lihsin

Thanks. My second appointment is estimated to be one week after CNY and I was told that the whole reno process will take 8 to 10 weeks. So I will only get the renovated house in late April or even May next year. It will be another 5 to 6 months of waiting .

We have finally confirmed our ID . He is Kennedy Cheng of Earnest Interiors. Our search for ID was like many of yours - long and tiring. Earnest Interiors is the last ID firm we approached, and the reason why we even approached them was due to our colleague's strong recommendation. His house was done by James, one of the bosses of Earnest Interiors, and he found their quotation very reasonable and was very satisfied with Jame's service like many bloggers here. Back then, we haven't found the useful info in this blog yet, and we were thinking "no harm giving it a try". So we called James, and he referred us to his designer Kennedy Cheng. We had a good impression of Kennedy after our first meeting because he was able to come up with alternatives to our initial design on the spot. Two weeks later, we met him again and he presented to us a layout that included a large open kitchen. We like the idea, but thought that it may not be practical if eventually we want to do more cooking. So after some email discussions and visits, we agreed on the design posted above, with slight modifications. The reason why we choose Earnest Interiors and Kennedy over the rest of the IDs are: They give us the best quotation.Kennedy came up with the most creative layout.Kennedy is very fast in his response to all my emails. That gives us the confidence that he will monitor our reno closely.Earnest Interiors has very good reputation in this forum. The other IDs we have approached are One Design Concept, ****, Ciseern and Orange Square^(3/2). There are 3 others that are not worth mentioning. For One Design Concept, we were served by a nice lady Ayu whom my WTB and myself both feel very comfortable talking to. She was our first choice initially, but her quotation is way beyond the rest and we have no choice but to drop her. Nevertheless, we really appreciate the time and effort she spent with us. We also talked to **** as we chanced upon some positive comments about them on this blog (some how we missed all those on Earnest ). We were served by Jimmy, a young, nice chap. The **** boss Zaidy proposed a layout which combined MBR with one bedroom so that we can build a WIW. We were quite keen in this layout and that's why it was included in my earliest posts. However, their quotation is a few thousands higher than that of Earnest's, and I still prefer the open kitchen concept. Again, we are thankful to Jimmy for his time and enthusiasm. As for Ciseern and Orange Square^(3/2), their quotations are also on the high side,and the IDs came up with layouts that are worse than our initial proposal, neglecting some of the requirements we have told them. We haven't signed on the dotted line yet, because we are waiting for Kennedy to make some minor changes to the quotation. We will sign the agreement tomorrow. Finally, we can focus on our work for a short while . But we will be eagerly waiting for the 3D pics I guess.

Maybe you can shift the sink/vanity counter to the window side and build a diamond-shape shower area as below. For comfort, the two long sides (which are formed by the walls of your toilet should be at least 85cm long. The other 3 sides should be about 60cm each. This is how my present house's toilets are built and I intend to do the same for my new house as it looks quite nice. But one of my IDs says it is 3 times more expensive as compared to the straight shower screen. So it is up to you

I agree that it is too small, and I will ask the ID to increase its length and create a window for ventilation. Anyway, we don't have a maid yet, and if we do have one eventually, she will most probably stay in one of the bedrooms. The "maid's room" is created to provide more storage space and also to reduce the size of the kitchen so as to minimise cleaning work

Thanks happypie, I am about to confirm my ID, probably by Monday. So far the cheaper quotes are about 55k to 60k , while the highest go to 66k with some missing items. It is not easy to compare the prices because the materials used maybe different. Take carpentry for example, some use laminate finish, some use mirror with laminate finish, and I am not sure how much more expensive is the latter compared to the former. I am hoping that the ID with the design I like the most will give me a good final discount so that it will be a clear cut decision in the end Oh really? What is a 'designed unit'? I don't think the current condition of the house look like a 'designed' unit

Nice 3D pics . Hope the final product will be just as good. Just one point: Will Algae grow easily over the lines between the mosiac tiles of the MBR toilets?

Thanks. My floorplan doesn't have the thick black lines. Heng

Hi Wywy, All the best for your reno. I am also shifting to Tampines next year, still a long way to go . By the way, what is "pre-fab HDB"? I intend to hack quite a bit so I hope my flat is hackable.

