Singapore: Tour a Black and White Home with a Difference
Singapore’s Black and White homes are much loved - and for good reason. Dotted around Singapore in clusters and located down narrow roads with the jungle pressing in from all sides, these historic homes once belonging to British army officers, have a universal appeal and attract plenty of curiosity - what do they look like inside? How have they been decorated? What is it like to live in one? Today’s post lets you step inside a truly beautiful black and white home with a difference.
The tenants of this Black and White decorated their home with all the treasures collected from their years of expat life. Unlike a lot of black and white homes they weren’t interested in creating a colonial British look - but instead stayed true to their interior style of European elegance paired with Asian and African antiques. And the result is simply stunning. The home has an almost gallery like quality to it. Beautiful vignettes have been created in each room and the restrained colour palette feels both modern and timeless.
Black and White homes have expansive square rooms with high ceilings so they can be a challenge to style. Rather than attempt to fill every nook and cranny of the rooms, attention has been paid to creating spaces within rooms that feel complete and full without the need to add more. This approach also allows the inherent beauty of the architecture to shine through.
LIVING ROOM
Plump oversized white linen sofas take centre stage and are adorned simply with African kuba cloth cushions. I love the textural quality of the cushions against the white linen and the modern cantilevered black floor light provides a sleek modern contrast to the traditional silhouette of the sofas.
the coffee table styling - why does it work?
The scale of the objects on the coffee table match the scale of the sofas
Fewer and bigger objects work well to balance the size of the overall space
The heaviness of the coffee table is matched with the weight of the objects on the table
A monochromatic colour scheme provides unity to the objects and draws attention to the textures and materials used - shells, feathers, lacquer, glass
Simple green leaves provide height to the composition and add a touch of freshness to the room (try and picture a bunch of delicate pale pink flowers on this coffee table and you can see why the choice of structural green leaves works so well).
Objects are grouped in pairs of threes creating a sense of purpose and cohesion
The objects are varied in height
MASTER BEDROOM
A four poster bed takes pride of place in the master bedroom. In keeping with the monochromatic interior style, the bed is dressed in classic white linen with a stack of white textured cushions in a variety of sizes to add depth to the bed styling.
In lieu of traditional bedside tables, antique Asian bookcase cabinets are placed on either side of the bed providing a place for reading lights, books, trinkets and treasures.
To complete the room, a chaise longue provides a quiet reading spot.
WHAT I LOVE ABOUT THIS ROOM
The tall bookcase cabinets either side of the bed help to keep the four poster bed in proportion. They match the scale of the bed and help to fill the space without adding clutter.
The four poster bed and tall cabinets are a clever choice to make the room feel intimate by reducing the visual height of the ceiling.
Just one big piece of bold artwork adorns this room. Again, it matches the scale and proportion of the other elements in the room.
The cushions tie in with the living room creating a sense of continuity.
reading nook
In a small alcove off the living space a separate reading nook has been created. Despite being connected to the living room, this alcove has an intimate inviting appeal with a traditional button-through armchair perfect for spending a quiet afternoon. In keeping with the style of the home, the traditional armchair has been paired with a modern standing lamp and the space is completed with a gorgeous antique Asian cabinet.
DINING ROOM
Down the stairs to the ground floor you enter the dining room. A bold piece of artwork steals the show in this space and in keeping with the rest of the house, scale and proportion have been used in this room to great effect. The long table is flanked on one side by a sofa which stretches the length of the table. Lined with textured hemp cushions, it provides a great visual counter-weight to the artwork above.
The traditional skirted sofa is matched with skirted upholstered dining chairs, providing the perfect comfortable seating to enjoy long dinners with a group of friends. Styling is kept to a minimum with a simple cluster of timber pots holding tropical leaves.
ENTRANCE ROOM
Adjoining the dining room is an entrance room. Typically used as a living room, the tenants of this home instead opted to use it as an entrance space. An antique Asian console table resides in the middle of the room, flanked behind by two oversized photographic prints. The table is adorned with a pair of sculptural vessels and a vase holding a tropical leaf. The combination has an almost gallery like quality and the room provides a visually striking entrance to the home.
some interior styling tips to take away from this home
Think about the scale and proportion of your furniture in relation to your room. Oversized pieces will look fantastic when they have plenty of room around them and will help to fill a space; whereas smaller pieces of furniture that are lighter in design will suit a smaller space.
Keep artwork in proportion as well. Lots of small artwork in a large room can look busy, cluttered and insignificant; similarly, art work that is too big for a space will make a room feel crowded and overwhelmed.
Don’t feel the need to fill every corner and wall in your home. Less is more. Let your home have some ‘negative space’ to allow the items that you do have shine.
Use structural tropical leaves instead of flowers - they last forever and are extremely cheap.
Stay true to your style and apply it across all your rooms so that the home has continuity.
Play with a mix of furniture and homewares styles to create interest - traditional silhouettes with a modern touch will stop the interior styling feeling too staged and obvious.
When using a restrained colour palette, add depth and interest with a variety of textures and materials
I hope you have enjoyed today’s home tour. It was a delight to photograph this home and if you have a home that you would like to have featured on Lottie Lifestyle, let me know. In the coming months I have more traditional Singaporean black and white homes to share with you, but I would also love to feature some modern homes as well, so get in touch.
