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nicely written mrslee07

I need to do reno in our new BTO flat, but unable to get any Renovation loan from the banks. Is there any Renovation company that gives in house renovation loan? We seriously need to get Renovation done.

Kitchen wall to be plaster smooth instead of putting tiles, the contractor say must put this "special" cement up first. Even though this will not be the outcome but i think this raw feel quite nice...

I am actually at the same stage as u, confirmed ID, going through 3-Ds and looking for furniture and appliances. Bought sofa, tv, washer, fridge and bed so far...plenty more to go

Oh tats nice u seem to have a big living room..kitchen sizes are as pathetic as always lol...tats to both of ours..our reno will be kick starting tomoro I guess..after looking at the actual unit happened to have some changes/add ons from our initial plan..will keep u posted on more happenings..am kinda stressed out wit some changes now kinda no mood to blog down lol..will wait for my moods to be up again before I can cheerfully yak away here haha tc!

woah. i like the sunlight beaming into the toilet.

I used the Helping Hands. The men were very fast, very professional & the best I were they dismantled my bed & then set up my bed nicely again at my new place (asked me to check to confirm). I "rent" the carton boxes - meaning that when I return back the boxes, they refunded me the full sum of money I deposit.

Water feature placed on top artificial grass, with artificial plants to decorate the area

I have the same washer.... after 1 year, am still very happy with it I prefer the grey sofa. More "lasting" - look at it for another few years also not sian type.

Please note. If you are getting a dryer. This washer design don't allow you to stack.

I got the same fridge, so I must say you made a good choice. LOL.

This one i fully agree, so what if you buy very expensive and atas one? If you have the budget, go ahead, if no then skip it. One or two years later your model already discontinue because of newer model and they may or may not have the parts to repair yours if it breaks down. Especially electrical appliances, technology too fast to catch up. (Ah gong story) Met a friend yesterday in COURTS while shopping for TV, he is a salesperson selling "certain" TV brand and what he told me is quite true. Nowadays no need get high specs TV as we may not be fast enough to catch up with technologies. He ask "do u change TV every year"? Of course NOT! And yes, newer version/tech are coming up every 6 months to a year. And for smart TV, everyone now is using the android mediahub, which means your Smart Tv function is useless. He say just get normal full HD and if possible, skip the Smart TV function and your tv will be cheaper. Unless you really like certain brand like me (i prefer Samsung), then no choice cos all samsung tv comes with smart tv. But i will still get the normal/ lowest range as its at least 50% cheaper compare to latest model. 1.) Hood & Hob (Mine comes in a package with kitchen cabinet, Turbo brand) 2.) Washing Machine (LG $329, 8.0kg) 3.) Dryer (The Sun is my dryer) 4.) Fridge (LG 2 door white $899, bought in mustafa, bought this fridge as it looks big and elegant in my opinion)

My 3D drawings are done View from dinning room to living room View from Kitchen Service yard View from Kitchen door View from Master bedroom to ensuite study/wardrobe room View of Master Bedroom

red sofa is sofa bed? that's why its half-price? the rest are decent purchases. anyway, buy liao, don't look back.

Yes, using a switch will be the most cost efficient and straightforward solution.

Reposting TB Links!

think if you get a switch in your room will work. maybe a small 4-port switch will be sufficient

Supermama, your tv console looks gd...im also contemplating to buy the console from TB! hehe....thks for the reviews!

Can attached the link as well please!!

fwahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh peekturesssssssss

Pardon my absence! Been feeling a tad under the weather... Peeka shipment arrived on Friday night! Didn't realise I ordered so many things. Oops. My Elm wood coffee table! Nicely repacked by Peeka. Pweety or not??? My wooden Alarm clock Digital Peephole Viewer Final Picture for this post =) -- cushion covers from TB

All this structured cabling and self termination is new to me as well, just decided I want to go down this route and "force" myself to pick up some knowledge.

My advise is BUY, USE & THROW. Something reason in quality and design. These days nothing last a long time.

Feel free to pm me if you need my help.. Tan ^_^

Hey Elin! I registered for an account just to reply to your thread - I've been lurking for more than a year but never ever posted. I just wanted to say that I LURVE your bathroom, the bathtub and fixtures/accessories are almost exactly how I envisioned it to be! Hoping I can fit a standalone tub in my new house too... :/ Congrats on your beautiful home Thanks for sharing it with us!

Not all, but most are warm white except one set of down lights in kitchen and and one down light in common bathroom.

