Richard Gutierrez purchased his 186-square-meter condominium unit, on the 16th floor of One McKinley Place, in mid-2004. He moved in last December 2005, a year and a half after Budji Layug and his team started on the interior design.

The dining area, directly adjacent to the entertainment den, has view of the Pacific Plaza and Essensa buildings, two other high-end residential condominium buildings in the Global City, more popularly known as The Fort. "We put benches here," says Clarisse Chiongbian. "So they won't cut you from the view. We didn't put anything tall, we didn't want anything else. He can fit as many people as he wants with benches on the side."

The bathroom closet's compartments hold short-sleeved shirts, towels, undies, socks, and pambahay shirts. The two-panel, floor-to-ceiling mirror doors not only add to the overall sleek design of the place, they are alos very functional, especially for a bachelor who makes a living from being well-groomed.

Richard says his aquarium, which uses salt water, is the "soul of the house."

The wood panel on top of the aquarium can be opened up for heating and ventilation, as well as for cleaning. A maintenance team comes in every month to clean up the tank.

Richard's bathroom is cleverly placed behind teh huge aquarium that graces the living room. By using smoked glass on this side of the aquarium, Budji made sure Richard still has his privacy.

Richard's Budji-designed bed has light underneath that give the room a dramatic effect at night, when all other light sources are off. It also creates the illusion of a floating bed against a pitch-dark wooden floor. A few inches away from the foot of the bed stands another plasma TV set, the same size as the one in the entertainment den.

The state-of-the-art kitchen showcase boasts wares and appliances from Germany. "Nagpadala sila ng brochures kay Richard, mga tatlo," Annabelle recalls. "Pag may napili, order. Pag dating, saka sila gagwa ulit dito. Kaya matagal."