Character building

When Gaelle Echene returned to Hong Kong after six years designing luxurious beachfront villas in Bali, Indonesia, she didn’t waste any time in putting her design skills to the test: in just three months, the French interior designer transformed two adjoining units on the top floor of a Chai Wan waterfront building into a modern 3,900 sq ft loft-style home to share with her husband, Mathias, and three children, aged eight, seven and four.

“I know exactly what I want so it really didn’t take very long,” says Echene, who enjoys scouring flea markets and antique stores. “I love vintage, antique and modern designs and have no problem putting things together that may appear different as long as they are consistent with my style.

“None of the internal walls was structural so we simply combined the two units and stripped it back to four walls to create a structural blank canvas. Then I set about breaking down the scale of the residence’s proportions, creating spaces that work well on their own but allow an easy sense of transition,” she says.

Working with a local contractor who spoke no English (the two relied on drawings and diagrams to overcome the language barrier), Echene divided the apartment into two large living areas linked by a formal dining room that leads to a sunlit study. Elegant floor-to-ceiling black steel rimmed windows line one side of the main lounge and dining room areas, opening onto a 900 sq ft terrace designed for alfresco dining or entertaining.