My Palace in Taiwan - Helen Hsu and Alfie Huang

“Solitude requires you to move past reacting to information created by other people and focus instead on your own thoughts and experiences – wherever you happened to be”

— Cal Newport, Digital Minimalism

Hello everyone, we’re almost done with the first month of 2025! Crazy isn’t it, I could still see the smoke from the fireworks as if it were yesterday, but not, it’s almost February and we’re back, better, and hopefully in some capacity, stronger. Last year was filled with limelight and I couldn’t thank everyone more for making it happen. I have returned from my little holiday hiatus and am excited to see what this year will bring, I for one, will be bringing more interesting homes and stories to you that’s for sure!

One thing about me is I am a proud Taiwanese, and one thing about interiors in Taiwan is, that our options for interestingly built houses are a little more limited than in the states. Since we didn’t go through architectural movements like how Chicago did or the nationwide Art Deco era, our hyper-fixation on efficiency and measures to counter humidity within interiors made most homes available extremely simple and uninformed. This phenomenon leads to one thing, people with a vision will often need to start fresh and alter everything down to the structure of a home before they could even fill it up with things they love. I find this particularly interesting because, unlike the West, to make a home uniquely yours, you don’t stumble upon your dream home but build it out, quite literally even if it’s a condo, and I want to document cool places like these because that’s so cool, we, are so cool because of that.

Allow me to introduce you to Helen and Alfie! I reached out to them after seeing their home being featured on Every Object’s website, a gorgeous home curated by them, who turned out to be someone very close to my orbit. Like how many unexpected encounters happened, I did the pre-wedding photos for their close friend! Fast forward to Dec 2024, after knowing they only lived like 6 minutes away, we sat down and talked about what makes Taiwan so special, the power of space, and how they got to where they are now.

**Hi Helen and Alfie, it’s a pleasure meeting you two my fellow Taichung neighbors! Now before I bomb you with my questions, could you tell me who you are and what it is that you do?**

**H (Helen)**: I’m currently working as a freelance marketing specialist. Before that, I worked as an editor and copywriter. Now, I live in Taichung with my husband, Alfie!
**A (Alfie)**: I am an interior designer working on retail spaces across Taiwan.

Both of you have had a pretty extensive resume, from select shop to Conde Nast and now interior designing and Public relations, having worn so many different hats and doing it with impeccable taste, what was that journey like for you?

H: I majored in advertising during college, I loved how through advertising - no matter how commercial it is - you can see the trend and certain thought processes of the generation it lived in. The funny thing is, after graduation, I didn’t set foot in the industry but went on to be an editor instead.

Started out as an editor in a small magazine, and I later went on to work in a boutique select shop as their public relations assistant. I learned a lot during that time, whether it was copywriting, press releases, or nurturing relations with publications or designers and brands. I switched to digital marketing for Eslite Living after a few years, as time went on, I noticed my love for items grown and curated a pretty decent taste for how things should be or what a good campaign should look like.

A friend referred me to Conde Nast to work as their marketing executive, although it was a short 4 years, I accomplished and saw so many interesting things that helped shape me into who I am today.

I started reevaluating my life during the pandemic and with my now husband living there at the time, I decided to move back to Taichung. The change of pace then turned into freelancing wasn’t my plan originally, but with some great clients and the relations I’ve cultivated throughout the years, it seemed more and more like a realistic route and it’s been three years since I made that change in life.

A: I had a pretty interesting trajectory because I started out as an aero-mechanical engineer, opened up a select shop, and now doing interior design full-time. I couldn’t really tell you why these changes came about, but I believe sometimes opportunity comes to you when you least expected, and if you felt like it, you’d hop on and let it take you on a journey, which is kind of how I got to where I am now.

Interior design can be a hard industry to break in without a traditional background, especially in Taiwan. Alfie, were there any obstacles that you faced coming from an entirely different background?

