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Umaisarah

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Posts posted by Umaisarah

  1. Posted

    The 3D drawing for the study table for your eldest daughter is the reason why I don't "trust" designer.

    The 3D loosk nice but it's not practical and ergonomic because there is not enough depth.

    As you can see from the 3D, the depth is just nice for the laptop. Imagine you are typing with your arms hanging, it would be very tiring.

    Wah! Your eyes so sharp one, sure no ID can smoke u :D

    Well, e 3D drawing is just tt, a drawing. I dun xpect it to b drawn to scale nor be an actual representation of how e real thing will turn out. At least it helps me visualize how e materials n colour combination will work.

    My ID has actually gone thru e perspective drawing with me which is more impt cuz e carpenter will use it when they construct the thing. My ID asks if I want 500 or 600mm for e depth. I choose 600mm n tts e depth of my current computer tbl so I think it's ok. Sm thing goes for e other carpentry works.

    If e ID just show 3D n nvr follow up w u on detailed measurements n perspectives then I agree tt ID is not to b trusted. So customer must b smart enuf to ask n find out. To depend entirely on e 3D as a reference is also not correct cuz I consider it just as a tool to visualize.

    Anyway tt's my opinion only mah. Bottom line is customer must oso do hmwk lor.....

  2. Posted

    Here's the 3D for eldest daughter room, she's going to 12 this year, and so really growing up.

    What's with kids these days? She's into purple, hot pink and black! what happen to blue and pink and yellow?

    4475359367_b8d4417426.jpg

    Doing the study table and top hung cabinets. Bringing over our old Billy Bookcases. She chose the purple colour wall herself.

    If you notice the bay window, one end will hv this slanted ledge for her and her sisters to chill out while spying on the neighbours.

    I'm also going to have that slanted ledge for the MBR for me to chill out and check out the hunk.... in my room lah...... :P

    To sidetrack, I came across this Canadian furniture company which specialises in unique hand-made furniture. It was featured in RT.

    It's called Straightline Design. Check the website out. I made some enquiries, and yes, they do not come cheap, just like this Tree Bookshelf I fell in love with :( Mbe KIV for next bonus time :D

    Finally, 3D for my other 2 daughters' room. This is where the major carpentry works happen.

    4476137552_659d128c85.jpg

    Doing the bay bed and the loft bed with the study table below it. We requested for the loft bed not to be too tall (about 1.6m) as we're going to have a ceiling fan in the room. With this design, we free up the floor space so they can chill out and hv more space to throw their mess about :) But they still hv place to do their h/w or revising. But one of them has got to share study space with the eldest next door. Wall colour supposed to be yellow but didn't come out well in the 3D rendering.

  3. Posted

    I think I did not make myself clear..:P. I mean you can buy new chairs for $100 each, or contact them to check if they do revarnishing too. :D

    Oh, sorry :P $100 for the chairs, hmmmm not bad....mbe I'll check it out. Where in Sims Avenue is it? I planning to go that area this Friday. Want to check out Choo Chiang for switches.

  4. Posted

    Managed to scan my 3D drawings using my office copier (sshhh....don't tell anyone ;)

    Here's the 3D for my Living/Dining Room.

    4475309437_9169f5005c.jpg

    Main works I'm doing here is the TV console (2-tier on a raised platform) and feature wall (a pair of ceiling height wood laminate 'pillars' - u can see only one of it at the far right of the pic - and a suspended laminate wall in between for the TV). Also the L-Box above the TV console and false ceiling at dining and Veneer L box in the middle of the room, dividing the living and dining. I really like this one, saw it in a mag and asked my ID to incorporate in the design. There's also a Stucco wall for the dining feature wall.

    The furniture shown here is just for show. Eg my sofa is L-shaped but it is in natural material, brownish colour with dark brown covers.

    But I'm planning to change the covers to B&W stripe for the top (leaning) part and yellow for the bottom (seating part). I saw an actual sofa with tt combination in one of my shopping expeditions. I think it will help brighten up the place but not sure if the combination will be too far out :unsure:

    My curtains will also be dark - tt's why I'm planning to change the material for the living room again :P But the darker colour will be a nice offset to the plain bright walls, so it's 50-50. Mbe I'll just change the day curtains colour :unsure:

    Next one here is for my MBR.

