Life.Culture.Discovery.

How a green, sustainable home renovation quietly celebrates Hong Kong by supporting small local businesses

Paul Gardner and Nick Cheng wanted their 589 sq ft Tuen Mun flat overlooking the sea, a park and a palm-fringed beach to be as sustainable as possible

They enlisted Vicky Chan, of Avoid Obvious Architects, to transform the space into the home they wanted, with custom-built furniture made from reusable wood

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A couple’s Tuen Mun home has been made with furniture crafted by small Hong Kong makers in support of local businesses. Photo: Imagennix

Published: 12:45pm, 3 Feb 2022

Moving from Mid-Levels on Hong Kong Island to Tuen Mun in the New Territories was more than a geographical relocation for Paul Gardner and his partner in work and life, Nick Cheng Ho-sing. It was a whole new lifestyle for the co-founders of Fresh Accounting, which has offices in Hong Kong and Singapore.

“It is so different to city living,” says Gardner. “We overlook a park, where there are always older people doing tai chi, walking tortoises, and families playing. It has changed the dynamics of our relationship, because we previously lived separately. We go out less and have a better quality of life.”

In February 2021, the couple bought a 589 sq ft (55 square metre) flat in a 1980s building near Butterfly Beach, just around the corner from Cheng’s family home. While it was smaller than Gardner had hoped for, it had a lovely view of the sea, park, palm-fringed beach, and in the distance, Hong Kong International Airport and the bridge to Zhuhai. The clincher was the attractive price, which meant there was money left in the budget to make it the home they wanted.

“The deal was that if Nick got the flat he wanted, I could renovate it how I wanted,” Gardner says, only half joking.

Enter Vicky Chan, of Avoid Obvious Architects, a friend who usually works on commercial and institutional projects. He was happy to be persuaded to design the couple’s home, applying many of the same green principles he brings to larger projects.

“Paul really wanted to celebrate Hong Kong, bringing together small local businesses and working as sustainably as possible,” Chan says. “When so many people are leaving, it’s good to see someone who is passionate about the city – I admire that.”