Finally Our Own Haven! 3 Room Bto...

[bykaraanne 30]

Yes exactly! Thx for ur wishes.. Some updates, my ID got back to me tat he got e prices slashed down n now it's $580 for doing up my striped pebble wash foyer, yay!! It pays to be a nag n nego right lol! At least not too ridiculous comparing e possible quotes we wud have incurred.. He says we will do bout 5 stripes, dark, light, dark, light, dark, followed by our laminate flooring throughout e rest of e dining/living area... So there's a contrast from e last dark stripe to e actual lighter laminate flooring..

N I chased my Casa Italy salesman n told him i badly need our sofa indented n delivered latest by e 26th Apr as we have arranged for our housewarming prayers cum party on e 27th n he mentioned tat he needs to speak to his main boss, try his ways etc to try for e possibility as e scheduled shipment is on 3rd May so gotta try n tat he will try his best for us n he got back to me saying he managed to push thru! Said they have arranged for my order to be prioritized n delivered in their shipment on e 25th Apr so after sorting out etc can deliver on 26th.. Success!! Haha but still a part of me is worrying n holding my breath til I actually get e item delivered to me on time. We could arrange n plan anything but cock ups do happen no matter wat so fingers crossed!

N, yet another screw up. My ID found there to be a blockage at our service yard outlet drainage.. There's some cement hardened in there n water flows thru very slowly thus they need to get tat rectified by HDB's side before they can proceed masonry works. How **** irritating! N he can't do e arrangement wit e maintenance office tats temporarily put up at our project site, they need e owner to come down in person n sign bla bla before they can arrange a schedule n take further days to rectify e issue. Really wonder wat kind of works is being done by those builders. We pay ridiculous prices for our houses but end up wit so much issues n costs wit e place on top of e unit price. They really ought to wake up!

So masonry is on hold til I can go down tomoro to make arrangements in person. Wonder if tat will delay my overall work process.. Hopefully other works proceed in e meantime n e timeline is met. Gggrr

Gah, glad you're feeling slightly better, I hope!

Well, reno is a BIG headache on its own, and I guess it helps to see the end goal - your beautiful home!! Don't worry, this will ALL pass soon (it's already almost April!).

Thanks for the tips though - I'm glad I didn't opt for anything from HDB after hearing/reading a lot of horror stories here and elsewhere.

I think your house will look gorgeous when it's done so chin up!! All's good. x

[Lyamani 21]

Haha thx so much babe so boosting! Lol.. Tomoro is a very busy day,getting sanitaryware n cooker hood,hob n oven delivered together since carpenter needs to see items n measure for his carpentry..citygas installation,electrical works startup etc..gonna be a long day.. 😁

[Songz 132]

Endure and it will pass eventually.

Just remind ownself its a 1 time thing and you will enjoy the rest for the next 5 years at least.

Good luck ...

[Lyamani 21]

Ya of cos am looking forward to e whole thing but kinda holding my breath at every step cos we never know wat might cock up next.. Things tend to have a twist here n there so it's like a surprise(good n bad) every now n den. Not gonna be in peace til it's all over smoothly 😌

[Lyamani 21]

Well guys, I have been pondering over something now... Tomoro is gonna be carpentry measurements day n I have requested to meetup wit e carpenter so as to run thru how we want our internal orientation to be for e carpentry etc.. So far wat was quoted by my ID was carpentry with white PVC internals only though I'm so in love with coloured polygon(laminated finish) look in carpentry works.. But of cos we were told it's gonna be a top up of bout $20-$30 pfr and also tat it was not a necessity as nobody sees it except myself etc so wit a heavy heart I agreed wit leaving it wit white PVC insides but now am actually toying wit e idea of having coloured polygon at least only for my 10ft wardrobe in the MBR... At least it looks complete wit a designer touch in n out lol... As my kitchen cabinets n vanity cabinets r gonna be in white laminate designs, felt it wud probably look flushed on e insides so at least doesn't look too off but the wardrobe is a whole 10ft of brownish laminate exterior so wen we open it wondering if I will keep sulking at e exposed whites..

So in love wit a lot of bloggers' laminated interior carpentry but budget constraint thot it wasn't an area we wanted to top up but really contemplating at least only our wardrobe.. We opted out for any wardrobe in e kids room cos after e built in study table n built in bunk bed there seemed to be no comfy space for wardrobe so instead of cramping e area we decided we will construct a bigger wardrobe in e MBR n house everyone's clothes in there.. It's a big task! I'm cracking my head on how to maximize space in e wardrobe for everyone to have sufficient space for their clothes individually.. Being such, at least every time i open e wardrobe it feels posh n pretty on e inside as well instead of facing white PVC! Maybe it's jus me but I get so mesmerized by laminated internals lol.. Can anyone advise if I'm justified n shud I follow my thoughts? Request to laminate the inside of our wardrobe which of cos is a topup as well.. Also to pacify myself on inability to choose entire carpentry wit laminate internals, is white PVC ok for kitchen cabinets etc or isit a bad choice? As in durability, yellowing etc.. Pls share ur thoughts as I have to confirm tis wit ID n carpenter later in e day! Thx...