    4475309315_5c4ec62575.jpg

    I'm not actually doing anything much here, just the L-Box around the room, the study table on the bay window and a TV wall (cannot see).

    I'm planning to have a hanging light near the round pillar as a decorative piece, otherwise the room will look pretty boring. DH chose the wall colour, he really likes it as it reminds him of our (soon-to-be) old home (aawwww!). My ID managed to scan in the picture of my new bed for this drawing :)

  5. Posted

    Ya, sometimes its the id problem and not totally the co. Anyway, still considering and i also getting Henry from id note to quote. Heard so much gd reviews on hime, must try and see. Its good to save $. :D

    Ah, you want to join the Henner club :D I only found out abt the club after I signed with my ID.

    Good luck on your ID search! Any plans to do a blog?

  6. Posted

    Wow. The vanishing is very expensive. I went to pagoda teak near Sims Ave, a 1.25m marble top round table with 6 chairs (can choose the type of chairs within their range) is like $1,250. You can choose the color of vanish including black. You can check with them if they do revanishing. Else you can always take the chance to replace the chairs.

    I dun intend to change my table cuz I really like it, despite the scratches and stains.

    But tt teak sideboard has to go. Either I revarnish for $600 or get a new one, or dun hv a sideboard lor. saves some space at my new place :D

  7. Posted

    I've got this solid wood 2mx1m dining table, 6 teak dining chairs and a 1.8m teak sideboard.

    The dining table is in fairly good shape, only scratches and colour fading on the top.

    The dining chairs and sideboard is pretty bad with mould and faded varnish/wax.

    Dun hv pictures to post rt now, mbe later when I'm not so lazy :D

    anyway, contacted www.furniturereborn.com.sg which specialises in revarnishing, repairing and making your old furniture look brand new.

    I know abt them cuz I happen to see their van on the road one day, and the co. name stuck in my head. Surfed their website and they had pictures of how they did their work, and was quite impressed.

    Aloysius and his dad (I think) came down to assess the condition. They said my teakboard and chairs were very poorly done in the first place, so tts why its mouldy and faded.

    (**** you, Mirage Teak House! No wonder I bought it so cheap tt time!)

    They quoted me $1,800 to revarnish the three items - $1,200 for the dining table+6 chairs and $600 for the sideboard. I thot might as well i buy a new sideboard, can get for below $500 (anyone wants a mouldy teak sideboard :P). But I want to keep the dining table and now torn whether I should part with $1.2K to revarnish it. Or should I just lv it be? Its still in okay condition except for a very obvious stain left behind by a very hot pot. I dun feel like revarnishing the chairs cuz I dun find it comfortable, but dining chairs are so ex, especially the nicer-looking ones. Frankly, I'm looking for more modern design but DH still wants wooden chairs, so I'm trying to slowly psycho him. Went down to The Life Shop sale at Balestier last weekend, but nothing really caught my fancy.

    So, for the time being, me and DH has decided to KIV this. More impt to buy lights (which we have done, yeah!) and switches.

    Hvn't contacted any other company for 2nd opinion yet cuz no time. Mbe will try Mr Wood Varnish.

    Anyone knows any other company who can do revarnishing for much less than $1.2k?

  8. Posted

    Very thorough, I am impressed. Looking forward to more updates from you.

    By the way, thank you for that series supplies website. I find it informative.

    Cheers.

    Just glad that I can help.

    Yah, my to-do list is growing and growing by the day.

    sigh...the closer i get to the big day, the more I realized I'm running out of time!

  10. Posted

    Hi Zelly

    Welcome to RT!

    Wish I have good news for you but like others hv said $20K for reno + furnishings & appliances is pushing it a little. Are u including air-con into the picture?

    Not sure what kind of quality you going for, cuz as they say, you pay peanuts you get monkeys, :P hope you don't get offended.

