Owl & Bear's Parisian-Chic-Lookalike Nest

[arturobinewski 0]

Stunning images from your mood board, Owl! I'm crazy about the bedrooms especially - I love the monochrome-ness of everything, and the textured accents really add interest to the overall feel.

Errr..... I did cement screeding for both my toilet walls, and I had the same concerns as you... However, the contractor assured me that "leakage" per se was unlikely to happen as long as the water proofing was done properly, and I was ok with cracks.. uurrgh, I guess I'll only find out in a few years! I'll post up some pics of my toilets once everything is done.

[owlNbear 2]

Congratulation on your house and all the best on your reno journey!

Love the mood boards,keep those update coming ya.

Thanks for dropping by nextstep!

I've been following your bachelor pad reno blog for the longest time, and it's a really inspiring journey. Thank you for sharing

Lovely moodboard, Owl! Looking forward to see the rest of the look

Thank you cat

wow! the mood board looks very nice! keep the pics and update coming! cant wait to see the transformation!

Thank you! Transformation is in progress as we speak and I'll try to update them as soon as I can. Do check back for more

Love the moodboard, similar with what I pinned in pinterest

can't wait to see the transformation... more pic pleaseee...

Glad you liked it! Pinterest is so useful isn't it? So many pretty and droolworthy photos to look at. I've saved over 500 pins already

Yes yes yes!! I totally agree that even with a "look" we've commonly seen, you can always personalise it with your own choice of fabrics, mixed metals, etc. Your mood board is so on point, very Parisian chic! Looking forward to the outcome!

xx Warm, Earthy, and a Little Bohemian xx

Thank you babe, I'm relieved to hear that. I still feel like it's a bit 'huay hiao bai' to call it 'Parisian Chic', although it's really quite tongue-in-cheek, haha.

Anyhow, I don't know if my place'll turn out to be like that at all, but what the heck, it's worth a shot

Stunning images from your mood board, Owl! I'm crazy about the bedrooms especially - I love the monochrome-ness of everything, and the textured accents really add interest to the overall feel.

Errr..... I did cement screeding for both my toilet walls, and I had the same concerns as you... However, the contractor assured me that "leakage" per se was unlikely to happen as long as the water proofing was done properly, and I was ok with cracks.. uurrgh, I guess I'll only find out in a few years! I'll post up some pics of my toilets once everything is done.

Thanks for the compliments, I'm flattered

Oh, your contractor is right. Don't worry! My contractor said that because we didn't want to do the additional waterproofing mah, so you're safe

And Bear (the fiance) is also very kiasee, so I had to drop the idea to pacify the both of them, lol. Otherwise, I would totally go for the cement screed walls as well.

Anyway, faster post more pics of the bathroom! I'm a huge huge fan of cement screed toilet walls if you can't already tell

[owlNbear 2]

Here's a more or less finalized Sketchup plan of our house. We started out with a regular floorplan, did all the measurements and transferred everything over to Sketchup. Its been very helpful because unlike a 3D drawing which is just a single still frame, we're able to rotate things around in Sketchup, so there's a much better sense of space with this.

Some other views from Sketchup and the reno items that we will be working on:

Living Room

• Changing of main gate to scissor gate
• Supply and overlay vinyl flooring
• Full height shoe cabinet, 3ft
• Suspended ledge at the window, 7.5ft
• Labour only to lay craftstone brick wall, 22ft
• Hack 1 side of kitchen entrance, 4ft
• Extend the other side of kitchen entrance using hollow blocks, 1ft
• Aluminium frame door with 1 fixed and 1 sliding panel, only top tracks, 6.5ft

Kitchen

• Hack all floor and walls tiles
• Labour and material to lay new floor tiles
• Supply and lay subway tiles at entire wall above lower kitchen cabinet
• Plaster rest of all exposed walls
• Lower kitchen cabinet with granite table top, 10ft
• Full height kitchen cabinet, 3ft
• Box up kitchen pipes, 1ft
• Upper kitchen cabinet, 5ft
• Side panels for fridge and box up washer and dryer
• Removing existing 2 sinks, 2 bathroom doors and 1 wc
• Seal up 1 bathroom door entrance with hollow blocks
• Install 1 PD door
• Supply and change dustbin lid

