We totally dig the masculine and opulent vibes of this home!
While most Singaporeans opt to keep their homes pretty neutral, this husband and wife duo wanted to inject loads more pizzazz into their 3-bedder condominium.
View this project by Rockin Spaces
“Our last house was a 5-room HDB and we kept it pretty minimalist for pragmatic reasons,” explains homeowner Jason. “Because the space became significantly smaller, we needed to be more careful when it comes to space planning – and I personally wanted to work in industrial elements while my wife, Huiling, prefers luxe touches.”
The couple then met up with interior designers Sandra and Jeff from Rockin Spaces to hash out all their renovation details. And today, we break down everything you need to know about this unconventional makeover!
On their home’s concept
Jason (J): I live with my wife and we spend loads of time chilling out together over coffee, catching up on sitcoms, dramas, reading and listening to music. Because our new place is less spacious, we needed it to serve multiple functions – an extended workspace, a sanctuary to unwind in, and a communal space for entertaining. This led to us meeting with our interior designers frequently to help them understand our lifestyle, preferences and needs. We even created mood boards!
Sandra (S): Huiling fancies the more polished luxe style while Jason appreciates the rough and tough industrial details, so I needed to hit the sweet spot between “edgy” industrial and refined luxury to cater to both their style preferences.
On challenges faced
J: It wasn’t easy to find online references for this particular style which posed a bit of a challenge, conceptualisation-wise, initially.
Thoughts about the home pre-renovation
J: I think it’s pretty fortunate that our apartment came with marble look-a-like tiles in the communal area and the ash-brown vinyl flooring in the bedrooms – we kept those fittings as they work really well with the whole industrial-luxe theme!
On changes made
S: The walls in the living and dining area were specially coated in tri-tone lime plaster, giving it a gritty texture that contrasts with the existing polished grey marble flooring, luxurious leather sofa and full-height black “metal” paneling (fashioned from laminates) installed in the centre of the space.
S: The TV wall features black slate stone veneer sheets – each sheet has slightly varying colours, veins and textures. And we completed the space with a TV console fashioned from wood strips with the gaps carefully measured to avoid hindering signals while ensuring that the media box and wires are kept hidden from view. The console also doubles as a bench, the marble-design frame over the top can be removed to serve as additional seating!
S: The two guests bedrooms were made into separate office spaces for both Jason and Huiling. For Jason’s office, we went with a custom design lime-plaster feature wall to replicate the raw and rugged look of pre-cast concrete, complete with grout and tie holes. To really nail the industrial touch, the top-hung storage and study table were fabricated with powder coated steel frames.
S: For Huiling, we decided on something a little simple and chic – a classy marble feature wall with spray painted mouldings.
Thoughts about the home post-renovation
S: The space is dark and moody for the most part, but isn’t suffocating as we tried to incorporate elements that wouldn’t be too raw or refined. I think the attention paid to the layout and designs really helped to balance the two styles.
J: We really loved how it turned out! Sandra even gave us plenty of advice about our choice of furnishings to find items that will fit into our theme like our recliner, stands for our sonos, extendable dining table and more.
On working with Rockin Spaces
J: We first found out about Rockin Spaces through our neighbours and they were very prompt in getting back to us with their proposal – it felt that they were as excited to take on our project!
J: Though Sandra is young, she’s creative, forward thinking and most importantly, open to try new things. Of course, Jeff is with her throughout the entire process and the four of us constantly bounce ideas off each other. We really enjoyed the process because they’ve been utterly collaborative from conceptualisation to execution. Even their craftsmen and technician are very professional – when we spotted slight flaws with part of our coffee area cabinet, the carpenters immediately resolved it without delay and the chief carpenter himself even helped us with some electrical issues!
To sum up
J: When we started out on this renovation journey, we wanted to ensure that the ID understands our wants, and yet be able to showcase his/her creativity. We definitely feel that it was a fun experience and it was like a dream come true to see the home coming to fruition with the help of a very capable design house.
Get started on your own renovation and receive a Philips Home Starter Kit (worth $600)!
Connect with up to 5 design firms for non-obligatory quotes to redeem a Philips Home Starter Kit worth $600!
All you need to do is submit your renovation details via this link here and engage a firm through Qanvast before 21 October 2019! Find out more about the kit and redemption details here.