A: I think there’s a reason that every industry has its corresponding major, so obstacles of course come with jumping in without said background, but I believe it’s more so a matter of when you obtained the skills - those you should’ve learned in school you’ll still end learning them down the road.

After quitting my job as an aero-mechanical engineer, I opened up a select shop. Crazy trajectory I know, during the process, I designed the retail space on my own, and some of the customers liked how I approached designing a retail space enough to ask me to work on theirs.

Obviously, with different backgrounds, you’re bound to have different perspectives and details you don’t notice until too late, but you learn through lessons and luckily, my clients are all satisfied with my work.

It took me a long time to have the courage to say “I’m a photographer” Did you have a moment of realization or certain case that made you think you’re ready to take on that label?

A: The moment I started taking on interior clients, I looked at and demanded that I reach the standard of an actual interior designer.

Coincidentally, mechanical engineering and interior design share some fundamental traits in how they function, so I was lucky enough to pick up the software and tools more easily than others. Similar approach but different output and scale.

In both of your years in freelancing, were there any incidents where the opportunity presented itself but you didn’t feel ready yet?

A: For me, I don’t think I’ll ever be in a state where I can say I’m fully ready. All I could do was give every opportunity that came my way the best I had to offer, luckily people liked it so far. To your question, I do feel unprepared oftentimes, but this is an ever-changing industry with so much to learn and much to expand on, there’s always new inspiration so the craving to be better and not settle is crucial for my line of work, and it’s something I request of myself when I decided to take on the role.

H: My experience is a bit different, having enough industry experience before turning freelance, I have a better grasp and understanding of how freelancing should be and making sure I’m ready for every opportunity no matter how big or small.

Because I didn’t start out as a freelancer like Alfie, I had connections, decent work-life regulations, and a good grasp on how I should approach every case. To echo Alfie’s answer, my biggest fear instead IS the fact that I feel too ready for everything. There’s a good balance between being too confident and being easily freaked out, I work really hard to not let myself fall into the trap woven by experience and either go stale or fall behind without realizing it.

We’re often our own harshest critics. Instead of thinking I could’ve done better, was there a moment in time when you’d like to tell your old self, "Good job, thank you for doing that?"

H: I’d like to go back to the beginning of 2020 when my company had a change within the leadership team and a new direct supervisor was assigned to us. Like any transitional period, miscommunication and differences in our approach caused much tension, I got promoted around the same time so I was working very closely with him while navigating what being a manager should be. We both want the best and are perfectionists but we couldn’t find the right wavelength between us with the pandemic happening it was a pretty stressful time for me, almost to the point leaving was the most plausible option for me.

Instead of leaving, I took some time to examine my relationship with this new boss and my job, how I view my position, and what I could do to improve not just our relationship but also the things I work on. I took on yoga, and that helped expedite the process. Meditation was a crucial way to have that conversation within myself.

If I could go back and give myself a pat on the back, I’d give my flowers to 2021 Helen for sticking around. Since then, I’ve learned a lot from my new boss and really become a better person going through that transitional period.

A: My own interest and current occupation are often inseparable, and whenever I am at the crossroads between career paths, I’d like to ask myself if I’d be ok spending a good chunk of my life perfecting my craft or going down a rabbit hole for this. Sure it may seem like I’m doing fine right now, but every leap of faith I took trying to turn my interest into a career, required a lot of courage and passion and often those are the only fuel that has kept me going.

If there’s any moment in time I’d like to go back and say thank you, it would be to every version of Alfie right before he’s about to make that leap of faith. Looking back I don’t regret any decisions I made no matter big or small, because it’s those experiences and the journey - solely backed by delusion, passion, and tears at times - that made me who I am and got me to where I am now.

Not only do you too work closely with lifestyle and curation but your own taste is top-notch from what I can see, I’m curious to see where you two get your inspiration from.