Bathroom

• Hack all floor and wall tiles
• Hack wall diving 2 bathrooms to combine into 1
• Labour and material to lay floor and wall tiles
• Raise up entire dry area floor so that shower area floor is 'sunken'
• Construct and tile up concrete seat and 2 additional ledges at shower area
• Supply and install glass shower panel with sliding door
• False ceiling with downlights
• Vanity cabinet with solid surface table top and mirror, 2.5ft

Master Bedroom

• Supply and overlay vinyl flooring
• Hack 1 entrance to the bathroom
• Install 1 PD door
• Casement cabinet with round edge, 8.5ft
• 1 Bedside unit with round edge
• Labour only to lay craftstone brick wall, 10ft

Study Room

• Supply and overlay vinyl flooring
• Construct and install plywood sliding door with frame, 14ft

Other Miscellaneous

• Electrical rewiring for whole house
• Plumbing and re-piping of whole house
• Painting of whole house
• Repainting main door and 2 bedroom doors and replacing handles
• Replacing floor traps
• Acid wash, clearing of debris, laying floor protection etc.

Budget: 30-35k
Total damage: 35k

I feel that we got a pretty good deal in the end, cost wise.

Our initial plan was to just overlay laminate for the living + 2 bedrooms, and vinyl for the kitchen to save cost. Every ID that we met told us to do this so that we could keep within the budget. Even the brick walls, that we love so much, could only be a tiny 7-8 ft one. We were ready to resign to fate and compromise (or even give up) many items on our wish list.

All this changed after meeting Contractor M.

On our first meeting, Contractor M insisted that we use vinyl for the living + 2 bedrooms and tiles for the kitchen. He felt (feels) that laminates, no matter how careful we are, would eventually 'pop'. We were VERY reluctant to accept his ideas initially, until we saw his quotation. All I can say is, It was a rather pleasant surprise At first glance, it seemed pricier. But after doing our calculations and comparing quotations, we realized that contractor M was actually giving us very good value for money. To sum it up, we're very pleased that, because of contractor M's affordable pricing, we've managed to work everything that we want into our budget

Of course there was still the carpentry side of things to settle. I mentioned in a previous post that I because contractor M doesn't offer carpentry works, we have engaged Miss C as our carpenter. After deciding on Contractor M, we met up with Miss C. We felt comfortable with her, but to be safe, we requested for a visit to her job site. Everything went well, and even Miss C's house owner was there, and very warmly (and proudly) showed us around her house. We didn't need much more convincing after that...

...And so the story begins!

Next up, problems encountered post-planning.

[twinklecloud 2]

Here's a more or less finalized Sketchup plan of our house. We started out with a regular floorplan, did all the measurements and transferred everything over to Sketchup. Its been very helpful because unlike a 3D drawing which is just a single still frame, we're able to rotate things around in Sketchup, so there's a much better sense of space with this.

Some other views from Sketchup and the reno items that we will be working on:

Living Room

• Changing of main gate to scissor gate
• Supply and overlay vinyl flooring
• Full height shoe cabinet, 3ft
• Suspended ledge at the window, 7.5ft
• Labour only to lay craftstone brick wall, 22ft
• Hack 1 side of kitchen entrance, 4ft
• Extend the other side of kitchen entrance using hollow blocks, 1ft
• Aluminium frame door with 1 fixed and 1 sliding panel, only top tracks, 6.5ft

Kitchen

• Hack all floor and walls tiles
• Labour and material to lay new floor tiles
• Supply and lay subway tiles at entire wall above lower kitchen cabinet
• Plaster rest of all exposed walls
• Lower kitchen cabinet with granite table top, 10ft
• Full height kitchen cabinet, 3ft
• Box up kitchen pipes, 1ft
• Upper kitchen cabinet, 5ft
• Side panels for fridge and box up washer and dryer
• Removing existing 2 sinks, 2 bathroom doors and 1 wc
• Seal up 1 bathroom door entrance with hollow blocks
• Install 1 PD door
• Supply and change dustbin lid

