When Patrick and Carol Chan bought a new 2,800 sqft duplex in Sha Tin, the first thing they looked for was a designer who knew his stuff in terms of interior architecture. Their light-filled space, with a 12-foot-high ceiling and expansive windows, had lots of potential but they needed someone to realise it. They chose Anderson Lee of Index Architecture, who gave them the option of a conservative (pleasant but lacking the wow factor) or radical approach (a total redesign with an innovative renovation of the interior). To Lee's delight, the Chans proved to be bold, so he set to work reconfiguring the staircase; doubling its width and creating a link between the two floors. 'I was extremely pleased when they picked this option,' says Lee. 'It's visually very stimulating. There are not many opportunities in Hong Kong to do this kind of work.' The unit, which has a kitchen and living and dining rooms downstairs and four bedrooms on the upper level, had been linked by regular stairs. Lee transformed the staircase into the functional and aesthetic focus of the home. The lower level is open plan with the living area on a raised platform above the kitchen and dining room. Another step up is a lounge and the base of the double-width staircase. Each level defines a specific area - dining, living and lounging. 'The height discrepancies give a cascading effect,' says Lee. The staircase comprises two sets of adjacent stairs; one of regular proportions, the other double depth and height. The larger stairs make for great benches and underneath each is a storage unit (see Tried + tested). 'I call these the grand stairs,' says Lee. 'Every two regular stairs forms one of these.' Light floods onto the staircase from a skylight and there are expansive views of greenery through large picture windows below. The Chans' two children, aged 10 and seven, enjoy playing here. Lee admits that, at first, the couple had some concerns about using the staircase as a play area. 'But they realised that their children are getting bigger, so the anxiety factor went away.' Lee wanted to maintain continuity between the two floors so he opened up the upper level by knocking down the partition walls that had enclosed the staircase. 'Before, everything was blocked; you couldn't see the continuity or flow of space from one level to another. Now you can see the whole volume of the house,' he says. Of course, the bedrooms are still private spaces but the upstairs family TV room is open to the stairs. So, surprisingly, is part of the master bathroom. Glass walls surround the tub, which faces the stairs directly (although curtains provide privacy). 'That's the really radical part,' says Lee, 'It's like a showcase.' Carol agrees: 'Everyone who comes in talks about our bathtub. They say it's better if the curtain is open.' 'Patrick and Carol wanted me to take advantage of the high ceilings and maximise the volume of the house,' says Lee. So he created a 'tree house' or loft-like mezzanine area in each of the children's rooms, one accessed by a ladder, the other by a staircase. Their new home is certainly a departure for the Chans in terms of style but their adventurousness has paid off. Says Carol: 'I think if you saw the original layout you would be very impressed [with the change]. It makes the whole interior so much bigger than before.' 1 The light-filled living room has a wall of windows. The sofa cost 25,000 yuan (HK$28,500) from Frandiss in Shenzhen (Skirt Building, Caitian, Mingyuan, 3010, Caitian Road, Shenzhen, tel: 86 0755 2591 2345; www.frandiss.net ). In the corner is an Arco lamp by Achille Castiglioni, which cost HK$22,590 from Flos (shop A, Winway Building, 50 Wellington Street, Central, tel: 2801 7608; www. flos.com). The red Eames chairs, which cost HK$4,000 each from Aluminium (8 Kingston Street, Causeway Bay, tel: 2577 4766; www.hk-aluminium.com ), add colour. In the centre of the room are two wooden coffee tables, which cost HK$2,500 for the pair from Franc Franc (Festival Walk, 80 Tat Chee Avenue, Kowloon Tong, tel: 3106 8958). The Eileen Gray glass side table (US$550) was purchased through Design Within Reach ( www.dwr.com ) in the United States. 