Dramatic changes huh?
Kitchen
Many more comparisons after the jump…
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Utility
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Study
See other before & after pics:
- Before & After: Living & Dining rooms
- Before & After: Toilets
- Before & After: Bedrooms
- Before & After: Stairs
See other completed areas:
Our EM Renovation Experience 
hi,
Nice blog you have there! Great effort to keep track of your beautiful home reno! 🙂
I read you mentioned about dmlights in one of your blog posts. Have you bought anything from them? I’m interested, but realize it’s a foreign website. Just wonder how reliable it is.
Thank you!
Regards,
Andrew
@Andrew: In the end we got our stairs light from Nostraforma and it was delivered to Europe cos my SO was there on business trip. I have heard of successful deliveries to Singapore (in fact that is how I got to know about Nostraforma) so you can have a look at that? Nostraforma has a flat delivery charge so it works out to be quite affordable even if you ship to Singapore – not sure if it’s the same for DMlights. Be careful about the taxes (GST) tho. You may have to pay GST above a certain amount. But overall think high chance it’s cheaper than getting from SG (if you can even find the lights here). Do remember DMlights have some lights that Nostraforma didn’t stock, but it’s quite a while back and my memory fails me… (but that’s why I blog, haha). Good luck wih your reno!
Hi, thank you so much for your kind reply and advice. 🙂
I’ve just checked. Nostraforma has what I wanted but is just slightly more expensive than dmlights.
Oh, you mean the lights you wanted were delivered to Europe and your SO eventually brought the lights back to Singapore? Makes sense! You got to save on the shipping. 🙂
Thanks once again!
Try Connox.com too – I guess whichever is cheaper overall (incl shipping) would be good?. There are a few websites that ship internationally. When I looked they all seem pretty reliable. Use Paypal if you can. I guess the logical thing to do is to google the model you want, do a comparative check which online stores stock it and at what price, and if they ship worldwide how much are the charges.
Yep the light was shipped to his hotel. Too bad he can’t carry chairs n bigger stuff back…
Thanks! Don’t you wish you live overseas huh! I do! The prices here are ridiculously a lot more.
oh.. hey I just realized you posted a picture of the Mercury lamp… Did you finally buy it? I love it too. 🙂
Nope, can’t afford the original and can’t stand the fakes. 🙂
Think it would have given the whole design process a different slant if I’d gotten the lamp… probably more sleek & masculine furniture too.
What lamp are you getting?
Hi!
I like your concealed toilet door in the utility room! May I know how does the door open? I recall the use of magnets… I’m intrigued. pls enlighten!
@hearttypat: Nope no magnets. The lock springs back into position. The door is opened by pulling it using the grip carved into the wood. Think am not very good at describing this… Imagine a strip of wood taken away from the end so that you can use the edge to pull the door.
Hi, do you have problems maintaining your white kitchen and all the white cabinets in your house? I reckon white cabinets should attract a lot of dark fingerprints or grease stains and dirt? Any regrets having so much white so far? Thanks!
@Celina: cabinets are ok, solid surface seems ok, but we are careful with potentially stainable items on the counters. Not so for the white tiles tho I think it’s cos they are matt. Semi-matt/shiny tiles should offer better protection against stains n dirt. Black floor tiles are hard to maintain but the wall tiles are ok.
Regrets? The white (& black) floor tiles mostly… The others are still ok. Ask me again in 6 months after more wear and tear? 😉
Aww, its such a bummer that matt white floor tiles are hard to maintain huh, cos the look is so nice. If you can choose again, would you sacrifice the look and take glossy white? I’m considering matt grey actually, but afraid it may darken the place.
As for black tiles, i can feel your pain! I have black mosaics in my shower currently, and it’s totally frustrating cos of the constant soap scum in the grouting. Do you have problem with the grout lines for your white tiles as well?
Thanks for your reply once again.
@Celina: If I could choose all over again, all the floor tiles will definitely be changed, except for the balcony ones that we still love. I think not glossy white tho, probably semi-glossy if that is a proper term? My friend has normal grey tiles at his place: http://www.homeanddecor.com.sg/homes/raw-beauty
It’s neither matt nor glossy, sorta semi and it works fine. Perhaps you can consider something similar if your place has enough natural light? I wouldn’t recommend dark tiles if your place is naturally dark tho, as this apartment illustrates: http://sklim.com/projects/field/interior/redhill-apartment/
White grouting will definitely result in black/yellow ickiness in the end. Don’t see anyway outta that unless we put parquet or marble flooring. I’m not a laminate supporter cos I can’t imagine freaking out anytime the floor gets wet. Plus I realize that I like wooden floors.
How’s your reno coming along?
hello!
thank you for sharing on your lovely blog from which I picked up useful pointers!
I have some questions on ceiling fans and hope you are able to help me!
I noticed that in your lego room, you have a ceiling fan and also track lighting. I love ceiling fans and track lights and am contemplating that look for my living room! However I have some worries:
– Does the ceiling fan cast any twirling shadows when the track lights are switched on?
– How good do you find your ceiling fan? is your ceiling fan’s breeze strong enough? Is the fan wobbly? Does it make a lot of noise? May I also know which brand and model it is?
Thank you for your time and any help is appreciated! =)
Rgds
Alicia
@Alicia: My lights are pointed away from the fan, so no ‘flickering’ effect. My KDK baby fan is strong enough. It’s the MSU11 model (I think, anyway it’s the only ‘baby fan’ KDK). Does it wobble? Yes. Enough that I called KDK service guys to come over and have a look. The service man said that it really depends on the skill of your electrician to install the fan, but he said my wobble isn’t too bad. We got KDK cos it’s the brand we all know since kids. All the fans in my place are from KDK (living room is the V56 model).
You can read this article about preventing (and computing distance between fan and lights) flicker/strobe effect: http://www.spinifexfans.com.au/resources/avoiding-light-flicker-from-ceiling-fans/
If you are using lights that cast upwards to the ceiling, the reverse should apply too.
Good luck with your reno!
oh ok ok thank you so much for your in-depth reply and your help!!! =) really appreciate it!
Hi
Just want to know if you had any problem with getting the KDK people to come and service your ceiling fan. Is their service prompt? I heard that their service is not prompt.
Thanks
Joscelyn
@Joscelyn: Service was excellent actually. No problems at all.
Hi
Many thanks for your prompt reply! 🙂 🙂