jez2014

WAH LAO EH My husband hijacked my t-blogggggg.

Taobao Round 2! Guest entry by the Spouse (part 2) Roses are red, Violets are blue. To win wife in debate, Try use super glue. Always works for me! Some more, got leftover from carpentry work leh! Hello all! HamsupHamsumHubbs here again! It's 2015, New Year, so I hope you celebrated with a gang, or with a bang, or both! As of October 2014 (contractor settled!) If you've been following, you'd remember that in Oct 2014, we finally settled on a contractor for our BTO flat! I would have to applaud you for your elephant like memory. I'd also have to call the police. You're probably the creepy-stalker type - even I couldn't remember! It's been THAT long! (I had to scroll up to check!) As of November 2014 (Taobao purchases!) The October to November period was a busy work period for us (because we shake legs from January to September liao, so end-year must clear backlog). As a result, we didn't get to meet our contractor as many times as we should have. In fairness, it must be said that they reminded us quite a few times: the longer we 涂 ("drag"; sorry my chinese got no ink one), the later they would be able to handover the flat. What we DID manage to do in November was to fully utilize office hours at work to do research on appliances and surf Taobao. As a result, we managed to secure what I felt were some awesome deals I present to you our two best buys: A $200 recliner, including shipping! I know. I know. Some of you are thinking. Eeyer. Never feel the recliner, buy online - how to know whether you like it or not?? Believe me. The wife and I had the same long talk about both the recliner and the next item (below). Texture is important to us too you know! She likes stuff that can absorb heat, I like stuff that can absorb sweat. But we finally decided to buy the recliner when we thought about it this way: The local retail price is $800. The taobao price after shipping is $200. It's a small gamble. If it pays off, we save $600. If it doesn't pay off, we will just spend more time on the bed HA HA. Plus, when we told our jiak kantang (english speaking) friends about the price, they were VERY keen to come and see the goods on arrival. If nice, they are willing to pay us a small commission to help them purchase their own Taobao sofas. Everything is made in China, anyway. You buy from IKEA also made in China. I buy from Taobao also made in China. The difference is $600 leh! You touch few times, worth $600 meh? Go Geylang also... A $300 sofa, including shipping! This. This. Reasonable sofas in Singapore are like $1000. Sofas on Taobao are also like $1000. The difference is that, the latter currency is RMB. So when you divide by 5, the savings is just immeasurable. Ok lah, technically can measure $1000 - $(1000/5) but I paiseh to brag mah BUT OMGWTHBBQ THE SAVINGS IS $800 LEH! After shipping, the total cost comes to about $300, and the total savings is about $700. If I were to describe my purchases, I'd have to say, "sofa so good!" Please note that: 1. The prices are rounded to the nearest $100. In case you want to complain me for giving wrong price. 2. These images are stock images from the Taobao website. 3. The sofa and recliner have been shipped already, but we're keeping it in the Singapore warehouse until renovation works are done. Rest assured though, once we unwrap, we will post pictures. The next few posts will give a blow by blow account of our renovation experience since November 2014. The next post (in 2-3 day's time) will cover our initial design ideas, as well as our contractor feedback, followed by some pencil sketches of the carpentry work. We also got 3-D drawings lah. Those will come later. Don't rush me leh

Guest entry by the spouse Halfway while typing, My boy backside need wiping, Later then come back, Post image from Photoshack. Rhymes leh! Hi! I'm the hubbs here, sneaking in a guest entry. The wife claims she has been experiencing increasing inertia these days. But funny leh, I learnt last time in Physics that inertia increase only when mass increase... Anyway, here's a brief timeline of what's transpired since 20 November: Third week of Nov: Concept/pencil sketches Show off his sketches later. The boss is afterall, a carpenter by trade mah! His drawing reminds me of my D&T class. Except now cannot fall asleep. Last week of Nov: Finalized paint scheme + carpentry laminate/internal PVC Wah Lau eh! Women! -.-" Sail White, Whispering White, Snow White... All I can think of is.. "then the seven dwarves leh?" First week of Dec: Fabrication of carpentry (Exxcitessssss maximus) We were previously (see post dated 31 Oct) brought to their workshop to see-see. So night time, I keep dreaming of his workshop and all those strong young men touching my wood planks lovingly... Second week of Dec: Electrical work and meeting with Eubiq (Things went as smooth as my baby's backside) I like how efficient Eubiq is! Best part is, we paid in full (as opposed to deposit). With companies that make you pay upfront, my worry is always that they subsequently scrimp on service. Third week of Dec: Grille installation and CityGas installation (Things went as smooth as my mother-in-law face) City gas ah... Ohmaigot. But is partly our own fault. More on that later. Last week of Dec: Carpentry has been moved into the house (I stare dam long, but I cannot figure out what goes where leh!) So exciting! But why can't they make it like LEGO. I mean, more intuitive please? All these pieces, but cannot see the whole picture yet! First week of Jan (now): Living room feature wall has been assembled WAH! You know lah... Good movie always got cliffhanger. Stay tuned to next few posts for peektures

