This beautiful eclectic home may not be of any particular style or even a product of an interior designer or architect’s genius, but one thing is for sure: it is chic in every way, just like the owner herself who used to live in a bigger house in the same village in the south but on a different street. The damage brought about by typhoon Ondoy back in 2009 prompted them to move out. “I saved most of the décor, but not the furniture,” says the owner.

Despite the tragedy, her creativity was not dampened; the typhoon only highlighted her knack for DIY in making a new home for her and her family. According to the owner, she had no other plans for her new house except for it to sport a black-and-white palette. Her inspirations include the design company Jonathan Adler and home magazines like Real Living and the now defunct Domino. “I don’t like a house that you see and then you buy everything for it. In fact, I didn’t buy anything. I asked, they donated, and whatever I have, I refurbished,” she says.

(First published as "Up Close and Personal" in the "Real Home" section of Real Living Philippines' October 2011 issue. Photos by Miguel Nancianceno. Pictorial direction by Issa Villar. Adapted for use in Female Network.)