My 5 Room Bukit Merah Flat T-Blog

[boyblunder 0]

Hi boyblunder, I don't know why the image can't load - tried it a few times already.

Here's the official website: http://haikufan.com/pages/kotuku.php

Enjoy!

now can see the images liao. Nice fan, but too deep for my pocket la. i will go to m'sia to look for some kdk fans, which i think is 50% cheaper than here.

[timothyng27 0]

Hi boyblunder, where do you go in m'sia to get your fans? Which part of JB?

If you do happen to come across those that I like can you let me know the price and address of the shop? Thanks in advance

now can see the images liao. Nice fan, but too deep for my pocket la. i will go to m'sia to look for some kdk fans, which i think is 50% cheaper than here.

[timothyng27 0]

Hi Suspender,

Thanks! Donald has contacted me through renotalk already. I'll say you recommended me to get a better price

Where did you get the Haiku fan from and how much did you pay? Do you have any pictures after installing it?

nice choices u have there... i've got the Haiku fan! freaking shiok...

anyway my place was done up by Donald from 9 Lives, i must say his service is pretty good, fast response and responsible too.

i noticed that most of the guys on the job are actually their own guys maybe that's why his price can be very competitive

just mention CK from Haig Court and he should know who i am hopefully can give u a better price

[nonick 0]

nice choices u have there... i've got the Haiku fan! freaking shiok...

anyway my place was done up by Donald from 9 Lives, i must say his service is pretty good, fast response and responsible too.

i noticed that most of the guys on the job are actually their own guys maybe that's why his price can be very competitive

just mention CK from Haig Court and he should know who i am hopefully can give u a better price

Hi Suspender,

Did you install in fan in HDB units? What is the actual depth of the fan? TIA!

[frigginfuchsia 0]

ohhhhh lurve yr inspirations.. gotta lurve the simplicity of scandinavian designs!!!!!! le sighhh....

I just don't understand why the simplest looking items without frills cost so much....

(except scandiavian designs due to the ergonomics...)

[timothyng27 0]

Hi nimm12,

Yes it's good to see people who have the same aesthetic sense.

A bit jaded of the "modern contemporary" look I see in a lot of magazines and design portfolios.

I'm actually looking for "indie" - independent IDs who have a flair and similar taste for 3D visualizations, space planning and refining my concepts.

However, right now I'm just meeting up with a few IDs to have a feel for how creative they are.

Please PM me whatever contractor contacts you have; will be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

glad to see people with common interests here

i am also a big fan of nordic/scandinavia design

rather than go through an id, you might want to try designing your home yourself and get some competent contractors to execute

going through id will cost u easily extra 10~20%

[timothyng27 0]

Hi frigginfuschsia,

Nice nick! I can imagine you must be a big fan of the colour

Yes I do like the simplicity of the lines; often less really is more.

Sadly this does extend to the prices as well. Haha!

We like a lot of pieces from Furniture Club - especially the sofas and lounge chairs.

Not exactly very scandinavian, but fits in well with the theme.

Also, the Hiroshima set from Maruni, which I super like, is really expensive!

About $400-500 for chairs and about $3,000 for the table (if I'm not wrong).

I think I'll spend a bit more on the essentials - bed, sofa, tv and try to get the rest elsewhere.... IKEA maybe

ohhhhh lurve yr inspirations.. gotta lurve the simplicity of scandinavian designs!! le sighhh....

I just don't understand why the simplest looking items without frills cost so much....

(except scandiavian designs due to the ergonomics...)

[timothyng27 0]

Our design aesthetic / Creative brief to IDs & Contractors:

After looking at too many home and interior design books, and seeing too many Singaporean / Asian houses with their typical “modern-contemporary" style, we realized there aren’t many units with a very unique identity. Interior design nowadays is characterized by a lot of glossy surfaces, blacks and whites hues.

Our inspiration from Scandinavian and industrial designs. The whites, neutral hues, clean lines and casual aged appearance of Scandinavian style helps to soften the raw, cold, masculine industrial feel.

We would like an interior which is unique, inviting and timeless. The use of materials (concrete, brick, woods, glass) gives a textured feel, and the neutral colour palette help to achieve a sense of space and airiness. The use of faded and bleached wood textures gives a sense of warmness and liveability. Concrete and bricks give a rugged industrial look. The use of lighting to highlight the different textures in the materials used, and the use of colour / shapes for certain furniture pieces help to add a sense of interest.

[timothyng27 0]

Here's more furniture / components for the living room:

Sofa

We're still deciding between 2, or 3 seater and normal or L-shaped. We like comfy plush-looking sofas with minimal metal, studs, pimples etc.

Just big, plain-coloured pieces of leather / fabric which beckons your *** to sit in

Kelvin Giormani - Dese

Casa Italia - Nebula

Om - Ballerine

Ekornes Stressless E200 series

Ekornes Stressless E300 series

More other chairs to come - there's a limit on the number of images I can attach to a post.