Taobao Purchases, Round 1! This is a long overdue post - I've purchased these long ago, and they are now in the Singapore warehouse. I've yet to arrange for delivery, as I will only be freer next week to receive and check the items. Was browsing through what I have already purchased, and am so excited already! Can't wait to unveil them! For those who are not so familiar, the approximate conversion is 5 RMB = 1 SGD, but the RMB has been appreciating against the Singdollar recently... Bidet Spray RMB 100 Kitchen rack RMB 188 Bathroom accessories set RMB 428 Includes towel rack, hooks, toilet roll holder, toilet brush holder...the works! I thought this was expensive, until I went to shops locally and realised that a Stainless Steel towel rack alone can cost more than $100! -peng- Wooden lights RMB 499 I bought just one of this to test test first. If they work out well I will buy more for the rest of the house! Kinda regretted not buying the 无极调灯 type... Maybe I will use this for one of the other rooms and get the adjustable warmth/brightness one for the living room and MBR! Love the design of the light - haven't seen anything similar in the lighting shops we visited, and this would fit in nicely with our zen/scandi/beach holiday theme! Kitchen sink RMB 679 I picked the one that came with a strainer and a smaller sink - I think it is going to be useful especially for washing vegetables and fruits! Important tip for newbies! Must get a sink where the drainage "hole" is at one side! If the "hole" is in the centre, whenever you wash dishes, the dishes will end up "blocking" the hole, and your dirty water will fill up the sink! Bathroom cabinets RMB 528 The piece de resistance... s/s bathroom cabinets! I think I must have been slightly crazy to buy this, but custom built is around $800 leh... Even JE, my contractor told me to go and buy from Taobao to save money! (I love how honest he is! He rocks man!!) I used 65daigou for this shipping. They may be more expensive, but I find their customer service fast and responsive. Hopefully everything will come in good condition! I spent about $400 on shipping for $1000 of items - there were other miscellaneous items that I bought!

Bathtub, check! We went to Heritage Bathroom Gallery last weekend to look for our bathtub but left in disappointment as they did not have any on display! We browsed through the catalogue but was still reluctant to purchase such an important item without seeing it physically. Bathtubs not cheap, ok! We were quoted $400, plus $30 for delivery. Thus, we went back to contact some showrooms to check which ones had bathtubs on display so we could make a more informed decision. i sent out numerous emails, most of which remained unanswered. By a stroke of luck, a salesperson from AOS/Magnum replied to say that they had a tub for clearance at $99 due to slight discolouration! We went down to the warehouse at Ubi today to look at it, and it’s perfectly acceptable! So, tadaaa~! Meet our tub!

This sounds like a great idea - will bring it up with my electrician! Thanks Bunbun!

Hi Bunbun! Wow I am glad I didn't buy the bagless unit then! Actually I selected the unit with bags because I read reviews that removing the dust from the v/c would be very dusty. Since we both have sensitive noses, I thought the bagged ones would be better! -fingers crossed- As for the ceiling fan, well, we are both rather afraid of the heat. I am aware that a ceiling fan works extremely well with the aircon, but we have been using a standing fan after switching off the aircon and it works for us too. Furthermore, we reasoned that since we are not doing a false ceiling, it would not be too much of an hassle should we change our minds later to install a ceiling fan!