Brands and Pricing for Vinyl So far I had only compared 2 brands, namely Evorich and Krono. With laminates out of the pictures, so does Supreme, Pergo, Tarkett etc too. Evorich as many will know is aggressive with marketing and promotion. Sponsoring TV shows and attending excitations and mind you, these cost money. My gut feel is that what the psf price offered during exhibition can be offered during walk in as well. Main factor deciding what price you get is the floor area you are doing. If you are doing a complete 5 room compared to doing 3 bedrooms for a 5 room, chances are you are able to bargain a better psf price. So note this when considering, it should the same for any brand of flooring – area dictates. Evorich import their flooring from the States but the hearsay is that the States dealer gets their stock from China. So if this is true, at the end of the day, we are paying for made in China product. No that I have a problem with this but simply for knowledge purposes. Anyway, the walk in psf is approx. $7 but roadshow/exhibition prices vary which as mentioned, depends on area. From friends and fellow reno bloggers,I have heard can be anywhere from $6 to $6.25. The feel and texture are pretty alluring and comes in many shades of wood and grains, a worthy consideration if one like what they see and feel. Evorich market their vinyl as HERF ie. High End Resilient Flooring. And yes, it sound sophisticated. Next, there is Krono. A brand known more for their laminates. This was introduced to me by my ID. They had brought in vinyl flooring as well but not aggressive in marketing. Matter of fact, you cant even find this product on their website. I had visited their showroom; there are 17 colours to choose from, with 7 more to come in April. Seriously, texture and feel wise, it is hard to tell them apart from Evorich. Perhaps one a little more matt while the other is slightly glossier. The range is pretty comprehensive and enticing. I would say one or two colours will meet one's preference Krono’s vinyl is from Korea, well that’s what I heard and their pricing is approx. almost $1 cheaper than Evorich – ranges like $5plus Samples from both brands I had, look similar to me. When lie side by side, I cant tell them apart. I stand corrected, both products are actually OEMs, meaning factory manufacture for them, but branding and marketing done by their own companies. After looking thru both companies and knowing I have no beef with my pocket, I went with Krono.

COMMON BATHROOM WASH BASIN WATER TRAP Nice and Straight. VRH 304 grade stainless steel water trap. I have enough of stain and color deterioration. MASTER BATHROOM WASH BASIN WATER TRAP On the right you can see my VRH 304 grade stainless steel toilet spray

No idea. I would suggest you calling Muji so you don't have to waste a trip.

Master Room in a modern beautiful 3 storey house available for rent. Quiet and upper middle neighborhood, renovated with wall paper and designer bed. Well kept and clean, just installed new aircon unit. Many buses and very accessible to town and CBD area. See it to believe it. 5 minutes walk to Eunos MRT station 5 minutes walk to wet market 2-4 minutes walk to NTUC and coffee shops $1450 (Nego) Please call Alvin 98200009 for immediate viewing.

Ya higher nicer, mine I bought a little lower but it consider big for me I will post the pic after installation. .

I used this contractor for my wardrobe and cabinets, workmanship is good, I have posted some photos on the forum. You can consider getting a quote at 97698009.

