After calling Coloane Village home for over 30 years, Eileen Stow, of the famed Lord Stow Bakery has moved to one of the group of houses on Estrada da Aldeia, swapping the buzz of the village for the tranquility of Cheoc Van Bay.
“It was like getting a quart into a pint pot!” laughs Eileen Stow as she describes her move from a spacious, much-loved, two-apartment house in Coloane Village to her current charming, but smaller house on Cheoc Van hill. Known at one time as ‘Little Beiruit’ because of the shocking state of disrepair of many of the houses, the area has gradually benefited from some beautification projects, with owners putting in considerable amounts of money to restore their properties.
The place is much improved; “it’s a matter of hygiene, safety and neighbourliness to keep one’s property in good order” she stresses. Playing her part, Eileen recently employed the skilled services of specialty painters Decora Art & Colour to give the front wall and entrance of her new home a fresh faux concrete finish.
Despite moving only a mile away, for Eileen, whose life in the village was comfortably established, it was a big decision and undertaking. “My landlord needed their property back. It was a worry, but luckily I found this house quite quickly.”
Plans for the move were waylaid by the added complications and anxiety of the Covid lockdowns and travel restrictions. Eileen had been invited to fly back to England to receive her Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (MBE) in recognition of her contributions in Macau to British business, education and culture. During the three weeks quarantine on her return, she whiled away the hours drawing out plans for each room in the new house, so when it came to moving in, “I knew exactly where to put all the main things.”
Entering Eileen’s new home, visitors are met with a sense of relaxed hospitality, of familiarity in the décor, the same unpretentious elegance. A vase of fresh white lilies scents the air. Books are piled under the TV screen. Two rescued dogs, Django and Plucky lie contentedly at one’s feet. Walls are full of artfully hung pictures, posters, paintings and maps, from the living-dining areas and up the stairs. Each has a story, marking fond memories, the important times in her life, from pre-Macau when she was General Secretary at the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors, to the front page of the UK Times newspaper dated the day of Eileen’s birth, theatre and musical shows attended over the years. Pride of place hangs the framed Warrant of Appointment for Eileen’s MBE.
Fitting her sizeable collection of furnishings, books, ceramics and artwork into the new space was a challenge. But where the inside space is lacking, the benefit of a larger outside area more than makes up for this. Eileen enjoys entertaining and used to host many gatherings on her village house rooftop – “but it was brutal in the summer and the steep stairs to get to it were precarious, especially carrying all the crockery, glassware and food.”
Now she has a roomy terrace that backs on to the house for her parties, “It’s a blessing!” She’s had the floor retiled in elegant grey stone, added shaded areas above outdoor seating and a large square dining table and placed several outdoor storage cabinets “really useful, we’re so short of storage inside.” Tall pot plants, wall creepers and two bright pink ornamental flamingos, Fanny & Fenella, rehomed from the garden coffee shop at the old Sheraton, complete this invitingly comfortable scene that so many friends have come to enjoy.
As the inside kitchen is so teeny, an outside awning and stainless-steel wash up area has been installed, tucked in behind the back door.
“Originally this house had three bedrooms upstairs, but two have been knocked into one – giving me a fantastic, massive main bedroom which I love. The other I’ve made into my walk-in wardrobe”. Downstairs, where the car port used to be, is now Eileen’s study.
How else does this new home compare with her old one? “The light is different, in the village it was diffused, softer. Here the sunshine hits the front of the house so strong that we’ve had to add thick linings to the front curtains and keep the blinds half lowered.”
Other comparisons? “I miss the closeness and variety of the village … when I took the dogs for a walk, I could go any number of ways down the little streets there, whereas here it’s just left or right! And it was useful being able to nip in to the bakery or the office for something. But in Cheoc Van I love the tranquility. The village has got a lot busier especially on weekends and holidays with all the visitors. Here it’s very peaceful.”
The house was absolutely spotless when Eileen moved in and immaculately painted all magnolia inside. “My sofas were all white, making the place look washed out” so she had them recovered in a rich red fabric, using her paint pantone board to match the red with the base of the glass-topped dining table and its two arm chairs, “as reds can easily clash.” She also had the sofas raised for added comfort by adding taller legs. Under the dining table is a thick orange tribal rug that perfectly complements the orange dining chairs.
Other treasures transplanted from the village house to Cheoc Van include: a gold-painted wood lion with human-like face, discovered in a dusty little shop in Guangdong; a glass-case coffee table containing antiques and memorabilia from family and travels; a cocktail trolley displaying lovely cut crystal decanters; a gilded metal-framed mirror this time hung vertically due to space constraints behind a black lacquered cabinet painted with birds and flowers.
At the entrance to Eileen’s study is a hanging glass case displaying her cherished collection of Victorian China fairings – charming little porcelain ornaments, mostly pigs, named as such as they were given away as prizes at fairs.
