A serene escape by the sea – Inside the weekend home of Giselle Go and Philippe Terrien
Founders of the Japanese skincare brand DAMDAM, Giselle Go and Philippe Terrien, escape the buzz of Tokyo to their peaceful weekend home in Misaki.
GISELLE GO AND PHILIPPE TERRIEN have found a life that flows in harmony with nature. After years in bustling Tokyo, the couple longed for a slower pace and found it in Misaki, a serene fishing village nearby.
There, they discovered a small house with a lush garden and views of the Pacific Ocean and Mount Fuji. Now, they split their time between their Tokyo apartment and their peaceful Misaki retreat, reconnecting with nature along the coastline.
The couple's weekend home has sweeping views of the Pacific Ocean.
Inside, the house is just as serene, warm, and full of character as the world that surrounds it.
The couple first met in Singapore, where mutual friends introduced them while they were both working in the fashion industry. The connection was instant, and within a year, Giselle moved to Philippe’s longtime home, Tokyo. Between the fast pace of city life, they often escaped to the countryside, where they fell in love with Japan’s landscapes and its deep-rooted culture of craftsmanship. This appreciation for Japan became the heart of DAMDAM, their skincare brand that celebrates local values and natural ingredients such as shiso, snow mushrooms, and rice.
Their weekend home in Misaki is spacious, warm, and full of character. Fishing baskets rest beside an ever-growing collection of washi paper, framing the surrounding scenery that floods in through the floor-to-ceiling windows. In the kitchen, Philippe spends hours crafting meals with herbs and spices from their garden, while Giselle unwinds in long, restorative baths overlooking the ocean.
The serenity of the Misaki home is captured in its details: natural light, warm wood, and carefully chosen objects come together harmoniously. The Kink vase is by Earnest Studio.
How is living in Tokyo?
“The magic of Tokyo is the many secrets of the city. When people talk about it, they usually talk about the big attractions like the Sensoji Temple – which is beautiful – but the city has a lot of layers, and you can go very deep into it. There are so many streets with unknown magical places to discover. Now we know the different areas to go for ceramics or vintage shops, but we are always on the quest to discover small places no one talks about. The constant rediscovery of the city feeds into our creativity.”
You live with one foot in the city and one in nature in your home in Misaki.
“When we first met, we would go to the countryside almost every weekend to unwind. We went to discover different places closer to nature and the land, and it came to the point where it made sense to have a home outside Tokyo. We were living in the middle of the city and felt a need to balance it.
We had been looking for over two years, and then a friend of ours introduced us to this house by the seaside. It was in really bad condition, but we could see that the bones were very good. So we decided to knock it all down and rebuild it.”
When renovating the house, a feeling of openness was the key. This really is a home where light and fresh air can move effortlessly through every space.
As a contrast to the bright, airy spaces, much of the home’s original wood was preserved and carefully cleaned, adding warmth and texture throughout. The lamp beside the bed is the Post floor lamp by Muuto, and the storage basket is Restore, designed by Mika Tolvanen.
The result is a true dream home for both of them.
Can you walk me through the house?
“The house was originally built in the 70s by an American photojournalist who moved to Japan. He was interested in a mix of mid-century modern and Japanese design. We tried to preserve the feel of the original house but modernize it at the same time.
We left a lot of walls with their original wood, which was preserved and cleaned, but added window panels all over the house. It was really important for us to have that open feeling of fresh air and light coming inside the home. Now it looks like the ceiling is floating at night because you don’t see the wall’s glass corners anymore. It’s magical – this house is our dream place. We didn’t think it would become that.”
“This house is our dream place.”
How do you choose the pieces that you live with?
“It is a mix of what we already had and things that were in the original house. We have restored a lot of it. For example, Philippe had a table designed by his old friend and architect David Chipperfield, but it was a little bit rotten, so we worked with woodworkers in Japan to have a completely new top. We also have things we collected from traveling and a few pieces that were in the house that we just cleaned up and salvaged.”
The home décor is a mix of what the couple already had and things that were in the original house. The carafe and drinking glass from the Raise series are designed by the Swedish design studio Broberg & Ridderstråle.
Over the years, they’ve filled their home with meaningful objects collected from their travels, for example. The Strand table lamp is designed by Benjamin Hubert.
Where do you go to relax?
“We designed two main spaces in the house. For Philippe, the kitchen, and for me, the bathroom. Philippe has a full kitchen to do everything he wants. He works with spices and herbs from the garden, preserves a lot of food, makes bread from scratch, and tries new things, so the kitchen is his area.
Mine is the bathroom, which is my sanctuary. I have a wall of windows towards the bamboo garden and a view of the ocean from the Japanese bath. I’m always there.”
For Philippe, the kitchen is a space for relaxing and slowing down.
It’s his personal sanctuary for experimenting, preserving, and bringing flavors from the garden to the table. An orange Sketch Toolbox serves as a cutlery drawer.
From homegrown herbs to handmade bread, every dish reflects his love for craft and flavor. The Wave tray is made of stainless steel.
On the other hand, Giselle's haven is the bathroom with views of the bamboo garden and the ocean beyond.
What is the role of nature in your lives?
“Nature is everything. Our alarm clock is the birds. Living so close to nature has been a humbling experience because we had to learn to be attuned to it and its flow. The more you live in nature, the more you understand how it works. We can understand the month of the year depending on which flowers are beginning to grow. Nature is marking the passage of our time.”
The couple has a large garden where they grow herbs and greens.
Most days are spent with hands in the soil.
Living so close to nature has been a grounding experience, teaching them to move with its rhythm rather than against it.
Do you have any rituals?
“We grow sage in the garden. We burn it to cleanse the house, as well as incense to clear the energies. Otherwise, we normally wake up quite early and have a cup of matcha. We have been producing our own matcha with an organic farmer from Kyoto. After that, we spend a couple of hours in the garden, especially in summer. Then we have lunch and return for a couple of hours in the evening for gardening.”
Fresh herbs and garden flowers often make their way indoors, adding a natural touch to the home’s decor.
The playful Kink vase gives wildflowers room to shine.
What is your favorite time of the day in the house?
“For Philippe, it's when he wakes up. The first thing he does each morning is open the bedroom door and discover the color of the sea of the day. Sometimes, it is completely white because of the waves raging onto the rocks. Sometimes turquoise, sometimes gray or black. You never know what you're going to get.
For me, it’s the sunset because it’s also different depending on the day. Our neighbors taught me to look at sunsets. I’m learning to observe them and how the sun sets in different locations depending on the season.
From here, we see Mount Fuji, and there is one day a year when the sunset is right behind it. That's called Golden Fuji. That particular day, everyone is excited. It's just perfection.”
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Published on 10 Oct, 2025
