A view of the of sala from the patio (photo by BIBSY M. CARBALLO)

From the moment we stepped into this house in a small village in Pasig, our attention was immediately caught by the certain look it has. It looks large from the outside and it seems even larger inside. It is airy and spacious, with no dividing doors. Its furnishings are a mixture of local and Asian antique and hardwood, most of them from the Ilocos region. Enhancing this roomy atmosphere are the large picture windows, where a waterfall can be seen.

This is the house of Atty. Koko Punsalang, and the manner in which she discovered this home was providential. She had not intended to leave the comforts of her mom’s residence in Fairview, where she didn’t need to pay rent and for other amenities.  Koko had accompanied a friend on a house hunting trip in Pasig. A real estate broker toured them around this village and it was Koko who ended up buying a house when they checked out a property located near the village chapel. “There was a sign indicating it had been foreclosed. I don’t know what it was in that house that seemed to call out to me. It looked bad but I fell in love with it because I began thinking of the things I could do with it,” Koko recalls.

It took two years to complete the renovation of this house. Koko and her husband, commercial pilot Joel Punsalang, had fun dividing the work during the remodelling. Joel was in charge of the plumbing, electrical, and carpentry requirements. Koko handled the aesthetics.

The land area of the house is 303 square meters; the floor area with a mezzanine, second floor, and an attic came up to more than 500 square meters. Originally, the sala, dining, and kitchen were squeezed into one area. Now, this entire area is occupied by just the sala. The dining area and kitchen have been moved to a section of the basement that is visible from the sala.

A new, higher ceiling replaced the original, thus enhancing the roomy effect. The mezzanine had three rooms which Koko turned into one huge master bedroom with a walk-in closet and workroom. The second floor had four rooms which she converted into three bedrooms for her three kids. There is a lovely family room, which the children apparently hardly use.

Koko enjoys recycling and moving things around. She shops for wood in Dapitan, the small stores along Katipunan in Quezon City, and various tiangges. She devours lifestyle magazines for ideas.  Some paintings are cheap, mall discoveries that suddenly acquire a class of their own in this new setting.

We liked what Koko did to the second floor which exhibits her standard touch of fusing Asian designs with Ilocano accessories. It is the only part of the house that can really let the outdoors in. Koko complains she has such a big house but no garden. This is compensated by the several indoor plants and a waterfall streaming down the giant natural stones she brought in from Ilocos. This waterfall is her conversation piece and she enjoys putting on a “water show” to guests, with full lighting effects.

Anyone walking around each room will notice how each particular nook is different from the other. For instance, each photograph has its own unique frame. Every table features a distinct genealogy and type of hardwood. Many items were inventively recycled; wooden frames for the large windows were sourced from 100-year-old Molave hardwood. The wood used for the kitchen and bar furniture were taken from fallen acacia tree trunks hauled from Ilocos and mounted on thick metal grillwork taken off the original house.

The Punsalangs have been living in the house for five years now yet Koko considers the place a work-in-progress, what with so many areas inspiring her imagination. She is still hoping for a garden and that could possibly come to pass should the adjacent vacant lot is put  on the market.

Email the author at bibsycarballo@yahoo.com.