[g0mug0mu 8]

I agree with the MBR internal laminates. It just make the carpentry seem more high quality even if its not really the case. Even for PVC choice there are good grades and lousy ones. Maybe try to ask for better one at same price?

About the service yard, I have 4 pipes there Am hacking my service yard divider! Haha Praying it turns out NOT TOO bad :S

[Songz 132]

Well guys, I have been pondering over something now... Tomoro is gonna be carpentry measurements day n I have requested to meetup wit e carpenter so as to run thru how we want our internal orientation to be for e carpentry etc.. So far wat was quoted by my ID was carpentry with white PVC internals only though I'm so in love with coloured polygon(laminated finish) look in carpentry works.. But of cos we were told it's gonna be a top up of bout $20-$30 pfr and also tat it was not a necessity as nobody sees it except myself etc so wit a heavy heart I agreed wit leaving it wit white PVC insides but now am actually toying wit e idea of having coloured polygon at least only for my 10ft wardrobe in the MBR... At least it looks complete wit a designer touch in n out lol... As my kitchen cabinets n vanity cabinets r gonna be in white laminate designs, felt it wud probably look flushed on e insides so at least doesn't look too off but the wardrobe is a whole 10ft of brownish laminate exterior so wen we open it wondering if I will keep sulking at e exposed whites..

So in love wit a lot of bloggers' laminated interior carpentry but budget constraint thot it wasn't an area we wanted to top up but really contemplating at least only our wardrobe.. We opted out for any wardrobe in e kids room cos after e built in study table n built in bunk bed there seemed to be no comfy space for wardrobe so instead of cramping e area we decided we will construct a bigger wardrobe in e MBR n house everyone's clothes in there.. It's a big task! I'm cracking my head on how to maximize space in e wardrobe for everyone to have sufficient space for their clothes individually.. Being such, at least every time i open e wardrobe it feels posh n pretty on e inside as well instead of facing white PVC! Maybe it's jus me but I get so mesmerized by laminated internals lol.. Can anyone advise if I'm justified n shud I follow my thoughts? Request to laminate the inside of our wardrobe which of cos is a topup as well.. Also to pacify myself on inability to choose entire carpentry wit laminate internals, is white PVC ok for kitchen cabinets etc or isit a bad choice? As in durability, yellowing etc.. Pls share ur thoughts as I have to confirm tis wit ID n carpenter later in e day! Thx...

For kitchen I agree its not really needed.

For wardrobe I will suggest otherwise as its where you will get clothing everyday and it will somehow affect a bit of your mood.

(*Juz my 2 cents worth)

[Lyamani 21]

Oops! U gotta hack it down cos of e pipes alone? Tats gonna cost u quite a bit... Really feel like knocking them on their heads isn't it e way they construct things.. Wen other projects can be done wit neat piping wonder y they gotta do such dumb layouts wit ours. My space left for washer dryer is very very tight I wonder how feasible it's gonna be until e day I get them delivered n try fixing them up. Even 1-2cm extra space wud have been great but den again, plain dumb works.

E kitchen is also soo tiny tat I have to make some amendments from e initial layout plan I had.. My ID asked if I wanna change my fridge model but nooooo tis was one thing I fell so much in love wit n really wanted how to give it up lol. So gotta work around it.. U started ur reno already? But if ur hacking down e walls u shud have lots more ease of space n light coming into e kitchen.. All e best!

Hmm right from e beginning I've been pushing my luck trying to get laminated internals wit e price we were quoted but ID insisted too low markup n unless we top up can't do it haiz. Out of all our carpentry works e MBR wardrobe is e biggest patch of work wit brown external laminates so wen it's open have a feel white PVC gonna look awful! At least kitchen, vanity n even TV Console etc is white colored laminate so kinda look flushed not so bad.. Gotta brainwash hubby tat I'm gonna incur another cost for him! Gonna chew at me lol!

Edited March 26, 2014 by Lyamani

[Lyamani 21]

U got my point Songz lol! It's really got something to affect our moods right... Wish carpenters here had a better alternative to give within e same costs instead of e ugly white PVC. Anyone has any idea if matte or glossy laminate is a better choice? My ID recommended us to go for matte cos glossy causes fingerprint marks all over n u gotta keep wiping it off to maintain e sleek look whereas matte is easier to maintain wit e general trait of laminates being easy to clean.. Thus our entire house's carpentry laminates r matte, including kitchen. Feel matte has it's beauty too.. Any comments?