    I have put in some unit costs to help you budget, not sure if this is the lowest, or market price but is what I got from my 'research'.

    I'm sure others will hv their own experience to share. If u hv not done so, do read up Ossify's blog (all 20 pages of it :) ) cuz tt's a rich source of info on prices for D-I-Y renovation. He's the guru :D

    ok, here goes:

    1) painting the place over with easy clean paints (still thinking of the color theme for each room) budget about $1-1.2K for whole house

    2) Downlightings for dining, living, and 3 bed rooms. (yeah false ceilings too) downlights average price is $17-19 for plain white frame and 2x13W bulb. Estimate mbe u need 30-40 for whole house (since u include bedrooms), so tt's already $680, Hvn't include false ceiling price. Budget about $2.50 - 3 psf, $6.50-8 psf for L box and $8-10 psf for cove light box

    3) normal energy saving lighting for toliets, kitchen and store room. Est mbe abt $30 for each light x 5 = $150

    4) granite top for bay windows. Any reason why u use granite? Ossify will recommend u use acrylic :D. I'm using plywood+laminate, cheapest quote I got was abt $30 pfr.

    5) various rewiring Are you rewiring the whole house? If yes, budget about $1-1.5k, and that's excluding replacement/extra switches or sockets u need to buy.

    6) curtains(black out and day curtains) for all bed rooms and living room Oh, yes, this is a real wallet burner. Jimmy Textiles prices are not bad. $2.5K is reasonable if it's for the whole house and u want day and nite curtain. If u want cheaper, mbe u can try buying the material in JB, then get someone to sew for you? There's this mega fabric store, like a giant Spotlight, in JB but I can't remember the address. I can dig it up if you're interested. Some forummers have recommended MGL curtains at Eminent Plaza.

    7) vanishing of the wooden flooring No comment on this, as hv no experience.

    Living

    1) Storage tv console (I have the design i want but i do not know it is workable) You'd need to hv a sense of the dimensions to enable the carpenter to quote. Mbe u want to try Google Sketchup to draw it up? One contractor told me they will quote you separately for the console (ie the one on the floor) and for cabinets or shelves on the wall. The design u want does not seem to be too complicated so they may just quote u on pfr or psf basis, and the design is flexible. Cheapest quote I got for carpentry works for TV console was $250 pfr, so say u want a 6-feet console, tt's about $1,500 already. Throw in another $1k for the stack cabinets you wanted.

    2) Tiling of Balcony (2m x 2.5m). No comments as hv no experience, but you can easily budget the price range of tile you want and multiply by the area you want tiled.

    MBR

    1) short cabinets at the bay window No helpful comment here

    2) wall paper 1 side of the wall, else it will be via decals. You can choose a nice wallpaper design from Goodrich for less than $100 per roll, but its the labour charge to do it up that costs a bomb. Goodrich costs $300 per wall. I think curtain places like Jimmy Textile can also do, and their installation costs is cheaper by mbe $100. If you're thinking of wall decals that cover most of the wall, Winkplay charges $10-14 psf without installation.

    Anyway good luck on your reno! Look fwd to your postings to see if u can succeed in psycho-ing your hubby to up yr reno budget :)

  12. Posted

    thanks ..found their no and address

    6272 7727

    10 Jln Kilang Timor #02-03A 159306

    in fact, found a long list of mirror shops here

    http://singapore.angloinfo.com/af/732/sing...nd-mirrors.html

    Did u call them up to cfm? Cuz this was where they were before they moved to the former HDB building.

    Actually went down to the Jln Kilang Timor showroom to view, then a few months later I went down again to cfm to buy and then discover they're longer there. It was a while later then I discovered they were at former HDB, and only becuz I saw their ads in the papers.

    As I said, last time I was there was a few years back, so not sure if they're playing the hide and seek game again... :)

    Actually I hv reason to check them out too cuz I'm moving house so want to find out if they give free service to dismount mirror at my old place and mount it again at my new place.

