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peppermean

Ready, Get Set...home!

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Thanks to RenoTalk that I've managed to pull through this intriguing yet hair-pulling reno process ..haha. The handover was on 18 July…YES…this is a post-dated blog. Okay…lazybones + loads to post reno add-on keep me at bay for quite awhile.

My humble house is a 4-room resale flat. One of the most important date in some of our life (wink*wink :notti: ) = 2nd appointment with Hdb was on 27 March. As I have ZERO knowledge about renovation, I didn't even know I should have started looking for reno lobang much much earlier :dunno: . Should have crossed path with RenoTalk earlier… :bangwall: . Anyway, late is better than never. Here is the emperor's decree, no, I mean…floor plan ;)

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Join 46,923 satisfied homeowners who used renotalk quotation service to find interior designers. Get an estimated quotation

I read that a lot of you are buying from Taobao. Seeing the savings and the variety of choices that Taobao offer, I also decide to join the TB gang..heheh :jammin: . But how to do it? The site definitely look overwhelming initially but heck…just have to do it! Luckily, from fellow forumner OceanEleven (Thanks, Ocean!) detailed write up on Taobao purchases, I managed to follow and not killed more brain cells along the way. And this is the 1st purchase (yes, more to come) that I have done before reno begins.

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No brain cells require for tabao purchases. Peeks is your best fren, just cut and paste the link and pay up then wait for the delivery. I m at your shoe, spoil for choice choosing a courier. So i choose peeka makes my life easier, not sure abt charges though which i didnt really care as long as i dont have to guess what will happen next after placing the orders. Enjoy your reno journey, love your new house layout though is easy to do space planning :).

 

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No brain cells require for tabao purchases. Peeks is your best fren, just cut and paste the link and pay up then wait for the delivery. I m at your shoe, spoil for choice choosing a courier. So i choose peeka makes my life easier, not sure abt charges though which i didnt really care as long as i dont have to guess what will happen next after placing the orders. Enjoy your reno journey, love your new house layout though is easy to do space planning :).

If I've used Peeks might be more straight forward. But I try to save a bit by liaising with the sellers direct, cutting away the fee that have to be paid for assisted purchase service. Initially was a bit confusing with Aliwangwang, Alipay blah blah...but I do get to chat direct with the sellers on my queries and ask for customisation for certain items if they do provide such service :notti: . Yup, what I like about my house layout is that it is clear-cut enough, no weird corners or space to waste ;)

 
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Interior designer OR contractor? Contractor wins. WHY: Budget. Budget. Budget…The sky's the limit...Yah, I know but my wallet also very limit-ed :(. And okay, I do have some ideas of how my house should look like. I like industrial, scandi, retro style. I guess the design of my house will gear towards an eclectic mix of the 3.

Searched high & low, finally found one or is he the one (I do not know at that stage of time) that fits the bill (literally too..haha) in term of experience and 'connectivity'. Thanks to fellow Renotalk forumner for the contact! Let's call him Contractor W. Renovation is really either you make it or break it. Now, I understand why some new house owners have this 七上八下 feeling. Lots of butterflies flapping ferociously in stomach :wacko:
Reno journey starts on 3 June. Things to be done:
  • Master and common toilet overhaul. Floor & wall tiles to go. Doors as well. Install new sanitary set & accessories.
  • Hack old kitchen cabinet and install new one. Keeping the existing flooring and wall tiles due to $ constraint.
  • Rewiring the entire house.
  • Redo water pipes.
If you are thinking that does not look like a lot of things to be done, right? Actually, I have engaged other contractors for painting, flooring & air con separately. And yes, this what I call the 2nd part of reno is keeping me busy till recent :sport-smiley-003:
Edited by peppermean
 

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While the reno guys were busy 'tearing down' my house, I did some hands-on as well - Tearing away these window stickers!! Oh boy, require quite a bit of arm strength and finger works though I already applied soapy water on the stickers the day before. Spread the task over a few days cos after applying cleaning agent like baking soda & vinegar on some of the stubborn residues, I'll leave it and wipe it out the next day.

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You can cut the stickers into smaller pieces using a penknife, it makes the pulling out easier. No, the penknife won't leave a scratch on the glass :lol:.

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And viola, the final product.

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Since I'm not engaging a interior designer, NO 3D DRAWINGS?!?!... I'm totally fine with it. In order to show what I have in mind, I sketch out rough visuals. I think it facilitates the reno process and reduce mis-communication.

KITCHEN

No top cabinet since I won't be cooking much and save some bucks. But I do have a preference for chimney hood though. And it must be those triangular type. Personally, I feel it gives me a feeling of home, cos I remember when we were kids we always draw house with a triangular roof and YES, with a chimney on top. It just reminds me of 家 (bonus: if Santa ever come to visit through the chimney :P )

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MASTER BEDROOM

After heeding the advise of a friend who know fengshuai, the headboard of my bed will be placed towards north but this results in my bed facing the master toilet :bangwall:. To resolve the issue, I have initially wanted to build my full height wardrobe in between my bed and the toilet acting as a divider and since the wardrobe is just outside the toilet, thinking it'll be very convenient for grabbing clothes..haha. BUT, I wasn't totally comfortable with the idea because I only have a 2 panel windows in my Master bedroom. The wardrobe though will end just before the window, it will still block sunlight...mmm :no: .

So I came up with another idea! I'm going to use pole system for the wardrobe, much lesser blockage. I know... I know... it will be messy if I don't tidy my barang barang regularly. So, to hide the untidiness or when I have guests, I should install curtain just in front of the pole system. Can always pull the curtain over when I was sleeping at night or as and when necessary :sport-smiley-018: .

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COMMON AND MASTER TOILET

Both toilets are rather small. Need to take note of the sizes of the sanitary wares and accessories in order to fit and have space to manoeuvre. And on top of that, have to take into consideration those big fat pipes which we can't move position at all! Quite tricky on the layout for such small space :jail:

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Went with Contractor W to choose tiles at Lian Seng Hin@Balestier on 1 Jun. Prefer matt tiles something like cement type for the toilet wall but To My Dismay :jawdrop: , all those that I like are not within the price range of my quote...Sigh...Sigh...SighHHhhhhh.....

Eventually, I top up for my master toilet wall. Would love to have matt wall tiles in both toilets but since I won't be using the common toilet as often, I decide to let it go. Stayed a good 2 hours.

These are the wall and floor tiles that I've selected:

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The white wall tiles actually have a bit of 3D effect like this.

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Edited by peppermean
 

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