Bathroom

• Hack all floor and wall tiles
• Hack wall diving 2 bathrooms to combine into 1
• Labour and material to lay floor and wall tiles
• Raise up entire dry area floor so that shower area floor is 'sunken'
• Construct and tile up concrete seat and 2 additional ledges at shower area
• Supply and install glass shower panel with sliding door
• False ceiling with downlights
• Vanity cabinet with solid surface table top and mirror, 2.5ft

Master Bedroom

• Supply and overlay vinyl flooring
• Hack 1 entrance to the bathroom
• Install 1 PD door
• Casement cabinet with round edge, 8.5ft
• 1 Bedside unit with round edge
• Labour only to lay craftstone brick wall, 10ft

Study Room

• Supply and overlay vinyl flooring
• Construct and install plywood sliding door with frame, 14ft

Other Miscellaneous

• Electrical rewiring for whole house
• Plumbing and re-piping of whole house
• Painting of whole house
• Repainting main door and 2 bedroom doors and replacing handles
• Replacing floor traps
• Acid wash, clearing of debris, laying floor protection etc.

Budget: 30-35k

Total damage: 35k

I feel that we got a pretty good deal in the end, cost wise.

Our initial plan was to just overlay laminate for the living + 2 bedrooms, and vinyl for the kitchen to save cost. Every ID that we met told us to do this so that we could keep within the budget. Even the brick walls, that we love so much, could only be a tiny 7-8 ft one. We were ready to resign to fate and compromise (or even give up) many items on our wish list.

All this changed after meeting Contractor M.

On our first meeting, Contractor M insisted that we use vinyl for the living + 2 bedrooms and tiles for the kitchen. He felt (feels) that laminates, no matter how careful we are, would eventually 'pop'. We were VERY reluctant to accept his ideas initially, until we saw his quotation. All I can say is, It was a rather pleasant surprise At first glance, it seemed pricier. But after doing our calculations and comparing quotations, we realized that contractor M was actually giving us very good value for money. To sum it up, we're very pleased that, because of contractor M's affordable pricing, we've managed to work everything that we want into our budget

Of course there was still the carpentry side of things to settle. I mentioned in a previous post that I because contractor M doesn't offer carpentry works, we have engaged Miss C as our carpenter. After deciding on Contractor M, we met up with Miss C. We felt comfortable with her, but to be safe, we requested for a visit to her job site. Everything went well, and even Miss C's house owner was there, and very warmly (and proudly) showed us around her house. We didn't need much more convincing after that...

...And so the story begins!

Next up, problems encountered post-planning.

wow!! :good: thumbs up on the sketchup drawing totally awesome! Very detailed on what u are going to do! love it!!!looks very nice! staying tune to see more updates!

[owlNbear 2]

wow!! :good: thumbs up on the sketchup drawing totally awesome! Very detailed on what u are going to do! love it!!!looks very nice! staying tune to see more updates!

thank you! I think we left comments on each others' posts at the same time...hahaha...

[owlNbear 2]

Even though our flat seems simple and straightforward, we encountered quite a few problematic areas pre-renovation. The bathroom, especially, was a huge, huge one! It took Bear and I (and sometimes contractor M) a few weeks of heated discussions to solve some of these problems.

 

 

 

 

1) Craftstone brick walls

 

 

Our number one requirement. I've always been attracted to that aged, decrepit look, and I feel that natural textures like brick and concrete are a good way to bring out that sense of rawness.

 

 

Problem: Cost of laying the bricks.

 

 

Solution: Initially, I planned to settle for a very small area (maybe 6-7ft) to save cost. But contractor M was able to offer us a good price. PLUS, we're buying our bricks from Taobao, so that helps a lot. One box of bricks, covering 1 sqm, costs about $14 on Taobao. Over here in Singapore, it costs at least $90. In spite of the risk of cracked tiles from Taobao etc., I think the savings are huge and worthwhile in the end.

