kaylinpickles

i thinking for shipping bulky items i may consider amcon express. i thought it was abit complicated they charge per cubic meter but after some calculation its actually alot cheaper. i took the IKEA's ektorp 3 seater sofa as an example : http://www.ikea.com/sg/en/catalog/products/S69875862/ the measurement is 87cm (W) x 41cm (H) x 201cm (L). the total is 716,967 which after i used peeka.sg's calculator the shipping is abt $190 and 65daigou is abt $112 (based on their rate of above 100kg its $4.7 for the first 500g and $0.90 for subsequent 500g). whereas for amcon express its abt RMB550 or abt $110 per cubic meter. the ektorp sofa is 0.71 cubic meter which is actually not even 1 cubic meter! so the shipping is only $78! but of course they charge GST and $35 declaration or whatever but if you buy in bulk its definitely cheaper than those peeka or 65daigou. only thing is does amcon does checking and inspection, does anyone have any idea? because i think only agents do inspection and repacking, forwarders dont.

hi there! not sure if you saw the sofa on taobao already and took the pic from there but they have a couple of nice ones. i myself am eyeing on it coz i really like the zakka/MUJI style and this seems to be the exact one you've mentioned : http://item.taobao.com/item.htm?spm=a230r.1.10.120.aAf2ox&id=20896904782 850¥ is less than S$200, i think its really cheap! i wonder how much SG is selling if they do indeed carry this design. if i'm buying from taobao i think the shipping would come up to around $200-$300 (i used the shipping calculator from peeka.sg) so whole thing will probably come up to $500+.

hey haide, can i check how you managed to do the sink at a standalone island? where does the water pipe run from? under the floor? totally loving your home, very stylish and different!

hey guys, not sure if you all saw taobao's main page, they always have promos for singapore's customers. like now they having promo for DBS/POSB card members and awhile back for bank of china's card members. I was just wondering through agents they usually won't pass down the savings to us? Like if they're VIP customers of certain sellers they'll just keep quiet and charge us full price while getting discounted prices themselves. So I'm wondering what are your views like, are you ok with them not sharing the savings with us or you don't care as long as you get the items you want? Like all these promos on taobao we're not entitled so I feel its abit wasted

your home looks amazing!! would you mind to PM me your contractor's details? thanks!

omg $610! i wonder if it will be cheaper if we use a freightforwarder directly instead of going thru agent. freightforwarders don't charge by grams i think.

i'm curious about the flatpack thing too but i don't really understand how it works since agents normally charge either actual or volumetric weight, whichever is higher. so if the flatpacked furniture is heavy they will still charge the weight of the item and not the dimension of the box.

the problem is daigou don't reply enquiries promptly, i sent a few emails they never reply anyway is shipping really cheaper if you organize spree and buy together? i thought shipping fee is by actual weight or volumetric weight, whichever is higher, they will just charge accordingly. you only save on domestic shipping within china if you buy more items from the same seller but you won't be able to save on shipping from china to sg. correct me if i'm wrong.

i've been considering between peeka & daigou but i went with daigou instead coz i heard peeka charges GST. so far i have not bought anything from taobao yet so i just bought small small items for a start to see how quality and service/shipping with daigou is like 1st before proceeding with large items hehe. slowth - how do you ensure its flatpacked? do you ask agent or taobao to flatpack for you? i heard they actually charge either actual or volumetric weight, whichever is higher. so even if they flatpack for you but the item is heavy they will just charge you the weight of the item and not dimension of the box. so end up shipping will still be expensive, is it true? i'm worried about this as most agents don't provide you with the cost of shipping until the item reaches sg but peeka does?

if i'm not wrong everything on taobao is generally cheaper, even with the shipping so it makes sense to buy there. only thing is i heard some things can be of rather lousy quality so don't choose those really cheap ones.

i think both of you just moved to the same apartment thats all! i just thought the kitchen cabinets, angle of the photo look really similar but on closer look you painted your frames black and got a different dining lamp. got confused for a moment lol. your home is really beautiful!

you mean this is not your blog? http://awayofmind.blogspot.com/2012/09/counting-down.html the kitchen looks really similar to yours though

are you 'awayofmind'? i think i seen your blog before

wow carrotcakegirl, please recommend your taobao agent!

hey carrotcakegirl, thanks for your reply! hearing that from you makes me feel at ease, coz i REALLY NEED to hack that wall to make an open concept kitchen with island lol. i'm not from champions court. i just applied march's BTO @ bukit batok, still gotta wait another 3-4 years *sigh* should have applied earlier hor . seeing your progress makes me feel excited, coz i think there are not many tblogs on BTO 3 room. my layout is almost similar to yours, except my two bathrooms are oddly squarish and my kitchen opening is at the side instead. i love your polished porcelain tiles in the living room, it looks so much like mine but i opted for the OCS from HDB. really reading your blog closely, can't wait to see how your lovely home will turn out!

hi carrotcakegirl! i have one question, do you have any idea if the wall beside the main door (where the circuit breaker is), is hackable? coz i actually have the intention to hack away that wall but not sure if the circuit breaker can be located elsewhere, like maybe beside the household shelter, any idea?

hi frankman, please pm me your taobao agent too, thanks! but what happens if you come across defective goods that you need to exchange/refund? is it under your own expense?

looking forward to see more reno progress! we also applied for a 3 room flat at bukit batok, will only be coming in 3-4 years. its seriously small! looks like only 1 person can only be in the kitchen at one time.

thanks, but i wanna find out the noise level.

hi, is this the norm to pay 40% first even though the work is not done? whats the procedure like for other contractors?

Hi guys, to all the BTO owners where you all get your keys altogether when the project is ready. I have a question to ask - is it very noisy when almost everybody does their reno together? Even though there's not much hacking for new flats, I think there's still a considerably amount of noise for drilling and hammering. Is the noise unbearable or is it still ok? Coz I'm thinking whether or not to soundproof my room. I'm working night shift as a nurse hence I will need to sleep during the day. Can anyone advise? Thanks!

hi paloma, would you mind to pm me your contractor's details? thanks in advance!!

hi there, i sent you a PM, please go check, thanks!

hi all, i understand that quite a few people have bought their faucets and stuff from taobao, i went to take a look and they really indeed do carry lotsa stuff! anyone knows of any reliable agents with reasonable fees? thanks!

omg darnie, your place is really really stylish, chic and beautiful! i love homes with character my BTO is coming in 4 years time, the flooring that is gonna come with it is similar to yours, initially i was worried whether the flooring would be nice but looking at your home i don't think i need to worry at all!