On a cosy corner near Safa Park, along a quiet block lined with gigantic trees that billow in the breeze is a community of charming, but unassuming houses. “I always drove past these villas – curious and wondering what they were like,” says Osca Blom who now lives there with her husband, Alexander. “So when I finally saw the inside, I knew instantly that we needed to move here.”
The moment the old wooden arched doors open and you step off the street into Osca’s front garden, you’re transported even further away from the chaos of the city, protected from the buzz of fast cars and gleaming towers.
The garden extends around the perimeter of the villa, offering visitors a vibrant welcome to an equally colourful home. “Our home has a slightly bohemian feel to it,” says Osca as she guides us through the spacious entryway, the hub of the villa, which leads to each room through arched doorways. “And I love the fact that it’s a bungalow – it gives it a slightly retro feeling.”
Osca’s home is an amazing mix of styles and colours. Many pieces are family heirlooms, while others are things that she and her husband have picked up while travelling – or at Global Village, one of Osca’s favourite places in Dubai to scout for treasures.
“My mother used to have an interior design firm in Holland, so growing up I learned all about furniture and design without even realising it – and I really came to love it,” she says. Now Osca has her own design business, Sofa Studio at the Courtyard in Al Quoz, where she can share her passion for eclectic design with Dubai residents.
Many of the pieces that Osca grew up with have found a place in her Dubai home, and she has some interesting antiques, sculptures and artwork from Asia, where her father-in-law spent most of his career.
Over the years, he built up a huge collection of Asian ceramics, sculptures and art, including a large ceramic horse sculpture in the entry hall and various paintings in the dining room and corridor. Nearly every piece in her carefully curated collection has a story – from the antler chair her mother sourced from Switzerland for a chalet she was designing in Holland, to a beautiful rug in the hall made from discarded silk sarees in India.
“Sometimes I buy something that I absolutely love, but I don’t know where to put it,” laughs Osca. But walking through the home you never get the sense that things have been placed haphazardly or without careful consideration – each piece has its rightful position, without looking fussy or over-designed. And that’s what is most intriguing and exciting about it. “Over time, you realise the perfect place for things, even if you don’t know right away,” she says.
“I think the trick to mixing styles is to understand proportions. Especially when you have lots of bright things that are all different and don’t match,” Osca says. “You need to realise that not everything can be the stand-out piece. If you’re going to have a heavy or bold sofa, you need to choose a lighter coffee table.”
Many of the antiques in Osca’s home have been given a new lease of life with new upholstery using vibrant textiles from Afghanistan and India. “That’s what I really love doing,” she says, “I love taking an old piece of furniture that was nicely designed and give it a totally new look.”
Osca and her husband love to entertain, and that’s why they’ve taken the time to create a space that is both comfortable and full of conversation pieces – each one with its own story. “I just love it here,” says Osca.” I think it’s so important to be surrounded by the things you love and the things that remind you of where you are from and where you’ve been.”
