Pacific notions: Inside a family’s island getaway in Mindanao, Philippines

Pretty soon Van Dierendonck and Le Neindre were hooked and travelled to different parts of Mindanao to source the material.“We did it from scratch,” Le Neindre recalls. “We learnt how to harvest, to source bamboo, to find the farms that would sell us their bamboo, and to test it.” Van Dierendonck took the lead in the technical aspects, spearheading the construction of Bricco, their own bamboo treatment facility. Gaddi then designed a training course for the construction crew, enabling them to learn specific skills such as bamboo cutting and joinery work. All in all, five different kinds of bamboo were used to build the house.

As soon as they acquired the land, Van Dierendonck and Le Neindre turned to their friend, Carol Karthe of Ladrilyo, to help conceptualise their home’s layout. Serving as design consultant and interior curator, Karthe played a key role in shaping the look and feel of Aman Sinaya. Often seen as a lifestyle designer, Karthe is known for her holistic approach to addressing her clients’ needs and desires.

Knowing Le Neindre’s background as a chef and restaurateur, Karthe designed the flow of the open kitchen and conversation pit to create a convivial and relaxed atmosphere that reflects the informal style of entertaining that the couple prefer. Her initial design was inspired by traditional architectural elements, particularly the bahay kubo, or nipa hut. Aman Sinaya follows this concept, featuring an elevated structure where the main living area is raised above ground. “The feeling of being elevated gives you a grander view than being on the ground…it feels like you are walking between the trees,” Karthe explains.

Building upon Karthe’s initial drawings, architect and Bamboo Bootcamp professor Jed de Guzman was brought on to develop the structural design. In line with traditional bamboo construction techniques, Aman Sinaya features a cement foundation and supporting columns on the ground floor, preventing water damage while ensuring structural stability.

From the first floor upward, bamboo serves as the primary building material, forming the core framework and supporting the expansive roof. The couple estimate that building with bamboo cut their cement use by 60 per cent compared with traditional construction methods.

The house truly shines by showcasing various applications of bamboo design—from the pinboo technique, where thin bamboo slats are compressed to form the staircase steps, to the “skeleton” bamboo banisters crafted by Kawayan Collective of Negros Oriental. In the master bath, thin Japanese bamboo poles are placed as a ceiling accent.

The pièce de résistance of the house is no doubt the open-plan kitchen, living and dining space on the second floor. The main priority of Van Dierendonck, an unusually tall man for the Philippines, was to have unrestricted movement in his own home. “Right from the beginning, Alec wanted an exaggerated height. For him, it’s the ultimate luxury,” Le Neindre explains.

The result is a double-height entertainment and dining area with sweeping views of the ocean and treetops below, as well as the bamboo support beams and roof above. Large picture windows are framed with custom-made abaca Roman shades by Soumak. A Balinese door anchors the space with the drama it deserves. The great room certainly takes advantage of its spectacular setting.

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As Le Neindre emphasises, “we wanted it to be a free-flowing house. We want to be able to see up and down and let nature come in”. To achieve this, Karthe designed a lattice border screen between the windows, following a solihiya pattern that casts playful shadows on the Vigan terracotta tiles, while allowing the sea breeze to filter through.

Karthe and Le Neindre’s close friendship was essential to the success of their collaboration. Karthe’s preference for streamlined interiors with moody, natural tones provided a balanced contrast to Le Neindre’s colourful, maximalist tendencies. “Because we are friends, I am not scared to be blunt with Celina and to tell her what I am thinking, and the good thing is, Celina listens,” Karthe explains. Le Neindre acknowledges that she has learnt a lot from Karthe, including her approach to décor—allowing one objet d’art to serve as the focal point while letting other pieces blend into the background. One of Karthe’s favourite selections for the house is a pair of oversized, carved Gmelina wood floor lamps from Soumak. Given the scale of the home, it was crucial for her to source pieces that complemented its height.

Wandering through the house is a tactile experience, inviting guests to touch and feel the different textures, nuances and imperfections that come with designing with natural materials. In the primary bedroom, a delicate leaf-motif screen by Jed Yabut elegantly conceals the wooden Balinese bathtub from view. A sculptural rattan furniture set made by Locsin is an interesting focal point in the sitting area that faces the pool and ocean view. A hand-carved marble sink sourced from Romblon-based Estilo Marmol, takes pride of place in the powder room.

It was important for everyone involved that artisans from Mindanao were tapped to create pieces made from indigenous materials for the home. T’nalak throw pillows, woven by the T’boli tribe, were sourced from Tadeco Home. The brand’s founder, Maricris Floirendo-Brias, also designed the cream-coloured abaca chandelier in the master bathroom, featuring a coral motif. Greenhouse was commissioned to create the oversized arched door with an intricate parquet design that leads to the powder room. John John Gross of Grosswood took charge of the built-in woodwork, designing custom-sized beds for the master and kids’ bedrooms, as well as bunk beds for the surfer’s room. Renowned Davao artist Vic Secuya spent time at Aman Sinaya and was inspired to create the twin paintings, Songs of Dawn and Moonlight Serenade, which frame the interior staircase. Khite, a macrame artist and surfer, stayed in the house for a week to weave the beaded curtains that serve as the entrance to the en-suite bathrooms.

Reflecting on the completed structure, Karthe initially had doubts about the house’s imposing scale but now sees it as its greatest strength. Its height mirrors the unusually tall coconut trees of Mati, while the natural tones of its exterior allow it to blend seamlessly into the landscape despite its size.

Karthe takes pride in the couple’s commitment to their vision of creating a sustainable bamboo house, and that the materials are readily available in the Philippines. “When I first saw the bamboo poles for the posts upon delivery, honestly, I had never seen bamboo that tall, 15 metres! It wouldn’t even fit in the longest truck. The bamboo from Mindanao is so beautiful, so huge and as wide as my neck,” she recalls.

She is equally proud of their achievement in constructing a bahay kubo at this scale. “At the moment, it is the biggest residential bamboo house in the Philippines,” she says. “I am proud of how daring we were to build this.” Le Neindre hopes that her home inspires others in Mindanao to build sustainably, “We wanted to highlight how beautiful it is to use native, indigenous, organic materials that belong to the area.” She notes that their construction workers are now converts to bamboo as a building material. “Our workers are so trusting of their own work and so they are now all building their own bamboo houses,” she says.

The benefits of building with bamboo are most evident on a hot summer’s day, when the natural materials help to shield the family from the worst of the heat. “We appreciate the house because [the bamboo] is cool, on a hot day, everyone wants to be inside the house,” says Le Neindre. The fact that the house survived a 7.5 magnitude earthquake a year ago is another testament to the resilience of bamboo as a building material.

Their journey in building Aman Sinaya was by no means easy. The challenges of the pandemic and the steep learning curve of working with bamboo stretched the project to over four years to complete. But Aman Sinaya was well worth the wait. For Le Neindre, every visit reaffirms her vision: “The house is a showcase to remind myself of how beautiful it is to live in Mindanao.”

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