Graphic Designer Turns 2-Room Sengkang BTO into Snug, Inviting ‘Cafe’

Drawing on skills from her creative profession, the owner of this home planned her ideal space to lounge in all day – a ‘cafe’!

With a charming peninsula, a cosy settee and soft furnishings bathed in warm light, the living room of this 2-room BTO in Sengkang could pass off as a quaint cafe tucked away in a quiet street. That is exactly what its owner had in mind as well when she approached Liz, a senior interior designer from Weiken.com, to help with realising her ideas.

“With the homeowner’s background as a creative, discussions were very smooth and we could come to a decision fast,” shares Liz.

We asked Liz more about how the idea came to life and even discovered some small yet thoughtful elements along the way that you might love too!

About the homeowner and her home

Liz (L): The homeowner happened to come across another project I’d done, which has the same layout as her home. She then reached out to me because she liked its simple and woody theme. She’s also a graphic designer, so she had a clear concept for her home even at the first meeting.

She had a well-thought-out moodboard for the different spaces, which we refined and firmed up during the subsequent discussions. After that, I planned the various elements for the 3D drawing.

Initially, she was leaning towards a mix of Japanese and Scandinavian design, but we realised after our talks that she prefers more of a Scandinavian look. That’s why the spaces are airy and have a lot of wood accents and neutral colours. Another element she was set on having was curves, which you’ll see as we go over the house.

On renovating the living/dining room

L: You could say this living/dining room is the ‘highlight’ of this house. The owner loves having friends over, so she envisioned a cafe-like area with a bar counter where they can chat and spend time together.

To make more room for visitors to sit, we converted the window to a settee area, and added a small round table which works as a coffee table or a dining table. She does have an extendable table stored away in case she has more guests, but doesn’t use it otherwise since space is tight.

If you look closer, there’s a beam hidden behind the curtains. Although we thought of installing the curtains below the beam to save space, we decided to sacrifice some room to cover it up and start from the ceiling instead, for a taller-looking ceiling.

L: Despite the small space, the homeowner was keen on having an island, so we have this peninsula which doubles as a coffee/bar counter of sorts and as a standing workstation. Instead of flushing it to the wall, we left a gap so that she can stand behind it and do some prep while still facing her guests.

We didn’t fill the area with bulky carpentry either and just installed suspended shelves behind the peninsula for the homeowner to display her collections, like mugs and photos.

One fun touch is the dual-paint pattern running across the whole communal space for visual interest; it’s a feature that the homeowner’s favourite projects on Pinterest all had (laughs). The gray actually follows the lower suspended shelf, which is about three-quarters of the wall, for a clean look.

About the kitchen

L: If you move along to the kitchen, you’ll see the entrance is curved, for consistency. From this photo, you can also catch a glimpse of the feature wall along the corridor that is actually concealing the household shelter.

Since the DB box is linked to the shelter, we had space to add an open shelf in the niche at the bottom for a unique touch and some extra display/storage space.

Heading in, you might notice the textured tiles making up the kitchen backsplash. Their in-out pattern makes for a finishing you can’t achieve with other options like quartz or glass.

While they look like individual Kitkat tiles, they’re actually large-format tiles we selected from Hafary (1200 mm by 600 mm). This helps to keep grout lines and joints to a minimum for easier maintenance; the spaces between the ‘embossed’ sections are also easier to get to than grout.

L: Apart from the backsplash which helps to give a ‘3D’ feeling, the homeowner wanted above cabinet lighting. It’s a rather uncommon choice, since most only go for the lower cabinet downlights.

This was to achieve a subtle and dimmed cove light effect, which she likes because of the cosy feel. Plus, she doesn’t cook often, so it wasn’t necessary to have bright/white task lighting.

On personalising the bedroom

L: There are curves in the bedroom too, starting with the curved fluted glass. The homeowner was initially thinking of replacing the original door with a sliding door, but I suggested changing things up with fluted glass.

Since she values privacy while having family or friends over, we decided to use a fluted glass panel instead of a glass door, so that light can still pass through and brighten the space. I suggested having it curved to link up to the other curved elements in the house.

The door is, in fact, a pocket door, which came about because we wanted to conceal the air conditioning piping; we built partitions which cover up the piping, and it also worked to let the door slide in and out seamlessly.

L: We used customised built-ins for the bedroom, so the bed, study desk and wardrobe are all connected to make the most of every square foot. In our initial plan, we wanted to have more wardrobes for extra storage where the study table is, and have the study table closer to the door.

However, after our site visit upon key collection, we evaluated the position of the aircon piping and realised it would look rather ugly above the study table. So, we swapped the positions and gave up some wardrobe space. This didn’t cause any delays since we start with tiling works, which usually takes about three to four weeks, before fabricating the carpentry.

If you haven’t spotted it yet, there’s another curve: the light, which the homeowner got from Taobao since they were more cost-friendly. She let me check the condition and we tried out a few before choosing some to use around the house.

About the bathroom

L: For the bathroom, we played with dual tones like outside – the bottom uses 600 mm by 600 mm terrazzo tiles, while the upper part uses small 200 mm by 200 mm squares which have a specific pattern that the homeowner liked. There weren’t any bigger tiles with such a pattern, so we settled on these smaller ones.

The homeowner didn’t want the space to feel cramped, so she decided against a step-up and went with this partial partition instead to protect the carpentry from water damage.

Newer BTOs also come with mesh covers for the bathroom piping. However, they collect dust easily, so I advised the homeowner to replace them with acrylic panels for easier maintenance. These also cover the lighting, like a signage light box.

To sum up

L: The homeowner and I had a good experience since she came very well-prepared for our meetings, and we decided on things quickly. It helped that she is a graphic designer, so she didn’t need me to explain the rationale behind many of the design-related elements of the project.

We would sit down and discuss ideas or look for references together if we were stuck on something, so it was a very collaborative process. We also found furniture and appliances to match the house before she bought them, so that they all align with the final look in the 3D drawing.

The homeowner told me that when she gets home, the cosy spaces are perfect for unwinding after a long day. She also enjoys how it feels like she has a small cafe at home. All in all, we’re glad we could turn the home she dreamed of into a reality.

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