The $9000 hole in our pockets We bit the bullet today, and spent $9000 getting most of the electrical appliances for our home! For that amount, we got ... Mitsubishi Starmex System 4 Aircon - $4060 This was the cheapest quotes we got, considering that it was for 2x installation, 1/2" insulation, 24 gauge copper pipe, 28K compressor, 2x10K FCU, 1x13K FCU and 1x 24K FCU. We scouted the Gain City Expo sale prior to this, and for the lousier specs (all things same except 3x10K FCU instead of 1x13K and 2x10K) would have cost us at least $4500. Hopefully the installation goes smoothly and we don't regret the money saved! Toshiba Fridge (GR-W58SDAZ(S)) - $999 We got this at the Audio House fair last weekend. The fair was useful in the sense that we realised that a fridge in the 300-400L range (which we were initially considering) would have been too small for us. Seeing the actual fridge helped us make our decision to get a 554L one! 47" LG SMART TV (47LB582T) - $899 I got this as one of the hourly special deals - you know, the kind where there are only 5 sets up for grabs and you have to be one of the first to grab the card off the promoters the moment they announced the price. Yup. Can't believe I did that, but I certainly did. Got an adrenaline rush after grabbing the last card, too! 32" Philips TV (32PFH4509) - $290 Basic TV for the bedroom, the hubbs and I aren't big TV watchers but for $290, it wouldn't be too expensive a white elephant! Tecnogas Induction Cooktop (TIH 280D) with Tecnogas Hood (TH938) - $930 This was a very good deal. Scouted many places but couldn't find a price that came close! We knew from the start that we would prefer an induction cooktop - cleaning gas hobs are a nightmare for us, and since we do mostly Western style cooking, the induction cooktop would be fine. Most other places sold the cooktop for more than $1000 on its own, but we got the combo for so cheap! Beko Washing Machine (EV7100) - $390 A relatively unknown brand, but as long as it does its job, who cares about the brand! Hopefully it's as cheap and good as the uncle recommends! Supposedly made in Spain, and only recently made its foray into the Southeast Asian market. Philips XL Airfryer - $320 This was supposed to be one of the "buy later" items, but since I was at the shop and they were doing delivery altogether, why not? Philips is also having a good promo from now until the end of the year - buy $388 and get $100 in Cold Storage vouchers! Panasonic Microwave Oven (MNST342) - $115 Basic countertop model. I never knew there were so many different types of microwave ovens! ConsumerReports.org does a good intro on the different types. I initially wanted a more expensive one with inverter technology (for more even cooking) but decided to just get a basic model. Philips Vacuum Cleaner (FC9172) - $299 I hope it sucks! Toshiba Rice Cooker - $130 Looks well made, and you can apparently even bake in it! Will try it out when I can. 3 x KDK Standing Fans - $95 each Got white ones with white blades to be as unobtrusive as possible. Wanted ceiling fans initially but was vetoed by the hubbs - he insists that ceiling fans circulate the air but do not cool the person. He wants to be cool, and he doesn't care if the rest of the house is steaming as a result! Philips Hairdryer (HR4997) - $120 Tested it out and it was indeed very powerful compared to the cheaper models. Seeing as to how I have thick hair, maybe I can finally stop having muscle aches each time I blow dry my hair! Pioneer DVD Player - $50 Recommended by the uncle for its durability. Hopefully it's really cheap and good!I bought most of the stuff from Bedok Centre Electrical Co. at Blk 214 Bedok North Street 1. It's one of those neighbourhood shops with only a few items on display but everything can be ordered from the catalogue. Cheaper prices compared to the big names, but the downside is that I could not use my credit card to accumulate points! Everything was also nicely negotiated, such that we only pay the balance upon delivery, and the uncle also very nicely arranged for 2 separate deliveries - the first for the big items that need to be mounted/built in by the contractor, and the second delivery for the small kitchen appliances! Service was awesome! ! Next step? Shopping for tiles and the bathtub!

Inspiration without instant gratification When deciding on the colour scheme for our house, we were kinda in a fix. Both the hubbs and I are rather visual creatures, to imagine without seeing the actual thing can be rather painful! We knew that we liked the clean simplicity of Zen, which came with copious amounts of wood. But what else? Where is the "us" in our home? Then I had a brainwave. We decided to generate a few colour palettes based on our favourite vacation spots. In general, we like the far flung north (yay for winter), and right on the other end of the spectrum, ultimate nuaness in beach resorts. Palette 1 Inspired by our honeymoon in Alaska. Palette 2 Inspired by our babymoon in Boracay. Seems like #2 would go better with the Zen theme - the woods can be used to replicate the sand in beaches? Just an idea!

