One couple achieved their vision of a European-style home by combining two Sheung Wan apartments. Yip Hoi-yee and Stanley Li have created a little slice of Europe in their bijou apartment, tucked down a narrow Sheung Wan backstreet. Formerly two 400 sq ft units on the third and fourth floor of a charming walkup, the apartments were converted into a duplex, with a rooftop, creating a cool retreat on a hot summer's day. Inside, pale shades of minty green, white and blue combine with classic louvred shutters, decorative ironwork balconies and elegant furnishings in a manner that is comfortable but stylish. And it is all the more impressive when you consider the compact space, which threw up a variety of challenges during the renovation. Yip and Li were armed with fixed criteria when they began hunting for a new home: they wanted two levels and a roof, it had to be in a quiet part of town and it needed to have privacy. 'We chose this building because it had one unit per floor,' says Yip. 'Luckily, two units were available at the same time and they both had the same owner so that made life easier.' Although design aware, Yip experienced a conundrum familiar to many who renovate their own home. 'I knew what I liked but I didn't have an objective view because I'm not a professional designer,' she says. 'When I looked through magazines I liked so many different things but when it came to putting it all together, I thought, 'Oh no, now what do I do?'' To solve the problem, she worked with interior designer and space planner Ivan Cheung ( xyzivanc@hotmail.com ). 'I find space planners are important in Hong Kong as spaces are so restrictive. Cheung took the floor plate for each level, measured all the corners and sketched out where the furniture would be.' The two flats were then completely gutted. Now, the lower floor contains a living room with dining area to one side and a spacious galley kitchen. The upper floor features the master bedroom with a small study area and en suite bathroom, complete with full-sized freestanding tub. The stairways connecting the floors are lined with paintings, storage units and other accessories; the roof, furnished with a generous sunshade and woven furnishings, is beautifully secluded. Cheung also advised on overall design direction, suggesting Yip avoid brash colours and create a calming home. Says Yip: 'He said we already led busy lives so when we came home we wouldn't want to be charged with strong colours. It didn't really make sense then but I said go ahead anyway and now I see he was right. The pale shades really do quieten things down.' Yip had a vision of creating a European-style residence. 'One of my favourite cities is Paris and I love the Haussmann style,' she says, referring to the city's 19th-century civic planner. 'I also like the narrow canal houses in Amsterdam. In particular, I like wrought iron, big windows, cornices and doors that open wide.' As such, she installed wide French doors on each floor along the front of the apartment and turned a little ledge on each level into a mini balcony complete with wrought-iron railing (see Tried & Tested). While Yip chose most of the furniture, fittings and materials, Cheung guided her decisions and created a cohesive decorative vision. 'It was great to have someone who could tell me things such as, 'Don't got for an angular high sofa - it's too hotelish. Go for something lower and more rounded,'' Yip says. At the end of the day, their hard work and hands-on approach proved worthwhile. 'It was quite a difficult process because I was rushing to shop for things every day and I never found exactly what I was looking for. I had a vision in mind and couldn't match it perfectly,' she explains. But today it is a different story. 'It was when we started having visitors and got positive feedback that I looked again at the space,' says Yip with a laugh. 'And now I am really happy with it.' 1 With an office block opposite and a lack of surrounding high-rise buildings, the rooftop is afforded a high degree of privacy. Some of the walls were painted sunshine yellow and plants were added to introduce a tropical feel. The woven sofa and coffee table (HK$6,000 a set) and wicker armchairs (HK$2,500 a pair) are from House & Garden (16/F, Horizon Plaza, 2 Lee Wing Street, Ap Lei Chau, tel: 2555 8433). The large umbrella cost HK$2,000 from Tai Sun Canvas (6B On Kui Street, On Lok Tseun, Fanling, tel: 2657 1616). 2 Yip Hoi-yee created a small seating area next to the dining table. The black woven armchair was sourced in the Philippines; the silver side table cost about HK$1,000 from Victor Furniture (109 Queen's Road East, Wan Chai, tel: 2834 2855). On the table is a lamp (HK$3,000) from Ovo Home (16 Queen's Road East, tel: 2526 7226; www.ovo.com.hk ). The small stool in the foreground cost HK$4,500 five years ago from a shop that no longer exists. 3 The galley kitchen has been designed to offer lots of storage and countertop space for food preparation. Yip jazzed up basic cabinets with decorative knobs from Open Decorative Materials (3/F, 206 Lockhart Road, Wan Chai, tel: 2519 9951). The opaque glass splashbacks were installed to give a clean look to the area. The extractor fan cost HK$3,000 from builtINpro (1/F, Capital Building, 8 Sun Wui Road, Causeway Bay, tel: 3528 0388). The leaning bookshelf cost HK$2,000 from Lane Crawford (IFC Mall, Central, tel: 2118 3388; www.lanecrawford.com ) and has proved useful for Yip's large collection of cookery books. 4 Space was maximised in the master bedroom to allow for the bed, a study area and storage units. The bed was custom made by Yip's contractor; the bench at the end cost HK$2,600 from Lane Crawford. The chandelier (HK$3,000) and the pair of bedside lamps (HK$1,500 a pair) are from Element Lighting Design (39 Morrison Hill Road, Wan Chai, tel: 2573 7772). The patterned bed linen came from Paris; the painting above the bed is from Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. The fresh flowers are by Boris & Matthew (25 Jervois Street, Sheung Wan, tel: 2854 2834; www.bnm.hk ). 5 The cosy dining area is situated on one side of the living room. The trio of classical European-style chairs were HK$1,800 each from Victor Furniture; the chandelier cost HK$1,000 from Gazebo (159 Queen's Road East, tel: 2527 5233). Hanging on the wall are antique lattice carvings from The Gallery (shop 53, G/F, Sai Kung Villa, Fuk Man Road, Sai Kung, tel: 2791 7882). 6 In a corner of the living room, a mirror has been propped against the wall to make the space appear larger than it is. The mirror cost about HK$2,000 from Gazebo and the Kenneth Cobonpue floor lamp cost HK$3,000 from Ovo Home. The cow-skin cushion was sourced in Bangkok; the antique Chinese chair was a gift from a friend. 7 Though compact, the bathroom still had room for a tub (HK$15,000; by Philippe Starck). It and the Hatria sink (HK$3,500) are from H20 (193 Lockhart Road, tel: 2156 0388). The wooden ladder, which serves as a towel rack and storage unit, cost HK$600 from Indigo (G111, The Repulse Bay, Repulse Bay, tel: 2592 8721; www.indigo-living.com ). tried & tested left to wrought To give European flair to the apartment, Yip Hoi-yee was keen to add some wrought ironwork to the exterior of the building. 'Unlike in Paris, Madrid and Amsterdam, people don't do things to exteriors here,' she says. Although her apart-ment did not have a balcony per se, outside the windows on both floors was a slim ledge. She installed a 3.5-metre long panel on each level, creating a faux balcony area. The design was based on original ironwork seen during Yip and Stanley Li's travels in Spain and France. She took photographs of her favourite designs and had one reproduced. The two panels were custom made on the mainland for a total of HK$15,000. When the French windows are opened wide the ironwork helps to extend the space visually. styling Esther van Wijck