This 5,000-square-foot Clear Water Bay family home may be a sleek modern statement in glass and granite today, but its former incarnation was a dilapidated wreck, with barely enough walls to hold up the roof. You could say it takes vision to see the potential in a dilapidated property. Peter and Carmen Lam would say it also takes Original Vision, the architectural firm they effusively credit for creating the home of their dreams. The Lams bought their Clear Water Bay house because it fulfilled two critical criteria: one, it had a picture-postcard outlook, in this case over Silverstrand Bay and Shelter Island; and two, it was a wreck. 'We looked for two to three years and wanted something really rundown, so we could tear it down without worrying about it,' says Peter, who owns a company producing in-flight magazines for Chinese airlines. When architect Adrian McCarroll first viewed the property he found barely a shell: 'It had been assassinated,' he recalls. 'There were no windows or doors and it was structurally unstable - two pillars and one of the supporting walls were missing.' Unusually for Hong Kong, McCarroll's brief was not to maximise space and knock down as many walls as possible: 'Our priority was to have a dynamic space and for it to have a sense of openness, but not necessarily be open plan,' Peter says. 'But it had to let in lots of light and have an outdoorsy feel.' McCarroll's interpretation of the vision was to create five levels and 5,000 square feet of living space (including terrace), which meets a family's need for private quarters (the Lams have two children, Philip, 10, and Caroline, five) but at the same time visually interconnects. Mezzanine floors and clever, cut-out windows enable you to see through the entire living space and out to sea while being in a defined room. To bring the outdoors in, vast expanses of glass have been used - most strikingly on the double-height glass wall in the main living room. A near-invisible sliding door in the glass wall leads to the terrace, making it an extension of the living-room - an idea augmented by the use of the same Zimbabwe granite flooring inside and out. The large terrace is the Lams' favourite spot. Fitted with a fully equipped outdoor kitchen, it is the location of frequent barbecues and pre-dinner drinks (the family entertains at least once a week). Peter travels half the year and to provide peace of mind for Carmen, McCarroll installed an ingenious, slanting stainless-steel security door that shuts off the sleeping quarters from the rest of the house. 'It's not so much a panic room as entire panic floors,' McCarroll says with a laugh. The upper levels also house a pink playroom for Caroline and a 'secret den' for Philip, reached from his bedroom by a stylish stainless-steel ladder. 'Because Caroline got the playroom, Philip got the den - that was the deal,' says Carmen. Even the family dogs, Buerschtli and Sidra, have a substantial space outdoors to themselves. Not to be outdone, Peter and Carmen have their own ensuite bathroom that doubles as his and hers walk-in wardrobes. Rather than carve out two small spaces, they chose one larger, dual-function space. An oval chest of drawers in the centre of the room was inspired by one of the Lams' frequent hotel stays. Hotel design also influenced the guest suite, which is furnished with antique Chinese furniture from the Lams' previous house. ('We didn't think Chinese would go so well with the contemporary feel of the rest of the place,' says Carmen. 'Plus we thought the in-laws, who stay here the most, would like the Chinese-ness,' Peter adds.) A stay at the China Club in Beijing also proved influential: the Lams liked the Chinese alcove-style beds that shut away behind sliding doors and asked McCarroll to install modern versions. Clients and architect cite this as being a textbook renovation. 'It was a dream project,' enthuses McCarroll. 'Having a client who is enlightened, receptive and adventurous, who gives us their trust to get the job done - that's very rare. And it makes it more creative - you get better and more cohesive results. When clients meddle and get too involved, design suffers.' 'The only thing missing is a garden,' admits Peter, 'but the terrace more than makes up for that.' 1. The 700-square-foot terrace features an outdoor kitchen (just seen, right), including a stainless-steel Turbo Cosmopolitan built-in gas barbecue by Barbeques Galore ($21,180 from Outdoor Living, 22/F Horizon Plaza, 2 Lee Wing Street, Ap Lei Chau, tel: 2873 5576; www.outdoorhk.com ; www.barbequesgalore.com.au ) as well as an extractor fan, sink, oven and fridge. The teak dining set is from Banyan Tree (18/F Horizon Plaza, tel: 2555 0540; www.banyantreehk.com ), the teak loungers are from Garden Gallery (7/F Horizon Plaza, tel: 2553 3251; www.gardengallery.com.hk ), and the acrylic Bubble Chair with silver polyurethane cushions was designed by Eero Aarnio in 1968 ($22,000 from Aluminium, 8 Kingston Street, Causeway Bay, tel: 2577 4766; www.hk-aluminium.com ; www.eero-aarnio.com ). 2. An inlay of Norwegian ash veneer demarcates the formal living area, dominated by an untitled oil pastel by English artist Malcolm Golding (tel: 6252 5559), which signifies the four members of the Lam family with colours based on their birthdates and years. The Dernier seating by Philippe Hurel (from $48,800 for an armchair from NuConcepts, Ruttonjee Centre, 11 Duddell Street, Central, tel: 2525 2121) is upholstered in leather and cotton. 3. The dining area looks out at the continuously running waterfall wall and a back wall inlaid with a reproduction carved stone panel from Bali, which the Lams visit twice a year. The slate-topped Datcha table ($99,580) is by Philippe Hurel at NuConcepts and the cotton-covered chairs are from Banyan Tree. 4. Above the custom-made, stained walnut veneer master bed ($15,000 by Original Vision), matching slats echo those on the house's exterior. 5. Peter is a keen chef so a separate cupboard (unseen) was essential for storing his impressive array of professional cooking and serving equipment. The laminate and aluminium System 25 kitchen cabinets are by Bulthaup ( www.bulthaup.com ), while the stainless-steel, built-in appliances are from Gaggenau ( www.gaggenau.com ), all available from Space Kitchen (LG/F Ruttonjee Centre, 11 Duddell Street, Central, tel: 2868 9438; www.spacekitchen.com.hk ). 6. A stay at the China Club in Beijing inspired this Chinese-style, stained-walnut-veneer built-in bed, which can be hidden from the rest of the guest suite by sliding doors. 7. Electronic aluminium blinds on the ceiling slide back to reveal a glass roof in the ensuite bathroom, where Zimbabwe granite has been used for both bath and floor. The custom-made chest of drawers ($6,000), in stained walnut veneer and stainless steel, is by Original Vision. Tried and tested: all fired up A working fireplace might seem incongruous in a sun-bathed Hong Kong home, but the Lams used it every day for three to four months last winter, burning 10 cubic metres of firewood imported from Canada ('better quality'). It proved one of the trickiest aspects of the renovation and took three workmen more than a week to complete. For anyone thinking of installing a fireplace, McCarroll recommends importing one from a country where they are in common use, and shipping it already constructed to make installation easier. That said, it is difficult to find contractors in Hong Kong experienced in fireplace installation, so be prepared for challenges, particularly in making sure there is sufficient airflow (the chimney flue will need to be at least two storeys high to provide enough draw). The Lams' fireplace, surrounded by Zimbabwe granite, cost about $15,000 from the German firm Hark (tel: 49 2065 9970; www.hark.de ) and was installed by Cad Contracting (tel: 2891 7733). The stylish stainless-steel log rack and tool set are also from Hark. Styling Esther van Wijck