Prettibride

abt $100+ from Poh Joo. haha..ya..agreed. Budden still got the budget to worry abt...cos I am the one managing it. hopefully can find something similar at a cheaper price ba.

Hi apple.. yup it is..actually i am worried abt the cleaning at the sharp corners...and also the price..this sink alone costs $300+. I intend to try my luck at Poh Joo again..see if they have something similar at a cheaper rate..if not, most likely will settle for the 2nd choice. Btw, we've decided to give up on Ho Bee (sadly) cos Patrick have no time to meetup with us and we want to decide on the ID this week..they seem to be facing some internal problems with his carpentary factory..prob due to Ah Keong's departure...i dunno. But nevertheless, hope he can settle things soon and serve other customers well. We've decided to settle on our next best choice...and my ID is super nice to do up 3D drawings for me even before I sign anything...he have been really nice and accomodating with our requirements and of cos our budget without compromising on the quality. Many changes needed but the overall idea is about there...pls feel free to comment.

Hi Diva, Ya..I like the 1st tap more..it comes in a Matt version too which looks pretty sleek.

Hi Mace, So your house was done by Ho Bee? Care to share how much your overall reno cost?

Anyone here had their reno done by them? Any comments good or bad? Pls share.

i dunno if Patrick made a mistake cos he is too busy or wat. but he charge me 2.5k for whole house painting including doors n pipes. then $450 for painting my balcony wall cos mine is a EM unit and comes with 2 storey high balcony..anyway i'll check with him tml when i see him. my condition of walls is not in a terrible state considering we just painted 3 years back.

Other items I am lemming to buy... Like this sink...but kinda ex. $300+. I am also worried maintenance is difficult due to the sharp corners. Next best choice...from Poh Joo. Considering between these 2 taps. I prefer the 1st one cos its more versatile. Comes in matt finish too. I am looking for a simple design gate ..something like this. What is the average price range for metal gates now? I called up MetalWorld..even with the GSS discount, their gates are still around S$500. Is it possible to get one within S$300? its a new model...price wise is around the same range as yours.

nope apple..he quoted me 2.9k just for paintjob. this is ridiculously high...even for someone with good reputation in this forum..i dun think its worth this price. so sad to hear that no one has gotten huge discounts from him before..but nevertheless i'll just try my luck this one last time..if his quote still can't fit into my budget, no choice then i'll have to drop him. actually if u've done enough homework before signing on the dotted line..hidden costs can be avoided. After my first reno experience, more or less i know what are the works involved and possible unexpected costs...and i try to check with different contractors/id whenever i see something new on the quote given to me. that way, i'll know wat i am paying for and whether its necessary. if its ur 1st reno...perhaps can jus ask fellow forummers for their reno quotes and compare from there. ya..i agree. which is why i m very skeptical about very cheap quotes. i would prefer choosing one who gives me mid range pricing and i can have good rapport with.

hi, thanks for the suggestion. In fact me and hubby were at Jalan Besar today wanting to look for Bellari and we happen to pass by Poh Joo. I din even know they were there..thought they were at Balestier all along. Then I saw another Cuzino Hood which looks something like this. Cos I like something without buttons in front and this model have a touch panel..so no buttons!! The best part is this hood is only a fraction of the price from the Ariston one...and within my budget. Here's the pic: We also found a lot of other items such as kitchen sink, taps, wc. we want there at super good prices!! Even the shower tray which is not easily found elsewhere. I muz be too overly excited..keep rambling on and on... I got the bed from Furniture Club...got a package price for dining table, TV Console and this bed...so i dun hv the exact price for this item alone.. The bed is king size..but i dun hv the exact measurements with the sides..the one I ordered will come with designer custom made legs...hopefully it'll look great. Oh ya, the storage is behind the headrest area in case u like to know. HTHS.

Anyone got any idea where I can get chimmey hood of that design below $500?

