Mission (style) possible

Upon setting foot in the home of Eric and Bernadette Puno, the initial impression I got was its streamlined character and its wonderful mission style. Having seen and savored quite a lot of peoples’ homes, which are mostly decorated and overwrought with details, what immediately comes to mind is that this young couple believe that less is more.

A couple of sofas, a three-quarter Yamaha grand piano, a minuscule wrought iron and wood topped coffee table, an armoire housing a handful of Lladro porcelains and prized family photos, a skirted round corner table on which a lamp is propped and a pair of hand-painted kiddie chairs – these are all that inhabit the capacious cathedral-ceilinged living room.

The rest of the rooms in the whole house are furnished with just the essential things that make the lives of the family members relaxed and comfortable. No piece is brought inside just for drama or decoration. Bedrooms have all the essentials – bed, side tables, reading lamps and sofas – and little else.

According to Bernadette, the reason behind the simple decor is to make household chores simpler for the couple, who like to like to do things themselves when their schedule allows it. The Puno children have likewise been trained not to rely on domestic help.

The first 10 years of the Punos’ marital bliss were spent in southwestern California, particularly Santa Barbara. There the two worked while they started their family, enjoying the American way of life.

The Punos are unwilling to follow the prevailing trend where interior walls are splashed with wild colors. Instead, pristine white paint cover the walls and ceilings. Building the house, selecting every item, deciding on what methods will suit the situations and all the other aspects of construction have bonded the two together. It is easy to see how Eric and Bernadette make a team to beat.

Bernadette earned her degree in entrepreneurship at Assumption; Eric took up Industrial Management Engineering at De La Salle University. The year of their whirlwind romance was 1981 – they met during Christmas – and in no time the two were married. Having relatives in the USA, it was easy for them to make the decision to live and work abroad. There, Eric worked practically seven days a week while Berne took on a work schedule that allowed her to attend to household needs and raise her growing children. They are proud and happy about what they went through abroad, about the hard work and the subsequent rewards.

Like most Filipinos who spent happy but hectic times abroad with their growing children, they found themselves concluding that indeed, there is no place like home. And their home is influenced by California design sensibility as manifested in their mission style inspired home. The two are in love with the homey characteristics of design style and the very aura that it exudes.

One very charming feature inside the house is Berne’s predilection to pretty paintings. Such handiwork manifests itself in the dining room. Two of its walls feature trompe l’oeils. Above the buffet a frame features renderings of blue and white porcelain jars so real-looking, it is hard to decide which are the real thing and the painted ones. On another wall, a double door leading to the family garage is painted with a garden scene that can fool anyone – enough to crash into the door while trying to go to the garden.

The reaction one gets on his first visit to a place in most cases changes upon his next visit. People in the design world have a term for this, they call it biglagenic. I failed to finish photographing the whole Puno house on my initial trip, making it imperative that I go a second time. My original impression stayed unchanged: with a structure so excellent, the charming embellishments were simply the bonus.

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