Love Nest @ Casa

[Nexer 1]

i forgot to mention alittle trivial which i wanted to share..

Mr K brought pinkwhale to visit my place last Saturday, and we were slightly late while they let themselves in..and when I arrived, Mr K was near the entrance, sweeping my floor very embarrassing, because i haven't swept my floor at all since my husband insisted on cleaning up only after all works are done.. i kept telling him to stop sweeping, i cannot afford to pay him for sweeping my floor!

still very thankful to have him do up my place..he's always beaming with pride when he shares his project pictures, and he really takes pride in his work..he refers to his potential customers as 'guests'..he never fails to call back or reply all our questions, and trust me, we've quite abit of questions!

no, i'm not paid to advertise for him, and i've paid him quite abit of money instead.. many thanks to pinkwhale for sharing and recommending her contractor!

I'm going give Mr K a call once I get my keys in Sep. hopefully he is available to do my reno before year end...

[theitsybits 0]

I'm going give Mr K a call once I get my keys in Sep. hopefully he is available to do my reno before year end...

yea, it's probably to meet on site.. =)

then again, it might be better to meet up with a few IDs/contractors for ideas and price comparison..it's important to be able to communicate and click with someone who will build your dream home..

[sunsetsky 0]

I also wanna visit

[Pangzi 0]

Hi theitsybits,

Do you mind PM me K contact. Thanks!

[oqs 0]

Hi! I have also bought a lot of stuff from Taobao, but I'm using peeka.sg for sea shipment. Planning to get our dining table from there too when the house is ready. I'm really curious about your custom made curtains. Can I know how's the quality of the fabric used? Did you do blinds too? And is installation for the curtain rails and stuff easy?

[theitsybits 0]

I also wanna visit

i'll be away this weekend, but should be around next weekend..hopefully by then all carpentry/solid tops are up..u can drop by if you like..

Hi theitsybits,

Do you mind PM me K contact. Thanks!

pm-ed

Hi! I have also bought a lot of stuff from Taobao, but I'm using peeka.sg for sea shipment. Planning to get our dining table from there too when the house is ready. I'm really curious about your custom made curtains. Can I know how's the quality of the fabric used? Did you do blinds too? And is installation for the curtain rails and stuff easy?

i see, is it cheaper? i'm not that inclined to ship big items from taobao as i'm worried abt quality and high shipping cost..

i'll collect my curtains next week, will post pictures and let you know then..i suppose their sewing workmanship should be alright and fabric can't be that bad..but since it's cheaper than the ready-made curtains i get here, i reckon it's worth a try..there must sell blinds too, they sell everything!

installation of rods will be done by my contractor, it's very easy, just 2 brackets, curtain goes through the rod and put it up..even the traditional types are just a track with holes for hooks..

[theitsybits 0]

About renovation cost, IDs and contractors.

I've been getting alot of questions about my renovation costs, what's the difference between IDs and contractors, and I'll try to share my take on these:

I will share my total renovation cost, but not the breakdown by items since every project is different, and it's not fair to compare quotes item by item. From my understanding, every contractor/ID would calculate individual costs and also ensure that the whole project earns a certain profit margin, usually at least 30%. This is to cover things like transport cost, potential rectification costs etc, and is also why some contractors who charge cheap prices would refuse to rectify works since it would result in a loss. IDs generally charge more than contractors, as they are on a commission based pay package, and provide services such as 3D drawings, space planning, working with you to design your homes. They are also supposed to supervise all works for you and coordinate all sub-contractors and manage the whole project timeline. Having said that, not all of them actually manages your project actively and hardly visits your site or do enough follow-ups!

I chose a contractor instead of an ID, mainly because I have not met any IDs who actually understands the look and feel I wanted. Of course budget played a part and I preferred to get more bang for the buck. IDs usually show me a huge portfolio of typical modern contemporary styles which I was trying to avoid. I wanted something Scandinavian inspired, something rustic with some elements of industrial, country and mid-century. Space planning wise, I have more or less decided on what I wanted and just needed someone to get it done for me, unless anyone can convince me otherwise (my mum and orangecrab did). I hate it when IDs try to change my layout, seemingly just to change it for the sake of showing that they contributed to the design process. It went against my basic principle of enlarging my living space visually, and enhance the circulation of air in the home. Some gave me weird comments like insisting on a plastered brick wall looked like the real thing, and asked me if it was because of Fengshui that I wanted my whole living area white. Apparently it seems like white is outdated and boring and nobody does it anymore. There are IDs specializing in my themes, but they are waaaayyyyy out of budget and I didn't even bother to approach them despite knowing that they exist.

After many frustrating meetings with IDs who did not understand what we wanted but gave quotations way out of budget, we went to contractors. Mr K was the 3rd contractor I approached, and his quotation at about 40k was pretty competitive all-in, but obviously we chose him for his attitude, workmanship, trust, and ease of communication. We also got a quotation from a relative who quoted us at 'cost', but he charged us 35k after discounts but excluding electrical, haulage, before upgrade of tiles, additional hacking and brick wall, 3 toilet doors and service yard windows. We eventually got the relative to do carpentry on the insistence of MIL, while Mr K did all things else. Looking at how our carpentry went, I can only say that luckily we didn't agree to use him for all our works. The chasing and lack of progress updates and delays would have killed us. My cheapest quote was 33k before additional brick wall, electrical, windows, 3 toilet doors and additional hacking. My most expensive quote came to about 60k.

