Warm, Earthy, And A Little Bohemian

[hellofromanotherside 1]

Actually my ideal kitchen was indeed blue and gold but not even sure whether it's possible here! Picked my second choice of black /dark brown fronts and brass instead with wooden top but I sometimes go back and swoon at the picture of the blue cabinet doors!!

I'm sure it's possible! Our ID says it's a matter of choosing the right paint for our cabinets. We did consider the butcher (wooden) block too, because it has a nice country/rustic feel to it. Will definitely update you here about the outcome of the kitchen. Hopefully we can stay true to the moodboard!

[twinklecloud 2]

A Photo Gallery of Modern Bohemia

I realise it's a bit challenging to find the exact image that would describe my perfect home LOL. Here are a few images we like, sticking to the theme of modern bohemia. Think dark wood, brass and gold, deep dark reds and beautiful greens. I hope this vision is possible to be brought to life. Skali it just looks better in our head!

Love the coffee table here. We found a similar one from Scene Shang =)

The couch would be a brown leather one, though.

Yup, more coffee tables to fall in love with. The fig tree really ties up the whole place nicely.

My husband is a huge fan of Afghan rugs. Their colours are mainly deep reds and blues,

and patterns are more simple compared to the normally seen Persian rugs.

And our favourite part of the house: the kitchen! Here, we plan to go with

midnight blue bottom shelves, open top shelves, marble-patterned countertops (as marble itself is porous and not durable)

and classic brass handles.

Next up: My Idol, the ID

the kitchen looks so cool!! the combination is perfect!! very nice! i am going to stay till n see the outcome!

i am not a fan of rugs.. hehe as i want as minimal maintenance as possible.. but the rugs look nice too!

my blog http://www.renotalk.com/forum/topic/72503-the-sky-parlour-an-executive-maisonette-journey/

Edited January 8, 2016 by twinklecloud

[hellofromanotherside 1]

My idol, the ID

So after all that googling and stalking homes of friends of friends, I chanced upon a beautiful BTO home on Instagram and found out they had hired an ID. I found the company’s IG account and really liked what I saw. It’s a small company, takes on a few projects a year, and is helmed by one woman, the principal designer.

As fate would have it, a few months back, they posted an update calling for new homeowners to meet up for a no-obligations chat about design ideas, if you’re collecting your keys in the first half of 2016. That’s us!

We met up and shared with her our floor plan, and some rough ideas we’d like to see in our home. The designer, let’s call her M, quickly did some sketches on the floor plan and asked if we’d considered things like materials for flooring, trunking, future planning for the extra rooms, etc. She immediately got our vision – “Like Apartment Therapy, right?” – and it got me even more excited about renovating our home.

I guess that’s ultimately what people are looking for. You can show me 10 IDs with similar ideas and quotations, and I might go with a pricier one if we get along. Because you’re going to be dealing with this person over the next few months, you better make sure you at least like her, and can trust her.

Other things I liked about M:

• She’s been in this industry for 20 years. That’s experience I can’t put a price on.
• She only personally handles a few projects each time. This means she’s extremely hands-on with our renovation, which is ideal because my husband and I don’t have the expertise/time to do checks every few days.
• She makes sure we plan ahead for every space in the house. An office today might become a nursery in a few years’ time. She will include measurements and sketches for all these plans, and we simply need to hand it over to a contractor to do the job, even if its 10 years from now.
• She has her own contacts of contractors, but is open to us recommending our own. Unlike some IDs who only work with their own contractor-partners, which may come with hidden costs.

So there you go! We met up with her last week to get design work rolling. And my ears just perked when she said we can start shopping for furniture pieces and kitchen appliances already. And boy, have we been shopping! Will share with you a few items in my next post.

Next up: It’s a Commune-al Thing

Edited January 8, 2016 by hellofromanotherside

[hellofromanotherside 1]

the kitchen looks so cool!! the combination is perfect!! very nice! i am going to stay till n see the outcome!

i am not a fan of rugs.. hehe as i want as minimal maintenance as possible.. but the rugs look nice too!

my blog http://www.renotalk.com/forum/topic/72503-the-sky-parlour-an-executive-maisonette-journey/

Thank you for reading! My parents have always loved rugs, so the look has stayed with me I suppose haha. Thankfully the husband doesn't mind weekly vacuuming =P I absolutely love your reno journey, btw. EM, so big, so much space to play around with!

[Shazy 0]

Hi able to pm me your ID ctc pls? Thks

[yakult 3]

Hello!

Sounds like you've found an awesome ID! Congrats!

Looking forward to see your reno journey with her, as well as your new place!

[hellofromanotherside 1]

Hi able to pm me your ID ctc pls? Thks

Hello Shazy. Unfortunately my ID is going on a hiatus after she's completed our house and a couple others, because she'll be renovating her own home and wants to focus on that first. As mentioned, she only handles a few projects each time, and I'm not sure when she'll resume work in the near future. I'd also like to keep her identity confidential till the house is complete, because of privacy issues. Hope you understand, thanks!

[hellofromanotherside 1]

Hello!

Sounds like you've found an awesome ID! Congrats!

Looking forward to see your reno journey with her, as well as your new place!

Yes! That's one hurdle down, many more to go I'm sure haha. Thank you for your support!

