Baliuag and Beyond

Finally I was able to successfully bring my Mom to my Tito Rene and Tita Gigi Simbulan's showcase home in Baliuag.  Since my Dad took me there to see the house over a month ago, I've been raving about and telling my Mom that it's something she has to see.  My Mom is usually busy and I miss the days when it was easier to invite her to go design and food tripping. 

Tito Rene Simbulan's big time contracting company is responsible for majority of the fit-out of Shangri La Boracay as well as other prominent hotels around the Philippines.  Having gone to the famous Boracay resort with Mom, it was easy to convince her to visit the house created by the contractor himself for his family in Bulacan. 

One of my favorite features of the house are the two gates made out of vertical strips of guijo wood, transluscent resin and metal but I don't have a decent photo of it.

Mom and I loved the kitchen cabinets especially the sliding sandblasted glass doors that were lit from behind, hiding all the chaos of bottles from view.

Throughout the house, you'll find creative use of resins in hanging lamps and giant vases.  This particular resin pot is covered with abaca.

The screens found in Shangri-La Boracay are used in different parts of the house such as the tea corner and the bathrooms.  It's impressive to see the world-class quality of materials, upholstery and finishes.

There's an interesting story behind the facade of this house.  Some very expensive materials from Spain meant for a hotel were broken in transit to the Philippines so the cracked materials were used in crazy-cut fashion for the Simbulan's house instead.

My Mom liked the way the split-type aircons were creatively masked.  I like the display of collections which gives the house a personal touch.

The table top which is better seen up close, is manufactured in the furniture factory of Tito Rene located right beside the house.  It's indeed ideal to have such facilities at your fingertips that give you complete control of the furnitures which translates to complete control of the costs.

Tito Rene and Tita Gigi have two daughters and instead of just giving them their own rooms, they have loft spaces that look like independent apartments within the house.   Aside from the physical house itself, it was amazing to see the family teamwork in action.  The two daughters, Celine and Ise are active in the business and are great assets of their parents who have trained them well to thrive in their own sphere of specialty. Kudos to the parents who are able to juggle business and family life.

This is the same ceiling detail found in the rooms at the Shangri La Boracay that lends the loft space here a modern-country-homey feel.  The closets don't have doors as part of a new type of design aesthetic that forces one to be ultra-neat and orderly with one's clothes.  (Not for me definitely because my closet's a mess.)

Luxurious bathroom floor and wall materials from hotel projects are used throughout the home.  What this picture does not show is the clever spatial loop from the bedroom, bathroom (separated by a wooden screen) to the outdoor massage room. Natural light from this semi-outdoor space flows indoor.

After a wow-inducing tour of the house, we sat down and had the best merienda in Baliuag: pancit, ukoy, suman and a special kind of odd-shaped, super delicious pandesal.