Semi-permanent motifs for your (temporary) decorating pleasure

I'll admit it--I'm a bit of a commitment-phobe. Maybe we all are, given that we're stopping over / considering settling down/ gaining work experience in Shanghai, but what this city does offer are options. (By the way, I'm talking about decor here--I don't know what you're thinking about!)

I popped into Simply Life the other day, and after fidgeting with the cute Alessi home wares, colorful motifs caught my eye. What were they? Grotto Tiles, removable static cling films (think stickers without the, well, stickiness) with intricate patterns and paisley print. Colors range from bright red and orange to the more demure combination of espresso brown and sky blue. I chose a set with olive green and pale pink, now adorning the once-ugly tiles of my bathroom wall.

I had a quick chat with Grotto Design Creations designer Leslie Chen, who takes inspiration from designs found in ancient Chinese grottoes and re-interprets them in these tiles and stickers. Chen holds a Master of Architecture degree from Yale and was awarded "Young Talent of the Year" in 2006 by Elle Decor China for this series of work.

How did you come to create this product? Our products are mainly made for export to Europe and Japan, it was only last few months we started to sell them in Shanghai. "This is a mature popular products in Europe but it seems like consumers in China needs more knowledge.

We love these decals because... they can be applied flexibly on tiles so if you rent a place or have a wall of tiles you can't demolish, the results look very close to the real thing. The technology of using static-cling stickers makes it easy to apply/change/remove.

Grotto Design Creations donates 3 percent of profits to help PLWAH (People Living with AIDS and HIV) in China. It is a short name for people who are living with AIDS/HIV, meaning the infected HIV people, AIDS patients and their families. I lost my brother to AIDS when he was 27, so over the years, I have been doing some volunteer work and making personal donations.

These decals can be re-applied on non-porous surfaces (tiles, windows, mirrors). Prices range from RMB25 onwards for various sizes and patterns, so go on--now you have a reason to use that squeegee.