 

 

 

 

 

2) Black aluminium frame sliding door

 

 

Our base theme is still an industrial look, and that would be incomplete without black aluminium frames. I found this image on  (by a smashing interior design/architect team called 0932), and it was love at first sight, and I was determined to incorporate it into our interior deco.

 

 

Problem: Cost of building a sliding door of this size, as well as concerns that the door might be too heavy, because our kitchen entrance is almost 8ft wide (after hacking the right entrance wall).

 

 

Solution: Again, contractor M saved the day with his affordable price. We also decided to extend the entrance wall on the other side to reduce the width of the door, so that it won't be too heavy.

 

 

 

 

 

3) Lack of drainage points

 

 

Because our kitchen isn't very long, we'll be placing our fridge, washer and dryer in a row, on the left side of the kitchen to free up tabletop space. We'll also be shifting the wash basin into the toilet (currently, it's located outside). And lastly, we're going to have a shower area, and a dry area in the bathroom.

 

 

Problem:

 

 

The washer requires a drainage point for water to be drained, but the only drainage point in the kitchen is located on the opposite side. The washbasin requires yet another drainage point. And lastly, the existing bathroom floor trap is located outside of the shower area, and not in the shower area itself. With so many drainage points needed, there would potentially be plenty of messy pipes running all over the place. It was a nightmare!

 

 

Solution: Contractor M suggested we hack up the entire kitchen and bathroom floor, and rework everything from scratch. This will enable us to create 3 additional drainage points that will be neatly concealed under the floor. No exposed piping. Big sigh of relief, phew!

 

 

 

 

 

4) Combining the 2 bathrooms into 1

 

 

We wanted a combined bathroom that has WC + dry area + shower area + sink, more for convenience than anything else. But one thing stood in our way - the dividing wall.

 

 

Problem: A few IDs warned us that it might not be approved.

 

 

Solution: Really, nothing except an approval from HDB, which we were granted eventually. Pure elation and joy!

 

 

 

 

 

5) Lack of a storeroom

 

 

Problem: As the heading suggests.

 

 

Solution: We explored many possible layouts. But because our flat is so long and narrow, our options are really limited. We even wanted to build a room within the study room. But that will severely eat into the study room area, and make the entire room tiny and claustrophobic. Eventually, we decided to construct a full width sliding door, using the horizontal space in the study room, and using storage racks to hold our items. A cabinet is deinitely out of the question because of the length (14ft!), so just a sliding door to partition off the area would be perfect. Miss C, our carpenter, also very kindly offered to construct the sliding doors with plywood, instead of MDF boards, which are too thin and flimsy to be used as a partition.

 

 

 

 

 

And that about wraps up the pre-renovation process.

 

 

 

 

 

Many things we were unaware of, and it was only until the actual renovation work started, did we realize the many nitty gritty details that need to be tended to. A lesson I learned: planning is good, but also, be prepared for many things to not go according to plan, be prepared to compromise on other things, be alert, and keep expectations realistic.

 

 

 

 

 

Next up, Day 1: Hacking begins!

 

[Lazyfatcat007 5]

Your contractors sound good! Have fun renovating! Can't wait for more pictures!!

[twinklecloud 2]

On 1/22/2016 at 12:53 AM, owlNbear said:

Even though our flat seems simple and straightforward, we encountered quite a few problematic areas pre-renovation. The bathroom, especially, was a huge, huge one! It took Bear and I (and sometimes contractor M) a few weeks of heated discussions to solve some of these problems.

 

1) Craftstone brick walls

Our number one requirement. I've always been attracted to that aged, decrepit look, and I feel that natural textures like brick and concrete are a good way to bring out that sense of rawness.

Problem: Cost of laying the bricks.

