We’ve said this many times: A house is only a home when it is filled with lights, furniture and decor that suit the homeowner’s lifestyle. And, this still bears repeating because even though aesthetics is important, your humble abode should never feel like a chore or something that you will regret in the future.
Ascend Design, a collective of designers from both fashion and graphics backgrounds, prides themselves with helping clients build their brand as well as interiors that are thought-provoking yet totally functional.
What does this mean? We caught up with Jasper Goh, Managing Director of Ascend Design, to pick his brain on what that entails, what creativity means to them and the spaces they create and how lighting plays a crucial role.
What is Ascend Design known for?
Most clients come to us via referrals and the common thing they say about us is that we provide creativity with a good value.
Could you define “lifestyle focused interior and styling”?
When we design a space, we don’t just look at the typical requirements but rather the people using it. Who are they? What do they do? What do they love?
These are the questions we factor in while carving out an interior for our clients and they affect everything from space planning to colour coordination as well as materials selection.
In your recent post, you talked about “design-centric projects with clients who appreciate creativity in space planning”. What does this mean?
In the past year, we had projects where clients came to us because of the reviews online but all they want is someone reliable to build something they want and such spaces are usually quite typical.
These projects don’t exactly spark joy for us because we did not start out wanting to do “cookie cutter” homes. We would like to focus on creating spaces that have at least some forms of creativity and wow factor.
What are homeowners looking for today?
Honestly, there is quite a wide array of them but we try to avoid the “know it all”, “daily security”, “pay $10 expecting $100” kinds. But mostly, homeowners just want beautiful and practical homes that don't cost a bomb.
How does lighting play a part?
Most clients don’t understand this, but lighting is the final touch to a space that makes or breaks it, which is why we always tell them to head down to the Sol Luminaire showroom to experience it for themselves.
How have lifestyles evolved in recent years?
Due to the pandemic, we have seen the rising trend of home offices as well as homeowners wanting to cook more often.
Where do you find inspiration?
We make it a point to travel quite a bit, just to see what’s out there. We are definitely very inspired by what other creators are doing around the world and it spurs us on to do even more.
What is your favourite project that"These projects don’t exactly spark joy for us because we did not start out wanting to do “cookie cutter” homes."
you’ve done with Sol Luminaire? How did the lights help to create the home? "These projects don’t exactly spark joy for us because we did not start out wanting to do “cookie cutter” homes."
It would definitely be the 614 Senja project (pictured above) and the direction we had for the space was to make sure it created a very soothing effect, and the lights were definitely a key factor. We heard it was a big hit with their relatives during the recent Chinese New Year.
