sumobear

Hi Linda, You can get fabrics at alot of places like the Chinatown market (Currently moved to Outram MRT), Peoples's Park Complex at Chinatown, Textile Centre at Beach Road, Arab street, Joo chiat and etc...When you are doing big prints, get fabrics with bigger motifs. If you want nice things, then have to travel more and explore places loh...sometimes it can be a fruitful trip or disappointing one. As for the stretcher frame, I did it at SAGA CITY in Bras Basah complex. You have to give them the specification to construct or else you can buy the readymade parts to join up the frame, you can also go to Art Friend. As for the mounting, we did it ourselves using staple gun. Hope my explaination helps but do feel free to ask if you have any question.

Ever since we started our renovation and shopping for home stuffs, we have started to be more calculative because there are too many things to buy with so little money. I cannot stand the emptiness of our home so we will try to get some budget accessories for our home.

Today we have managed to doll up the day-bed area in our studyroom with some cushions and prints on the walls. We do not have much nice prints at the moment to mount yet so we temporary use the wrapping papers that our best friend bought for us from Vietnam.

Another print for the walkway to the bedrooms and studyroom.

Thanks for the compliment....it is true that we had a very tough time with renovation but luckily that most of the things are done to my specification. Cheers Its not a painting...it is a fabric that we brought from PLUCK at Haji lane then I went to customise a wooden frame to stretch the fabric. The complete piece cost me about $120. I think it is cheaper than buying those paintings from gallery and in fact most of them are so ugly.... Thanks for the compliments. Yah it is the so called DIY table but it is not DIY in the end because my boss helped me by getting one of the company's contractor to modify the base and mount the table top. The top is actually a kind of acrylic that look like glass. Supposed to charge me 200+ for the modification but my boss helped me to taichi the payment away It is because of this table, it lead me to the warehouse that sells the plates. I was sending the table base to a factory around that area.

Beside the essential furnitures, we had spent quite abit on home accessories like some prints for the walls. Bought some nice fabrics from PLUCK at Haji lane and mount onto canvas frames, and some photo frames from IKEA which we have no idea what to display yet. Everything look so cool....but the SAD thing is that 1 of the big IKEA frame cracked while I do framing, lousy quality! Last saturday when we sent out table base for customisation at Tagore Lane, a huge banner hanging along the fence of a warehouse caught out attention and so we decided to take a peep to see if there is any good buy after breakfast since we have some time to spare before our next appointment. We got a fruitful purchase of some nice bowls and plates. My side table for the living room has finally arrived and fits perfectly at a corner especially when I have my Kartell lighting placed on top. The side table is modified from a old tulip chair that is taken from my grandmother's home. My grandmother thinks that the chair is old and should be thrown away but I think it is a unpolished gem to me. The Kartell lighting is an advanced house-warming gift from my bosses...so happy!

Hi everyone... Just being curious...how come the Absolut 100 is more expensive than the normal bottles? Is it becozs of the alcohol level? Has anyone surf the absolut.com recently? I cannot enter the site...only manage to enter the age verification page and after that blank page.

Hi mist, Dunno what photo of my home to put up yet coz everything is still in a raw state. There is alot of cleaning and touch-up to do. Been busy using silicon to seal up all the ugly holes and lines between trunkings and walls, it takes up alot of my time. As for my DIY items, I have ordered the materials and so have to wait for collection. So many things waiting to be done....

Hi Mist, Nice and cozy living room you have....

It's a great challenge to go ala-carte for renovation, you will either love it or hate it. Wish you all the best and hope to see another nice home in this forum.... Cheers

Hi again... As mentioned by lifestyle that customisation is very costly, so probably you can find another alternative like finding an exisiting furniture from shops to replace and I am sure you can find something good and probably better but just have to spend more time running about. Pricing of cupboards or cabinets are normally calculated by Sq/ft, so you can calculate the price quoted. Consider IKEA's stuff if your budget is tight. I personally feel that ID firms have more levels of mark-ups starting from material supplier, sub-con, contractor and IDs. So some people skip the ID and go to contractor to avoid giving the additional share to IDs and in fact some contractors can be quite good coz they have experiences working with ID firms so they can also contribute similar ideas but just do not expect colourful drawing from them or have coffee-cum-discussion at Starbucks coz they will probably be lost with what to order from the menu. I think it is constantly changing home fashion trend and probably people are more educated with design and aesthetic values so they become more demanding with things and most IDs or Contractors will prefer owners to hunt for their own fixtures. Another words, it is getting more ala-carte. I think if an ID is good, he/she should advice you on the kind of fixtures that you should get based on a given budget and probably the ID should follow you around. You paid the ID so such services should be included. I never trust an ID probably because I like to do up my home with my own style so I have decided to get a contractor but unfortunately my contractor is just an average one. Then you should avoid comparing prices with people in the forum unless the item specification is the same or else you will get yourselve confused. Nice and branded stuffs are more expensive compared to the normal household looking kind of fixtures so it is all up to individual. For example lightings, you can have a swaroski crystal lighting or a simple hanging light from IKEA. I use mostly track-lights and IKEA lighting for my home, and they still look great. Don't try to stress yourself up by I want this or that now because things can always buy along the way when you have moved in. Just get the essential ones right now.

