The Holistic Guru: Bella Koh

Who: A powerhouse food, design and wellness stylist, the social media maven behind Instagram account @catslavery, and a member of our Female collective.

What: Koh transformed her former Tiong Bahru shophouse apartment last December into a twofold workshop and event space, and christened it The Slow House. Think of it as an extension of her popular Instagram feed, where feel-good images of plants, cats, home-cooked dishes (made with organic and sustainable ingredients) abound. She holds intimate workshops (for between five and 10 people) to educate time-strapped folks who still want to maintain a healthy diet (earlier workshops have focused on Japanese-style broths and plant-based milk formulas). Then, there’s the events part, where external brands can rent the space for their own events – but with a #slowlife twist. “It (slow life) means simply to slow down one’s pace (especially) in a fast-paced city like Singapore,” she says.

The rationale behind the concept: “Slow House was partly created to change the way events work – I got bored of attending events that were really too commercialised and almost meaningless.” So, she designs and presents “slow food” tables for brands such as Chantecaille and Innisfree, with a specific focus on whatever is launching – for example, pomegranate balsamic dressing on sustainable barramundi for Innisfree when the Korean skincare label was introducing an antioxidant-heavy range. During these events, Koh also conducts workshops in conjunction with the brands.

How to get in: The space is (at print time) all booked for events, but Koh plans to conduct additional workshops (her last round of workshops was in January) for the public later in the year. In the meantime, there’s the option of taking private, one-on-one sessions with her, but you’ll have to e-mail her (love@theslowhouse.co) for more details.