[timothyng27 0]

Chaise / lounge / other chairs

Om - Jacini

Om - Smile chair

Couture Furniture - Satin Dreamy Chaise

Isamo Noguchi - Freeform sofa

Fred Qora - Dodi chaise lounge

Please let me know if you've any reviews, lowest pricing, availability, specification on any of the above. All help will be gladly appreciated. Thanks!

[hafiizh 0]

Oh my I love your sense of style from your inspiration pictures to your furnishings selection. You know what, your hacking plan would be exactly like mine if I were to do it. I think to realize your vision you have to think ahead - storage is key. Definitely hide whatever you can. The color scheme looks good finalized already. All that's left is to just bring the different elements together - simple eye-catching furnishings and choice of good quality materials.

I agree with nimm, you might want to go with a good contractor instead of an ID. Make your selection based on quality workmanship and materials and your interactions (face to face) with him. I prefer to be objective but you are the right place to start looking for reliable ones. best wishes on your journey!

[timothyng27 0]

Thanks hafiizh! I'm still looking at different combinations of ID / contractors, but I'll probably work with an independent ID with experience in commercial properties (hotels / restaurants etc).

I'm going to meet an ID this Saturday which seems to know what I want and have the same aesthetic (based on his portfolio). He fits the description above as well.

Here's who I've met so far:

k* Design (Jalan Besar):

Contact person: Jasmine / Gavin

Jasmine is very proactive - kept calling me about 3-4 times to arrange today's appointment.

Their aesthetic (from what I've seen in their showroom) is pretty typical.

However, they seem to have a good idea of what I want. Will wait for 2D space plan and quotation by next Wednesday.

3D Innovative Design (Ubi)

Contact person: May

May is extremely friendly and very down to earth. She was very patient and talked through all the materials at the showroom.

Showroom looks big and impressive, and the designers (even junior designers) seem a very hardworking bunch, staying back late until 9+.

I like certain materials they use in the showroom, but build quality and workmanship for certain parts of the showroom seem lacking.

Has been 2 weeks since visiting but not heard back from May - SMSed her and she said she'll send over the space plan + quotation through email.

Baroque Design (Joo Chiat)

Contact person: Andy Yeo

Sent me a brief floor plan (looks like cut and pasted from a similar unit) which was ok.

Quote for $34K but haven't called and spoken to me yet, which is pretty weird.

Will probably get in touch with him soon.

William from Defong ID, Donald from 9Lives have also emailed / SMSed me but I have yet to follow up.

I'll share more once I have more interaction with all of them.

I also noticed that IDs websites are all pretty badly done up

Just my 2 cents, coming from my background in web marketing

Anyway hafiizh, let me know if you have worked with any of the above or other IDs / contractors.

Reviews and ratings would definitely help my decision! Thanks!

Oh my I love your sense of style from your inspiration pictures to your furnishings selection. You know what, your hacking plan would be exactly like mine if I were to do it. I think to realize your vision you have to think ahead - storage is key. Definitely hide whatever you can. The color scheme looks good finalized already. All that's left is to just bring the different elements together - simple eye-catching furnishings and choice of good quality materials.

I agree with nimm, you might want to go with a good contractor instead of an ID. Make your selection based on quality workmanship and materials and your interactions (face to face) with him. I prefer to be objective but you are the right place to start looking for reliable ones. best wishes on your journey!

Edited May 25, 2011 by timothyng27

[timothyng27 0]

Here's some more lighting inspirations (pendant lamps and standing lamps). Sorry if some of the pics are rather bad or low res.

A lot of the lamps I've seen come from Veillux at Park Mall. They have a pretty good selection. PM me if you want the catalogue.

Standing lamps:

I'm pretty sick of seeing Arco lamps (real and fake) everywhere, but that's just me

So here goes:

Ruby Beets - Lily lamp

Absolutely gorgeous (pics speak for themselves)

Northern Lighting - Diva floorlamp

Another super beautiful piece. Fell in love once I saw it at Style Nordic Delphi Orchard

Veillux - VLF standing lamp

Not as nice as the other pieces, but still pretty good-loooking and sturdy

[timothyng27 0]

And here's some other pendant / ceiling lamps I love:

Veillux (again) - Flyol

Veillux (again again) - Holmz

Chanced across this at Park Mall and enquired immediately. Would look super nice on a living room / dining ceiling

Sorry the picture doesn't do it justice

Turkish lamps chandelier

This would look great on a corridor, bedroom or balcony or as a mood lighting. Very pretty

Think they sell stuff like this at one Arab Street corner shop selling shisha. Pretty expensive though. Anyone got lobang?

[adidaem 6]

Great furniture featured. I esp like the simple Maruni Hiroshima dining chairs. Shall try to make time to go to Mandarin Gallery to have a look. But I think the turkish lamps may not fit your scandinavian theme?

All the best for your reno!