Our Ecclectic Attic Renoblog

[mandj 0]

Hi All!

I've been one of those silent lurker types but have always thought of starting a reno-log thing; we're finally getting our keys in less than 2 weeks and I thought it's now or never. There are so many helpful forummers and t-blogs so I thought I should share/ exchange info and keep a log of the process to our new home - have been pretty obsessed about haus related stuff and my hubs is always reminding me that the house is not important, the relationships and people who live in it will be! Here's to hoping that we'll be able to create a lovely home where friends can come and many relationships can grow (:

Anyway, floorplan:

Yes one of the rare superlong corner 3-room units!

We're not going with an ID cos their quotes were all ): and we've already engaged a contractor - so far they've been really great. Went down to the flat to give us a more accurate quote and was indeed lower than the rest - can still suggest ways to help us save $$ (my hubs fav). They were recommended to us by a friend so we know their workmanship is good, and so far v responsive.. can tell me what I can/ can not do and recommend some stuff. Just cannot give design advice - but that's ok.

The main difficulties with our reno planning are:

1. **** long and narrow space layout. credit to yuene from renotalk (who kindly invited us over, incidentally she knows the husband - small world!) who showed us how it can be done! However, we want to use as much of the space as possible - so headache.

2. BUDGET lah. Since it's a 3RM we don't know how long we will be able to stay here before moving so not very willing to sink in too much $$. (We tried looking for 4RM in the area, but *ahem* way over budget liao, and COV all super unreasonable. Anyway.)

Eh, on the title of this t-blog - I really dunno how to give a name to my house and since it's top floor so attic lor. (:

[multi888 1]

Welcome to RT...yes indeed, your house is very special.

[mandj 0]

Due to budget constraints we will only be re-doing the toilets & kitchen, hacking away the store room, enlarging toilet & adding a partition wall for a WIW (actually sounds quite a lot). Will also be repainting.

We will not be changing the living/ bedroom floors, rewiring, getting ANY build-ins or a false ceiling (I'm not quite sure what to do about my lights now though).

Current condition of the flat is still OK except toilets & kitchen areas that really need to go. However, floor is terrazo GREEN so a lot of our design concept needs to work around the colour of our floor! Quite challenging. My contractor encourage me to laminate the floor but I kinda like the terrazo - can't find many houses with it anymore and it is easy to clean and v cool on the feet. Also quite retro!

So I'll be trying to mix retro pieces & wood with white ikea cabinets - don't think we can use all woody furniture because it will crowd out the space which isn't very big to begin with. Hope it won't be too mish mashed.

After many different prototypes (husband thought I was mad) I came up with this:

from floorplanner (super useful). I even managed to make the floors green, HAHA.

[Sygnur 0]

A special tblog title..! hope u'll have a smooth sailing reno journey...

[adidaem 6]

Due to budget constraints we will only be re-doing the toilets & kitchen, hacking away the store room, enlarging toilet & adding a partition wall for a WIW (actually sounds quite a lot). Will also be repainting.

We will not be changing the living/ bedroom floors, rewiring, getting ANY build-ins or a false ceiling (I'm not quite sure what to do about my lights now though).

Current condition of the flat is still OK except toilets & kitchen areas that really need to go. However, floor is terrazo GREEN so a lot of our design concept needs to work around the colour of our floor! Quite challenging. My contractor encourage me to laminate the floor but I kinda like the terrazo - can't find many houses with it anymore and it is easy to clean and v cool on the feet. Also quite retro!

So I'll be trying to mix retro pieces & wood with white ikea cabinets - don't think we can use all woody furniture because it will crowd out the space which isn't very big to begin with. Hope it won't be too mish mashed.

After many different prototypes (husband thought I was mad) I came up with this:

from floorplanner (super useful). I even managed to make the floors green, HAHA.

Older flats electrical can be iffy. You may wanna have a look at the power and sufficiency of points?

How big is your unit? Looks really spacious. Can share the green floors? Yeah I find terrazzo interesting too. Wonder how much to do terrazzo or if there are people who still do terrazzo?

[mandj 0]

A special tblog title..! hope u'll have a smooth sailing reno journey...

Hehehe thanks! Sure hope so too I really didn't know what to call it. It was that or "GREEN HOUSE" but my floors also not that green, haha.

Edited October 26, 2012 by mandj

[mandj 0]

Older flats electrical can be iffy. You may wanna have a look at the power and sufficiency of points?

How big is your unit? Looks really spacious. Can share the green floors? Yeah I find terrazzo interesting too. Wonder how much to do terrazzo or if there are people who still do terrazzo?