Hi Zapped, The final pics look nice. But I am curious to look at your 'photo frame' . Any pics to show? Oh, looking at all the pics you have posted, I think I know which block your flat is

Hi all, we still haven't confirmed the IDs but this is the design that we are most likely to take. There should be wardrobe and TV console in the MBR. We are thinking that the breakfast counter can be pushed out slightly to align with the wall so that there is more space for a bigger sofa. Any comments?

Hi, we met the Ciseern ID to look at his quotation yesterday. It is indeed on the high side, though not the highest I have received. I think we will only take up Cissern if they can give a significant discount. We were supposed to meet the ***** ID yesterday too, but she was unwell so we will have to meet her tomorrow or the day after. Will keep you guys posted once we receive all the quotations by the end of this week

Good to hear that you have a good experience . My ID is Jimmy, but Zaidy somehow took over the design halfway, though Jimmy is still involved. Both are quite nice people. I am still waiting for a few more quotes and designs to come in before deciding on who to engage. Hopefully, everything will be confirmed by the next week. By the way, any more post reno pics to share? And may I invite you to visit my renoblog? (But I have nothing much to share at the moment )

By the way, we have seen 7 IDs, of which two did not get back to us after the first meetings. Anyway I have also deleted their names from my list after talking to them. One of them kept highlighting that they are very established and have many certifications but was not interested in listening to our needs. Even though we have told her we are looking for a complete package, she repeatedly tried to make us sign up for their kitchen/bathroom package and that really put me off. The other one is an uncle who was a contractor turned designer. He is quite friendly but he proposed hacking so many parts of my house that I think is a waste of money. So now I am left with One Design Concept, ****, Ciseern, ***** and Earnest. The first two have given their quotes, with One Design's being on the high side. Any feedback about these IDs?

Hi Jaden, Thanks for the info. I will go and take a look

Mine is at street 43, block 495F. The window besides the bed overlooks TPE and Pasir Ris. I'm a little bit concerned about the noise at night, and of course the air-con bill due to the enlarged MBR. One ID suggests building one more sliding door at the featured wall / TV console in the MBR, but that means we have to open 3 doors to go to the toilet in the middle of the night.

Hi Angel, that's a good suggestion. We will discuss it with our ID.

Hi rainbowgal, thanks for the warm welcome adn suggestion. One of our IDs also says that. He suggests that we combine the two into one piece. Anyway I anyhow draw, not to scale, so it may look cluttered on the floorplan My WTB and myself don't believe in fengshui so we will just place the bed based on the shape of the room

Hi all, I bought a resale EA at Tampines and is now in the process of selecting an ID to do an overhaul. My budget is around 50k to 60k. I have been reading the many interesting and informative posts in this forum and would like to also share my reno experience with everyone. But then I have nothing much to share yet because I am still at a very early stage of my reno. In fact my first appointment is on 28 Dec 09 so still got a long way to go. But I can't wait to start my own blog so here I am Here is my original floor plan: The design I have in mind is: I drew the design myself using microsoft word so it is not very professional. Any comments? The study is surrounded by glass walls. The MBR is combined with a smaller bedroom to give more space. But then my air con will have to work extra hard and my power bill will also be extra high . Any suggestions?

Hi Yhanie, I have been following your reno blog for the past one and a half months. I am looking for an ID to do an overhaul of my Tampines resale EA and ** was one of the ID firm that I approached because of your very positive comments. Now that your reno has completed, any overall comments of your experience with **?

Hi Jadens28, thanks for the suggestion. Will sediment flake coating be able to be able to cover the grooves and lines of the original tiles. What I dislike about my original tiles is that they are made of small squares, almost like mosaic tiles, and the colours are very dull. I prefer larger and brighter tiles. Anyway, I have also asked other Ids about this and am waiting for their replies. But you know, some Ids who are too eager to get your deal may say no problem to anything, while some who want to earn more of your money will suggest you change everything. So that's why I think it is better to also hear from the 'customers'.

Hi all, I got a resale flat recently. The kitchen cabinets are made of soild wood and still in good condition. One of the Ids I met suggested keeping the cabinets. However, I don't like the kitchen floor tiles and plan to replace them. The Id says hacking the floor tiles will not damage the cabinets because the cabinets are built on a raised platform. The problem is another Id told me that this is not possible because hacking the floor tiles will most certainly damage the cabinets. May I check if anyone has tried the above before and can share your experience?