The study is a treasure-trove of collectables, with floor to ceiling shelves installed along the length of one whole wall to display them. Antique glass bottles and porcelain parrots that once served signature cocktails at the Green Parrot Disco, Hyatt Regency Hotel (now the Regency Art Hotel) which Eileen’s late brother and Lord Stow Bakery founder Andrew used to run. A charming ceramic theatre scene. The chicken-glazed porcelain seated monkey (“I’m a monkey” she explains of her Chinese zodiac sign) from dear Lou Chi Hong on San Ma Lo is a recent purchase. Eileen smiles at the two gold egg tarts in glass cases, examples of long service award gifts to Bakery staff, several of whom have reached employment service of over 30 years.
On the opposite wall, an eclectic mix of more framed posters, souvenirs and original hand-coloured maps of old Macau in the 1760s by JN Bellin from the Map House in London. Next to the Chinese scholar desk are a couple of nods to Eileen’s heritage … the Union Jack-painted ceramic stool and cushion.
A cozy guest powder room and under-stairs laundry cleverly disguised behind folding white doors, completes the ground floor. Upstairs, on the half-landing sits a 6-foot tall, strikingly handsome carved wood-framed mirror bought by Andrew 35 years ago from the back streets below St Paul’s. Propped up against the wall next to it are several panels of a Chinese decorative lacquered screen, so big that it still waits for the right place to be hung.
On the top landing is a white glass-fronted cabinet holding Eileen’s hand painted Carlton Ware collection featuring decorative leaves and fruit, popular art deco English table ware from the 1920’s and 1930’s. A mid-century doll’s pram is used to store rolls of spare towels. And above it is a box-framed lace baby’s christening gown, a family treasure that Eileen, her brother and sister were all christened in, bought from India by their grandfather. The two bedrooms and two compact but practical and freshly tiled shower rooms make up this top floor.
With the nightmare of Covid behind us and the bakery business well back on its feet, Andrew’s daughter Audrey competently runs operations, so Eileen, who still manages some company administration, has more time to turn her attention and time to passion projects.
“My idea, because I’m getting to the age that I want to record things for the family, is to donate one-hour of my day to writing anecdotes about Andrew. Perhaps my notes will be made one day into a book, or just kept as family memories. Someone once called me a ‘legend enhancer’! Next year, October 2026, will be the 20-year anniversary of his death. Our Lord Stow Bakery & Café at the Londoner is a love letter to Andrew, with photographs from the family archives, stories of his pharmaceutical career, and his journey to Macau.”
Eileen’s other passion project is as Representative to the Trustees of Morrison Chapel and Cemetery. The chapel has deep meaning for the Stow family,
“Andrew played the organ there every Sunday for many years, Audrey was christened there and it’s where we held my late mother’s memorial service.” For the Trustees, “I’m their man on the ground. If I see bare patches of grass for example and there’s only one hosepipe, because that’s what we’ve always had, well that’s not good enough for me, I like to move things forward, to improve things.”
The cemetery presents a history of many interesting personalities and traders. Eileen wants to help look after the legacy of Sir Lindsay Ride and his wife, May, who in the 1950s and 60s came over to Macau from Hong Kong and made it their retirement mission to restore the gravestones and document the cemetery. Their efforts, particularly their book ‘An East India Company Cemetery,’ played a crucial role in bringing the cemetery back to life and preserving its history. Eileen and the Trustees are spearheading a new project to provide sign posts next to each gravestone with QR codes that can be scanned to show information on the buried person and what was going on in the China trade at the time. Endorsed by the Cultural Department as an important part of preserving knowledge of Macau’s heritage and culture, this initiative will be a community education project for locals and visitors alike.
Another thing close to Eileen’s heart is recycling and upcycling; saving furniture that she sees being thrown out and “giving them a second chance at being useful.”
“I always thought that Macau, because of its small size, could be a world leader in something like energy saving and recycling, to send out a message to other countries that if we can do it, so can you. We shouldn’t lag behind. Why can’t we lead in educating our children to not use so much plastic? As a consumer, I’d like to see far more education in recycling and in terms of the foot print we leave on this planet. It’s everyone’s responsibility to leave things better for the next generation, it’s a case of ‘planting trees’. We should look at what we’re buying, be more discerning. Why are the supermarkets covering everything in plastic for example? I do my best; I walk away from a lemon or a cucumber wrapped in plastic!”
“And Macau, what do I love about living here? Its beauty, its history. The safety, I always feel safe here, I appreciate the community spirit and the warmth with which Macau has welcomed our family. The other day I had such a polite and kind cab driver (booked through the MPay taxis). I thought, where am I, am I in Japan?! This was a positive for the future, in the way taxi-drivers are behaving, treating their rides as valued customers, not a nuisance!”
Written by Suzanne Watkinson of Ambiente Properties, Macau, for the Macau Closer August-September 2025 edition.
Photographs by Suzanne