Solution: Initially, I planned to settle for a very small area (maybe 6-7ft) to save cost. But contractor M was able to offer us a good price. PLUS, we're buying our bricks from Taobao, so that helps a lot. One box of bricks, covering 1 sqm, costs about $14 on Taobao. Over here in Singapore, it costs at least $90. In spite of the risk of cracked tiles from Taobao etc., I think the savings are huge and worthwhile in the end.

 

2) Black aluminium frame sliding door

Our base theme is still an industrial look, and that would be incomplete without black aluminium frames. I found this image on (by a smashing interior design/architect team called 0932), and it was love at first sight, and I was determined to incorporate it into our interior deco.

Problem: Cost of building a sliding door of this size, as well as concerns that the door might be too heavy, because our kitchen entrance is almost 8ft wide (after hacking the right entrance wall).

Solution: Again, contractor M saved the day with his affordable price. We also decided to extend the entrance wall on the other side to reduce the width of the door, so that it won't be too heavy.

 

3) Lack of drainage points

Because our kitchen isn't very long, we'll be placing our fridge, washer and dryer in a row, on the left side of the kitchen to free up tabletop space. We'll also be shifting the wash basin into the toilet (currently, it's located outside). And lastly, we're going to have a shower area, and a dry area in the bathroom.

Problem:

The washer requires a drainage point for water to be drained, but the only drainage point in the kitchen is located on the opposite side. The washbasin requires yet another drainage point. And lastly, the existing bathroom floor trap is located outside of the shower area, and not in the shower area itself. With so many drainage points needed, there would potentially be plenty of messy pipes running all over the place. It was a nightmare!

Solution: Contractor M suggested we hack up the entire kitchen and bathroom floor, and rework everything from scratch. This will enable us to create 3 additional drainage points that will be neatly concealed under the floor. No exposed piping. Big sigh of relief, phew!

 

4) Combining the 2 bathrooms into 1

We wanted a combined bathroom that has WC + dry area + shower area + sink, more for convenience than anything else. But one thing stood in our way - the dividing wall.

Problem: A few IDs warned us that it might not be approved.

Solution: Really, nothing except an approval from HDB, which we were granted eventually. Pure elation and joy!

 

5) Lack of a storeroom

Problem: As the heading suggests.

Solution: We explored many possible layouts. But because our flat is so long and narrow, our options are really limited. We even wanted to build a room within the study room. But that will severely eat into the study room area, and make the entire room tiny and claustrophobic. Eventually, we decided to construct a full width sliding door, using the horizontal space in the study room, and using storage racks to hold our items. A cabinet is deinitely out of the question because of the length (14ft!), so just a sliding door to partition off the area would be perfect. Miss C, our carpenter, also very kindly offered to construct the sliding doors with plywood, instead of MDF boards, which are too thin and flimsy to be used as a partition.

 

And that about wraps up the pre-renovation process.

 

Many things we were unaware of, and it was only until the actual renovation work started, did we realize the many nitty gritty details that need to be tended to. A lesson I learned: planning is good, but also, be prepared for many things to not go according to plan, be prepared to compromise on other things, be alert, and keep expectations realistic.

 

Next up, Day 1: Hacking begins!

So excited for you! we wanted black aluminum frame door too! cant wait to see more updates!!

[owlNbear 2]

Here are the 3D drawings that we engaged another ID to create (because our contractor doesn't offer them).

Even though we had a rough gist of what everything would be like, we were still having a difficult time visualizing the final product. These 3Ds (although less polished than most 3Ds and not entirely close to what we had in mind), were very crucial. They provided assurance that we were moving in the right direction, and also revealed many design 'flaws'. This made it much easier for us to finalize everything, and progress on to actual execution of our plans.

Living Room

Kitchen

Master Bedroom

Bathroom

[Cokiee 0]

Very nice work with the sketchup, as well as the planning! Hope this works out well for you!

[owlNbear 2]

Day 1-2, Hacking

On the first day, we made a trip down at night with my cousins to discuss how the pipes and other electrical wiring should be run, and saw that the entire place was already torn down! 2 bathroom doors taken down in the kitchen, 2 sinks removed, even the WC. We initially wanted to retain the WC because it was a brand new one, but realized that it isn't possible when the bathroom floor is being hacked.

