FABRIC OF LIFE
Colours and tiles play important roles in Elaine and Vince's design ethos, striking a balance between refinement and personality.
布藝元素
色彩與磚片成了Elaine和Vince設計哲學的要角，在精緻美學與獨特個性之間拿捏平衡。 a lot of space purely due to circulation," explains Vince. "So we said, 'Let’s get rid of all the corridors – and then all the corridor space becomes usable space.'"
They arrived at an intelligent layout that comprises one main area – the living room and bedroom, interconnected by a continuous wooden floor and white walls – and what Vince calls "support spaces" that serve as expansions of the primary space. One such setup has been nicknamed the "pink room". He explains, "It’s a study but also an extension of the living room. It’s a different colour and when you walk into it, you feel a different texture underfoot, because all the extensions have cooler, tiled floors as opposed to the warm wood. I think the pink room, and some of the furniture pieces, really embrace the Lim + Lu philosophy of flexible living."
When the couple first moved in after four months of renovations, all they had was a mattress on the floor. "We welcomed a slow process for the interior design, which doesn’t really happen nowadays because clients like a quick turnaround time," says Vince. "So we moved in, settled down and then started to design what we really needed – it became like essentialism, almost. We basically designed everything except for the chairs and lighting, most of which was brought back from our old apartment in New York." "Furniture can be so static and so permanent that it can get quite boring – and we get bored really easily," adds Elaine, explaining why almost all of their appointments can be reconfigured or redefined. A particular standout piece is the frame table, which is a constantly evolving entity that adapts to the duo’s daily, if not hourly, needs.
第一樣要拆去的就是把空間對分的長黑走廊。Vince解釋：「我們當時的想法就是，香港標準單位實在太多走廊了，浪費大好空間，所以我們決定拆去所有，將清出來的位置改造成可用元素。」
他們最終構思出以主範圍為本的巧妙格局——客廳和睡房以木地板和白牆相連起來——也就是Vince口中所說的「支援空間」，可作重點範圍的擴展部分。其中的建設獲「粉紅房間」暱稱。他解釋：「是可作為客廳延伸部分的書房。它的用色與別不同，走進去會感到腳下獨特質感，所有延伸空間也鋪上觸感較涼快的地板，跟溫暖木材起鮮明對比。我認為，粉紅房間和部分傢具作品，的確能完美體現Lim + Lu的靈活生活哲學。」
二人於工程完成後四個月遷進單位，當時只有一張床褥。Vince說著：「談到室內設計，我們擁戴循序漸進的緩緩過程，但這實在很少見吧，畢竟客人多數都想盡快收貨。搬進單位後，我們先安頓下來，然後再才開始思考想怎樣設計——幾乎成了本質主義。基本上我們設計出所有元素，除了座椅和燈飾——多數從紐約舊居帶來。」「傢具可以是靜止、長駐不變，有時難免會讓人生厭——特別是我們。」Elaine補充，並解釋為何自己大部分傢具也可被重新組合或定義。焦點作就是那張框架桌，不停因應倆口子的日常生活而隨時改變。