Balancing light and shadow, this home is proof that good lighting is key to a cosy atmosphere.
During a renovation, many homeowners tend to focus on the design of their new home, but few truly pay attention to the lighting. But just one glance at this 5-room resale flat in Sengkang, and you’ll understand just how significant it is to the overall look.
“My projects tend to have an overarching theme – for this one, it’s definitely the play between light and shadow,” says Ryan, the interior designer from InTheory Design. “Philosophically, it embodies the homeowners’ journey through life, with light representing the good times, while the shadows represent the challenges.”
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“But visually, they create a soothing ambience. You can’t achieve the same feeling if you have an overly-bright house or an overly-dark house – you must have a balance between the two.”
Taking inspiration from traditional Japanese ryokans and resorts, Ryan strove to create a home with the ultimate serene vibes for his clients, relying on thoughtfully-chosen materials and lighting plans as he did so.
Keep scrolling to read more about this stunning home renovation!
About the homeowners and their home
Ryan (RL): The home belongs to a couple in their early thirties. In the brief, they mentioned that they are homebodies and wanted a space that was cosy and relaxing.
The main concept they were going for was a Japanese resort style, but initially, their self-made 3D mock-up didn’t match what they wanted – it was more of a MUJI-style look, with white and wood.
Instead, I suggested drawing inspiration from traditional Japanese ryokans, with darker wood and more organic materials – hence, the term ‘modern ryokan’.
The previous owners initially had a study built into the living room, but I thought it made the space feel cramped and dark. After hacking it, it became so much more spacious and gave us a lot more room to play around with.
About the living and dining room
RL: The foyer is filled with stone-looking tiles to resemble the stone pavements you walk on when entering a traditional ryokan.
The storage cabinets you see are actually two cupboards back-to-back – the one facing the foyer is for the homeowners’ shoes, while the other side is for miscellaneous items. My concern with such a feature is the tendency to look bulky, so I mounted a light between the two cupboards to draw attention away from the overall thickness.
To draw attention to the lighting of the space, I wanted the focal point to be the window itself, which was why I decided to frame it with a nook.
It also functions as a multipurpose area for the homeowners. First and foremost, it’s a chill area, where they – especially the wife, who really enjoys drinking tea – sit every morning. But other than that, the nook also houses storage space that allows them to keep the living room neat and uncluttered.
“The olive tree and pebbles helped add an organic touch to the space,” says Ryan.
Right from the beginning, I suggested using Japanese pleated blinds. Not only does it match the look we were going for, but I also thought that the way they diffuse the sunlight coming into the house will create a lot of soft shadows that enhance the look.
The furnishings are pretty simple. Most of them are from Taobao, except the dining table and sofa.
To ensure that the pieces matched the look, the homeowners listed down 3 to 5 variations and then asked me to choose – they even had a Google Sheet for that! I appreciated that they made the effort, as it helped us ensure that the space looked cohesive.
About the kitchen
RL: The homeowners initially wanted an open kitchen, but because the household shelter is positioned right by the kitchen entrance, this wasn’t possible. So, instead, we closed up the kitchen with fluted glass doors that still allow light to pass through while looking stylish.
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The husband loves cooking, so he was the one who picked out all the appliances. To give him a more durable surface to work on, we made the countertops and backsplashes using sintered stone, with a travertine look that visually goes well with the wood laminate.
Oh, speaking of laminates, this laminate is the same one used for the living room nook. In fact, we actually used only one laminate throughout the house, with the bathroom vanities as an exception. This is to ensure that the house looks uniform throughout.
About the master bedroom
RL: I know some homeowners prefer using one of the junior bedrooms to create a walk-in wardrobe, but these ones wanted to leave the bedrooms intact because they plan to have kids in future. Besides, the master bedroom is naturally quite big – it’s able to fit a king-sized bed and an L-shaped wardrobe, so there weren’t any issues with space.
It’s a simple set-up, but this is actually the homeowners’ preference. They mentioned that they wanted to keep the master bedroom simple, because they spend most of their time hanging out in the living room.
Aside from creating the wardrobe, the only thing we did was provide good lighting to enhance the ambience of the space. If you notice, we only installed two spotlights in the ceiling and the LED light in the bedside table – all with warm light – for a cosier vibe.
About the common and ensuite bathrooms
RL: The common bathroom and ensuite are mostly similar – the only differences are the shape of the mirrors.
The tiles used for the kitchen’s open shelves vs the bathroom
The tiles we used behind the mirrors are the same ones used as the backing for the kitchen’s open shelves – I intentionally chose these tiles, as they’re reminiscent of the pleated blinds in the living room.
The vanity countertops are also made using the same sintered stone surface used in the kitchen. All of this was intentionally done to ensure that the look remains consistent throughout the house.
The master ensuite, pre- and post-renovation
The homeowners didn’t want a glass shower screen, because it involves a lot of cleaning to get rid of the water stains.
So, as an alternative, I proposed building a divider clad with the same neutral terrazzo tiles used for the floor and wall. They don’t just look like the stone materials used in resort shower areas – there’s also a bit of texture to them, so when you touch them, you’ll feel like you actually are in a resort, too.
To sum up
RL: When the renovation was done, we were all very impressed with the result – it’s better than what I imagined while starting out on this project!
The homeowners have also mentioned that they like the house much better at night. While they do like the way natural light looks in the morning, they say it’s because the ambient lighting makes the house feel cosier.
I think that shows the importance of good lighting. I find that many homeowners don’t pay enough attention to it. They usually focus on the look, but in terms of lighting, they stick to regular LED lights – which brighten the space, sure, but don’t create any ambience.
So, if you really want to achieve cosy vibes, the biggest advice I’d give to homeowners like I did in this case is to pay attention to the ambient lighting, like wall lights and table lamps.
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