Choices of taobao agents If you are poor like me.. or just want to save costs.. you would shop on taobao. So to help everyone and share my limited knowledge, here are the agents that I have found out of.. If you are experienced or can read chinese, you can use forwarders. Some of these agents I have used... some I havent but have researched on. I am going to touch only on SEA shipment and those tt require agent to help them buy. 1) China Agent (YF) YF is a shortform of his name. Was intro-ed by a friend who has used his services. Language spoken: Chinese only Communication mean: QQ Based in: China Shipping rates: 550rmb/cbm or 480/cbm depending on which the frequency of his ships GST: he will assist on GST. ( dont understand pm me) Commission: 4% or capped at S$40 Rates: 4.67 is to 10rmb Transporter: Forwarder's own (can make appt to deliver) Review: YF is someone who you cannot order too many items one shot. I ordered 60 items one shot, and he got a few items wrong and has given me some white hair in the process. Abit careless and calculated wrongly on the total cost. To be fair, its not all that bad also. YF is transparent in a way whereby, he took snapshots of everything he bought so that I can see the costs black and white instead of charging me one lump sum. He tried his best to rectify the mistake he made (not without some blaming of others tho) Pros: cheap, transparent. Cons: can be careless. ordering through email, no specific format. Does not work for the forwarder. Does not have a warehouse. not able to personally check goods for you Use: Use only when ordering a few big big expensive items, when ordering, choose items that does not require customization for a pleasant shopping experience. 2) Oops.sg I knew about him from Hardwarezone. Language spoken: English Based in: China/ Singapore. Shipping rates: 550rmb/cbm GST: you have to key in the value yourself Commission: S$50/cbm Rates: 4.79 Transporter: dragonlink (deliver own time own target) Review: nearly 24 hours online. Speaks in english, and always online (skype and chat in their website), so never need to be afraid that you cant find him. Very popular in HWZ. his order format is very clear and computerized. Never had the chance to use him as his past charges were S$250 flat/cbm. Now his rates change le, most likely will use him for next shipment. Pro: Speaks English, always available, owns the warehouse (i think or at least works there), have more control on ordering process and transparent on shipping process. Cons: his nonchalent attitude about checking of the item condition. They will only check the exterior. Use : For big expensive items or items that require customization 3) Trading one Language spoken: enlgish Based in: i dunno Shipping rates: about S$ 200-250/cbm (last check) GST: will not assist Commission: 5% or 4% (depending on value. higher the value, the cheaper the rates) Rates: not sure. Transporter: dragonlink (deliver own time own target) Review: used them once. nearly drove myself crazy. Only able to communicate with them through email although they are prompt in replying. Honest. Some items on the page was cheaper than shown, they were honest enough to let me know instead of charging me what was shown. Pros: speaks english, honest Cons: expensive. 4) Alvan Language spoken: English Based in: Singapore Shipping rates: S$150/cbm GST: may not assist Commission: nil Rates: 4.7 (if i rem correctly) Transporter: nil Review: I like alvan. They are a singapore based company that assist ppl to buy items. You can show him items you like, and he wil assist you in finding them. That means you no need to have the link. Their ordering system is also either by excel or web. Up to you. Because they are in singapore, any problems, just call them. He is responsive. If you are ordering an item that has bad reviews, he'll find an alternate seller for you. or inform you that the item has bad reviews. Pro: responsive. Mostly online. Fast reply. speaks english. will advise you on things. nearly same price as Opps.sg. Cons: no delivery. Use: for big and light items that easy to carry and transport from their office. 5) Peeka Language spoken: English / Chinese Based in: Singapore Shipping rates: depends on volume. the more volume the cheaper it is. GST: does not assist Commission: 5% Rates: 4.71 Transporter: depend on item Review: I ordered from them 2 weeks ago for my fragile and lighting items. They have a warehouse in China and singapore. Ordering is simple and very straightforward. Shipping process also very straight forward. There are phone lines to call if you need help. Staff will help you translate messages from China side if required. Everything is very transparent. Pros: expensive if you order alot of items Cons: they will open up the cartons to check for damages to the items Use: best used for lighting goods or fragile glass items. 6) Amcon (thankfully contributed by OceanEleven) Language spoken: English / Chinese Based in: Singapore with few warehouses in China (Guangzhou,Shanghai etc) Shipping rates: RMB550 per cubic meter plus documentation plus GST GST: does not assist Commission: Think is 10% per item or free if you order and pay yourself but deliver to their warehouse Rates: unknown Transporter: depend on item Review: I had ordered and paid myself but items still lying in their Guangzhou warehouse. Pros: Pretty ok freight if you are ordering bulky items. Cons: They DO NOT open up the cartons to check for damages to the items Use: Best use for bulky items or consolidating numerous items before shipping So there you go. review of the agents that I have researched on and at certain points used or wanted to use. Hope this helps!!

Hahah thanks. I always believe in giving my honest opinion and if my ID is good, I will give them credit for it and vice versa.

Common bathroom tiles also caused a headache. Our ID wanted it simple with a dark tile from Hafary. We were okay with that at first then I was afraid that it would be small and wet and dark and sad. My dog would be using that bathroom on days that are rainy and he can't go out or when we work late. My ID had practical suggestions but I wanted it pretty too. I had fallen in love with a bathroom I saw in a tapas place called Sabio. Sorry for the badly lit and weird picture. Was trying not to shock my friends who were with me with my obsessiveness about the Reno. I talked to my htb about it and he agreed with my idea so we asked Eeyore if we could do this instead (if he feels it'll look out of place with the rest of the theme he will say so quite out rightly) and thankfully he said yes. Except he would put a dark border of tiles around it. I asked for it to be on the walls because he had mentioned to me before that cement tiles like the one I liked are easily bruised by heavy items brushing by or put down roughly. Floors would be dark tiles. We got all our common bathroom tiles from An Huat at Zion road. They had a lot of cool peranakan feel tiles and i was pretty thrilled but my ID was not. He had bad experiences with them and was not very willing to work with them again saying they were defensive with regards to defects in their materials when he last used them. Many places had these black and white cement tiles I liked but An Huat was cheapest at 3.50 per tile. The other shops were mostly charging 4.50 per tile. In the end Eeyore relented and told his site manager to go and help us with selection and ordering and picking up. =) as long as he didn't have to go himself. Heehee. An Huat asked us to top up 50 cents per tile for sealant but my ID said the sealant his contractors will do for all our tiles so no need! Wheeeeee. More money saved! My pretty tiles drying after sealant on the patio. Think my lava stone had a coat of sealant applied already and was waiting for another coat when I took this picture.