Positive living

Step inside the home of FHM Girl Next Door 2011 Esther Tan.

Sun, Oct 30, 2011
The Star/Asia News Network

By Daniel Sim

Business development manager Esther Tan, 24, lives in rather luxurious surroundings with her parents and siblings in a million ringgit home in Klang. But life has certainly changed since winning the Girl Next Door 2011 contest of FHM magazine recently.

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"This year has been a dream come true for me and I feel so blessed," says Esther, when StarProperty.my visited her 3,600sq ft, semi-detached home that her parents bought for RM1.2 million (S$490,000) two years ago.

She has been modeling part-time since returning home from Australia in 2007. She studied marketing and international business at the University of Adelaide.

Since winning the cover girl contest of the men's magazine, she joined the Miss Global International pageant held in Miri, Sarawak, and was placed second runner-up.

Door of harmony

An interesting feature of Esther's house is that the interior has been decorated according to Chinese geomancy or Feng Shui principles. For example, the main door is located to the right of the house rather than on the left, which is normally the case in such homes.

"According to the Feng Shui master, the door should not be directly facing the altar, so we moved the main door to the right. We have a big door, which is double the usual size, because it is believed that a big door will create greater harmony in the house," explains Esther, who is a devout Buddhist. The door features an intricate glass design which resembles tiny, intertwinning stars.

English accent

"My parents and I, researched websites and magazines to try and incorporate (suitable) decorating concepts for our home. We came up with three design concepts for the different parts of the house," points out Esther.

The living room is decorated with Victorian highlights, with a red sofa with floral motif set against a white backdrop. There is also a chandelier that evokes the ambience of a 19th century English house. The lounge is also decorated with a TV set and karaoke system.

Colourful theme

"We have three rooms on the second floor and one small room on the ground floor. My siblings and I, prefer a more modern interior design so all our bedrooms - with attached bathrooms - are designed with contemporary concepts," says this lover of modern art.

Modern design here means a specific colour theme. For instance, Esther's younger brother, who occupies the smallest room in the house, has his room painted blue. Blue is known as a cool colour that can keep one calm and happy. Other than the blue walls, the custom-made wardrobe, study table and bathroom door are also in blue. The bedroom also reflects her brother's favourite past time which is collecting wine. According to Esther, the imported wines are not only of limited production but they are hard to find.

"My youngest brother who is still studying, occupies the largest bedroom beside the master bedroom, so when we want to have a discussion or play board games, we would all gather in this room," says the busy girl who tries to spend as much time with her siblings as possible.

Stepping into this bedroom creates a cosy feeling as the room has orange as its dominant colour, which evokes warmness. Besides having a larger study table, this bedroom has a window that overlooks a man-made, circular lake in the neighbourhood.

"I love pink because it represents universal love, so that is the theme colour for my bedroom," says Esther. Her bed is actually a four- poster bed with white drapes tied at each corner of the bed. Next to it, is a white dressing table with a floral motif of red roses.

The pride of place is a unique open-shelve cabinet with glass compartments. "Here is where I display all my expensive perfumes as they help me relax after a long day at work," says Esther.

One of her favourite perfumes has a fruity scent with the letters "GND" on the bottle. She actually chose the ingredients herself, as part of her rewards for winning the "Girl Next Door" FHM contest. Her bedroom is also the only room that has a small balcony overlooking a park.

The master bedroom has a large walk-in wardrobe with wooden cabinets with antiquated features. Next to the wardrobe is the master bathroom.

Drawing inspiration from Mira Hotel in Hong Kong, the master bathroom has an open concept with no door or bolts. Esther's parents prefer to take a bath by soaking in the large bath tub. The master bedroom adopts a Victorian concept similar to the living room but with a much larger sofa where you can literally sleep on it.

Balinese verandah

The dining space offers a rectangular table, with eight matching chairs decorated with a Victorian motif. Large rectangular windows with a plant motif surround this dining area. The windows offer a green view of the outdoors. Next to it, is a set of four doors that lead you to the verandah.

The verandah incorporates a Balinese concept. The highlight here is a ceramic Buddha statue placed next to a waterfall feature linked to a rectangular fish pond. A Chinese tea set completes the scene.

"Usually after dinner, my family and I will spend time here sipping Chinese tea," says Esther.

The verandah at the back of the house is her favourite spot. Not only is the space furnished with cosy bamboo chairs but there is also a rod where Esther can practise her pole dancing skills.

Positive thinking

As a marketing graduate, Esther believes in the motto, "Always be prepared and always be positive in facing challenges". Of late, she has been involved in charity and social awareness campaigns including a blood donation drive.

Planning ahead, Esther is working towards owning a business in three years. In the meantime, she has persuaded her father to jointly invest in a RM400,000 condominium property in Kota Damansara scheduled to be completed next year.