UAE | General

A man's home is his castle - or pad

You can be single and have a great home as well. Makram Khadij's modest two-bedroom flat reflects his preference for the stark look. Still, the interiors radiate warmth and cosiness

  • By Sona Mampilli
  • Published: 00:00 February 16, 2001
  • Gulf News

If you think a bachelor pad is all about cigarette butts, slept-in sofas and unwashed glasses, then take a peep into Makram Khadij's two-bedroom apartment in Dubai. Account manager at Impact/BBDO, Khadij has taken a lot of effort to dispel the notion that the interiors of a bachelor's flat lack good taste.

A year and a half ago, Khadij came to Dubai and chose a cosy two-bedroom apartment which he decided to turn into his home. The first thing he did was to get the flat tiled in a neutral shade (with a hint of warm tones). "I chose the colour based on the ambience I wanted to recreate in this home - namely, a warm look," he says.

By doing up the place in a simple yet contemporary way, Khadij has created an interior that is both restful and comfortable. Given the limited space, he has set up, what he calls, a creative environment.

Most of the pieces of furniture are from Design People, where he also got a lot of advice to do up his place, and his collection of paintings is by local Lebanese designer and artist, Imad Bechara. To begin with, the living room seating is made of sea grass, and has cushions with Nepalese embroidery adding warmth to the dark linen upholstery. Roman blinds complete the setting, which is accented by plant-holders in solid copper.

When asked about his choice of Roman blinds, Khadij explains that he thought it was simpler and goes well with the kind of setting he has come up with. "I did not want curtains and pleats here," he says. "Besides, the latter would not look good with this kind of an interior."


The living area... warm and cosy©Gulf News
The lampshade bases have rough textures and are made of paras stone. "The wall hangings are from Indonesia and are painted on wood," he says. Since Khadij likes the look to be stark, pieces like the Nepalese rugs strewn around the floor, the cushion embroidery, and the paintings and accents together add colour to the living area. The end result is that nothing looks overdone.

"The room is cosy, I feel - colours range from orange to yellow to brown - this feels warm and cosy," says Khadij. The coffee table and side tables have frames of zinc and are topped with solid aluminium, copper, steel and brass inlay work.

Khadij adds that he loves to chill out in the living room with karaoke sessions and music, when he is not musing, at times, on putting in some more flying hours to get his flying certificate.


The dining table©Gulf News
The dining setting, which is fashioned from coconut tree wood and teakwood and has its own architectural form, is part of a limited edition sets (only two or three pieces are done in this range) from a Dutch company. "The designer is obviously crazy, but I love this look," Khadij says with a laugh. But is this kind of a chair comfortable? "More than you think," he replies. "You have to sit on one and find out for yourself."

And true enough, the curves, which follow the shape of a human body, make for relaxed sitting. On one side of the dining set, hang two stunning paintings by Imad Bechara, his favourite artist – the work is acrylic on PVC and is hung on ancient rice-pounding sticks from the Far East.


The bedroom... it has very relaxing air. ©Gulf News
His bedroom, in blue and white colours, is also very relaxing. On the wall, hangs a painting by Bechara, which was exhibited at the opening of the Media City in Dubai. On another side, a frame with a collage of pictures of his girlfriend and him also finds pride of place. "It was a gift from her," he says.

The foyer houses what Khadij calls a half-moon table - a restored Thai piece of furniture that he bought from Sharjah. He has placed a black-and-white picture of his parents on it. The TV unit in the living room is from the same place.

"I plan to add some things from time to time but, in general, the look will remain the same," Khadij says. This house is in direct contrast to his previous house in Saudi Arabia - a furnished villa with huge sofas, et al. "It was a comfortable house," he recalls. "But this look is more my style and I found the right people to help me. It was a match of taste between me and Design People. My final home will look like this but, hopefully, it will be on a bigger scale."

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