The Chosen One! After signing the next twenty years of our lives away, we would need to commit a significant chunk of our savings to the renovation. We crunched some numbers, decided that we didn’t want the additional burden of a renovation loan, and came up with the magical figure of 25K. We met with as many as 7 IDs/contractors (For a detailed account of EVERYONE we met, read here), and while some came close, it was at the expense of one thing or the other. While the budget was always at the back of our minds, the ease of communication was as important a factor, if not more so. We had several non-negotiables for our house. 1. Bathtub 2. Lots of storage 3. A dedicated study where one could work at the desk AND the bed 4. Easy to maintain 5. Child-safe As mentioned above, we met with 7 contenders, shortlisted two to meet with them a few more times and finally, picked one. I shall term them JE, after the boss and his assistant who took the time to meet us together, just so that they could give us the full picture. Why did we choose them? Strength in carpentry Being a carpentry firm from the start, their strength was in carpentry and it showed in the job site that they brought us to. A lot of thought was put into the design and crafting of the cupboards. You could see the attention to detail, and the finishing was one of the best I have seen. Smooth edges, invisible joints and seams, the works. Seeing how we planned for 58 Ft of carpentry, this would play a big role in determining the success of our renovation, and their workmanship definitely put us at ease. JE gave us a tour of their factory close to 11pm, and there were many staff still hard at work. Despite the late night, this uncle was very happy to explain to us the different types of styles in cabinets, the soft-closing mechanisms and various finishings. Working with our needs/wants The boss, the J of JE, was also very accommodating. When we requested for a custom table that could swivel so that we can work both at the desk and the bed, but not sacrifice precious floor space, he really gave it some thought before committing that it could be done. We liked this, much unlike other firms where they promise you the sky without much thought, resulting in much unhappiness when it’s time to execute the plans. Price, price, price All along, JE’s quote had been reasonable. When it came down to the final negotiation, they also patiently went through with us what could go down in price, what couldn’t, and why. Very forthcoming and you could tell they genuinely were trying to make this work. We even started discussing several design elements and JE advised us what could be tweaked to cut cost! The hubbs and I learnt a lot. Ease of Communication The hubbs and I liked them. We liked them as contractors, and we liked them as people. There were others we so wanted to like, but couldn't for one reason or another. JE? We liked, and we felt comfortable entrusting our home over to them. Soooo … At midnight yesterday (yes, crazy but true), we put our names on the line and sealed the deal. Here’s to the start of a beautiful relationship (I hope!)

Thanks for all the welcome! Actually, the bulk of the cost comes from carpentry. Having lived in places where there were never enough shelving/cupboards, I grew up living with, but hating clutter. Now that we have the chance to start on a fresh slate, we're incorporating lots of storage into our design! I am currently working on a longer update with more details... But just to let everyone know, we HAVE found someone, despite our 58 FT of carpentry, to work within our budget!

Contents Page/Helpful Links NEW!! UPDATED -- Our Home 3.5 years Later - Here -- Budgeting for your BTO, how much should you spend? - Here 1. Our Chosen Contractor + Reasons why - Here 2. Color Schemes we considered - Here 3. $9000 for all appliances! Only $930 for Hood and Induction Hob! - Here 4. $99 bathtub! - Here 5. Taobao purchases - Round 1! Stainless steel bathroom stuff for cheapssss! - Here 6. Taobao purchases - Round 2! $300 Sofa! $200 recliner! - Here 7. Our 3-D drawings! ALOT of carpentry for $25k! - Here 8. Our Renovation Begins! Bath Tub and Hafary! - Here 9. Carpentry: The Study! - Here 10. Carpentry: My Custom Built Table! - Here 11. Carpentry - Workmanship!! - Here 12. Taobao - Things you: MUST buy, CAN buy, DON'T buy! - Here 13. Final Pictures of our Home - GOODbuy! (haha) a. Study - Here b. Living Room - Here c. Kitchen - Here d. Bedroom 1 - Here e. Master Bedroom - Here f. Toilets - Here g. Final budget + Our moving company + Sofa pictures! - Here 14. Things that could have gone better - Lessons we learnt when dealing with contractors - Here 1+1=3 in our 4 Room BTO I refused, refused, refused to apply for a BTO before the hubbs proposed - no way was I going to go down the way of a 'HDB-proposal'. Practical? Not very, but maybe I'm just a old romantic at heart. So yes, he proposed, I said yes, we got engaged, married, and only THEN, did we send out our first application for a HDB flat. That was in 2012. We lucked out and got an excellent queue number for our choice estate in Tampines upon our first application. Fast forward 2.5 years, and here we are, proud new owners of a BTO fresh off the factory floor. Perhaps the timing was just perfect - our little couplehood has since, grown to include a pint-sized dictator, which means that we need not worry about how we would have to redesign the house when the little one comes along. Now that little Z is here, he is part of our plans. (Maybe it would be more apt to say that our plans are centred around him!) Hence, the first steps towards building our cosy little nook, for our family of three. Our Design Inspirations Here are some images of designs that inspired us: Too many people doing Scandinavian these days. We like the simplicity, but don't want to be mainstream lah. So we thought about it, and quite liked Zen. My ideal study! I absolutely LOVE to work from a bed, hence the L-shaped bedside table is a really awesome design feature. We also want to keep Ah boy's room clean and neat.