  13. Posted · Edited by Umaisarah

    Updated To Do List 2

    More to do list :wacko: :wacko::

    - look for new school for 3rd daughter (v impt, how can forget!!!!) found two possible school, need to submit wait-list form

    - look for plants to 'landscape' new place

    - activate power n water supply for new place activation on 10 Apr, 11 am-12 nn

    - Transfer phone n scv services

    - cancel newspaper subscription (condo can hv newspaper delivery or not :unsure:)

    - and oh yeah, move

    sure hv forgotten some things. Nvm, will update this list as I remember them.

  14. Posted · Edited by Umaisarah

    Updated To-Do list 1

    To do list:

    - visit lighting.com, Lighting Enterprise n Silic Lighting Centre et al to buy lighting n fans see my lighting story above

    - visit Choo Chiang to look at switches

    - cfm curtain n blind material but still got changes, leh... :P

    - look for movers

    - look for wood varnishers to varnish dining table, chairs n sideboard will post an update

    - do major housekeeping n inventory check

    - look for wood shop to buy plywood for bunkie board

    - visit ikea to look for matching kitchen cabinet for abv washer, shoe cab, tv console for MBR, bathroom furn n other stuff

    - visit hoe kee or sim siang choon to look at pull-out ss drawers for pantry

    - visit OM n Comfort Furniture to chk out outdoor furn

    - look for sofabed for maid room

    - design wall decal for MBR at winkplay.com

    - visit Howards Storage World for look-see

    - buy underwear organizer at gmarket (hee hee)

    - PACK!!!!

    - remember to breathe while thinking n doing all this

  15. Posted

    In other big news....got my 3D drawings at last :dancingqueen:

    But ID hvn't emailed to me the soft copies yet so cannot post it up lah.

    At last can visualize what my house look like with the materials and colours I've chosen.

    Oso got the work schedule, so hv already planned out when to be on site.

    Already submit my vacation leave plan to boss so he won't disturb me during tt period.

    Hv oso set moving day to 20th May! :yeah:

    Nothing auspicious on tt day except that it's my hubby offday, the kids will hv finished their exams and its a weekday so hope to get cheaper moving rate.

  16. Posted · Edited by Umaisarah

    Finally some updates!

    Signed some mortgage documents at the lawyer's office last week. So, the house now officially belongs to my bank and CPF.

    And I'm going to rent it from them for $XXXX a month.

    Just like my car.

    Oso found out from the lawyer that I'm gonna get my keys at the end of the biz day on Apr 9 cuz ***bank will only release the $$ on the very day itself and refuses to do it a minute earlier. Which means I can only officially enter my new house on Sat afternoon (cuz got work stuff in the morning). Can't wait! Can't wait! :sport-smiley-018: Planning to get the ID and electrician together on that afternoon too so can settle all the electrical works.

    On to more 'damaging' news..... $2,222 burnt! Go, tikam the number for those of you who are so inclined! (and dun forget to share with me if you strike!)

    Yep, lightings.com is now $2222 richer becuz of me. Bought foll items from them:

    - 32 downlights for living, dining and MBR

    - 2 LED downlights (in place of halogen) for dining feature wall

    - 1 crystal hanging light cum wind chimes for dining room

    - 3 ELMARK VIP 99 52" Ceiling fan with light kit for bedrooms

    - 1 ELMARK VIP 99 52" Ceiling fan for MBR

    - 1 ELMARK VIP 9 56" Ceiling fan for Living Room

    - 6 ceiling lights in various designs for WIW, HSS, Yard, Balconies

    - 4 T5 tubes for TV console wall

    Hv got pic of my dining room light, will upload when I'm home later tonite. Actually, can find it on their website. Go to Chandeliers and Hanging Pendants, it's model no. D80104L9. Recommended to me by one of the sales person there. I like the wind chime sound effect when the rods strike each other. It uses halogen lights though :(

    'Funny' story I must share when I went lighting shopping yest.

