Lightings, Kitchen / Closet Specialist And Others....

[renee_goh 0]

Friends,

You can try using this to create a 3D models to explain to your contractors what your design looks like.

http://sketchup.google.com/

My hubby loves this software too and he said that I am real good at it.

Now, if someone like me who is not so good at 3D stuff can use it, I am sure many of you will be able to catch on faster than me. I just used it to help my in-laws to design a 3D model so that they can explain to their contractors how to build them. No need to pay good $$$ for lousy designers. Go straight to the builders and explain your designs directly, using this free software ~

Enjoy Downloading!

PS: Latest issue of Style Living : Vol 3 Issue 03 has a great section on "Kitchen Planning".

For those who can cook, I strongly recommend you to invest in a good "sucker" aka hood. I use http://www.rinnai.com.sg/index.cfm?GPID=11 Do not just go for brand name. Miele washing machine may costs 5x more than Bandt but who can guarantee that Miele will definitely wash better than Brandt?

Rather focus your money to buy stuff that will serve you longer, gives you least maintenance headache and best saves your electricity bills in the long run.

Also, do not just buy from big malls --- (read big malls equals big rental), go ask around HDB shops, you will be surprised that they can be as much as 20% cheaper than Harvey or Best Denki. But for bigger items like Fridge, TV, you may want to buy from Best so that you can also buy their extended warranty package. Your choice....

For those who do not cook so often, do not ignore the "kitchen" too. You can have an "open concept" kitchen that joins with the dinning area -- that will make your place look bigger and classier. You can still prepare simple finger food for friends while entertaining them around your beautiful kitchen.

I recommend you to look at Ikea kitchens. They have some real good stuff going on these days and the best thing is -- they can do the layout planning for you too, on a PC..... wow! And you know exactly what you are paying for, because their pricing list is so open.

Last but not least, many of you PM me to ask for the name of the contractor from **** that I have used.

My sincerest apologies .... but I really dont wish to dwell on them any more. They sucks big time, but I am equally stupid to have chosen them so ....... please forgive me for not wanting to PM you back.

[color=#6600CC]Hi 123abc,

Read ur post and your comment on Ikea kitchen solution caught my attention. I was contemplating doing my kitchen cabinets with Ikea but I am still not sure if the quality is as good as Ikea puts it to be as Ikea has a 25-yr warranty backing their cabinets. Question to anyone who has experience dealing with Ikea and/or is using their cabinets, I would really like to hear from them.

I have also spoken to a few kitchen cabinets specialist like Song-Cho and Ernest Interior/Kitchen Studio, as well as, an ID firm. Their quote ranges from above $13k to $20k. Ikea so far comes out to the cheapest so far and I am getting all the stuff the ID firm quotes but with soft stuff like trays and dividers quoted in the cost by Ikea. Plus Ikea too uses the Blum hinge system which I understand kitchen cabinet contractors typically quote a premium for.

Thanks a bunch!