Living the high life by Channel News Asia

Living News
Living the high life By Goh Yun Ting,

channelnewsasia.com Posted: 10 June 2009 1836 hrs

SINGAPORE: Your home is tastefully touched with the Bang & Olufsen in one corner and Cappellini in the other, so it’s too audacious to think of spoiling the picture with the ordinary for your beloved four-legged companion.

Make room for chi-chi furniture for your Chihuahua with the Copenhagen Collection at online store Glamourpuss.

This range of furniture boasts of beds, dinner-sets and even a condo if a plain old basket is just not enough for your pet.

The furniture boasts of sleek and stylish lines that will blend with most modern urban interiors, raising your pet (and you) to immediate diva status. Inspiration was a “very ugly” cat litter box that designer Yuen Ree-Yong didn’t want to have to contend with for her two cats. “I couldn’t find a nice design that would blend (with the) interior (of my house) and thought that there must be more pet-parents who would like stylish pet furniture that complement their interior designs," said Yuen.

Yuen was then living in Copenhagen, hence the name of the line. After two years of product development, her “lab-rats” Coco (her pet dog) and Molly (her cat) finally nodded their approval and the products were ready for the market.

“Homeowners want their pet furniture to blend into their stylish homes and look as good as their own pieces.

“People love their pets - they're as precious to them as children - so it makes sense that they want them to have fabulous furniture and accessories,” said Yuen.

So now, unlike other poor canines that have to stoop their heads to gobble food, your pooch can chow delicately on its meal without any strain with an ingenious faux leather dog feeding table.

It stands a comfortable height presenting the food dish just where the doggy’s mouth is. And when it’s time for 40 winks, your pet dog can stretch elegantly on the Copenhagen dog lounger, complete with an ultra-soft, washable mock suede cushion.

The dog lounger comes in shades ranging from all-white or chocolate brown, and is touted to flawlessly blend with contemporary (human) furniture. And the chic pet furniture has alternative uses – Yuen wanted her design pieces to be so stylish that even those without pets could also own them. So, how about a kids’ TV lounger for what was the dog lounger, or turning the pup-chow table into a stylish snack or bedside table. The most popular item however is the Copenhagen pet carrier, which has also been frequently transformed into a magazine holder for the home. “It’s brilliant when people use their imagination and find different purposes for our products.

In our own home, we do this all the time and we use many pieces for different functions,” said Yuen. “We use the cat dinner-tray in the bathroom to put perfume bottles on and we use the square bowls for jewelry and trinkets.

The Copenhagen carrier is used as a basket for groceries, and the dog lounger is a favorite with my daughter, who uses it as her sofa!” For the felines, they will probably covet the condo – a trio set comprising litter box, cat bed and storage box – looking every bit like a funky creation out of Ikea. And that is not surprising, seeing how Yuen used to work at the Scandinavian furniture brand.

Other items for cats include a faux leather cat tray that comes with two square ceramic bowls, as well as a manicure set -- cat scratcher with recycled cardboard scratch-bar. The scratcher can be doubled up as a “doormat” for the cat’s litter box.

“Our pieces reflect the trends in interior design and they look sophisticated in the home. Moreover, we do not compromise on the quality of materials. For example, we use high-quality foam for the cushions,” said Yuen.

So apart from classy designs, you also get quality from your investment, which is well made up from the appreciation your pet will show in return. - CNA/vm