2 Anderson Lee of Index Architecture (19/F, Yen Yee Commercial Building, 332 Des Voeux Road West, tel: 2155 1007; www .indexarchitecure.com) built a platform using Alder smoked oak (HK$237 a square foot) from Equal Plus (room 302, Phase 2, Ming An Plaza, 8 Sunning Road, Causeway Bay, tel: 2881 7066) to separate the lounge area from the living room. The bean bag cost HK$1,175 from G.O.D. (various locations; www.god.com.hk ). The painting, by Terence Lee, came from Gitone (Lei King Wan, 45 Tai Hong Street, Sai Wan Ho, tel: 2527 3448; www.gitone.hk ). Overhead is a ceiling fan painted military green (HK$2,875 including colouring and installation) from Cityone Electrical (shop 41, City One Plaza, Sha Tin, tel: 2637 1118). The stained green birch veneer cabinet, which divides the spaces and doubles as a storage unit, was custom designed by Lee and cost HK$30,000. 3 One step down from the living room is the dining area and open kitchen. The spaces are divided by the veneer cabinet, which serves as a bookshelf-cum-fireplace-cum-shoe cupboard. The EcoSmart fireplace (HK$16,880) is fuelled by denatured ethanol, a renewable energy source, and is available through Design & Distribution Link (12/F, Sup Tower, 75 King's Road, North Point, tel: 2838 8299; www.ecosmartfire.com ). Lee used an ABS self-levelling floor for the dining area. The dining table (HK$15,000) is from Decor Collections (shop 1, G/F, China Hong Kong City, 33 Canton Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, tel: 2375 8089) and the chairs, which cost HK$2,400 each, are from Axis Collections (47 Gough Street, Central, tel: 2858 6919). The Caravaggio pendant lamp cost HK$7,370 from Manks (2 Kennedy Terrace, Mid-Levels, tel: 2522 2115). 4 The double-width staircase was designed by Lee and features two sets of stairs; one with regular proportions, the other with steps that are double in size. The larger stairs can be used as seats and each doubles as a storage unit. The lightbulb fittings cost HK$255 each from Artemide (shop 111, Ruttonjee Centre, 11 Duddell Street, Central, tel: 2523 0333; www.artemide.com ). 5 Owner Carol Chan is a keen cook and the open layout of the kitchen allows her to work and chat at the same time. The kitchen units with Corian countertops cost HK$98,950 from Euro Cucina (room 802, Federal Building, 369 Lockhart Road, Wan Chai, tel: 3690 2382). 6 In the daughter's bedroom, Lee made use of the high ceiling to build a loft-like mezzanine complete with peek-a-boo holes. The floor and stairs are made of Bassano whitened oak that cost HK$311 a square foot (installation included) from Karlian International (17/F, Yue On Commercial Building, 385 Lockhart Road, tel: 2388 3938). Lee had the bed and side tables custom made for HK$30,000 using spray emulsion paint on medium-density fibreboard; the rear wall is painted with pink ICI emulsion (284 Emberlight). 7 The master bath, which looks out onto the staircase on the upper level, is surrounded by a glass wall. The bath, which cost HK$47,000, is by Dutch architect Wiel Arets from Oscar Bath & Kitchen (48/F, China Online Centre, 333 Lockhart Road, tel: 2988 1949). On the walls are metallic tiles (HK$150 per square foot) from Pacific Tiles Collection (G/F, 187 Lockhart Road, tel: 2866 9980). The Alessi bath tap (HK$7,780) is from Oscar Bath & Kitchen. The side of the stairwell opposite the master bath is clad in Avodire veneer from Windyard Trading (flat B, 17/F, Block 1, Kin Ho Industrial Building, 14 Au Pui Wan Street, Fo Tan, tel: 2757 7607). 8 The huge windows in the master bedroom allow for expansive views. To echo the greenery outside, Lee has kept the interior palette soothing: a turquoise Venetian plaster wall by Ozmo (8/F, Sungib Industrial Centre, 53 Wong Chuk Hang Road, Aberdeen, tel: 2847 3322), warm Bassano whitened oak flooring from Karlian International and white custom-designed cabinetry. Lee also designed the bed (HK$60,000) with a headboard covered in Drapilux fabric from Spring Collection (12/F, Chuang's Enterprises Building, 382 Lockhart Road, tel: 2836 9222). The mini Tolomeo bedside lights cost HK$1,800 each from Artemide. Tried + tested Space station Anderson Lee of Index Architecture (19/F, Yen Yee Commercial Building, 332 Des Voeux Road West, tel: 2155 1007; www.indexarchitecture.com ) designed a staircase that does more than simply convey people between floors. Five of the large stairs have a hinged lid that open to reveal storage space. To build the units, Lee used Alder smoked oak (HK$237 a square foot, including installation) from Equal Plus (room 302, Phase 2, Ming An Plaza, 8 Sunning Road, Causeway Bay, tel: 2881 7066). Styling David Roden