A home nestled in green

TALAVERA, Nueva Ecija — Beautiful. Lovely. Cozy.

These are the best adjectives I could think of when describing the home of businesswoman Daisy Lou Inos in Talavera, Nueva Ecija, which me and my wife happened to see and got a chance to peek at during a short trip here last month.

Being beautiful, of course, has various levels and concepts. A certain house may be beautiful to one but may not be so to another. As the saying goes, beauty is in the eyes of the beholder. People often need to effectively use their convincing power to let friends, colleagues, even family and kin, accept their view that the thing or object they had seen or been to is really and truly beautiful.

Fortunately, there’s not much convincing to do in the case of Daisy Lou’s home. Built on a 1,200-sqm land which used to be a rice field and later on a commercial place where plants and antiques were sold, the home showcases her sense of accomplishment as well as her love for plants and trees and taste for class.

A big patch of green greets visitors to the home of Daisy Lou Inos in Talavera, Nueva Ecija. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

“I have dreamed about having my own home ever since I started working after graduating from college,” she says, her eyes beaming. She’s actually the eldest in a brood of three, and the only girl among the children of Ensong and Lina Inos whose green thumbs helped develop and nourish a plant nursery and garden business.

Today, the nursery has grown to occupy more than one hectare of what was once a rice field located at the back of a resort the Inos couple set up in mid-90s.

Daisy Lou helped out in the family business and got herself involved in other business ventures after she lost her husband in a tragic vehicular accident along the North Luzon Expressway. They have three children, and while her parents provided moral and financial help, Daisy Lou strove to raise her children–two girls and a boy–on her own as a single mom.

The family-owned resort named Tropical Garden Resort in Talavera is not only frequented for swimming and recreation activities. It has now become a popular venue for social gatherings–weddings, birthday parties, family reunions, wedding anniversaries, sometimes even events organized and sponsored by the local government. Daisy Lou oversees the preparations for these events like decorations and programs and the catering. Her eldest daughter, Karla, helps out by talking to prospective customers and attending to their needs, including the meals.

Daisy Lou Inos: A dream house fulfilled

“I’ve saved whatever I earned from these deals to realize my dream of having my own home. I could have easily just stayed in my parents’ house (which is adjacent to hers, actually), but I really wanted my own,” she said.

In 2020, that dream came to reality. It took two years to build the house, but it was all worth it. Daisy Lou spared no effort to fill them up with, well, interior plants first. She then bought furniture that fitted her sense of class and style, producing a cozy ambience. The ceiling lights that adorn the living room, the dining room, and the area fronting the four bedrooms provide not only a magnetic shine and glow but an aesthetic treat as well. The kitchen has been equipped with modern-day kitchenware. A theater room adjacent to the sala offers a place to watch the latest movies as well as features from movie and video-streaming networks. Care to take your meals? Then take a seat before a long polished narra dining table and dine in style.

The facade, the cozy interiors, the furniture and decor, the spacious rooms, the airy patio, the elegant dining area and set–all these easily draw one’s sense of wonder and envy. Yet, what sets it apart, what defines the home’s “soul” and “character”, is the greenery that envelops it. And Daisy Lou has her youngest brother Lorenz to thank for.

Lorenz helped design the house and do the landscape. He has actually been responsible for maintaining the green ambience of their resort and has done-and continues to do-construction and landscaping projects in Talavera and nearby towns. Some of his projects have been featured in Philippine Daily Inquirer and posted on Inquirer.net.

Related links:

A green haven rises from a barren field

Nueva Ecija landscape designer turns gardens into retreat from the city

Much of the landscape artistry on Daisy Lou’s lovely home and garden bear the prints of Lorenz’s other works. There are differences of course–the layout, the plants selected, the accent. But Lorenz’s works project a touch of magic. Visitors will easily be drawn to the lure of the green plants, refreshed with the ambience they evoke, soothed with the coolness they provide.

Seeing Daisy Lou’s home and getting a peek inside is like one being led into a lovely, cozy place nestled right in the middle of a charming garden. Simply beautiful, simply a dream home.– Abel Ulanday

/MUF