Having stayed in their DBSS for a few years, homeowners Grace and her husband Kelvin decided it was time to renovate the place, which by then, was getting cluttered and cramped.
After a bout of decluttering, the couple sought ARK-hitecture’s assistance to help them to spruce up their space and to make it look more spacious. We sit down for a chat with Grace and learn more about her home's design - and the creation of her beloved island and walk-in wardrobe!
On selecting Javin from ARK-hitecture as her interior designer
Grace (G): I visited quite a number of firms and spoke to a number of designers. During the very first meetup with Javin, she took down a lot of our requirements and by the second meetup, she proposed a design and substantiated it with a lot of photos of the potential design - the rest of the designers just showed us a 2D floorplan with their proposed layout for our home. Javin’s photos really helped us to visualise the design better and it was the game changer that led us to select her as our designer.
Her requirements for the home
G: We wanted our home be more spacious. The existing space was very cramped – especially in our master bedroom. We had to walk sideways when we wanted to move around the room. Another key part of the renovation was our study. My husband works from home so it's important that it be comfortable. A guest room was also a must as we like to host guests so we wanted a study that could double up as that.
G: Design-wise, I wanted a modern contemporary design that's timeless, and incorporated tiffany green and blue!
On revamping existing features
G: Previously, the balcony kept getting flooded. Hence, we knew that we wanted to do something about this problem and sought Javin’s help to adjust the height of the balcony doors and to shift them outwards. Now, we aren’t plagued by the flooding.
G: Initially, we didn’t want to change our floor tiles. However, after shifting out of our place during the renovation period, we felt like we should just go ahead and change the flooring since the existing tiles had been discoloured with age.
G: There used to be a shoe cabinet beside the door. Our DB box was concealed within it. During this renovation, I wanted to have a settee extending out from the shoe cabinet so that I have a space to sit when I wear my shoes.
About her island
G: I wanted an island where I could do my baking - and I had a lot of requirements! Firstly, I needed space to store all my baking tools and accessories so drawers were a must. I also wanted to put both my microwave oven at this island because my kitchen is really too small.
G: Additionally, I wanted a space where I could sit down while baking. That meant that there was also the need to create leg room at the part of the island where the high chairs would be.
About her walk-in wardrobe
G: I wanted a walk-in wardrobe because I have a lot of clothes and bags which were lying around the house. Javin suggested having my wardrobe outside the toilet area. Initially, I was quite apprehensive because I was afraid that the moisture in the toilet would cause my clothes to be damp. However, after thinking about it, I decided that wouldn’t be so much of an issue. Indeed, I’ve stayed here for about two months already and I have no issues with that at all.
About her bag display
G: Initially, I wanted to put my bags in the walk-in wardrobe but I was concerned about the humidity – especially more so because these are branded bags and it costs about $100 to wash one bag. I felt like it’s really not worth it to risk them being damaged so I asked Javin to help me conceptualise a bag display for them to go with the wardrobe in my bedroom.
About her furniture
G: The UFO light above our dining table is from Verde Light. We’re quite happy we found it. It’s simple and it’s bright enough at night. The light above our island is from Lookz. Our dining table is from XZQT. It has been with us for seven years. It’s an extendable table. We find that XZQT has very good extendable tables in all sorts of styles.
We have a Sealy Posturepedic mattress. I’ve never regretted buying it. It’s very comfortable to sleep in. This is my second Sealy mattress. I used the first one for ten years and after that, I bought this mattress because I really like Sealy mattresses.
On her biggest bargain
G: My biggest bargain is my Gaggenau oven. Gaggenau is a sister company of Bosch and their ovens cost $10,000 minimally. I got my Gaggenau oven for $2000 at their charity sale. The purchase also entitles me to a personalised trial session by Gaggenau. They will be sending one of their staff down to teach me how to use the oven and cook up a meal!
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