H: My media diet is very magazine-oriented. I like Vogue, GQ from across the world, Conde Nast Traveller, Apartmento, Magazine B, Popeyes, Cereal, Anthology, and many many more. I like to flip through them and see what other lifestyle enthusiasts around the world are doing and what is happening in the genre that I’m so fascinated by.

I treat podcasts more like a piece of background music, for me, a podcast is a window for me to understand what’s going on in the world right now and peek into what people are thinking nowadays.

I also enjoy exhibitions, and I am especially grateful for how accessible exhibitions and museums are in Taiwan. Whether it’s interactive installations or paintings, often it’s an opportunity for me to reflect, it evokes different emotions and I get to learn more about myself by how I interpret exhibitions.

Bike ride is also an essential part of my inspiration intake. Not really because it’s a great exercise but working from home, cycling helps me get out of the house and observe what people are doing. As a marketer, it is extremely crucial to create work that could speak to the public and echo what really matters to them. I like to people-watch with that in mind, what they’re wearing, buying, reading, scrolling, or talking about, and going out for a bike ride lets me do all that while ensuring I don’t stay indoors for far too long.

A: Both Helen and I are pretty avid readers so books took up a pretty big chunk of our day-to-day consumption. If we’re talking interior design, most of my inspirations comes from people. Retail and residential are both centered around humanity, so using our design as a vehicle for problem-solving is the core for me when designing a space.

I don’t really have a specific source when it comes to inspiration but being highly receptive and observant to things around me did help me a lot when creating a space for my clients. The more you absorb and expose yourself to touching things, and experiencing in person across genres the more you can reference you need to.

It’s been four years since the pandemic hit and for some reason, I’m so proud of what Taiwan did during that time. I’m sure you guys had a completely different experience than the states so what did you do to stay centered and sane? Have any of those new habits carried over now that things are back to normal?

A: The pandemic definitely shifted many things for us as well. I feel like I had an opportunity to re-learn who I am after many years of being in the field or even just as an adult. We did pick up yoga though, now that the pandemic is over I think yoga is a pretty important part of our lives that got carried over from those times.

My workload actually got heavier when the city shut down. I’ve had many clients who wanted to renovate their storefront and home because there’s less foot traffic or after staying in for so long they decided to upgrade their space.

H: When our government finally announced shelter in place I think around 2021, I was living in Taipei with roommates in a gorgeous split-level apartment. My room had this huge window facing Taipei 101 and the mountains so even when I couldn’t go out and about, I had a really great time slowing down and re-focusing on my own pacing. I didn’t feel stuck, to say the least.

Navigating through working from home in a highly communication-dependent industry was really tough but surprisingly, it did ease my way into freelancing now because I got to establish a good daily routine when it comes to working remotely. I do miss online happy hour though, hanging out with friends without worrying about how to get home or even putting on makeup was a huge perk *laughs

A: I think if anything we became more used to not seeing friends as often as we used to, but it is because of that, we crave higher quality time so when we actually got to see each other, it felt more genuine and we always end up having more fun than we used to.

I know both of you enjoy traveling and have had your fair share of immersing in different worlds. From your perspective, what do you think makes Taiwan so unique?

H: As a marketer, I’ve worked on international brands like Toyota, Lexus, Chanel, Cartier, and Leica, and I’ve noticed whenever there’s a Taiwan campaign, people are really keen on finding out what makes us uniquely Taiwan.

What makes us stand out, as an industry is something we’ve spent many decades and still couldn’t fully figure out because It’s such an open-ended question with too many correct answers. As a country, Taiwan is still very young with many footprints going from China, Japan, Holland, and Spain that all left a pretty important impression on the clay that is our collective culture. On top of historical reasons, we absorbed many cultures not just from the past, but with transplants from all over the globe even before we got to establish our own identity ourselves.

I hope to find the many sides and possibilities Taiwan holds even if it has a hint of China, Japan, or any other foreign visitors, something that goes beyond just tea ceremonies, night markets, or temples. When you think about Taiwan, you don’t have just one imagery but a series of different scenes, it’s exactly because of that Taiwan is such a diverse and eclectic city among its eastern Asian neighbors.