Based on their quoted price 32K, you have to think whether is it worth paying for. If too expensive, then what can you offer for the same items...E.g. If 26K is your budget, just tell your ID that you are offering 26K max for this project and it is "either deal or no deal situation", there is alot of hassle to go through item by item. Try bargaining from the big figure 1st.

Hi Enci, From the list of items quoted, the items that are eating up your budget are the carpentry work and GST. Probably you can review on the items that you want and strike off the items that are not necessary. Freebies do not come free, it is just sound nice to indicate as free but in the end everything is factor in as hidden cost. I think your ID is prepared to have a price tug-war with you, so think about your budget (inc. GST) and tell him the price that you want to offer for the listed items, do not bargain items by items like buying vege and ask auntie for free chili padi. Anyway if you go to contractors, they do not have GST. As for the tiles, is the quoted price based on the kind of tiles that you want? If not, then ask him for the price range for the tiles. Then calculate your electrical point, tv point, telephone point and lighting point carefully...if it is insufficient towards the end, your ID may ripped you off because you cannot runaway since you have started renovation with him and this apply to other items too. All IDs and contractors are like fruit seller, whenever you ask if the fruits are sweet before buying, they will sure say "very sweet" but in the end they sour when you eat them.

what I need is a sink mat...it is an available product but just dunno where to get and the size that I want for my sink.

Hi, I am currently looking for a kind of mat that is use for kitchen sink that will some how give some protection to your glassware while you do your washing, any idea where can I get such product? I saw such mat some time ago but I cannot find it now...I think it is very rare. Can someone advice me?

Is Luxur Home the same company as Lush?

The reno is about 26K excluding furnishing and fixtures.

erm...the price that I got from Space is $350 during their private sale last week. The Kartell Ghost chair that I am refering to is the one without the silk screened face so I am not sure what is your version...I was considering the Panton Chair too, it is slightly cheaper than ghost Chair.

Did you walk in to Space Furniture, they have sale... I am also aiming for the ghost chair but out of budget......I want the clear acrylic.

Thanks for the compliments... Everyone wants their home to be a nice and cozy one. We know what we want for our home so we have to put in more effort to achieve it.

Well...I have thought of that but I have busted my budget so there are some furnitures which I have to KIV for a while and they are like the side tables. Must get a good side table to match the Kartell light or else it will spoil the design of the lighting... Mean while I am trying to DIY a table from a retro chair base and hopefully it will turn our nice. Hoping to place the light on that table.

Hi Greycat, I am not sure about the copied version but normally the design of copied ones may varies. Saw some kartell-copied hanging pendant lightings at most lighting shops. I only know places where they have copied designer furniture and they look "real" Thanks...but I have not decide where to place in my home yet...hehe

We have started recieving some house warming gifts from people, there is a fridge from my auntie and grandma, and a Kartell light from my bosses...everything is so nice. Weekend is another burnt out, we have to go around hunting and buying of things, cleaning up the place and do some home improvement...there are so much things waiting to be done. We have decided to give ourselves a break on the coming public holiday and crash in to the great singapore sale to buy more stuffs for our home. Shopping is a luxury and endless...

Hi Enci, I have faith in your broken marble floor because it is not a bad colour but it really all depends on your ID whether can he bring out a good design with the existing floor....Talk to them, ask them what kind of inspiration do they have for your home. You have to listen and feel the design through words. Flip more interior magazine...look for international magazine coz local magazine are rather stagnant because most design has formulas.

Thanks! Well...its once a bachelor's den so I can throw all my toys, graphics and other stuffs around...it is kind of messy and difficult to clean. IKEA stuffs are not too bad, just have to know what to pick and match. All my furnitures in my room are IKEA except for a ugly looking but durable grey office table... So dun feel so negative with your room...what you are missing is some nice prints and accessories.