It was an uneventful trip, but still exciting nonetheless. There wasn't much to see except for a pile of rubble. I did note that after hacking down the kitchen entrance wall, the entire place seems much roomier and spacious!

Anyone noticed the orbs in the picture? Hahaha. I was a little freaked out by them. But everyone else tells me that it's just dust (how boring is that!).

Day 3-6, Plastering

The next day, we met the masonry dudes (two Malaysian dudes) for the first time! And found that they had sealed the wrong bathroom entrance in the kitchen BUT these guys work really fast. The next day, the correct entrances were already sealed and hacked respectively. Much respect for them.

This incident, however, cemented into us (no pun intended) the importance for us, as owners, to do our due dilligence and carry out checks as often as possible. You never know what might go wrong, and even a difference of one day could potentially cost you, especially as the renovation progresses.

Holes were drilled into the wall to prepare for the craftstone bricks.

The rubble had already been cleared, and cement works were in progress. Chop chop currypok.

View of the kitchen from the bathroom. That's some massive, massive cementing going on!

Stacks of material (premixed cement screed?) used for the cementing. Anyone able to identify what exactly they are?

The workers slap on the cement, and then smoothen everything out with these long metal rods. This chap (excuse the semi-nakedness) is the swift and silent kind. The entire time we were there, he worked endlessly, wordlessly and tirelessly, slapping and smoothening the entire bathroom, all by himself. Respect!

[Lazyfatcat007 5]

Your contractor so good to start reno for you! At this time, a lot are not willing to start new projects due to the coming of cny...but the sealing of wrong door is ahem... maybe your contractor forgot to brief properly lah. Luckily they quickly rectify the mistake, so not much harm done. I certainly would recommend going down to double check, especially during complicated works, or get your contractor to whatapps you the pics before and after the works. Less possibility of errors then. I prefer to do it right at the first time, rather than going back to rectify. Can't wait for more updates!! Your 3Ds look great, esp the toilet!!

[alprakas 1]

Hey ownNbear, that sliding door in the kitchen, does it only slide or does it slides and swings out? I also need a door for my kitchen, which also has a very wide entrance. So far, I have planned for a glass casement door, similar to the ones we have in offices.. Very pretty drawings and theme, by the way!

[owlNbear 2]

Your contractor so good to start reno for you! At this time, a lot are not willing to start new projects due to the coming of cny...but the sealing of wrong door is ahem... maybe your contractor forgot to brief properly lah. Luckily they quickly rectify the mistake, so not much harm done. I certainly would recommend going down to double check, especially during complicated works, or get your contractor to whatapps you the pics before and after the works. Less possibility of errors then. I prefer to do it right at the first time, rather than going back to rectify. Can't wait for more updates!! Your 3Ds look great, esp the toilet!!

Thanks cat Last we spoke to the tilers, they said that they're planning to wrap up this project so they can go off for their NY. They're really efficient and hardworking. Everytime we drop by to 'spot check,', we don't see anybody slacking off, or loafing around. So I guess that's why they're able to complete everything quite quickly. That's just for the tilers though, I don't know about the rest. But we've already given our contractor permission to resume work after CNY if need be lah. Hopefully nobody will rush to finish anything.

Hey ownNbear, that sliding door in the kitchen, does it only slide or does it slides and swings out? I also need a door for my kitchen, which also has a very wide entrance. So far, I have planned for a glass casement door, similar to the ones we have in offices.. Very pretty drawings and theme, by the way!

Nope, it's a sliding door with a top track I think glass casement doors are really pretty too! But I don't want to keep changing my mind, or else really no end to it

Edited January 24, 2016 by owlNbear

[gallopingpenguin 2]

Hi!

Loving your concept and especially your dark toilets! We made the decision to overlay 1 wall of both toilets (the one with the accent design) but if we had more budget, we would have definitely gone with a resort-like concept too. Excited to see yours!