Hi Adidaem! Your blog has really been v helpful to me and it's awesome you still post here (:

The sellers told us they re-wired the apartment when they moved in about 5 years ago which is why we decided we wouldn't need to do it - we're probably just gonna add power points wherever we want. I'm not sure how to do the lighting though, would be open to any help on this! Currently they have those fluorescent tube lights... My hubs wants to keep it like that to save $. At first I wanted track lights but he disapproved of that too (he says the spots on the wall are ugly and they don't provide adequate light source cos we intend to have bible studies in our living room haha).

Unit is 88sqm including the utility room - bigger than some new 4 rooms I don't have pics of the floor but will remember to take and post some when the sellers move out! My contractor told me no one does terrazzo anymore (so if they damage floors during hacking it's good game)!

[mandj 0]

Currently lusting after this:

Artemide toio lamp by flos super love.

It's way outta budget, anyone knows of any more affordable alternatives?

more pics:

<3. Yeap that's a car headlight - don't think it's a very popular artemide though unlike the arco

Edited October 27, 2012 by mandj

[Velarine 0]

Due to budget constraints we will only be re-doing the toilets & kitchen, hacking away the store room, enlarging toilet & adding a partition wall for a WIW (actually sounds quite a lot). Will also be repainting.

We will not be changing the living/ bedroom floors, rewiring, getting ANY build-ins or a false ceiling (I'm not quite sure what to do about my lights now though).

Current condition of the flat is still OK except toilets & kitchen areas that really need to go. However, floor is terrazo GREEN so a lot of our design concept needs to work around the colour of our floor! Quite challenging. My contractor encourage me to laminate the floor but I kinda like the terrazo - can't find many houses with it anymore and it is easy to clean and v cool on the feet. Also quite retro!

So I'll be trying to mix retro pieces & wood with white ikea cabinets - don't think we can use all woody furniture because it will crowd out the space which isn't very big to begin with. Hope it won't be too mish mashed.

After many different prototypes (husband thought I was mad) I came up with this:

from floorplanner (super useful). I even managed to make the floors green, HAHA.

[Velarine 0]

Ha

Green Terrazo tiles! I have that too! Yes very retro wor It's very cooling when you step on it, you can even sleep on the terrazo floor during the hot weather and feel very cooling! It's even colder when you switch on air-con till the next day hee. The best part is, you can't see the dirt, hair and scratches due to drag of furniture accidentally. So it is very easy to maintain compared with white marble or homogeneous tiles:sport-smiley-004:

[adidaem 6]

Hi Adidaem! Your blog has really been v helpful to me and it's awesome you still post here (:

The sellers told us they re-wired the apartment when they moved in about 5 years ago which is why we decided we wouldn't need to do it - we're probably just gonna add power points wherever we want. I'm not sure how to do the lighting though, would be open to any help on this! Currently they have those fluorescent tube lights... My hubs wants to keep it like that to save $. At first I wanted track lights but he disapproved of that too (he says the spots on the wall are ugly and they don't provide adequate light source cos we intend to have bible studies in our living room haha).

Unit is 88sqm including the utility room - bigger than some new 4 rooms I don't have pics of the floor but will remember to take and post some when the sellers move out! My contractor told me no one does terrazzo anymore (so if they damage floors during hacking it's good game)!

Yeah, am on Newsloop (http://www.newsloop.co) so still feel 'obliged' to keep my wp blog alive. And since I can't keep renovating, just have to live 'vicariously' via other ppl reno lor.

Oh 5 years should be fine. Track lights are not very bright, so it wouldn't be suitable for reading. Am no lighting expert but pls don't go for those one single fluorescent lighting point in the room look... will look dim and dingy. If you have more than one lighting point per room should be fine bah... or install some wall lights?

Yes looks spacious and I like your WIW. Is the back room meant to be a storeroom? Think is very impt to have a storeroom.

So sad that no one does terrazzo any more. Only tiles right? I think my contractor mentioned before. Whatever happened to all the terrazo shifu in Singapore?

[mandj 0]

Ha

Green Terrazo tiles! I have that too! Yes very retro wor It's very cooling when you step on it, you can even sleep on the terrazo floor during the hot weather and feel very cooling! It's even colder when you switch on air-con till the next day hee. The best part is, you can't see the dirt, hair and scratches due to drag of furniture accidentally. So it is very easy to maintain compared with white marble or homogeneous tiles:sport-smiley-004:

you have that in your 3.5 room as well? cool! super similar (: are you retaining your floors? The skirting is a problem - cannot be repolished so there will be a lot of stains that cannot be removed. Which is why my contractor recommends laminating my floor, but I refuse. Yah my friend has terrazzo in her old house, she was also just telling me she can sleep on the floor too lol (:

glad to know there are still terrazzo lovers out there haha!

