Mercy Kyallo, the CEO of Yallo Leather and sister to media personality Betty Kyallo on Monday, August 17, gave Kenyans a glimpse into her home in a YouTube show on her channel.
Her meticulously furnished bungalow takes an all-white theme and architecture that resembles homes that hosted Europeans during the colonial rule.
Mercy explained that the most exquisite feature about the house is a corridor that leads into the living room which she has customised to her own liking.
She used translucent roofing to allow rays of the sun to trickled through and bounce of the white decor which gives the corridor a sureal vintage look. It also features doors on both sides which are mostly glass, allowing more light to sip through.
Being her favourite spot in the house, the sunroom, as she has nicknamed it, also has decor that is special in many ways.
The "room" has vintage lanterns which were the last to ever be produced by a craftsman from Lamu who would handmake them with his family. Mercy bought all the remaining pieces after the artist closed his shop.
When she moved out of her parents' house, she slept in the room since the house was empty.
"I was so scared, my bedroom was so weird since there was no furniture I decided to sleep in the sunroom. I had such an amazing time just to see the morning come up. At dawn, the sky just lit up and I loved the experience," she recalled.
Unlike her sister who has adpoted mordern architecture, Mercy's prefers vintage designs.
According to JKUAT urban design professors Muhoro Teckla, Munala Gerryshom and Mugwima Njuguna, these designs were heavily influenced by colonial features and modified by local culture, climate, tradition, materials and technology.
One of the most visible European influences was the classical revival style architecture which can be seen at City Hall. The classical revival style mostly signified authority like the Kenya Railway, and Judiciary headquarters.
One of the early architectural designs that resemble Mercy's home is the Karen Blixen Museum which hosted Karen Blixen whom the posh Nairobi surburb was named after.
{"preview_thumbnail":"/files/styles/video_embed_wysiwyg_preview/public/video_thumbnails/44frhN1qRlE.jpg?itok=XHlrWjOn","video_url":"","settings":{"responsive":1,"width":"854","height":"480","autoplay":0},"settings_summary":["Embedded Video (Responsive)."]}
