3-Room Flat in Little India with “Weird” Layout Gets Creative Redesign

When a triangular home meets ingenious ideas, you get a unique and functional interior like this.

Most homeowners prefer square home layouts for good reason: it’s no mean feat dealing with the awkward corners and dead spaces slanting/curving walls create.

That’s why this 3-room resale flat in Little India, with its arrowhead-like edge, is a rather unusual choice for a home.

“When the owner reached out, he said that this unit is going to be more challenging because of the ‘weird’ layout,” shared Travis, the interior designer from PRDT Interiors who worked on the renovation.

As we pored over the floorplan together, Travis explained how they reconfigured the entire communal space (and more) to create a cosy retreat for relaxing and hosting.

About the homeowner and his home

Being a second-time homeowner, the owner had a clear picture of what he needed.

“During the discussion phase, we met a lot of times at his previous house,” said Travis. “The theme is quite similar to what he already had – a dark and modern look with industrial and biophilic touches. This time, he wanted more raw and organic finishes.”

The open communal space probably gives it away, but Travis highlighted that the owner loves to host. For that, he wanted a dedicated space to entertain and spend time with his friends.

WATCH: Designer Travis talks about giving the home a makeover

On doing up an open-concept communal space

The solution for a seamless open-concept space? Redefining the original boundaries of the home to connect the kitchen, living and dining within the triangular space.

Now, the common bedroom occupies the former kitchen space since the latter was moved out into the living room.

The dining room, meanwhile, is where the former junior bedroom was.

The living area, while simple, features a TV feature wall done up with wallpaper that has a stony texture. To finish it off with a little of an industrial feel, the wallpaper was adorned with metal strips.

“The owner and I took time off to paste these strips ourselves. It was pretty fun and he trusted me with deciding the distance at which it was best to install the strips,” added Travis.

The owner had also requested an island to double as a breakfast and coffee counter. Travis’s answer is this peninsula that wraps around the edge of the TV feature wall for a delicate balance between form and function.

“Because of the space constraints and curved shape, we had to take precise measurements on-site to ensure sufficient walkway space between the cabinet and the peninsula.

The owner doesn’t cook often, so he was fine with downsizing the kitchen. However, that meant he needed some storage space at the peninsula for storing appliances like the microwave,” he explained.

Having used KompacPlus at his previous place and liking how durable the material was, the owner knew he wanted to stick with it for the new place too.

“This time, however, he wanted a darker tone with a ‘raw’ texture,” said Travis, pointing out that they used it for the backsplash as well.

About the dining area

Travis shared that since the owner likes to keep the front door open for ventilation, positioning the dining further in gives him privacy since it’s also his workspace.

In case you haven’t noticed, there are entrances to the dining area from both the kitchen and the living, both which can be closed off with glass sliding doors.

Just before the entrance, you’ll spot a triangular set of structural beams (pictured above). While there wasn’t anything the team could do to remove it, they jazzed it up with customised acrylic panels to install LED panels – perfect for mood lighting!

“This is mainly where the owner hosts, so he wanted a storage space for his drinks,” said Travis. “We proposed this dry bar set-up where he can prep and serve drinks. With the transparent glass cut-outs we used for the upper cabinet doors, it works as a display rack too.”

As we looked through the photos of the home, the feature ‘wall’ backing the dining area turned out to be a hidden entrance to the master bedroom.

“The owner wanted a more ‘fun’ way in,” Travis shared with a grin.

On renovating the master bedroom

While it might not be apparent in photos, Travis underscored that the direction of wood-look tiles here is different from the outside.

Owing to the unit’s triangular layout, the team had to discuss and decide on a tile angle and direction while minimising tile wastage for sections they had to cut. After explaining the options to the owner, they settled on the current look.

Since continuing in the same direction as the outside would look odd in the bedroom, they ‘restarted’ the tiles in a different direction.

The master bedroom is sectioned into two areas: the resting area with wallpaper for the headboard feature (easy to change up in future!), and a walk-in wardrobe section.

About the walk-in wardrobe and en-suite bathroom

At the walk-in section, you’ll notice that the vanity is outside the bathroom.

“The owner wanted separate toilet and shower areas, but he didn’t know how to achieve it,” Travis shared. “Given the space constraints, we had to bring the vanity out to make the idea work.”

The team carved out the vanity space by closing off the original bathroom entrance and extending it.

“The owner doesn’t like to see a lot of white walls around the home. That’s one reason why we used laminates and wallpaper wherever possible to minimise them,” shared Travis.

“As we went over the renovation items towards the end of the process, we realised that this thin strip of wall (circled above) was also white. That’s why I advised adding this tinted mirror here to cover it up, which the owner liked.”

As for the bathroom interiors, there’s no doubt that these bold marble tiles from Hafary are the highlight – a feature the owner requested for the green touch they add to the space.

Apart from the wood-look tiles that add warmth to the space, Travis highlighted the metal elements in the bathroom, including the shower caddy.

“We could have done a niche for toiletries with the tiles but the tile ending was limited to a mitred joint or using a PVC strip over the edge of the tile. The problem with mitred joints is that they get chipped easily, and the owner felt PVC strips would look quite ugly. It’s not very obvious in the photos, but that’s why we proposed this protruding metal rack instead,” said Travis.

About the common bathroom

Since the owner needed sufficient space to shower his cat here, the common bathroom is not split into two areas.

In a creative twist, however, it mimics the ‘half-half’ concept of the master bathroom with two-toned tiles to visually separate the shower and toilet.

To sum up

“The owner and I clicked from the start. Maybe it’s because I’m a cat owner too,” Travis shared with a grin. “He knew what he wanted, but he needed help with design ideas and the finer details like tile selection. We went out together to select materials, colours and the like.”

Their open communication eased the process and he appreciated that the owner was open to suggestions and understood the pros and cons of certain design decisions.

Though the unit’s angular layout was the biggest challenge for Travis and his team, it was also the most interesting feature.

“The owner told me this is pretty much his forever home, so I’m glad we could help him bring his vision to life.”

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