Season of Serenity

SHE SPRUCED up the garage with colorful parol and boughs of holly. INQUIRER/GRIG MONTEGRANDE

MANILA, Philippines Actress Tessie Tomas inexplicably shed tears when work was done on the heirloom home she bought and started restoring in June 2011. Designed by National Artist for Architecture Pablo Antonio, the two-story structure stands in a bustling neighborhood somewhere in Pasay City.

To cut down on costs, Tessie took a hands-on approach. There were at least 10 workers here every day for three months, she relates. In the home stretch, I was supervising the workers every day.

Six months later, during the blessing, Tessie found herself crying again, this time from sheer exhaustion.

Like a person

I would sometimes talk to the house as if it were a person. I felt so close to it, she says.

BREAKFAST nook by the waterfalls features more antique pieces. INQUIRER/GRIG MONTEGRANDE

She took a break from show biz to devote all her creative energies to the restoration.

Since the man who designed the house was a pioneer in modern Philippine architecture, Tessie made sure not to tamper with the original design. We didnt change the tiles; we just cleaned them. Some friends thought the flooring was vinyl; actually, they are stone tiles.

She was awed by the woodwork on the stairs, doors, beamsall narra. Even if you stomp your feet on the floor or bang the doors, you wont hear a thing, she insists.

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Season of Serenity