(SPOT.ph) A few years after being finally able to go back to the office and resuming our existences in the outside world, many are realizing that staying home is truly where it’s at. It’s where we’re most productive, most happy, and able to participate in the different facets of our lives. With people just trying to endure the worsening traffic situation in the streets, it’s hard not to pine for those days when “office” was just a few steps away from the dining table, and lunch was literally home-cooked and served straight from the stove.
Which is why weekends are a very real thing again—that precious time when we get to recuperate and rejuvenate, lounge around and do our favorite activities: read a good book, get creative in the kitchen, and share a meal with our loved ones. We are looking at our domestic environs yet again like we haven’t done in the last few years, re-evaluating, finding out how we can make them conducive to relaxation and recreation, zeroing in on corners we can reclaim, and asking: What sort of pieces can I bring into this to brighten it up, or make it more perfect for kicking back?
Which is why we’re proposing “staying in” for this particular Spot Weekender, instead of telling you to go out, explore the city, check out the latest restaurant—which we do quite a lot during the rest of the week. But just this weekend, we’re asking you, if you haven’t yet, to consider curling up in bed or the sofa and letting your eye travel around your home, and dream of creating the perfect weekend atmosphere.
To help you out, we tapped the expertise of interior stylist Maina Alonso to put together for us three spaces that will give out that weekend vibe. And we have Anko to supply the stuff we exactly needed.
The Anko world
The popular Australian home and lifestyle brand Anko, which opened its doors in the Philippines at Glorietta 2 last November, has a new collection of home decor, bed essentials, and kitchen- and tableware that are perfect for the homeowner looking to give their spaces a refresh. Or, you know, for creating our personal nooks and rooms and spaces that make weekends, or even an ordinary weekday at home, worth looking forward to.
Anko has made a name worldwide for its products that are designed with functionality, style, and affordability in mind—designs that appeal to a wide range of tastes and aesthetics, making them easy additions to your home office shelves, your kitchen countertop, or the ensemble of decor and personal effects on your living room console.
For Spot’s weekend spaces, we have a living room vignette that is as cool as an overcast morning by the sea, comprised of a beautiful rug that’s soft on the feet, different-sized throw pillows in subdued colors, a blanket to keep the chill at bay, candles and picture frames that add warmth to the space. An ottoman stands on the corner as both fixture for sitting, as well as an incidental partner to the checkered tray on the low table. That’s one good thing about Anko, by the way—each item has that ingrained quality of having more than one purpose.
And then there’s the kitchen, which seems made for long preps and slow cooking; a place you can stay the whole day in, in fact, just browsing thru one cookbook after the other in between stewing and braising and whatnot. The nature patterns and natural wood finishes will sure provide a beautiful contrast to the sleek surface of your countertop and backsplash.
Finally, there’s the dining setup, where the textured runner sets the tone for an area with a natural vibe, and the pieces of blue earthenware on the table converse directly with the framed image of a bed of waves and a surfer just behind them. Talk about bringing the outdoors in.
Latest collection
Anko’s latest offerings has a lot of natural materials and organic patterns, making them perfect for creating a chill, earthy vibe at home. And while the collection is focused colors-wise on neutrals—soft whites, greys, natural wood—the accents are reminiscent of gardens and beaches: green, blue and lilac. Did we already say it’s bringing the relaxing outdoors in?
“Neutral tones and simple contemporary patterns serve as an ideal foundation, offering texture and flexibility,” says Siri Thanissorn, Anko designer in Australia. “These versatile base colors can easily be paired with accent colors like green, blue, or lilac to add character and vibrancy to a small space without making your space look small.”
With the colors and the items’ natural feel, these spaces don’t feel small at all but are as freeing and expansive as the outdoor spaces they conjure. Now you just need the chatter of loved ones, or maybe some music. When you can create the perfect world indoors, no wonder the home continues to be where the heart is.
Visit Anko at the Ground Level of Glorietta 2, Makati City, or visit their website and Instagram to learn more.
Photographs by Jar Concengco. Styling by Maina Alonso
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