-made feel to it, it will certainly catch our eyes,” she added.
“Since we are managing our own fashion label, we are sensitive about the seasonal changes. We tend to change the smaller artworks season by season and other more classic pieces are there to stay.”
Hung’s favorite artwork is the ink painting her friends brought back from Tibet which hangs in the living room.
Besides a large number of art, the couple also added some framed family photos, a way to make the home feel warmer and more personal.
Q: What’s the best thing about living in Shanghai?
A: It’s the energy of the city; you feel its constant growth with lots of intermixing of people.
Q: Describe your home in three words.
A: Hectic, eclectic and exotic.
Q: What’s the first thing you do when you get home?
A: I would go see my loving 16-months-old baby and give him a big kiss and hug.
Q: How do you unwind?
A: Take a nice bath with my favorite music.
Q: How do you spend most of your time at home?
A: Being around my little baby. When he’s asleep I would look through fashion and interior design info.
Q: What’s the view outside your window?
A: An original, 70-year-old lane house that hasn’t changed much with some ivy on the wall. It’s so calming, especially when it’s raining.
Q: What’s your favorite object at home?
A: My bed.
Q: Where do you source furniture in Shanghai?
A: Everywhere we can, it doesn’t have to be from the store, but also from the street.
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