Kim Inglis - Tropical Home: Inspirational Design Ideas

The author and photographer would like to thank a great many people for their help during the production of this book. We apologize in advance if we have missed anybody out; the list is seemingly endless! Wherever possible, especially for suppliers, design companies and the like, we have given contact details.

Homes

PhilippinesPonce Veridiano; Anton R Mendoza; Charles and Ginnette Dumancas; Michael Pena; Laura and Ronnie Rodrigo; Tina Maristela-Ocampo and Ricco Ocampo; Ben Chan; Rikki Dee; Ana Rocha

ThailandVichien Chansevikul and Michael Palmer; Rika Dila; Robert Powell and Lieve Aerts-Powell; Karl Morsbach; Mark Talley; Ajahn Chulathat Kittibutr; Cindi Novkov

BaliFrank Morgan; Carlo Pessina; Edith Jesuttis; Philip Lakeman and Graham Oldroyd; Anneke van Waesberghe

VietnamCatherine Denoual and Doan Dai Tu; Loan de Leo Foster; Quasar Khanh

SarawakEdric Ong

SingaporeKarina Zahibi and Robert Rigg; Cindy and Philip Jeyaretnam

MyanmarClaudia and Patrick Robert

Hotels, Restaurants, Bars and Spas

ThailandOriental hotel (wwwmandarin oriental.com/bangkok); Mandarin Oriental Dhara Dhevi (www.mandarinoriental.com/chiangmai); Marriott Resort and Spa (www.marriott.com); Rachamankha Hotel (www.rachamankha.com); Anantara, Hua Hin and Golden Triangle (www.anantara.com); Amanpuri (www.amanresorts.com); Villa Beige (www.villabeige.com); Shasa Samui hotel (www.shasahotels.com)

SingaporeNew Majestic hotel (www.new majestichotel.com); Naumi hotel (www.naumi hotel.com); Aramsa-the Garden Spa (www.aramsaspas.com); Spa Botanica, Sentosa Resort& Spa (www.spabotanica.com); Jim Thompson restaurant (www.jimthompson.com/restaurants_bars/singapore)

BaliKu De Ta (www.kudeta.net); Four Seasons Resort Bali at Jimbaran Bay (www.fourseasons.com/jimbaranbay); The Bal (www.thebale.com); Spa Village Resort Tembok, Bali (www.spavillage.com/tembokbali); Como Shambhala Estate at BegawanGiri (www.cse.como.bz); Downtown Villas (www.downtownbali.com)

MaldivesCoco Palm Bodu Hithi (www.cocopalm.com)

IndiaAnanda (www.anandaspa.com); Shreyas Retreat (www.shreyasretreat.com); Park Hotel, NewDelhi (www.theparkhotels.com )

Sri LankaClub Villa (www.club-villa.com); Sindbad Garden Hotel, Kalutara; Gallery Caf, Colombo (www.paradiseroadsl.com/cafe)

VietnamSix Senses Hideaway Ninh Van Bay, (www.sixsenses.com)

The PhilippinesSpider House, Boracay; Mandala Resort & Spa (www.mandalaspa.com); Manila Hotel (www.manila-hotel.com.ph); the Farm at San Benito (www.thefarm.com.ph)

ChinaBrilliant Resort, Kunming (www.slh.com/peoples_republic_of_china/yunnan_province/yunbri.html)

Museums and Gardens

Baba House Museum (www.nus.edu.sg/museum/ baba); Allerton Gardens (www.ntbg.org); Aguinaldo Shrine, Cavite; Jim Thompson House & Museum (www.jimthompsonhouse.com); The Braganza house, Chandor, Goa

Retailers/Designers

DeeFusion (www.deefusion.com); Dedon (www. dedon.de); Sifas (www.sifasusa.com); B&B Italia (www.bebitalia.it); Cappellini (www.cappellini.it); Minotti (www.minotti.it); Natuzzi (www.natuzzi.com); XTRA Living (www.xtra.com.sg); Padua International (www.padua-intl.com); Mae Rim Ceramics (www.maerimceramic.com); Studio Naenna (www.studio-naenna.com); Gong Dee gallery (www.gongdeegallery.com); Mengrai Kilns (www.mengraikilns.com); Earth & Fire (www.akaaka.com/earth_fire.html); AKA Chiang Mai (www. aka-aka.com/aka.html); Cocoon Design Co Ltd +662 656-1007; Leather Paragon (www.leatherparagon. com); Villeroy & Boch (www.villeroy-boch.com); Jenggala Keramik (www.jenggala-bali. jenggala-bali. com); Space (www.spacefurniture.com.au); Fortuny (www.fortuny.com); Marimekko (www.marimekko. fi/eng); Jim Thompson-the Thai Silk Company (www.jimthompson.com); Celestina Maynila-New York (www.celestinamaynilanewyork.com); Pattaya Furniture Collection (www.pattayafur.com); Gaya Design (www.gayavietnam.com); Song Design (www.asiasongdesign.com); Celadon Green (+84-8 9144697)