Hihi..I would like to check with those who've engaged Ho Bee. I am in the final stage of selecting an ID/contractor..Patrick's 2nd revised quote is still very much on the high side. He charged at least $1K more for painting job compared to other quotes that I've got. So just wondering, do u guys have experience with slashing Patrick's price by a significant amount? Or can we request for a overall bulk discount from Patrick..eg. 5% off the final price? So far seems like Patrick will only offer a round off from his total sum...but just like to know if anyone here managed to slash his price by at least $2-3k without taking out items from your quote? I'll need him to slash his quote by at least $4k in order to fit into my budget..really headache...

ya..i know abt the 10 years warranty. But i din take the sofa cos its too big for my living room and my current set is still usable. The company have been around for a while so should be quite reliable..but how come u have to pay full? We were asked to just pay a 50% deposit. My delivery is going to be after my renovation which is end of the year or early 2009. If u're interested in their package..perhaps u can go back and try to nego. wif them ...maybe jus top up a little to get the other items etc? The bed and sofas on display looks pretty good..and they cover warranty..so dun hv to worry abt that. But if u're getting a design that they've not made before..better to be careful.

I am interested to get a chimmy hood of this design..but I want one with no buttons in front..anyone knows where to get one? Hopefully around S$500. I saw one from Ariston with a touch panel..so nice..but the price makes me faint...$1799 just for a hood. Hehe..thats wat i did the first time when i went to SPACE too...flood their store with my saliva..the items were too ex. to afford. That's why i waited for this sale period before deciding to get it. I tried looking around for cheap replicas too..but there were none in the market..not even in BKK. Plus the quality of replicas is not there...at least SPACE offers warranty for their products.

hihi Frosty, Haha..not going for designer look but just wan a fuss free maintenance home... those that like Kartell stuff should act fast...cos SPACE having a 30% sale on Kartell items cos of the opening of their new outlet. I got the news on tuesday and immediately rushed down on wed to place my order..keke... The usual price of the Victoria Ghost is $435...so u save about $100+ after discount. Great time to buy now... Jessie - their package for Sofa, Dining Set, TV Console and Coffee Table is S$4999. But I changed the coffee table and sofa to a bed frame...plus Gwen helped us to bargain for a good price from her boss...cos its a one time favor only from her so not convenient to disclose it here..but if u wan can go down to look for her...i am sure she can give u a good price too...if not, just their S$4999 package is quite attractive too. The good thing is, they also custom make furniture base on the design you wan...so u can get those branded designs from MOLECULE, AIR etc. at a much affordable price.

hihi Jessie, your 3D all very nice wor...did u draw them yourself? How did u do it? I tried once with GoogleSketch and i gave up after 5mins. did u check if the water outlet for ur unit is on? it shld be located outside your flat...

hihi..actuallyhaving lived there for so long..i dun really find it difficult to maintain. we jus mop n sweep the floor once a week...and the roller blinds dun even need much maintainance. only thing is the old ceramic tiles is starting to hv unremovable stains which is quite ugly. ya..the tv ccnsole is bought from Furniture Club at IMM. Bought from a nice lady Gwenn. As we went to the shop near closing time, she still attended to us patiently..initially we got a full package of a L-shape sofa, dining table, tv console and bed frame at a super good package price..but the next day, we changed our mind about the sofa cos that sofa is too big for our living room..and Gwenn was kind enough to allow us to take it out from the package and amended the price much lower. I din take photos of the dining table and bed frame..but will post it up once i hv the photos. thx for viewing!

