A House Is Not A Home

[qira 0]

I have been a silent reader and have benefitted tremendously from the many ongoing/ archived discussions.

I would like to share with everyone my reno journey - but being an IT idiot - hope forummers cn help if I get stuck along the way

My humble opinion is that a house does not equate to being a home unless it bears evidence of nooks/ corners/ fittings/ designs/ furnishings that translate the idiosyncracies of your daily life into form.

Hence following our purchase of our new place located in the Novena-church vicinity, we have been studiously looking for a ID to kickstart the whole process of outfitting the unit. It is literarily a 'new' place as the unit is brand new.

There were some IDs that left a deeper impression than others . Generally its the negative encounters that you rememeber

Before each meeting, we did our homework and prepared a 'design brief' to facilitate the meeting. Each ID's brief was the same (to be fair to all)

These were some (not all) of our experiences:

1) C philosophy - Quotation was super long and had a lot of 'unusual' items. EG installation of extra 47 light points/ 7 SCVs etc. We own only 1 tv in the house. This is where our design brief and our initial meeting with them should have highlighted this.

2) Kass design - appointment confirmed for meeting in his office but person didn't turn up. A brief sms to cancel appointment might have been nice.

3) Altered Interior - I was scared off by the brutish male phone recep. *haha* Totally irrelevant, I know but 'first' impression do count. So I didn't respond to subsequent marketing call.

We had a good number of good experiences too and shortlisted them before making our choice. Suffice to say, the one ID that left the deepest (and obviously the best) impression is now working with us on our unit

Edited May 23, 2011 by qira

[qira 0]

The thing about renovating a 'new' unit.

You get into a dilemma , those things which come from developer and you personally dislike - but its too major and too 'wasteful' to destroy/ replace.

Unlike a 'old' place - you can readily gut it and voila change it into your dream home.

You have to 'work around' (since too heartpain to destroy) these elements and sometimes the effect is 'compromised'

I sympathise with the ID cos I think they like to be given 'free rein' so that they can do 'transformation'.

I will try to upload some pics..

[sleek 2]

welcome to t-blog qira!

[qira 0]

o hello ! thks for the welcome - trying to figure out the pic loading .

hope I can do it soon

[qira 0]

My link Edited May 23, 2011 by qira

[sleek 2]

hi qira, all i did was cut and paste the forum thumbnail link directly as is into the reply box and the photo shows up on the post, perhaps you can try looking for that option to use.

[qira 0]

Items from developer :

1) wardrobe in light beech color for all rooms

2) bosch 2 door (side by side) fridge

3) bosch cooker hob

4) stove (can't rem brand)

5) hansgrohe bathroom accessories for all baths.

6) mitsubishi aircon

7) sensor lighting for wardrobes and foyer

8) kitchen cabinets in beech / white gloss laminate

9) bosch oven /grill

10) soft closing mech for kitchen cab doors

11) Beech color front door/ room doors

12) matt white marble floor for living / kitchen

13) dark brn parquet in room

[qira 0]

thks for the tip , sleek !

[patsy_sg 1]

not much to do!! good luck!

[footprint 0]

welcome!

waiting for photos ..

since u using photobucket, copy the link that has [ img ] ...

and paste direct will do.

[qira 0]

patsy : thats what we thot so too .. but alarmingly , the 'to-do' list seems to be lengthening.. and the same goes for the expenses too

but i admit, i felt relieved that its not more than wat it is

footprint: ok, will try again n look for the , thks vm !

[qira 0]

Laundry list of items bought:

1) yamaha U1

2) king koil mattress

3) HTL couch

4) accent arm chairs

6) framed picture

7) nesting table

8) outdoor transparent blinds

9) my toddler's princess bed

items going-to-be bought:

1) 6 units ceiling fans

2) 1 unit of wall fan

3) LG smart TV 42"

4) curtains

6) master bed

7) dishwasher

8) clothes dryer

9) study room chair

10) dining table

11) 6 units dining chairs

12) 1 unit outdoor dining table

13) 4 units outdoor dining chairs

14) 2 units bedside table

15) 2 units bedside lamps

16) 11 units potted plants

17) 2 units chandeliers

18) 4 units pendant light

[qira 0]

Our first 3 meetings with our ID were quite a hassle - their office is located right in the heart of business district and parking was not only exorbitant but also non existent.

But our ID was very nice - she suggested meeting us near to our current home. *Phew* So we never had to jostle with the traffic thereafter

We had a total of about 4-5 meetings after signing up with her firm before things launched into gear . These meetings were to discuss and preview all the necessary works.

Some things that I observe about the ID:

She listens and remembers our likes/ needs/ wants even tho' some of our 'criterias' must have run contrary to her better design expertise

Flexible and responsive - even late at night (11+pm) and she's responding/ emailing / smsing us.

Responsible - follows up and keeps her word

Hmmm.... maybe works haven't get 'busy' yet, so too soon to verdict .. so stay tuned ... will load some pics meantime

[qira 0]

The start of all renovations : the ubiquitous floor protection process

[qira 0]

I did it , footprint!