[Songz 132]

+1 vote to matte

Reason :

1. don leave fingerprint mark or wet cloth wipe on it easy

2. long run matte is more pleasing to eye (Personal pref ? )

3. scratches and etc are not that obvious

[Lyamani 21]

😉 Songz hi five! 😝 u jus made me feel better bout our choice haha... Yea forgot to mention e part on scratches etc.. Apparently glossy shows it off more den matte.. N it's not too shiny n overbearing to e eyes...

[Lyamani 21]

Jus to share, I had posted tis in someone's blog but for e sake of sharing e info on my Tblog am putting it up here as well...

Since I had always loved e idea of an aquarium setup in e house where it adds so much of color n life to e place, I'm noobs bout fish keeping etc n believe such big pieces of built in or feature aquariums can cost a real bit n den I found tis site n tis item.. Guess some of u may love it.. Do check it out, I may be getting it most probably before my reno is completed, partly also cos my kids love e idea too n they will love watching e fish ard.. A rather compact but not too tiny solution tat adds a whole new dimension to e beauty of e house.. All u need is an additional side table to place it on n ur good to go. Best part it's so super affordable for e beauty of it..

http://www.aquafishtanks.com.sg

Believe FS wise is also beneficial as my intensive reads about it says tat fish tanks r a stronger attraction to e rolling in of good luck n wealth compared to water fountains etc as it's live feed, movement etc.. Happy to share my find wit ppl who may find it a gem jus like I thought of it.. Can't wait to have reno completed n get tis wit e fish n get it moving to have our own mini aquarium lol

[ahhboi 15]

For me, depends on the add on cost, if going budget, then I will go for the whie PVC for the wardrobe. Y? Becos in no time, my wardrobe will be very messy so laminate or not also no point. lol

But of course if the cost is acceptable, then go for the laminate then,

[Apple1 6]

White PVC for me too. I've so much stuff I don't see much of the pvc anyway. Secondly, if its dark internal laminate, I can't see a cockroach right away!

[Lyamani 21]

Hi peeps thot I wud do some further updates.. Things seem to be moving pretty fast amidst the occasional unexpected pop ups tat requires us to find an alternative solution to it etc.. End of it all my laminated wardrobe internal didn't materialize.. 😔 dunno y my ID jus seems to find it a waste to spend on coloured internals as it's not gonna be seen rather concentrate on other aspects etc.. He also doesn't ask us to do additional works tat r optional or may be insisted upon if they choose to.. Looks out at areas where we can refrain from doing unnecessary electrical works, though to date we do not know yet how much is our total electrical costs as things r not totally done up yet.. We didn't get to meet e electrician as his timing is very early in e morning n we r only able to visit on afternoons, if so.. So going wit basic power points which is already provided by HDB which seems quite substantial except a couple of silly PowerPoint placements in e kitchen..

Our aircon piping has been laid.. I really think tis co deserves some credit n think we got quite a good deal so as aircon is quite a substantial cost think I shud share my catch.. We went for system 2, for both e rooms @ 9K BTU each n r given a compressor tats 20k compared to some sellers who 'cheat' wit a 12k BTU compressor.. We opted out of aircon for living room as practicality wise I don't foresee usage of aircon in e living much.. It's mostly status quo sake tat is installed n we don't wanna waste precious budget there.. We were quoted $2.1k for Mistubishi Electric Starmex which we will be going for.. E co is called Air Connection.. I actually found them somewhere on Renotalk n they r a friendly n responsible team.. Quote is also e cheapest we got. They do have a Facebook page u can find if u google it. My piping wasn't too much n done all over e place. Only e part where it gotta run into e toilet for outlet piping which can't be helped.. N their installation comes wit e better copper piping, thick insulator etc which pardon me I'm not a technical person but upon reading up realized some sellers charge extra for these whereas theirs come wit it in e package n they auto do 2 trips, one for piping one for unit installation..

We have ceiling fans for both living room n MBR, got 45" Amasco ones which wen we tested at e shop was so super windy n it's a made in Taiwan brand. E kids room gotta do wit a wall fan since there's a bunk bed there. Usually wen napping in e afternoons or using e room besides night time it's fan usage n all night til we get out of bed in e morning we have e aircon running so it jus fits our lifestyle..

Everything sounds good now really keeping fingers crossed n hoping e workmanship is solid n not crappy n regrettable.. Tat wud make it all worthwhile..