Location: Motor City, Dubai | Area: 2,400 sq. ft. | Photography: Nayan Soni

When designer Shea George was invited to redesign her cousin’s home in Dubai, the brief was as personal as it was creative. The family, originally from Kerala and now long-settled in the UAE, wanted a space that didn’t echo the city’s typically glossy, high-shine aesthetic. Instead, they sought a home that felt like them: rooted in culture, unpretentious, warm, and layered with details that would evoke familiarity and comfort. What unfolded over the course of three months, four site visits, and a thoughtful blend of local sourcing and India-inspired craftsmanship, was a home that seamlessly merges heritage with modern living.

The existing apartment, while spacious, lacked character. Ageing tiles, mismatched windows, and a tired layout made it feel both dim and disjointed. George began with a vision to restore balance, starting with a palette reset, crisp white walls to refresh and unify, warm wooden flooring to ground each space, and thoughtful reconfigurations to enhance movement and purpose. “The very first change I proposed was to open up the kitchen and create a breakfast counter that could double as a bar,” says Shea. This intervention not only added functionality but also made use of the home’s high ceilings, drawing light deeper into the layout. A small, overlooked storage room near the powder bathroom was reimagined into a cozy dining nook, a now-favourite corner of the house that fosters intimate family meals and quiet moments.

The living area posed a particular challenge, with its asymmetrical and unchangeable window placements. Rather than fight the architecture, George embraced it with floor-to-ceiling drapery, creating symmetry through softness. The result is a voluminous, yet cocooning space, perfect for the family’s love of hosting. Throughout the home, the designer curated a cohesive visual language through natural materials, earthy tones, and textiles that told a story. Many of the fabrics used, particularly in the bedrooms and dining space, are hand-block printed, sourced from India to bring in familiar textures and craftsmanship that resonated with the family’s heritage.

The master bedroom is a quiet retreat, wrapped in off-whites and layered patterns that nod to traditional Indian decor, yet feel decidedly modern in scale and restraint. Fixed furniture pieces, like the dining bench upholstered in matching prints, create rhythm across rooms, ensuring continuity without monotony. But perhaps the most poignant design gesture is the bespoke crockery unit. Inspired by Kerala’s colonial-era furniture and crafted locally in Dubai, it marries memory with modernity. “It’s one of those pieces that instantly makes them feel at home,” notes Shea. The unit not only holds function but carries an emotional weight, connecting the family to the homes they remember in India.

Attention to detail continues in spaces often overlooked. The corridor is given a sculptural touch with an arched frame and rattan pendant lighting, a tribute to materials the family grew up around. The powder room becomes a space of quiet drama, adorned with patterned tiles, a rustic custom console, and a rattan mirror that has been with the family for over a decade, refreshed but never replaced. These small yet deliberate choices elevate the everyday and lend the home a lived-in authenticity.

What makes this house truly special is how personal it feels. Each room carries a blend of old and new, a woven narrative of where the family has been and where they’re going. There are pieces collected over time and new ones discovered in the process of creating this home, but all are held together by the unifying thread of intention. Studio Shea George has not only created a space that reflects her clients’ lifestyle but one that honours their roots and memories. In a city known for its transience, this home stands as a warm and lasting tribute to identity, belonging, and the quiet joy of thoughtful design.

Fact File :

Location: Dubai

Size: 2,400 sq. ft 

Design Firm : By Shea George

Principal Architects : Shea George

Photography Credits: Nayan Soni