'I wanted to bring countries I love into my home': Jamie Chua shows off swanky new house at Sentosa Cove

They say home is where the heart is. That adage certainly rings true for socialite-turned-content-creator Jamie Chua, but her new dwelling in Sentosa Cove seems to contain more — perhaps even enough for a traverse across the globe.

"I wanted to bring the countries that I love so much into my home," she says of the three-storey, 7,800-square-foot abode. She's sure succeeded in doing so, with each section of the house bringing you to a different part of the world.

Chua explains that the inspiration arose amid travel restrictions during the Covid-19 pandemic: "I realised that it's so important to have a living space that reminds you of your favourite places and memories."

Even the house's exterior seems to transport you to a different place. Built on reclaimed land overlooking the cove, this idyllic corner of Singapore could just as well be some dreamy faraway resort.

On the first steps inside the house is an undoubtedly Parisian entryway, framed by white boiserie that radiates light in the afternoon sun. A little farther in, the sitting room features more of the same panelling. Louis Vuitton trunks bookend the space, adding to the atmosphere of a French salon in Singapore.

Beyond that classic flair, a sense of modern eclecticism bombilates throughout the room. "I wanted a little old-world charm, but not too much, of course," Chua says.

On the walls are a hint of contemporary Asian influence — paintings by Vietnamese artist Van Tho, picked out by Chua's boyfriend, Terence Koh. A sofa and coffee table from Italian brand Minotti anchor the room, while a pair of Chesterfield-style lounge chairs pave the way to a deck that leads into the garden.

Recounting a trip to London, Chua tells BTLuxe how those chairs came to be in her home: "I was in a store in Walton Street — and I saw these two chairs and a big table." She fell in love at once, and knew she had to have them.

Created by the former designer of luxury brand Chrome Hearts, the pieces weren't originally for sale, but she persisted. "I went every day to bug the designer until he said 'yes'."

Hands-on homeowner

That go-get-em attitude seems to have fully permeated Chua's approach to her home. "Terence and I were here two, maybe three times a day during renovations," she says, adding that work would sometimes extend to late in the night.

While the duo worked closely with their architects at Type0 Architecture, they also tried their hand at designing some parts of their house, including the massive wine chiller that separates the sitting and dining rooms.

"We were initially considering a full wine cellar, but decided against it because it would've been very energy-intensive," says Chua, who owns an impressive collection with some hundreds of bottles.

Picking the environmentally friendlier option paid off in other ways, too. The copper-toned chiller units — complete with monogrammed handles — add a tonne of visual interest without clunkily segmenting the house. The addition of a display case at the end also gives the option of decorating for different occasions.

Another area Chua changes up regularly is the dining room. An eight-seater dining set in neutral white and wood tones sets the stage for another of her prized collections — tableware.

On this particular day, she's put out a spread of green and silver, turning the space into some marvellous illustration straight out of Alice in Wonderland.

Heading back outdoors, the garden takes us on another tour through Europe, with blooms that would fit naturally in a well-manicured English yard, and a mini-orchard of lemon trees, inspired by Chua's time in Italy's Amalfi Coast.

There's a distinctly Singaporean vibe here, though, from the archway covered in indigo-azure butterfly pea flowers, to the dense swathes of lalang grass that line the garden's edge, forming a surprisingly tame border between the house and the water.

Chua smiles at the rose plants that have just started to blossom. She tends to the flora herself, having rehomed the lemon trees from her previous place in Merryn Road and the temporary home she lived in before moving here in March.

A section of the garden is dedicated purely to herbs and spices, which she harvests for cooking: "It's because we entertain so much; we can just take a bit of what we need, when we need it."

Then Chua shows us another — and perhaps slightly unexpected - highlight of her home: a chicken coop. Made with wood brought from her previous home, this pink-painted poultry palace houses a small clutch of fluffy Silkies.

"I not-so-secretly love it," she jokes. "As a child, I lived a stone's throw away from a chicken farm, and I used to keep chickens myself. The coop brings back the inner child in me, which I think is really important to remember."

Practically perfect

Of course, form in a home means nothing without function. To that end, every inch of the house was designed with Chua's needs and lifestyle in mind.

Take for instance the walls of her entryway and sitting room — behind those pretty panels lies a practical purpose. "I don't like to see clutter, so we have a lot of storage, including behind the panels," she says. Opening them reveals a treasure trove of memories — photo albums and boxes of knick-knacks — all just a quick slide or pull away.

With some 1.3 million followers on Instagram and over a quarter-million on TikTok, Chua ranks among Singapore's most popular content creators. As a bona fide social media queen, it should come as no surprise that her new home was also purpose-built for shooting videos and snapping pictures.

"This house was made for content creation," she says. "Every area is Instagrammable, even from multiple angles."

She adds that the decision to move came about because her previous home wasn't adequately fitted to shoot videos in. Lighting in particular was a challenge, one that had to be tackled head-on in this new pad. "I didn't want to have too many overhead lights," she says, pointing to the small, gently glowing lamps up above.

Instead, emphasis was placed on adding as much natural light as possible. Both the sitting and dining rooms feature floor-to-ceiling glass doors and windows. "We would have added more if we could," Chua quips.

But the centrepiece of the house is, without a doubt, Chua's walk-in wardrobe on the second floor, which houses not only her gorgeous collection of designer frocks and footwear, but perhaps most dazzlingly — her handbags.

The wardrobe, which spans some 700 sq ft, was the focus of Chua's design process, with no stone left unturned in ensuring it would serve as the best display for her pieces. The final product is a miniature boutique with floor-to-ceiling glass-doored displays and a vanity room on the side.

"We did have to compromise a bit of space from our bedroom to have a larger wardrobe," she admits. But that, again, has been to her benefit, since she prefers a snug sleeping space. "It's cosier! A larger bedroom would have been too cold."

Right in the middle of the wardrobe is a smaller oblong room, which holds Chua's famed Hermes Birkin bags. The glass-and-brass enclosure provides the perfect backdrop for the collection, which is said to be the biggest in the world.

In all, this house has been more than a year in the making for Chua. On finally settling in, she says she's loved the new neighbourhood. "It's very peaceful; I really appreciate that I have all the things I need here." For sure, with the stunning interiors and relaxing views, we're not certain if we'd ever want to leave if we moved in ourselves.

Asked if this was the home she'd imagined before moving in, she quips: "It's even better."

ALSO READ: Dream closet? Jamie Chua flexes walk-in wardrobe while getting ready for cocktail party

This article was first published in The Business Times.