M&e - Quintessentially Eclectic

[tristesse 3]

After months of amicable discussions - and heated disagreements - over layout, design concept, furnishings and fittings, M and I are (FINALLY) going to embark on Project Home Makeoever.

Watch this space!

THE DESIGN BRIEF - SHABBY CHIC MEETS MODERN VINTAGE...?

Eclectic's the word here. Representing the contrast of our personalities and individual preferences, our EM will be a unique blend of modernism and simplicity (M) and vintage chic (E).

Using the timeless monochromatic hues of black and white as our basic palette, we envision a chic living space made cosy with dramatic accents of gold fixtures, jewel tone soft furnishings and witty vinyl wall stickers.

THE EXTRAS

These definitive pieces were purchased months before:

Shabby Chic Gold Bird Cage Chandelier - this will be suspended from the ceiling of the upper level down to the staircase

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Shabby Crystal Antique Gold Leaf Chandelier - the pride and joy of our living lounge

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Golden Birds vinyl wall sticker by Ineke Hans - a welcoming touch on walkway of the upper floor

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LATTE leather lounge - the centrepiece for our living area against a white brick wall

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Edited September 22, 2007 by tristesse

[applefreak 1]

welcome to renotalk

the things you buy looks but expensive

[tristesse 3]

Hi applefreak,

Thanks for the warm welcome! ;-) I like your avatar - is that a pix of your cat?

The chandeliers were quite affordable actually - they were purchased off ebay an average around S$200 each (with shipping).

But yes, the wall decals are slightly pricey at abt S$200. I got another set of quirky black cat silhouettes (the cats are in different positions - lying down, sitting, batting an imaginary toy, stretching etc) by 5.5 designers and plan to stick them around the place.

Btw I decided to start a blog - feel free to check out the pre-reno pix that are up now.

[*magmag* 0]

Hi, welcome to renotalk!

Realise we have the same black leather alike looking tiles.

It's a very good choice! turn out to be very nice in my guest toliet!

[applefreak 1]

Hi applefreak,

Thanks for the warm welcome! ;-) I like your avatar - is that a pix of your cat?

The chandeliers were quite affordable actually - they were purchased off ebay an average around S$200 each (with shipping).

But yes, the wall decals are slightly pricey at abt S$200. I got another set of quirky black cat silhouettes (the cats are in different positions - lying down, sitting, batting an imaginary toy, stretching etc) by 5.5 designers and plan to stick them around the place.

Btw I decided to start a blog - feel free to check out the pre-reno pix that are up now.

you're most welcome

yes my avatar is my girl

it's taken while she was sleeping next to me using my hp

hmm think i can't have chandeliers coz my cats are most prob going to swat at it until it's gone

can share where you got the 5.5 designers wall decal?

looking for it but dun know where to look

searched the internet to no avail

[bekind 0]

After months of amicable discussions - and heated disagreements - over layout, design concept, furnishings and fittings, M and I are (FINALLY) going to embark on Project Home Makeoever.

Watch this space!

THE DESIGN BRIEF - SHABBY CHIC MEETS MODERN VINTAGE...?

Eclectic's the word here. Representing the contrast of our personalities and individual preferences, our EM will be a unique blend of modernism and simplicity (M) and vintage chic (E).

Using the timeless monochromatic hues of black and white as our basic palette, we envision a chic living space made cosy with dramatic accents of gold fixtures, jewel tone soft furnishings and witty vinyl wall stickers.

THE EXTRAS

These definitive pieces were purchased months before:

Shabby Chic Gold Bird Cage Chandelier - this will be suspended from the ceiling of the upper level down to the staircase

***********************

Shabby Crystal Antique Gold Leaf Chandelier - the pride and joy of our living lounge

***********************

Golden Birds vinyl wall sticker by Ineke Hans - a welcoming touch on walkway of the upper floor

***********************

LATTE leather lounge - the centrepiece for our living area against a white brick wall

***********************

hi there, you have very nice Chandelier. are they purchase new from Ebay, care to share the webpage which you purchase from ?

[tristesse 3]

you're most welcome

yes my avatar is my girl

it's taken while she was sleeping next to me using my hp

hmm think i can't have chandeliers coz my cats are most prob going to swat at it until it's gone

can share where you got the 5.5 designers wall decal?

looking for it but dun know where to look

searched the internet to no avail

Your girl's a sweetie. I wish my cats looked as good tempered!

You can purchase the Guitou the Cat wall vinyls from Greener Grass Design

They don't ship internationally, so what I did was to have them sent to my vPOST USA address to be redirected back.

If you're looking for wall vinyls, Domestic has a very good range - unfortunately, shipping is way too costly.

I just spotted another wall vinyl (the coat and hat rack) at Greener Grass - looks like I've got something else to buy! Hehe.

Happy shopping!

hi there, you have very nice Chandelier. are they purchase new from Ebay, care to share the webpage which you purchase from ?

Hi bekind,

The gold birdcage chandelier was purchased from a vendor in Australia, but I do believe it's no longer in stock. The gold leaf one was purchased from a US seller, A1 Lighting (can't remember the rest of the name). But if you run a search for shabby crystal chandelier, you should be able to find it. The US vendor doesn't ship to Singapore though - you may need to use a redirect service such as vPOST.

Happy shopping!

Hi, welcome to renotalk!

Realise we have the same black leather alike looking tiles.

It's a very good choice! turn out to be very nice in my guest toliet!

Hihi!

