By Annie Ooi | June 1, 2011
Photographs by Ricky Lai
All in the Family
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Leong looks forward to the time when his married child and family share the living space.
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It is not unheard of for young married couples to drop off their child at their parents or parents-in-law’s house way across the city while they go off to work and pick the child up at the end of the day.
Although this house owner’s children are still single, he is already making provisions for the day when he becomes a grandparent, as he feels that the time spent travelling every day is utterly wasteful.
"I bought this Ceylon-style bungalow, with its circular windows, green tiles for the floor and green frosted windows, for RM800,000 about 10 years ago.
"It was a basic house with a few rooms, which, when I started renovations, was to become the side of the house for my married child and his family. I added a lap pool at that side.
"On the other side of the house, with a Malacca style open courtyard, I added a double-storey villa for my wife and I," said Anthony Leong, who owns a law firm.
Looking even further ahead, Leong has made one of the bathrooms in the section for the younger generation, more disable-friendly for the time when he has to leave his double-storey villa side. There is a common kitchen saddling the two sections of the house and a dining room at the villa side. After nightly family dinners together, the younger generation can retire to their side of the house and the sliding door to the dining room can be closed off. Thus, the two generations of the family can settle down to the privacy of separate evening pastimes.
Leong also took into account the proximity of schools, including an international school, when he purchased the house, so that his planned grandchildren need not have to travel far.
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From left to right:
The water feature in the internal courtyard sends its soothing sounds right up to the top floor;
Interesting pendent lights hang in the stairwell;
An awning is added to provide shade when clothes need to be hung out to dry.
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Green award
The renovations were completed about three years ago and the cost came up to about RM1mil, including architect’s fees, plumbing and electrical works as well as landscaping. The built-up space of the 30-year-old house is 540sq m (6,000sq ft) and it stands on a plot of 873sq m (9,700sq ft). The house was completely modernised by architect Dr Tan Loke Mun from ArchiCentre Sdn Bhd.
Some of the old roof tiles had to be replaced, and in this instance, Leong did some recycling which earned him an award for his "green" efforts. When he heard that some pre-war shop houses in Batu Arang, a small town in Selangor, were being demolished, and that the tiles were just stacked by the side of the road to be sold at RM1 for a piece, he hastened there and picked up quite a few.
Located in an older part of Petaling Jaya, where purportedly government ministers used to stay, it is quite easy to miss the house as it doesn’t have the usual front gate. Rather the front gate is at the side, to be reached by driving up quite a steep slope.
But all’s good inside, with a water feature in the courtyard with the calming sound of trickling water. The house wraps round the open-air courtyard on three sides. One side is designated for the married child and his family, the middle for the common kitchen which opens to the courtyard (great for a barbecue) and the third side for the older generation, which has its sitting room open to the courtyard.
Some walls are painted in a bold orange colour, while others are in a pleasant grey - a nice contrast to the white walls. All the doors are painted white, with horizontal grooves as an accent, a feature which is carried out right through the house on every door, even those upstairs.
The stairs are broad at about 0.36m (4ft), and the landing looks out to a lush side garden, as well as the side garden of the neighbouring house. Burmese teak flooring is used throughout the top floor.
Here, space has been set aside as a play room for the grandchildren, and there is also a living area.
The master bedroom opens out to a balcony which is ideal for afternoon tea, as well as a reading area to the side. A rooftop garden is set out here as well, which overlooks the courtyard downstairs.
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The onyx vanity counter in the master bathroom is lit up to show its beauty (left),A rainforest shower for the jacuzzi.
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Elaborate bathroom
A big master bathroom is important for the house owners and there is ample space for one at the other end of the floor.
This has the works; a rainforest shower head, a jacuzzi with another rainforest shower head, and an onyx vanity top which can be lit up at night.
A chandelier definitely carries the look to another level. Along two sides of the bathroom, hollow blocks of concrete ("each costing only 40 cents") form walls, allowing light to filter through and cross-ventilation to take place.
Planter boxes are ready to be filled up, so there will be more privacy.
The walk-in wardrobe is situated off the bathroom, and not the usual off the bedroom, which seems to make sense.
Right now, the house is being used as a guesthouse. With ample room and plenty of facilities, guests should feel they are in a five-star environment.
And when the house in the near future is used for its intended function, three generations will surely find that it works to keep them together, yet with their own space.
E-mail the writer (annieo@thestar.com.my) if you know of interesting homes to feature.
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