Hong Kong beachfront apartment adds second floor for a duplex that’s all about the sea view, with minimal decor and maximum storage
- When the flat above a family’s home in Repulse Bay went on sale, they bought it to create a duplex and double their living space to 2,800 square feet
- Its minimal design makes the most of its sea views, the white-on-white palette creating a sense of tranquillity, and provides plenty of hidden storage
When the two-bedroom, two-bathroom apartment directly above her own identical flat came on the market, Joanna Lau felt it was too good an opportunity to ignore.
She, her husband, Christopher, and two daughters (aged 12 and 14) had been looking for a larger property but nothing matched the stunning Repulse Bay location they had called home for several years.
“We like the unit mainly because it is so close to the coastline and we are privileged to have direct, private access to a small beach.
“It was like a sanctuary for the kids and dog, especially during the pandemic, when the main beach was closed,” says Lau, who grew up in Hong Kong.
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To combine the floors and rework their layouts to make them a single cohesive unit meeting the needs of a growing family, Lau called in the experts, namely interior designer Amy Butler.
Originally from Ibiza, Butler came to Hong Kong seven years ago to work for architectural firm Foster + Partners on the renovation of The Murray hotel in Central and subsequently started her own design studio, House of Butler.
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“Creating a staircase was the first and most crucial job but we also had the luxury of choosing where to locate it,” she says. “We positioned it so that when you come down the stairs, your eye is immediately drawn to the stunning sea view.”
The family wanted a clean, minimal look with as much concealed storage as possible. With double the square footage to play with – each floor is 1,400 sq ft (130 square metres) – the designer was able to create airy, open-plan communal areas downstairs and three large bedrooms with two bathrooms upstairs.
She also located a Chinese kitchen and storage under the stairs and a guest bathroom, more storage cabinets, maid’s quarters and a laundry room behind a rippled wall just inside the entrance.
“The tricky thing about this apartment block is that none of the walls are straight,” says Butler. “We emphasised this with the gentle curves of the front entrance structure that hides the guest bathroom and storage but elsewhere we disguised it.
“For example, the dark blue etched glass sliding doors in the kitchen cover up the uneven shelves, which are much shallower at one end than the other. The floor tiles on the ground floor have also been laid a certain way so you can’t see the walls aren’t straight.”
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Lau’s original flat did not have much of a style and both her unit and the one upstairs had not fully capitalised on the views. She says her hardest decision was choosing an overall aesthetic style and she was more than happy to adopt Butler’s native influences.
White reigns supreme in Ibizan decor and Butler has used it throughout this home, giving it a sense of tranquillity.
Most of the furniture was purpose built and bought for the makeover. The white-on-white palette, broken up by brass accents, allows for a fresh vibe.
Butler and Lau felt the biggest design feature of the property was the outdoor environment, so having muted decor and knocking down walls ensured the view took centre stage.
“We decided to minimise everything indoors to highlight the beautiful nature outdoors, which would become an integral part of the home,” says Lau.
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Butler also switched the layout. The kitchen, for example, was originally by the entrance and dark. She moved it to lead onto the terrace, giving the flat a European feel.
This theme is echoed upstairs. The main bedroom leads through a walk-in wardrobe to a large, off-white bathroom – Lau’s favourite space – with artisanal tiles, more brass fittings and rippled glass doors to make it feel like a spa.
The bedroom of one of Lau’s daughters features pistachio walls and soft furnishings; the other is painted a dusty pink.
Lau threw herself into the project alongside Butler and was instrumental in choosing furniture, artwork and the myriad other decorative touches that make a house a home.
The staircase installation plus the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic meant the project took more than a year to complete but the Lau family moved in at the beginning of 2023 and have not looked back.
“Joanna told me that one of her daughters’ friends loves the apartment so much, she asked Joanna to adopt her so she could live there, too,” says Butler. “When you hear things like that about something you’ve worked on, it means so much.”
Living room
The beige wood Frame TV came from Samsung (samsung.com) and the cabinet below it was custom made using Cesar kitchen units in a silk lacquer finish, from Cucinad (cucinadhk.com).
The JWDA Lampada da Terra floor lamp by Audo Copenhagen was from Homeless (homeless.hk) and the Herman Miller Story bookshelf was from Lane Crawford (lanecrawford.com.hk).
Dining room
The Ron-Ron dining table with lazy susan and the Neu-Neu dining chairs were all from JG Casa (jgcasa.com) while the Dot pendant light with brass finish was designed by Foster + Partners for Lumina (lumina.it).
The artwork, titled Electronic Nostalgia, is by Kim Young-hun and came from Soluna Fine Art (solunafineart.com). The shelving was custom designed and made by House of Butler (houseofbutler.hk).
Kitchen
The bright, open kitchen with breakfast bar was custom designed by House of Butler and made by Cucinad. The leather Form bar stools were by Normann Copenhagen (normann-copenhagen.com).
Entrance to the terrace
Behind the House of Butler-designed curved wall, clad in rippled plywood, are a guest bathroom, shoe cabinets, cupboards, helper’s quarters and a laundry area. The Concrete White floor tiles from Gigacer were bought from Anta Building Material Supplier (antahk.com).
Details of the mirrored butterfly clock have been forgotten, although a similar model is available from Etsy (etsy.com).
Landing
The 73 Series Random pendants by Bocci (bocci.com) light up the staircase and upstairs landing. The artwork is by Finland-based Lina Vonti (linavonti.com) and the Lato table in ivory crema marble was from &Tradition (andtradition.com).
Daughter’s bedroom
The Lifetime four-poster bed, rug, crocheted storage bag and beanbag all came from Tavolo Kids Living (tavolokidsliving.com). The Blu Dot Stash desk was from Homeless and the About A Chair AAC 26 desk chair was from Hay (hay.com).
Above the made-to-order chest of drawers from Indigo Living (indigo-living.com) is a candle-warmer lamp, available from Dekorfine (dekorfine.com).
Tried + tested
Amy Butler used the modular Xylo system by Avenir (avenir.com.au) in the main bathroom to create minimalist heated towel rails. Sold individually, the number of rails used and their positioning can be determined according to preference thanks to the absence of vertical rails.
An in-wall kit (sold separately) was installed under the wall lining and tiles while a power transformer, needed to operate the low-voltage towel rails, was placed under the bathroom cabinet out of sight.
The mirrors and vanity unit were custom designed and made by House of Butler, with undermounted sinks by Ceramica Cielo (ceramicacielo.us). Behind them are artisan-style wall tiles from the Neutra 6.0 collection by Florim (florim.com).
The free-standing bathtub came from Laufen (laufen.com) and the brushed-durabrass sink taps and floor-mounted bath fittings from the Tara collection were all by Dornbracht (dornbracht.com).
