IN SEVENTH HEAVEN

In the same way that clothes maketh the man, Eric Cheng’s home is a true expression of the man himself

The rich and opulent colours seen in the living area set the scene for the rest of the home

Location and land area are two common criteria that homeowners often take into consideration before deciding whether to buy a landed property, but for Eric Cheng, Group CEO of ECG Group of Companies, it was the house number that sealed the deal. The 5,000 sq ft plot in District 15 near Katong that he acquired bears the number ‘seven’, Cheng’s lucky digit that appears in everything from the registration plates of his cars to his mobile number. But success for Cheng, a self-made entrepreneur who worked his way up from a flight attendant to real estate agent to multiple award-winning property developer, can be attributed to more than just luck. It is also his business acumen, keen eye for detail, fanatically organised mind and infectious personality, traits which are manifested in his new semi-detached home. While many homeowners choose to maximise the plot ratio and building setbacks, Cheng made the call to build a semi-detached instead of a detached home and to setback the frontage more than URA’S buffer requirements to allow for a bigger car porch. These are the first of many instances where Cheng has defied convention to achieve a home that is “daring and different”. Furthermore, while most people have their swimming pools on the ground, Cheng elevated his on the second storey. The infinity edge pool cantilevers over the entrance porch, its shimmering gold mosaic cladding and glass bottom heighten the drama of the façade and the sense of arrival. Attention is drawn to the only freestanding column in the entire house at the second storey family terrace by cladding it in a specially fabricated metal sleeve with an unabashed polished gold finish. Another bold move is hidden inside the powder room behind the dry kitchen on the first storey. “I wanted to have a crazy concept that will totally bowl people over,” says Cheng without batting an eyelid, which explains the whimsical composition comprising what he refers to as “crazy” marble floor and walls, a mosaic art occupying one entire wall, a mirror and vanity top illuminated from below that are skewed at an angle.

NO HOLDING BACK

Even the plan and massing of the house have not been spared Cheng’s audacious touch. Not contented to have a run-of-the-mill elevation that blends in with the rest of the houses along the street, he decided to play up the angles and colours of the non-symmetrical façade. A high cantilevered trellis soars above the car porch and the balcony on the third storey is designed as a box feature projecting at an angle. This is given a splash of matte bronze that complements the golden hue of the freestanding column and infinity pool. “I got the factory to match the façade cladding with the polished bronze casing on my Blackberry, but in a matte version,” Cheng elaborates. Beyond the façade, the interior is spacious and bright and voids have been incorporated to maintain the visual connection between floors. “This is a home for my family and communication is very important. This is why I did not want the floors to be totally segregated from one another,” Cheng explains. This is a home that only an extremely organised mind can conceive. Rather than an obsession, it is more like a passion that drives Cheng. The placement of rooms reflects a wellthought through sequence of actions and daily

“The idea is to keep the building block uncluttered using a simple massing and clean shapes, then enrich it with premium materials and precise detailing.”

routines. Some homeowners may frown upon having an entire shoe closet right next to the main entrance and make do with a small shoe rack or cabinet that barely meets the family’s needs; but not Cheng. While most people have their laundry area together with the backyard, Cheng made the call for the laundry room to be on the second storey to the rear end of the pool. “This makes perfect sense because swimming costumes and wet clothes go straight into the laundry. Besides, this is also where we get the best sun to dry clothes,” Cheng rationalises. It does not matter that it is different from where other people typically locate certain rooms. “What is most important is that it works for my family and me,” Cheng explains. “The idea is to keep the building block uncluttered using a simple massing and clean shapes, then enrich it with premium materials and precise detailing,” Cheng explains. This is evidently a home belonging to someone who appreciates the finer things in life and is not afraid to show it. Furniture, fittings and soft furnishings from Hermès, Fendi and Giorgio Armani feature prominently throughout the home. Worthy of special mention is the 10-seater dining table specially customised for Cheng by Giorgio Armani as their dining tables are usually limited to eight seats. Even the Fendi pendant light was customised to complement the longer dining table.

BEYOND THE TAG

There are, however, some things in the home that transcend their value in dollars and cents, like the Hermès Panda seat in the living room, which you can purchase by invitation

only. The detailing of the home is also one aspect that enhances its commercial, design and sentimental values. No element escaped Cheng’s pursuit of perfection. “I had the living room marble floor hacked and re-done because it was not the effect that I wanted,” he recalls. Cheng also personally scoured the remotest of locations overseas in order to find the exact stone that he fancied. The home’s extensive use of natural stones such as marble in a kaleidoscope of colours, textures and finishes is testimony to his relentlessness. The boundary wall is an enormous slab of black granite and the same stone was cut into large 1.2 x 1.2m tiles for the car porch. The natural stone steps leading up to the main door were handcrafted using a hammering technique and designed to conjure up a floating effect enhanced by LED lights. The centrepiece within the home is undoubtedly the lift shaft turned feature wall that extends vertically up four storeys. The unique Rainforest marble was individually cut and marked then assembled like a giant jigsaw on-site so that no joints are visible. Despite having developed 76 homes in the last three years for his clients, this is the first home that Cheng has built for himself and tailored to his family’s needs. “It is definitely more difficult building your own home than building for clients,” he says. Most importantly, “it is a project filled with passion to create a home that is truly an expression of who I am,” he adds.