Ooh... it's nice to know someone shares the same taste! I love the black mock-croc look - very dramatic. I'm trying to see if I can pain my pipes in a metallic gold for contrast.

[MaCe 3]

nice chandelier! nice cleaning it in future too

welcome to renotalk!

[sumobear 0]

Hihi...

Cool idea on eclectic, finally found someone in RenoTalk who is interested in this home theme! I love that style too. I styled my home with a modern electric theme!

Good luck with your new home! Cheers...

[tristesse 3]

Your home is waay cool - really dig your quirky vintage furnishings and accessories, esp your retro fabric wall hangings. Lovely!

My place is likely gonna be a bit off that tangent though, possibly veering more towards victoriana, but eclectic nevertheless (I hope!).

[sumobear 0]

Your home is waay cool - really dig your quirky vintage furnishings and accessories, esp your retro fabric wall hangings. Lovely!

My place is likely gonna be a bit off that tangent though, possibly veering more towards victoriana, but eclectic nevertheless (I hope!).

Eclectic theme is very rare in Singapore maybe because not many people have the exposure of such home style. I love the victorian kind of eclectic theme too but just find it too serious and sophisticated looking...prefer to have the more fun type. I am still hunting for things to add on...

Please post and share more pictures of your home....looking forward to see more! Cheers

[tristesse 3]

THE BEFORE SHOTS - Part I

Where our new life together will begin: Quaint walk-up HDB apartment block - a rare sight considering today's pigeon-holes in the sky.

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The Balcony will soon be our "alfresco" dining area, complete with pebble wash flooring, a customised 2m long teak dining table, bench contrasted with acid coloured plastic chairs. The rickety grills will make way for glass windows and shelter from the natural elements will be by way of a tiled roof.

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The Living Room - our chillout area will feature a shabby chic gold leaf chandelier, our leather lounge sofa, a customised teak coffee table painted in a rustic white, and a black tempered glass tv console accented with cherry laminate.

White brick tiles will form our feature wall and be the perfect backdrop for our tufted sofa. Partition walls will be added to enclose the space under the staircase for a storeroom.

The retro floor tiles will be replaced with matte warm grey 600 x 600 homogeneous tiles.

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THE BEFORE SHOTS - Part II

The Stairs or railings rather will be one of the few original features that will be kept. They will be painted black to suit the monochromatic colour palette for the lower level. The creaky carpet tiles will be replaced with laminated flooring (Power Dekor - Black Hickory).

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The Boudoir (i.e. Master Bedroom) Blik's Iron Vine wall vinyls in Cocoa will be applied to this wall, which will be painted cream (ICI Dulux Barely Grey). Luxe thai-silk style full length curtains will provide a touch of glamour. Once again, the retro floor tiles will be replaced by laminate flooring for a cosy feel.

The creepy attached bathroom will soon be a stylish one, done up entirely in black, save for a purple ceiling for a romantic feel.

The glossy mock-croc black wall tiles from Hafary that we selected:

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The Study Turquoise will rule in our incubator for creative ideas. We have chosen ICI's Capri Blue to pair with White.

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THE BEFORE SHOTS - Part III

The Upper Gallery will soon be home to the quirky Ineke Hans Golden Birds wall decal, a perfect complement to our golden bird cage chandelier.

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The Kitchen will be a warm and inviting space. We will be hacking the existing wall to create a wider entrance.

The 20 plus year old cabinets will make way for a stylish black and white ones. Black wood grain laminate doors will be paired with a sleek white solid-surface top.

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The Guest Washroom will be a charming toilette that features black and white damask print tiles. A petite chandelier will complete the picture.

The damask print tiles from Hafary that we selected:

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TILES SHOPPING

At this point I should add that the tiles we've selected for the entire house were selected only after numerous trips paid to various merchants - Hafary, Hup Kiong, LSH, SBH and even White Horse! Suffice to say it was an arduous process, but we're hoping that the end result would render these recces worthwhile.

Apart from the living and open concept kitchen which would be laid with the same warm grey toned 600 x 600 homogeneous tiles, each of our bathrooms will boast of its own theme:

Kitchen toilet (for Guests and doggie dearest) - neo-victorian white and black damask print wall tiles and black floor tiles

Common bathroom - modern mediterranean style with turquoise and white glossy wall tiles, against black floor tiles

Master bathroom - luxe black glossy mock-croc wall tiles with black floor tiles

A total of seven different tiles from four different merchants were eventually selected. A note of thanks to our long-suffering contractor for putting up with our complicated tile selection list!

[tristesse 3]

Eclectic theme is very rare in Singapore maybe because not many people have the exposure of such home style. I love the victorian kind of eclectic theme too but just find it too serious and sophisticated looking...prefer to have the more fun type. I am still hunting for things to add on...

Please post and share more pictures of your home....looking forward to see more! Cheers

Thanks for the encouragement! I look forward to more comments as my home undergoes its metamorphosis over the next 6 weeks (hopefully no longer than that!). I've just posted pix of the before shots - reno's to start officially tomorrow.

I'm a big fan of DIY and customisation. Am planning to buy several 2nd hand furniture pieces and have them refurbished, as well as making cushion covers out of vintage fabrics purchased off eBay.

I'll cross my fingers for a smooth and pain-free reno process in the meanwhile!

[angielim 0]

Waahhh....sounds like a really major project...looking forward to your completed pictures!

[jamez 0]

welcome to renotalk! love the croc and print tiles... looking forward to seeing the completed pics... !!