    I've got my mind fixed on going to lightings.com (cuz of all the tve comments here) but after we park, my DH asked to go into the 1st shop we saw at the corner there. The name of the shop ends with the other name for a donkey which I shall not type here for fear of offending anyone :D

    Anyway, we spent nearly an hour there to go through my lighting shopping list, choosing the downlights, dining room light, fans (the salesman was pushing AMASCO brand). etc etc. So in the end, the quote was about $2,298 or thereabouts. Actually, the salesguy quoted us $15 for the downlight which is even cheaper than lighting.com (which I thought was the cheapest already). But price for the other items was comparable to lightings.com. He saw us hesitating and slash total price to $2,150 and then to $2,100 but here's the catch (always is one, isn't there??) 'Offer' price is only valid if you sign up with them, TODAY, THAT VERY SECOND. If you step out to let out a fart (oops, sorry) and come back in, price revert to original, non-offer price. So, he tell us, downlight original $22, he gives us for $15, dining light $XXX, he gives us $YYY price etc etc. Wah, he so generous with the discounts, but is not confident enuf that his price is low that he has to FORCE us to DECIDE to buy NOW so that we won't go out and compare price and DISCOVER that we can actually get it CHEAPER elsewhere. This was the 1st shop we ever seriously ask for a quote so how can we confirm??? :angry: I can't stand this kind of sales tactic but if that is their kind of business model or strategy or whatever, sorry I'm not that kind of buyer. So we politely said goodbye and walked off, and went to lightings.com which was a few doors down. To be fair, he was nice about it, but he blew a big commission for being so inflexible.

    Lightings.com price was cheaper for the other items we bought except for the downlights, and their 110% price guarantee was actually difficult to get. Not sure if anyone managed to get a refund due to this policy. I asked them 'Does your guarantee refer to the offer price the other company quote you or the original non-offer price?'. She didn't really answer the question but say that they check out the other shop's price each time customer claim the guarantee. And she said they won't send their staff, but somebody else. Well, really depends if the person they send over will get offer price or not right? Like I told her that other shop quoted me $15 for downlight but only valid as long as I remain in the shop and nvr go out, so how to prove? Aiyah, all this are gimmick lah, and bo pian, just accept it lah.

    Also was quite disappointed in the range in lightings.com shop. Thought there'll be more, like I almost give up finding my dining light there (didn't find anything interesting) but then the salesgirl showed me that light, switched it on, and I fell in love..... :D

  17. Posted

    If you're talking about designer wall mirrors with frames in diff sizes, there is this shop The Mirror House.

    It used to be at Jln Kilang Barat at Bt Merah, then it moved to the former HDB building. I bought a 1.9m x 1.4m mirror in wood frame from them abt 4 years back. Not sure if it's still at Bt Merah. Why don't you try googling it and see what you come up with? Post back here if you're successful :)

  18. Posted

    Hi Umaisarah

    thanks!

    Yah...the space tat u mention is really empty. We r still thinking of wht to do with it. Maybe a place for a puppy!?!? Hehe...

    As for the MS toilet cabinet, it's a custom made cabinet.

    oh, was it part of yr carpentry works or u went to a shop to custom make it? Mind sharing how much u paid n whr u made?

  19. Posted

    Wow, Pinkydot! I really, really like your house, so spacious, clean and classy.

    I really like your use of glass doors for the balcony entrances from living room and kitchen and also at the sink area.

    May I know what you intend to do with the space at the kitchen where the two chandeliers are?

    It looks empty now.

    That cabinet in your master toilet - where did u get it from? I'm looking for one my own house.

    Is it from Howards Storage World?

    Congratulations on a beautiful home!

  20. Posted

    The floor plan looks a lot like my current flat's floor plan but it's a 5-room. This is an EA?

    Where is it located, if I may ask?

    My only comment, is that the living/dining/play area will look kind of dark because there are limited windows.

    So there's ltd natural light streaming in. That's what happening to my living/dining area.

    It's cosy but you need to on the light almost the whole day to make it bright enough.

  21. Posted

    sigh!

    ywthc,

    wondering, if we create a thread call horrible lawyer. To warn the rest, don't know will we get sue or not

    that's a good idea. I support. As long as we nvr mention lawyer name or firm okay mah.

