Zest for life
A publicist adds bursts of orange to brighten up her tiny walk-up flat in Happy Valley
To say publicist Genavieve Alexander loves orange is something of an understatement. A glance around her pint-sized, walk-up flat in Happy Valley reveals an abundance of that zesty hue – on everything from an old-fashioned telephone, to kitchen scales, artwork, tea caddies, crockery, a fold-up bicycle and even a tambourine. And that’s just for starters.
Alexander’s fascination with the colour stems not simply from its aesthetic charms but because she was inspired by a savvy businesswoman whose legacy, Veuve Clicquot, is known for its sunny label. While doing public relations work for the champagne house in her early 20s, Alexander was always seeing the colour.
“The love affair started there,” Alexander says. “I fell in love with the mentor I found [the late] Madame Clicquot to be.”
At the relatively young age of 27, Clicquot took over her husband’s wine business after his untimely death in 1805 (“veuve” means “widow” in French) and developed early champagne.
“I find myself very connected to her,” says Alexander, who is now in her early 30s. “I’ve taken a lot of her bravery and creativity and kept the orange alive.”
Which is why you might see her cycling to work in a Sunkist burst.
Shortly after arriving in Hong Kong from London in 2011, Alexander set up PR firm Genavieve.Co, which she runs from her 315 sq ft flat and a studio in Wan Chai, in what she calls the “St Francis pocket”.
“I cycle because I want to take the colour through the city,” she says, adding that orange is also her brand’s signature hue.
That vim permeates her rented open-plan flat, which she has personalised with vintage and contemporary furnishings.
“The way in which the space was designed was open to my interpretation, so it was a blank canvas,” Alexander says, giving credit to the owners of the flat, who, upon purchasing the property in 2010, removed two small bedrooms where the bed is now situated.
“My husband, being a retired interior designer, was in charge of the renovation and he decided to turn the apartment into a simple, clean, bright and chic studio apartment,” says the landlady, adding that the project took four months and cost HK$750,000.
Without internal walls, save for those carving out the bathroom, the apartment opens into a small sitting area and, just a few steps away, a bright kitchen. A narrow countertop, under large windows, segues into a work desk on its dog-leg, which takes you into the bedroom side of the flat. It’s here, in her boudoir (which is announced by a metal sign saying as much), that Alexander can lie in bed and watch tennis – but not on a television screen. Situated opposite the Hong Kong Football Club, the top-floor apartment allows her a bird’s-eye view of the activity taking place across the road.
“I can sit in bed and see the tennis courts … and when I’m on the terrace, I can see people swimming and pretend I’m at the pool.”
Alexander starts every day with breakfast in a private nook on her rooftop terrace.
“It’s my pretend English country garden,” she says with a laugh, explaining that it’s also where she entertains.
That often involves firing up the barbecue and will soon include film screenings, which Alexander plans to project onto a neighbouring wall.
“I have just bought a projector and will probably bring a sofa up here to make it a little more comfortable,” she says.
Her outdoor refuge is also a second office, she says, explaining: “I take client calls up here. My day starts early and ends late.”
Little wonder she looks to orange for inspiration.
“It’s playful, positive and makes me smile,” Alexander says. As her e-mail sign-off reads: “Orange is the happiest colour.”
Living area detail (above right) Above the television is a personalised textile print of the Hong Kong skyline, produced for Genavieve Alexander by ColorWay Graphics (10/F, Phase 1, Kwun Tong Industrial Centre, 472 Kwun Tong Road, Kwun Tong, tel: 2345 7188). The moped helmet came from a store in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. The record player and speakers (HK$3,500 for all) were from NlostNfound (shop 3, St Francis Yard, Wan Chai, tel: 2574 1328) and the album was from Chen Mi Ji (4 Sun Street, Wan Chai, tel: 2549 8800). Alexander brought the white lamp with her to Hong Kong from Britain in 2011. The glass table was bought years ago by the landlady.
Work nook On the dog-leg of the kitchen counter is a bright work space that accommodates a white table lamp (HK$300, from Ikea); an orange La Sardina camera (HK$988, from Lomography Gallery Store, 2 Po Yan Street, Sheung Wan, tel: 2915 2205); a glass decanter that Alexander brought to Hong Kong from Britain; a small, watercolour painting in a blue frame by Alexander’s mother, Penny Alexander; and a 1950s globe (HK$1,600) from NlostNfound.
Bathroom (below left) The pendant light, from Zodiac Lighting, came with the flat. The orange oil burner was from G.O.D.
The saloon-style glass door for the bathroom is also an unusual feature. Apart from inviting in more light, the fixture allows better ventilation in the bathroom because it is open at the top and bottom.
