3Dyms

Congrats & welcome to the EM Club. I'm at the west side too and my Reno is nearing completion (finally). If you looking at Turbo, I remember seeing some promo packages when I got my sanitary stuffs from Adamas at TradeHub 21. I'm using Teka hob & hood and their pricing is quite reasonable. Another option you may wanna hv a look at. Have fun with your Reno journey and look forward to updates especially more pics.

Hi Mrs Macuser77,Wow! Your non LED lights can last so long. My old PLC downlights needed changing now and then. At one stage, he was changing like 2-3 bulbs consistently for a couple of weeks till we ran out of spares. Yes... our old place had downlights everywhere (even the kitchen & bathrooms). For my new place, downlights are now in the living dining areas and rooms only. Even then, we have a grand total of 38 downlights. That's also a main reason why we went for LED this time. He wants to avoid changing bulbs for as long as possible.

That will be fantastic!! My hubs hates changing light bulbs. But then, I have 3 gals.... Hahah. Get their future bf's to help out. Lol. I'm sure LED will be advancing a lot more, so can take your time. Who knows, maybe in a year's time, my LED lights will be considered 'old fashion'.

Hi Zihui, Congrats & welcome again to the EM club! Looking forward to updates on your Reno progress. Get as much quotes as you can... And I agree with Mrmerry. Discuss with your hubs on the more important parts - Those that are 'must-do' now. Usually I find the major costs of Reno are hacking, electrical and built-in carpentry. Good luck and do post questions here if you not sure. Many reno talkers give great advise.

Actually, my LED downlights are thru my contractor's lobang. A downside to this is, no safety mark. Maybe you check and see if your ID got any lobangs or not? Else, you can ask a quote from Bro Eric (his thread is: http://www.renotalk.com/forum/topic/42520-ceiling-fans-downlightsetc-trusted-supplier-since-2011/). His are safety mark lights.

No worries... All discussions welcomed. I admit I went thru the whole process of "LED or normal.... LED or normal".P/s: love your house Reno. Always a joy to read about Reno jobs done by the famous Mr K. How I wished I had known about him earlier, then perhaps would hv asked him to do my home Reno.

Hi macuser77, Yah. What you mention is true too. But I'm a SHM with 3 kiddos at home, so guess our usage will be higher then the usual household with 2 working adults & kids off in childcare the whole day. Plus, since i got my LED downlights at a good price, I reckon it's a good 'risk' to take. Praying hard that all my lights will work well and no need to change anything for at least 5-yrs. *cross fingers cross toes*

Hi Maxngck, We finally chose LED downlights cos it's energy saving and my hub does not want to keep changing bulbs. We know that some people have issues with their drivers so the 1-yr warranty (with 1-to-1 exchange) makes a difference. In fact, all the lightings in my new place are LED, including a chandelier at the stairs. I know that the initial start up costs is higher. But considering that I'm a stay home mom with 3 kids, we reckon that our light usage will be high. So it only makes sense for us to hop on the LED boat. Very happy with our choice. For your case, I'd recommend going for LED downlights that are reputable and have safety mark - like the Philips brand or the ones from Bro Eric. Also check on the warranty & exchange period. This way you can be assured on your recourse in the event your lights are spoilt. Otherwise, how about going for normal downlights but using LED bulbs without the driver? This way, if the LED bulbs don't work out, you can switch back to normal energy saving bulbs. HTH's.

Hi Maxngck, Yes. The downlights are 6" 12w warm white and they are very bright. Actually my contractor is the one with the lobang and it costs me about $34/pc. If we'd had gotten the LED lights from shops in Balestier, they would hv costs about $50-$90/pc. A downside of these lights is I don't think they hv safety mark cert. Maybe you wanna contact Bro Eric at this link: http://www.renotalk.com/forum/topic/42520-ceiling-fans-downlightsetc/ Initially I wanted the lights from Bro Eric as his lights have safety mark. But my contractor was very persistent, so I relented and got from him instead. Good luck in your search.

Hi maxngck, Thanks. Yup. All my downlights are LED. After many sleepless nights researching & discussions, hub & me finally caved in & got LED lights, especially since we were able to secure a good price with 1-yr warranty (1-to-1exchange if faulty).

Hi Shabbychic, Np. have fun shopping around. There's a few other shops that does French style furnishings too. But my mags are in boxes now. Maybe after I've moved, I'll try to search the addresses for you. Or... You can buy Home & Deco mag. There's a shop in kallang that usually does ads in it. Will try to post more full pics once I've settled in. Meanwhile, can only some small updates.

Congrats! Your home looks so beautifully done. Super envious of your marble flooring and your Silestone quartz top. I had my quartz installed by Caesarstone but no logo like yours. The company will only give me the warranty. For your sofa, I know Home Fix sells some sort of leather kit. Maybe can use those to help with the damage? Have fun with your other upcoming parties.

Yippee! Over the weekend, Bro Eric came over to install our white Fanco ceiling fans. Initially, we had chosen the 54" blades. But due to it being out of stock, Bro Eric suggested that we take the 60" fans for both my living & dining areas instead as my L-Box is big enough. Superb recommendation! The extra 3" does make a difference. A wonderful job as usual. Both hub & me are very pleased with them. See pics below:

Hi Shabbychic, Firstly, Congrats on getting your keys! You must be so excited! Renovations are lots of fun, but it can also cause you to pull a few hairs My apologies for the late reply. Have not had the time to update as there's been some hiccups (again), but thank goodness we are right on schedule with move-in date set for the coming Saturday (27/July). Yippee! Since you won't be able to do a victorian kitchen, perhaps you can consider getting built-in cabinetry (for bedrooms & common areas), some wall trimmings and cornices to try tie in the look. Ecolinks has a great collection of furnishings suitable for this style. Usually custom made carpentry will costs more then off the shelf pieces. I've PM you the contact details for my carpenter ID. No harm asking for a quote. Another shop you may wanna have a look is Manhattan Collection. I've actually bought my TV console & Dining set from them. HTH's.