Hi to everyone here!! After staying at our house for 3years, we finally saved enough moolah to give our house a decent makeover. It was earlier than expected...we had a 5 years plan initially..but thank God for His blessings, we are able to do so 2 years earlier. We did not do much reno when we first got the house as firstly we were too cash tied with the wedding preps and we need to move in after our AD. Therefore, many stuff were leftovers from the previous owner. As they were already about 5 years old when we took over, many things were already starting to deteriorate. So this time round, its more like a major revamp. And I am really looking forward to it. For a start, this is how my house currently look like. http://www.renotalk.com/forum/index.php?au...blogid=131& We plan to start the reno around Sep/ Oct this year...so that gives us plenty of time to hunt for a ID and thinking through the design process etc. But being the overly excited me, we've already shortlisted 2 ID and bought most of the furnitures needed. I still wanna maintain the white modern minimalistic look..so we took some time to research and hunt for the ideal furnitures. And finally my hubby gave the nod to purchase them...so these are what we've bought so far: Dining Table - I got mine in clear glass so that the room looks more spacious. Bed with Storage Box - This will be in black to match the monotone look of the house. TV Console Kartell Ghost Chairs Got the black glossy one for my dresser. Got the crystal ones for our dining table.

From the comments here seems like Patrick really has a lot of happy customers. After my first reno experience, I am really looking for a contractor/ID who is easy to talk to and reliable...I metup with Home Concept for a site visit at my place..but the revised quote is 8K more than the initial quote..hopefully Patrick's one would be reducing costs instead of increasing after his site visit. So far do you gals have any comments on his work? I read here that his tilers are good..but electrician not so...thinking if i shld jus engage him to do the tiling work and engage someone else for electrical etc.

U can try Concept Living. They have some pictures on their website and there are a couple of nice minimalistic house. I've gotten quote from them for my upcoming reno..price is on the high side but I would say they give pretty good ideas on creating a non-HDB like house.

I have some timber decking (chengai wood) and a whole bulk of artificial plants and leaves for sale complete with pebbles. And also a stone decorative pavilion for sale. You can create a cozy and zero maintenance needed mini garden. Pls PM me with your email if you're interested and I can send u the pics. Thks!

I have the same feeling as you. Just received their quote yesterday and I was so excited to open it. But got a shock after I see the total amount at the end. Certain things were cheaper but certain things were more ex compared to an ID. Anyway I still decide to give Patrick a chance after seeing all these good reviews about him..hv made appt for him to come to my house to take a look next mon...hopefully can ask for a fat discount from him. Hehe..

I am interested to engage a contractor like Ho Bee to do my house reno since I already know what I need to do. Anyone here who has used Ho Bee for your house...can you tell me how much cost savings Ho Bee offers as compared to a ID? (can be any ID..not those big names company). Just wanna know if its really good value for money. Thanks!

Hello to all the EM owners here...haven't been logging in for quite a long while. I am back again cos I'll be doing the phase 2 reno for my EM unit. Hope to have some comments and advice from you guys as I embark on the renovation journey again. Please feel free to visit my RenoBlog - my WHITE house for updates! Thanks and look forward to seeing your beautiful EMs photos soon too!

I did my honeymoon with Contiki end 2006...its a winter tour. As Contiki is more popular in places like Auzzie, so expect to see many australians on board...and strangely enough most are single travellers. I wouldn't suggest this tour for honeymooners if u wan to take things easy cos this tour is indeed quite rush with many places just touch n go...we din have enough time to really take in the sights and sounds.. Most of the time was spent travelling on the coach across continents...and it is done in the day..so imagine precious day time wasted on the bus...and some places, we arrived late at nite where all the shops are already closed. IMO, bus travel shld b done at nite where we can sleep on the coach and use the day time for sight-seeing. But the good thing abt them is...they do provide enough F&E time for us...more than other tour companies i feel...with good introduction maps of places of interests and sometimes they even provide us with travel pass for trains or bus rides. But u have to be really brave and good in directions to do that...there was one occasion that we were asked to go back to the hotel by ourselves in rome... If you're realli keen in touring Europe...F&E is still the best way to go.

oic...hehe...save the bkk trip for after ur wedding ba...honeymoon muz go somewhere romantic n cold (preferably). Korea is a good choice~ if u book early, it might b cheaper...maybe can tell ur hubby that.