A: From an interior or architectural perspective, Taiwan is extremely diverse. We have many great styles from different nationalities co-existing together, furthermore, we have many great works done by masters from across the world. That being said, if we were to ask what makes Taiwan so special I think we’re still looking for it ourselves. Taiwan as an island had many geographical or environmental constraints whether it’s humidity or the way our land is, this makes it harder for generations who were before us to establish flexibility within their space.

Two to three rooms, a dining room, and one living room are the uniform approach you’ll see across most properties here in Taiwan, and it has been that way since when my grandparents' generation and I were growing up.

H: With the culture flattening and how easy it is to be exposed to cultural information globally, Taiwan often falls into the hamster wheel of trying to look like others or catching up to trends. To echo what Alfie said earlier because our early settlers were here not to live but to survive, they didn’t have the luxury to develop the need for style or how could they make their space something they’d truly love. It wasn’t until our parent’s generation did we got to imagine, picturing what a good city or lifestyle should look like.

We’re working really hard to get there collectively, but I don’t think we’re fully there yet. I’m excited to see where things go for us as the need for such flexibility and imagination becomes more prominent for us and all generations after us.

As I look around I can see a lot of your taste in a tangible form! Now the hard part is, what would you say is your favorite thing about your home?

H: It would be my books. Almost every book you see around the house is mine, with many still in storage. I’m working on bringing all of them in sometime in the future because one of my favorite elements or what I love to see in a space with a full floor-to-ceiling library. I still buy books often and we rotate what’s on display every now and then but I could never get rid of anything no matter how big the collection grew.

A: I would say it’s my stereo and music collection. Everything I own here can’t be replaced and holds a special place in my heart, but for me, what truly makes a space cozy and a home, is what’s playing when you’re in it. Music helps express or alleviate my mood and having control over that, even down to the background jazz that’s playing right now, is my favorite thing for sure.

And we are almost at the bottom of my list of Qs for today, for those who are interested in getting into this business or starting something of their own. What suggestions or advice would you like to give them or wish you had known sooner

H: During my days at Conde Nast, I got to cross paths with many interns and new hires fresh out of college. Often they share a radiating fantasy or expectation for what this industry could be, and my biggest advice here is the same as I’ve been telling them, you need to be patient. Nowadays, with how easy it is to witness other’s accomplishments, it’s extremely easy to fall into this trap and start losing faith in yourself or look for shortcuts when everyone you look up to has overcome struggles you never knew.

I want everyone to know to venture forward with steady steps and be firm with their goals. No outside voice should be big enough to waver them on their journey. Future generations are born with information overload, which definitely makes their lives much easier. However, it’s so easy to second-guess your abilities or lose confidence in that environment. Get your hands dirty, put in the work, and don’t miss out on the fun that is the process.

A: If you can help it and the environment allows, don’t try to grow up too fast. As Helen said, enjoy the process and keep that almost delusional idea of “I got this”, hold on to that mentality for as long as you can. Sure, it doesn’t always go the way we want even if we try so hard to imagine it does, but never lose that ability to dream big way regardless of how knowledgeable you are in the craft at the moment.

To wrap this interview up, I am also curious personally: What’s on the horizon for you? Are any “Big things coming” in the works for you? What would you like the world (whichever random soul stumbled upon this article) to know about?

A: I have a few cases under construction that will go public this year. I’ve been working on a retail space for a pretty long-standing bespoke suit workshop that should go live pretty soon, we incorporated elements from the 70s to echo the brand’s history and components that are uniquely Taiwan.

H: If there’s something I made sure to budget and add to my annual plan is to spend a month in Europe. I like to visit shops old and new, observing trends and how people live in a world I adore so much.

I’m also looking forward to more opportunities for collaboration, not limited to work-related ones. I’d like to open myself up to encounters, experiences, and abundance in many aspects just to see where this could lead me.