[mandj 0]

Yeah, am on Newsloop (http://www.newsloop.co) so still feel 'obliged' to keep my wp blog alive. And since I can't keep renovating, just have to live 'vicariously' via other ppl reno lor.

Oh 5 years should be fine. Track lights are not very bright, so it wouldn't be suitable for reading. Am no lighting expert but pls don't go for those one single fluorescent lighting point in the room look... will look dim and dingy. If you have more than one lighting point per room should be fine bah... or install some wall lights?

Yes looks spacious and I like your WIW. Is the back room meant to be a storeroom? Think is very impt to have a storeroom.

So sad that no one does terrazzo any more. Only tiles right? I think my contractor mentioned before. Whatever happened to all the terrazo shifu in Singapore?

my contractor says that once her generation of contractors & cupboard shifus die out, there will be no more carpenters as well and we will all be left with ikea furniture... lol. this was said in relation to my WIW - in order to save $ we are gonna get the pole system from ikea and drawer units also from ikea. she also advised me against it as she said your white shirts will have an entire layer of dust unless you wear them regularly. i guess we will try it out for our first house first, maybe in our next home we'll get proper carpentry that can last super long! hur.

yup, we're gonna use the utility as a storeroom cos we hacked away the one in between the kitchen and living. i totally agree! although can't help feeling like it's a waste of all those utility room windows... but store rooms are essential to living a non-cluttered life.

[mandj 0]

UPDATE:

1. TILES

have kinda confirmed my tiles. i say kinda because today was the third time i went down to soon bee huat (sales people know me liao lol) - keep second guessing my tile choices. think we just have to trial and error for this one and live with my bad choices (if they turn out bad).

all my tile samples in my current bathroom. trying to test them with my wet feet.. lol maybe i am a bit crazy. at first we wanted cement screed (not recommended by all contractors due to cracking cement), then cement look tiles. but since i bought my dining table which has a very strong wood grain & also considering the pattern of the terrazzo, i decided there was too much texture and have switched to a flat grey tile. fingers crossed it will turn out okay and match the terrazzo (i am the kind of person who really cannot stand it if something doesn't go or is out of alignment... visually OCD).

bathroom tiles will be white subway for the common toilet & larger white matt tiles (husband's choice) for the mbr toilet. floors are grey / white.. yes white toilets are a necessity. even if it may be suicide with white toilet floors - we are installing shower screen so shouldn't be a problem (i think)

2. KITCHEN LAMINATES

initially i wanted an all white kitchen but my hubby insists we have some contrast. so i've chosen wood for the under cabinets and white for the top cabinets. hopefully it will turn out something like this:

we'll probably get glossy white top cabinets for maintenance sake - even though this won't match my matt white ikea cabinets (besta series) in the rest of the house. i'm hoping that it's only noticeable if you are visually OCD and have decided that this is something i can live with (hopefully. although if i tell my husband 'i can't live with the glossy cabinets cos the rest of our furniture is matt' - i will confirm get whacked lol.)

3. APPLIANCES/ FITTINGS

we've decided to buy our home appliances / fittings like hood, hob, oven, sink, fridge, heaters from zero on renotalk. he seems to have pretty good reviews and his prices are really competitive. also save us quite a lot of stress in terms of running around trying to get the best prices. glad that at least that is outta the way!

think what's left to worry about are only the lights... but we're only going to deal with that after the hacking has commenced!

Edited October 29, 2012 by mandj

[veryboliao 0]

my contractor says that once her generation of contractors & cupboard shifus die out, there will be no more carpenters as well and we will all be left with ikea furniture... lol. this was said in relation to my WIW - in order to save $ we are gonna get the pole system from ikea and drawer units also from ikea. she also advised me against it as she said your white shirts will have an entire layer of dust unless you wear them regularly. i guess we will try it out for our first house first, maybe in our next home we'll get proper carpentry that can last super long! hur.

yup, we're gonna use the utility as a storeroom cos we hacked away the one in between the kitchen and living. i totally agree! although can't help feeling like it's a waste of all those utility room windows... but store rooms are essential to living a non-cluttered life.

First time seeing such 3 room layout! So huge!

By the way, the contractor-cum-carpenter who did up my place is only 30+. I think (and hope!) this trade will continue on!