Fun & Laughter, Peace & Joy: September 2007

I promised myself many months back that I will track the development of my new place in my blog. In the midst of studying and rushing tutorials, I've finally found some time today to complete this entry!

My friends know that I can be pretty particular when it comes to shopping...the heftier the price tag, the more you can expect me to scrutinise before the purchase. The only exception came with my brand new Kate Spade wallet which got stained not too long after I used it...how am I supposed to know that patent leather is so vulnerable? Haiyo, my previous wallet cost only a fraction and never gave me problems....but before I get all worked up thinking about the poor state of my new wallet, let's leave this topic for another blog.

Anyway, fussy me and my less fussy hubby spent almost 1 year searching for a new home before we found our 'dream home'. Initially, I thought it wasn't what I wanted, mainly because it is a corridor unit, and I can just imagine having to give up my most comfortable sitting position on the sofa (By the way, I'm not exactly very lady-like) in case curious neighbours decide peer into my flat when they walk past..and it would be ridiculous if I were to keep the corridor windows shut all the time. But other than the corridor issue, the unit met what we wanted. Relatively high floor, living room has a nice open view and is pretty breezy, location is in the proximity of a train station and shopping mall, this place is within 10mins drive to my my granny and parents, and very importantly, the unit has few structural walls which mean that I can go for the open-concept look I have been dreaming about! So after thinking really long about it...we decided to purchase the flat.

The previous owners had this balinese/resort theme, and most of their furniture/furnishings are in dark coloured wood. Here are some pictures before they shifted out.

PRE-PRE RENOVATION

Welcome welcome!

From the main door, on the immediate left is a water feature

Dining Area (I couldn't help noticing that the owners kept corridor windows closed everytime I visited)This beige door leads to the storeroom, on the left is a bedroom and the right is the kitchen A simple and clean kitchen
A pretty spacious yard...
Common toilet Main view of living room

Here's the bedroom..also in the resort colours of brown and beige
Toilet looking abit worn out...but well, doesn't matter lah
The sink looks quite modern though, dunno whether I can keep it

After the purchase, my hubby and I spent a few months of frantic search for an interior designer (ID), we were really impressed with Kelvin from Intent, and decided to engage him.

I don't fancy tiles, cos I don't like the monotony of square/rectangular pieces pasted all round the flat..not to mention that tiles can cost a bomb! In a bid to kill 2 birds with 1 stone (the 2 birds being my non-preference for tiles and saving $$), we decided to go with the cool-looking and original cement flooring =) My ID initially tried to persuade us to drop the idea of having cement floor as such floors are subject to cracks and will leave stains due to its porous nature. But when he brought us to another client of his who has cement flooring.. we loved it! And thus, it was concluded that cement it shall be. Finally, my renovation is going to start soon!

PRE-RENOVATION

I finally collected home keys on 12 Jun. Wat are my frens doing? Living room..nice and spacious! I'm not too excited about the window grilles though

Here's the storeroom...prolly one of the most important room for me, since i'm forever buying and not throwing =) Spare room
Kitchen
Common toilet
Door leading to the master..come come.. Here's the combined master bedroom Master toilet

The view while walking out of the master bedroom Hee, took snapshots of Teacher S, and Ex-teacher J
N how can we miss out the pretty bunny gal?

We are going for an open concept with as few doors and as much glass as possible. The colour theme will be mainly white & grey, with splashes of colour (I love bright and loud colours eg. fuschia pink, but have deferred the main colour theme to my hubby since he will be footing most of the bill, hee. But white & grey also quite cool too lah, just abit cold, and very un-me). My flat will be undergoing an extreme makeover. New walls, a mosaic breakfast counter, glass wardrobes, and a limestone bed. The new walls are my favourite - they are made up of bricks with slanted slits...to me, it is probably the coolest part of the house. It is also practical cos it helps to block out my corridor window, which means I can sit in any manner I want when I watch TV! This wall was also my ID's key design concept that had me sold. Current status of my place is as shown in the pictures below: What a mess huh!