[Shazy 0]

Hello Shazy. Unfortunately my ID is going on a hiatus after she's completed our house and a couple others, because she'll be renovating her own home and wants to focus on that first. As mentioned, she only handles a few projects each time, and I'm not sure when she'll resume work in the near future. I'd also like to keep her identity confidential till the house is complete, because of privacy issues. Hope you understand, thanks!

Hey no worries.. Thks for the reply.. I guess I know which ID cos I'd email to one which I source thru ig and got the same reply haha.. If it's the same person then you are in good hands . I was wowed by her prev projects. Wish you the best and Looking forward to your reno updates.

Cheers

[Guest Alan Ho]

Hey no worries.. Thks for the reply.. I guess I know which ID cos I'd email to one which I source thru ig and got the same reply haha.. If it's the same person then you are in good hands . I was wowed by her prev projects. Wish you the best and Looking forward to your reno updates.

Cheers

wat's IG? can share?

[hellofromanotherside 1]

It's a Commune-al Thing

I don't know if you guys are like this too, but we've been going to the same furniture shops over and over again lusting over the same few things for MONTHS, just waiting to get the go-ahead from HDB and our ID to start shopping. So when M (the ID) said we can start slowly purchasing our furniture, we did what we were told....and went full speed. All that time taken to save all that money! At least it went to the stuff we really, really love.

Commune is one of our favourite shops. It's quite embarrassing la, but we've been to all their stores (even the warehouse at Defu Lane) so many times, the sales reps recognise us. It was also quite the perfect time to be buying the big ticket items, cos year end sales are very good! We got a few pieces at 15-20% off. It also took us some time to get a coffee table that was just right. I'd dreamed about it in my head this whole time, so imagine my excitement when I saw something so similar IRL, at TANGS! No time to waste, we just bought it there and then lol.

This Bruno TV console from Commune is from their latest collection.

Look at that beautiful herringbone. And the gold touches! I love how classic and

yet unique it feels.

Which would match perfectly with our coffee table (sorry for the grainy quality).

It's by a local brand called Scene Shang, and you can find some of their

stuff at TANGS Home. They recently closed their Millenia Walk shop,

and will have another store elsewhere soon.

Got a 3-seater leather couch, also from Commune. I think it's

a pretty popular piece for renotalk folks! Can't wait to

soften it up with colourful cushions.

Remember my husband's love for afghan rugs?

We found a beautiful piece at Arab St. The red is deeper in real life.

It looks black here, but some parts are actually dark blue.

Anndd the dining table is from, you guessed it! It's actually veneer wood,

but with walnut texture. The legs like so sexy hahaha.

Lastly, our dining chairs from Hock Siong! We got the yellow and coral one, 3 each.

Love how they glammed up the old-school kopitiam chair

with dip dyes. I figured if we end up hating the colours, can always repaint them.

Next up: A Trip to Paris(silk)

[hellofromanotherside 1]

Hey no worries.. Thks for the reply.. I guess I know which ID cos I'd email to one which I source thru ig and got the same reply haha.. If it's the same person then you are in good hands . I was wowed by her prev projects. Wish you the best and Looking forward to your reno updates.

Cheers

Thank you! Haha what a small world. I have nothing but praises for her tbh. Hope you find your dream ID too!

[owlNbear 2]

I think this'll turn out gorgeous! Have always loved the Bohemian look. Unfortunately my fiance has more conservative tastes so not gonna happen for me. But that's ok, I'll live my dream through you. Can't wait for more updates. Post more piccies

[hellofromanotherside 1]

I think this'll turn out gorgeous! Have always loved the Bohemian look. Unfortunately my fiance has more conservative tastes so not gonna happen for me. But that's ok, I'll live my dream through you. Can't wait for more updates. Post more piccies

Haha, happy to provide a public service! I'm sure your home will turn out beautifully too. Thank you for reading!

[hellofromanotherside 1]

A Trip to Paris(ilk)

We spent quite a while window shopping at various electronic stores like Harvey Norman etc, just looking at what's out there in the market. We're the sort of people who are very sure what we want, the moment we see it. But while my husband is more confident of his taste, I prefer doing some research to read reviews about all of the appliances we'll be buying. It's always good to chat with some of the salespeople, because they tend to be more experienced and can recommend some brands you originally wouldn't consider. We spent almost an hour at Harvey Norman once, just browsing through with a sales rep who was kind enough to take us through everything, from vacuum cleaners to washers! It's true - they have the best service. But prices....not really.

In the end, we discovered Parisilk has really competitive prices, largely due to the fact that they prefer making profits based on quantity and bulk, not by increasing the profit margin per product. And because they had all the items we wanted, we decided to purchase the hood, hob, oven and fridge there. It was between Electrolux, Bosch and some other European brand I can't remember lol. Then my husband fell in love with the hood from Bosch (he runs the kitchen!) so we went with Bosch in the end. I really love how industrial everything looks, which is a nice balance to our rather warm, bohemian kitchen.

Bosch PBD7331SG

Bosch DWW09W851B

The chimney hood he couldn't say no to

Convection Oven / Bosch HBN331E1K

Fisher & Paykel E402BRXFD4

Both of our offices have F&P fridges, and I've always loved how industrial they are.

Look at that flat steel door! Swooons.

Next up: Make Friends at Samsung