My major works are hacking of 6 walls, flooring for whole house (excluding toilets), 2 brick walls, 1 cement screed wall, overlay 2 toilet walls with shower screens, MBR false ceiling, living L-box, 2 wardrobes, 2 toilet vanity, shoe cabinet, feature wall,~30ft kitchen, electrical and painting for about 40k.

In terms of renovation cost, IDs usually cost quite abit more than contractors. Although I've heard instances when IDs are cheaper than contractors, every ID quote was pricier than contractors' quote for me. However, alot also depends on what materials you choose. To keep costs low, you can use laminated flooring instead or tiles or parquet wood or use china solid tops instead of banded solid tops or granite. Also, look at the details of your quote. For flooring and tiling, some IDs price indicates 60x60 tiles up to $2.20 - and this is a huge limitation, the selection for $2.20 tiles is very small and you will need to top-up a substantial amount if you choose say $3.20 tiles. Also, the workmanship for laying 15x60cm wood-grain tiles is more expensive. Carpentry quotations also vary widely, do check the thickness of wood and laminates used, whether you can choose laminates from any brand or only a certain range, what accessories are provided e.g. blum drawers or china-made soft-closing, dish racks and pull-out trays? Do clarify and ask for quotes if you require any upgrades. Also check if electrical is charged by points or a lump sum, if haulage and sand is included.

Apart from cost, it's important to confirm time frame. If you IDs are giving you your 3D drawings and quotations late, not answering calls or replying your queries promptly , it may be a sign that your works might be delayed and would be less smooth. Even if prices are right, and you work well with them, can you accept it if your renovation works drag for 3 months or not having prompt updates of your renovation progress? Do also try to view their finished projects and talk to other owners and observe their relationship. If workmanship is good and they are still on good terms, it's a good sign. Do not be too impressed by sales talk, pictures, pretty showrooms and freebies and follow your gut feel! This applies to both contractors and IDs.

Personally, I feel that sometimes contractors work with a better and more experienced network of sub-contractors. For Mr K, he does the customer facing and also knows all his sub-contractors very well. In terms of working relationship and experience of how things are supposed to be done, contractor are more hands-on. I've experienced and heard about instances when wants were communicated to ID/coordinator, but it did not flow down to the sub-contractor level, resulting in rectification works and delays. Having said that, I'm sure that there are experienced IDs who are hands-on and work well with their sub-contractors too, and it's better to get some referrals or research on the ID firm before getting them. Do meet up with a few IDs/contractors to get ideas to compare quotes and to find someone who 'feels right' and communicate well with you. If in doubt, it's better to strike them off the list instead of taking the risk.

Do keep in mind that contractors are usually chinese speaking, no 3D (unless you request and pay for it) and you have to have an idea of what you want done. Experienced contractors can give you comments or advise, but will not do space planning and sit down to work with your needs and ideas. The pros are getting more value for your money, since contractors do coordination work and gives constant updates nowadays too and are not that different from IDs.

It seems like Mr K is pretty busy these days with the 7th month upcoming, and people scrambling to start renovation works before the 7th month starts. But I do like it that he lets his potential customer know that and set a realistic time frame for new meetings/jobs instead of over-promising and end up not delivering on time or quality work.

Hope this answers some of your concerns, and I'm going to refer people to this post if I do get similar questions. I will be away for the week, heading to Bangkok with the girls, hoping to find some treasures for my home while I'm there. Will share the shopping list when I'm back, and perhaps answer more questions.

[Nexer 1]

Hi

Thanks for the detailed writeup.

Hope u hv a great time in Bangkok!

[Evi 0]

Hi Itsybits,

May I enquire whether it is convenient for me to get your contactor's contact? Thanks!

[oqs 0]

i see, is it cheaper? i'm not that inclined to ship big items from taobao as i'm worried abt quality and high shipping cost..

i'll collect my curtains next week, will post pictures and let you know then..i suppose their sewing workmanship should be alright and fabric can't be that bad..but since it's cheaper than the ready-made curtains i get here, i reckon it's worth a try..there must sell blinds too, they sell everything!

installation of rods will be done by my contractor, it's very easy, just 2 brackets, curtain goes through the rod and put it up..even the traditional types are just a track with holes for hooks..

I'm not sure if it's cheaper. The people there are quite responsive and the shipping cost is calculated by volume and not weight. Quite good for heavy items. But yeah, as with any MIC stuff, you take the risk of poor quality goods. But the price is quite unbelievable, so I'm willing to take the risk. Hope nothing goes wrong there.

Thanks! Looking forward to see more photos from you.