Designers, Architects and Artists

Karina Zabihi of kzdesigns (www.kzdesigns.com); Sim Boon Yang and Calvin Sim of eco-id design consultancy (www.ecoid.com); Kevin Tan of aKTarchitects (www.akta.com.sg); Cheong Yew Kuan of Area Design (area@indo.net.id); Cindi Novkov; Bedmar & Shi (www.bedmar-and-shi.com); Jim Thompson Design Company (www.jimthompson. com); Joy Dominguez; Ponce Veridiano; Antonio Budji Layug (www.budji.com); Clayton Tugonon; Gianni Francioni of G M Architects (giannfr@tin. it); Hans Breuer; Sitthiporn Dhonavanik; Ramon Antonio; Yasuhiro Koichi of Spin Design Studio (www.ds-spin.com); Seiki Torige at Galeri Esok Lusa (gundul@eksadata.com); Frank Borja; Jorge Yulo (www.jorgeyulo.com); Karl Princic at Karl Princic Design (kpd@dps.centrin.net.id); Martin Palleros of Tierra Design (www.tierradesign.com); Miguel Pastor; Bill Bensley of Bensley Design Studio (www. bensley.com); Ed Ledesma of Locsin Partners; Valentina Audrito (www.pianeta-sudest.com); Sakul Intakul (www.sakulintakul.com); Subodh Kerkar (www.subodhkerkar.co); Ana Rocha; Anneke van Waesberghe of Esprite Nomade (www. espritenomade.com); Made Wijaya of PT Wijaya Tribwana International (www.ptwijaya.com); Udom Udomsrianan; Rangsan Narathasajan; Le Cuong; Laki Senanayake (www.lakiarts.com); Udayshanth Fernando (www.paradiseroadsl.com); Barefoot (www.barefoot.lk); Linda Garland (www. panchoranretreat.com); Borek Sipek (www.sipek.com); Joy Dominquez, Kathleen Henares; Anton R Mendoza (www.antonmendoza.com); Palmer & Turner; Leo Design

Filipino landscape designer, Ponce Veridiano, is a great proponent of what has come to be termed tropical regionalism in his architecture, interior and garden design. In this Laguna living room (his first foray into architecture) he relies on local materials-sasag or crushed bamboo for the ceiling, tinalak, a type of fabric made from banana fibers, for the overstuffed sofa, locally made bird cages for lampshades, and one solid plank of dao wood for the low-level coffee table. The result is a relaxed, homey feel. Moreover, its harmonious with the giant tree fern scenario on one side (seen) and sweeping garden views on the other (unseen).

The living room, the heart of the house, deserves more than its fair share of care and attention. Lavish time, expense and luxe materials on it; love it, and youll be rewarded with a room you love.

In the tropics, ventilation is the key. Although a few of the living rooms we showcase utilise airconditioning and are enclosed, we tend to favor spaces that blur the boundary between inside and out (see left). Theres something sublimely sensuous, not to mention appropriate, about engaging with the great outdoors when sitting indoors. This seems doubly important today when we face many issues of sustainability and good practice.

However, we dont want to get bogged down in discourse: we want to embrace individuality, regionality and tropicality. So, we flit from the highly distinctive Vietnamese (colonial/Chinese with a twist?) to high Thai style and oriental opulent. Naturally, were almost fetishistic about less is more, so modern and minimalist is never neglected-but lets be clear, white isnt always right. Character and color can be etched on a neutral palette. Similarly, were not about stylistic rigidity; we want modulated spaces that flow from one room to the next, or indeed from inside to outside.

Open-plan living rooms that make the most of sweeping views are nearly always successful-as long as the interior decor doesnt overshadow the drama unfolding outside. So, how to obtain that relaxed, thrown-together look that in actuality is the result of hard work, planning and an obsessive eye for detail? We try to help with a plethora of tips for color schemes, accents, furniture, fabrics, and more. In addition, many of our ideas are sustainable and responsible; in our book, ethics are becoming the new elegance.