I got my Fanco fans from Bro Eric and they all lasted me for more then 1-yr and never had any issues with the fans. Even I have sold off my place, the new owner still using those same fans. Can share what happened with your fan? Cindy, I believe for all fans, regardless of the brands, the most important thing is the installer. If the installer does not know his stuff and anyhow do it, it's a matter of time before the fan spoils. I've gotten some fans from Bro Eric before. His link is here - http://www.renotalk.com/forum/topic/42520-ceiling-fans-downlightsetc/page-23#entry810244Btw, I've got no links to Bro Eric. Just a very happy customer. In fact, I've just gotten him to install 2 ceiling fans for my new EM as I was very happy with the installation for my old place. I'll be updating my t-blog soon. You can see the pics there.

Thanks for reading my simple t-blog and for your kind compliments. Paiseh already lah.Heheh... Hope you r able to convince your hub. Good luck. *thumbs up* For the balcony, aahhh... guess your hub wants to make it into an nice alfresco, chill-out zone? That will be a great place for entertaining friends & guests. Too bad, my living area is not big enough, so need to extend out to balcony area.

Hi Potatoes, Thanks. The workmanship is very good especially the "shou kou". I've had a few sub-cons come by recently and they all commented that the carpentry work is really good too. Costs wise, if I compare to normal laminate carpentry, this does costs more. But in terms of quality and attention to detail, then I'd say the costs is actually value for $$. So far no regrets. I've had great fun working with this bunch of carpenters too. For 3 days, I've had about 5-6 of them working full time to get everything up. But they were not slack. They measured, cut and fitted everything to size nicely. Painstaking work, but friendly & cheerful throughout. *thumbs-up*

Hahah... Been down that road. At first, my hub did not appreciate this classical theme. So we did the whole contemporary, zen style with dark woods for my 1st home. The 2nd time around, we tried going the modern resort style, but after awhile, it became more "chap pa lang". Now, I told him its my turn. I want something totally different and I want classic. Thank goodness he slowly likes this theme now. Lol.

Thanks. Yah.... Some guys don't like this style. That's why many couples end up going for Scandinavian cos its not so feminine yet, has the European touch.Actually I'm trying to 'modernize' it and not make it too feminine, but... not having much luck. Lets see once my furnishings and everything else is up. Heheh.

I dunno about gorgeous.... But yes, I'm next to West Mall. Don't worry about yours being 5A maisonette. The floor plans looks good. I love that your dining area is kinda 'away' from the main entrance. Not like mine, if people look into my front door, can see my dining table. And your living room is BIG. Especially if you extend it out to the balcony. Swee leh. Look forward to your t-blog.

Congrats & welcome to the EM club. I'm into the 5th week of my Reno journey for my EM @ Bt Batok. So we're not too far from each other. Have you set up your T-blog yet? Look forward to your updates.

Thank you... Thank you for your kind compliments. Not easy to find people with similar taste in home decor. The Grohe rainshower is from Adamas @ Tradehub 21. If you keen, you can go there and look for Serene. For the kitchen cabinets, usually the cornice part is included together with the cabinets. Cos the Carpenter needs to "shou-kou" aka seal up the gaps nicely. But if you referring to the curve pelmets, then that is additional costing. HTH's.

hahahah..... Maybe with time, he will slowly grow to love this style also? My hubby initially also don't like such classical country style. So whenever we go out, I will show him things in classical style (like Raffles Hotel), Pauls (at Takashimaya), etc. Slowly, he start to like. And like I said earlier... we also old lah. Hit the big 4-0 already. So our taste in things have really changed too. I also love vintage stuffs... like old telephones, station clocks, shabby chic items, Laura Ashley stuffs, etc. Somehow, they have that 'special' touch. Dunno how to describe... but the feeling is soo....

Thanks Makan. Thankfully I have 3 gals. So no issues with them. For my hubs, fortunately he also likes such classical designs. He feels this style reminds him of old-world charm, rustic, elegant, and "atas". Lol. Some more, this is house #3 liaoz.... excluding the many others we lived in during our 5-yrs in Melbourne. He also did not want to go down the route of the usual contemporary style or resort theme, as its a case of "Been there, Done that". Now we also getting old, so a timeless elegant style that has withstood centuries will be fitting. Lol.

Con't More picture updates..... so excited to see everything coming up. Close up of the kitchen cabinets and the extension into the service balcony. Can you spot my corner hob and hood? Hhhmmm... now need to find a decorative item to hang on the canopy top. Else it's abit too plain now. Any ideas anyone? I was thinking of those wooden letterings that says "Kitchen" or "Love"? This is the study room cum home office on Level 1. In case you are wondering... yes, I have 2 study rooms. 1 is a study cum home office for the adults. And the 2nd study cum entertainment area is for my 3 gals. I prefer segregated areas. Firstly, we all have tons of stuffs. Secondly, I super dislike people messing around with my stationery, files and documents. So... now, the kids have their own areas. And the adults have our own. Must mark our own territory. Lol.