    This is 1st time I evr nd to use lawyers n had nobody to advise wats the procedure. My agent fren oso not sure.

    They asked us to sign so many docs I feel like I'm selling my soul to e devil :o

  22. Posted · Edited by Umaisarah

    not truth.

    You had a choice.

    Bank has panel of lawyer.

    You can use your own lawyer and ask the Bank, is your lawyer in their panel?

    Bank don't dictate which lawyer.

    Normally your banker will recommend a lawyer to you if you don't have.

    If you happen to use the lawyer your banker recommended. Your banker has referrer commission

    For my case, I didn't hv a choice cuz the bank insisted that we take this particular lawyer.

    And because we needed a bridging loan and time was not on our side, bo pian, have to follow along :(

    mbe because the seller (which was a company, not an individual) was using big shot lawyer Khattar Wong, the banker also wanted a big shot lawyer,

    and so I have to pay big shot fees :angry2:

  23. Posted

    No updates on renovation but just got an email from the lawyers handling my purchase to sign some mortgage documents which i dunnoe head or tail about.

    They just say 'we enclose herewith letter and documents, which are self-explanatory'. Excuse me, I go to normal school, not law school so pls dun tell me its self-explanatory.

    Sigh...just having some problems with the (non)service that this law firm is giving me. Chase them for 3 weeks for reply to my question, then when they reply, they never even answer my questions, instead ask me to sign some documents and return by end of the week. Wah liau!

  24. Posted

    Hi,

    I 100% agree with you. I had a horrible lawyer while purchasing my apartment in Dec'09 and i have to end up paying more. What's more, he didn't know the procedure and everything when screw up!

    Advise to all: Beware, get to know how the lawyers charge.. there are hidden cost u never know.

    But we don't get a choice on our lawyers do we? The bank where we get loan from dictate which lawyer to use.

    For me I am stuck with this law firm with a nice fancy office at Cecil Road, but their service sucks.

    I was supposed to hv appt with a senior member of the firm, but the one who served me was this new kid who gave me wrong info on the penalty I hv to pay for paying stamp duty late. And the one who was actually very helpful and has the right answers is the secretary!

    I am kept in the dark on the status, and when I ask them for updates, never reply even after reminders,

    and when they do reply, its to ask me to sign some papers and give me 4 days notice to do it! Wah, like my hubby and I can just take time off to go down their office anytime issit???

    Talking abt fees, I never did get an official 'quote' from them how much this is going to cost me. The bank only give subsidy up to $2,000.

    I no choice also hv to appoint them as my lawyer for my HDB transaction and tt's going to cost me $1K :angry:

    I better ask them to tell me in black and white how much this is going to cost.

  25. Posted

    how about this.

    My house has been sold out by Agent A while Agent B claim the unit was sold by him at his website.

    LOL. I hv a friend who complained abt this oso. She's oso an agent and she get real p****ed off by agents who state high selling prices in their junk ad, when in fact they never even sold those units.

    The purchase of my condo was oso a nightmare.

    I was shown the unit (that I eventually bought) by agent A who was co-broking with Agent B who is the exclusive seller agent.

    On the same day, Agent C also arranged some viewings for me at the same devt, including this unit, but since I already saw it, he didn't bring me to see it again.

    Then a few days later, Agent C called me to say seller was willing to let go of the unit at such-and-such a price. Later in the day, Agent A called me up very angry that Agent C had undercut him cuz he was the original one who showed me the unit. He angry at Agent C but he shouted at me. I buyer dunnoe anything, I just go with the agent who can negotiate good price for me.

    To make matters worse, I actually oso hv my own agent (not the agent who sold my flat). I need to work with her cuz she's my financial planner and will be handling all my financing (CPF, bank loan etc etc). We wanted to get rid of Agent C cuz he's just a middleman but since we dun hv the contact for Agent B, we had to go thru him anyway. In the end, my agent had to deal with Agent C to give him a small cut of the commission, since he was the so-call link with the exclusive agent (even tho he did nothing except make a few calls).

    Aiyah, I am just glad that whole episode is behind me. :wacko:

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