Maureen Cheng, associate creative director at high-fashion magazine Icon, saw the renovation of her house rather like embarking on a creative project, and to make sure her designer Alex Kwan of Museum understood exactly what she wanted, she kept a scrapbook of ideas from magazines like Elle Decoration UK edition, which she reads faithfully. “I envisioned a stainless steel kitchen, with a chalkboard and wood for the balcony area,” she says.

What she didn’t want was polished showroom looks, but something more minimalist but still tactile, where she could feel textures like the rugged surface of an exposed brick wall. Alex, she says, really understood her. “He even advised me to keep the existing marble flooring and eighties-style timber false ceiling, giving it a new look by sanding it down artistically for a more scratchy, raw feel. Keeping these items also helped me manage my budget,” she says.

While the public areas of the home exude masculinity with its marriage of minimalist lines with the raw textures of timber, cement screed and brick, the private sanctuary that is Maureen’s bedroom is all feminine charm. A white French-country style bed from Cottage Crafts in Stamford Court anchors the space, flanked by mirrored bedside tables from The Loft. “I can’t really define a style for my home,” she muses, “It’s not dictated by any style but by my own personality,” explains Maureen.