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SINGAPORE – Homeowner Candy Chen has always wanted an apartment without an elevator, but finding one in a convenient and quiet location was not easy.
So when she and her husband found one above a quaint coffee shop in a quiet part of Bukit Timah, they looked beyond the bizarre existing design, focused on its potential, and immediately made an offer.
The 40-year-old unit had four bedrooms and only one bathroom and one toilet, as well as a narrow utility yard. The living and dining areas shared a window that did not let in enough natural light.
The three common rooms with an underused triangular balcony wedged between them, on the other hand, monopolized all the natural light.
And the master bedroom, positioned more like a service bedroom, was tucked away at the end of a long hallway, accessible only from the kitchen, once the toilet and shower were past (each located in a separate, comfortable space).
Today, this unit is a sun-drenched open-plan apartment with a dark and elegant material palette, thanks to designers at interior design firm UNO Interior, who were also behind the look of the previous home of the owners.
Ms. Chen says, “We hired UNO Interior again because we worked so well together before, and we pretty much gave design free rein.”
The summary was simple: The couple, who are in their 30s, wanted plenty of light, enough space and amenities for their five cats, and plenty of open space where the homeowner, who works in the design industry, could locate their home. easily and quickly. stuff.
“This was a challenge for me because when everything is outdoors, things get messy easily. Call it an occupational hazard, but I like to keep things orderly,” says Ms Chen, owner of a small boutique on Haji Lane.
UNO Interior had little trouble meeting their needs and offering a sweet spot that would appeal to both personalities. The couple declined to reveal the cost of the renovation. They moved into the apartment in May 2018.
Completed in 15 weeks, your new home has only one bedroom – the master bedroom. The other bedrooms and living and dining areas have been merged into one large open space lined with storage and dotted with pocket areas for different activities.
While other walls were removed and windows enlarged, the kitchen was left wide open. The dining room bar, with its Sensa by Cosentino granite top, becomes a workspace.
The bedroom at the other end is now a seating space, with a bookcase that opens up to become an additional bed that can accommodate overnight guests.
Brought inside, the triangular balcony is now another living room with planters.
The living room simply consists of a sofa, a coffee table and a TV mounted on a pole that makes the space visually transparent.
The entrance to the master suite has been moved to make room for a powder room and given a new oversized pivot door that also leads to the dressing room with rows of open shelves with neatly color-hung clothing. It is located in a space that used to be the kitchen.
Further inside, the original design of the shower and toilet is maintained, but all fixtures and finishes are new.
Now, there are no doors separating the three areas in the master suite, leaving the visual and spatial flow completely uninterrupted.
“We’d like to be frank as it’s just us and the cats here,” says Ms Chen.
The cats, of course, helped shape the aesthetics of the house.
“One of the challenges was how to make the place cat-proof without making it look like a cage,” says the design team.
One of many solutions: a custom black metal grill on the windows, giving the space a decidedly industrial feel where they can roam independently.
The pivot door to the master suite features a metal screen that allows them to climb onto the open shelving above the kitchen cabinet. The round openings in the joinery provide hiding places and hide litter boxes.
The couple’s previous home was a Housing Board unit dressed mostly in white. This new home shifts the material palette to the opposite end of the monochromatic spectrum, playing with shades of gray and black accented by teak, plants, and mirrored finishes.
“The walls and ceilings are lined with screed cement to give a neutral base,” says the team.
It matches the gray terrazzo flooring containing white marble chips, giving the entire home a subtle and rich texture.
Now here’s a fashion house that is truly tailor-made for the homeowners, all seven.
This article first appeared in the November 2020 issue of Home & Decor, published by SPH Magazines.
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