[nisa.hady@hotmail.com 0]

hi theitsybits! i'm keen with tom dixon beat in white color (3pcs). I'm a malay, i have no idea how to purchase the tom dixon light from taobao.. is there any email contact that I can drop them a line? you bought 3pcs dixon light at SGD$97 incl shipping??? dats really cheap!

hope to hear from you soon!

nisa

Buying from Taobao

I'm using Daigou65 for buying at Taobao. I have bought quite a few items from Taobao, mainly track and pendant lights. I have also bought a few Phillips downlights, but have decided to buy those from Singapore instead since it's fixed inside the false ceiling and I'm somewhat worried about potential quality issues. I've less concerns about pendant lights since they're essentially a piece of metal. I have also custom-made curtains from Taobao, they will sew based on measurements provided, and it's so much cheaper than doing it here. I have also bought Eames fibreglass chairs from Taobao. However, I have not received them.

For the pendant lights, I have received all of them in good condition. Things like Tom Dixon lights, Spinning lights are selling for like SGD$10-$30 each, but shipping is expensive for bigger items, like the big spinning light. Prices are still at least half-price as compared to Singapore. E.g. I heard Tom Dixon replicas are selling for 100++ each, but I got 3 of them for SGD$97 including shipping. My large spinning lights are retailing for 200+++ in Singapore, but I got it for SGD$129 all-in, mainly because of the expensive volumetric shipping fees. I also got track lights track. Everything came in good condition, except the spinning light which I found to be yellowish/cream in colour instead of pure white. Mr K is helping me paint it glossy white.

For me, I buy from Taobao with the mentality that it's really cheap, and even if it turns out bad, I wouldn't be heart pain. I was willing to take the risk and ain't that particular about quality. Moreover, the light shops import from China too!So I think that if you have similar mentality and isn't too bothered about quality and workmanship, the items are pretty decent and at least half-price (for the things I bought). I had fun searching for the chinese names of things I wanted to buy, surfing the endless products. Anyway, I was surfing in Chinese, so if you do not have a decent command of Chinese, this won't work!

A few tips for buying from Taobao:

(1) Find out the chinese name of the things you want to buy. Google translate helps.

(2) Surf the first, say 10 pages of the products. Many of them are similar, and there's a range of prices.

(3) Try to choose sellers with better ratings, just like buying from ebay.

(4) If possible, buy a few items from the same seller and request for them to pack them together to save shipping

(5) Confirm volumetric or actual weight before confirming the orders. Due to different packaging by different sellers, you can save quite abit e.g. same item, one seller might pack into 15kg volume box while the other packs it into 8kg volume box.

It helps if you have an idea of the prices of similar pieces here, and some items are more worth it and 'safe' to buy from Taobao than others. E.g. Phillips lights do not have much savings compared to Singapore pricing. But if you do not mind their China brands, they are very cheap, even LEDs. But that was one item which I wasn't comfortable with buying online as it's troublesome to change.

Will post pictures once my stuff are up!

[theitsybits 0]

hi theitsybits! i'm keen with tom dixon beat in white color (3pcs). I'm a malay, i have no idea how to purchase the tom dixon light from taobao.. is there any email contact that I can drop them a line? you bought 3pcs dixon light at SGD$97 incl shipping??? dats really cheap!

hope to hear from you soon!

nisa

Hmm, it will be quite challenging to buy on taobao without knowing chinese..

I have added the link I bought the white dixon lights below..quality was pretty good..you can try to buy using daigou65, it's quite simple and the correspondences are mainly in english..just register for an account, copy and paste the link below and leave a comment e.g. a set of 3 individual dixon lights and ask them to confirm price and shipping cost with the seller..there are many variations, like individual lights, 3 lights on a rod, 3 lights on a circle plate.

http://detail.tmall.com/item.htm?id=10496519267#

good luck!

[theitsybits 0]

I'm back from Bangkok and it has been an extremely tiring trip though I managed to get some household items. Bangkok is still so humid and crowded..

I did visit Hawaii Five O and the few shops around that area, but did not get any furniture..most of the household items were from JJ market and Asiatique..I actually backpacked 10kg worth of plates home, because they were so pretty and cheap..I tire out easily after buying some stuff, its really no joke trying to shop with a 5-10kg load when it's do hot and crowded..we barely combed much of JJ market despite spending hours in there..!

Meanwhile, the remaining of the carpentry will be delivered tomorrow! They are 2 weeks late and I'm glad that they're finally here..solid top measurements were just taken last Friday, one whole week after kitchen carpentry was ready..I've arranged for lights to be up on Friday..we're left with plumbing once solid top is up and painting..

I would have loved for the home to be ready for cleaning by this long weekend but looks like its not possible now..

Hopefully, there'll be pictures to share soon.. =)

[groom4life 0]

Hi itsybits

Been quietly watching your reno progress since day one. Thanks for all the inspiring thoughts and educational bits that you've so generously given to your readers!

Can you PM me Mr K's contact details? Hoping to get a quotation from him for my new Strathmore flat, thanks!

[whitehousey 0]

Can't wait to see your kitchen all done up