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1 ceiling light is definitely enough for whole room. however, your concern for the child is valid as the ceiling light will cast a shadow if it is a light source behind them. having said that, downlight isn't the solution to your problem. a proper study lamp is still the best source of light for your intended purposes. not sure how old you are, but lamps in the older days (circa 1980s) can't be compared to the lights of today as technology has changed quite a fair bit. the discomfort you felt probably came from the glare of the lamps. a proper study lamp isn't glaring, is able to direct light at the right places and is better than a downlight or ceiling light in performing its role as a study lamp. if you are willing to spend a bit more, you can consider the koncept lamp z bar. or this year's reddot design award winner, the studylite:

chim? ok lah. you can read up on colour theory if you are keen as the ideals are well established and is design_module101 for all designer and art students. the colours' relationship are based on their respective position on the colour wheel. if i have false ceiling and cove light, i will not use 2 colours for the ceiling, especially if the room concern is a small one. i want to create an impression that the ceiling is 'flushed', hence larger than it really is. using the same colour for both ceilings will help to do that. however, if you really insist on 2 colours, the higher' ceiling should have a lighter colour than the 'lower' one. then, the 'higher' ceiling will give the impression of raising further away from you (think of a dome or skylight, where the dome/skylight always feels lighter due to space and light). with regard to the wall colours in the mbr, yes, that's what i mean. there's no proper order involved, any solution is fine - if you know what you are doing. personally, i will go by this order: 1. identify the item i want to highlight or feature (could be the bed, the laminate or even the wall). in your case, you may have choosen the laminate. 2. choose the colours that go well with the highlight or feature (eg. laminate). identify the dominant colour of the feature and work out the complementary colours. 3. using the complementary colours as the guide, you can pick the wall colours, bed frame, colours, table lamps colours, etc easily.

yah, i notice the names when i read your blog too in basic colour theory, warm colours, ie. red, orange, yellow, are advancing colours. in painting/design, they are seen as the more 'active' elements (advancing towards you). when used in interior design, these colours arouse and stimulate the viewer (hence, the comment about keeping you awake). they 'advanced', literally, encroaching on your space, thus making a small room smaller (but great when used in a big room, as they can give a cosy feel). with regard to ceiling, white is the safest colour to go. otherwise, go with pale variants of receding colours, ie. blue, green. being the direct opposite of the above, receding colours (cool colours) move away from you, making your roof seems taller (hence, reducing the effect of the roof crashing down on you or 'the weight on your shoulders' feeling). for a room with 4 walls, you can pick 1 wall as the accent wall (usually the wall behind your headboard or the one with a focal point). you can either pick a darker shade of the colours on the 3 walls, or reflect a colour in the room (perhaps the green of the vase for eg.), or pick a complementary colour of the dominant colour in the room. this should also solve the problem of brown being too dark. you can use it as the accent, with lighter shades to brighten up the room. btw, the colour you pick for the room really depends on the choice of your furniture/design. the complementary colour for orange is actually blue. they will go well with each other. the analogous colours for orange are red and yellow. being adjacent colours, they tend to blend into one another. good if you prefer subtlety and not the in-your-face kind of look.

if you find the room small, orange will make it worst as it is an advancing colour. it is also a colour that will most certainly keep you awake.

drop you an email. need alan's number b4 i pop over.

minimalist seek to thrive on simplicity in both content and form. there should be no (or minimal) signs of personal expressivity (which is why minimalism appears in the first place: a reaction against abstract expressionism). the objective of minimalism is to allow the work to stand out without the distractions of all the bells and whistles. hence, my understanding of minimalism isn't about hiding ornaments and keeping things out of sight. a true minimalist house doesn't need concealed cabinets or secret shelvings (because there isn't any). conceptually, the owner should embrace the concept rather than trying to mimic it. building hidden doors to conceal it would have made it look like a minimalistic design, but, in it's essence, it is not. if the owner can't come to terms with the design or embrace it fully, at the end of the day, we are still trying to fit a round peg in a square hole. having said that, we all know that it's difficult (or close to impossible) to do that nevertheless, if the owner can keep the fundamentals to mind, the house won't look too disjointed. i believe this house is literally minimal and spartan, but not conceptually minimalist. however, we can make use of the basic elements if the owners choose to exploit it. it definitely needs a bit of 'dressing up' (by reducing clutter and disposing of items that doesn't fit the concept). the expedit, consisting of only verticals and horizontals is, from a design perspective, a perfect minimalist work of art. in order for it to remain true to it's minimalist spirit, it can't be loaded fully. if it's for display, the owner can consider 1 shelf for 1 item only. an example (minus the branches). perhaps rhema83 can retake the photos with the following changes and see how it turns out: 1. for the dining table: remove all the items on the table, leaving only the macbook on it. black/white photos or mirrors on the walls may improve the overall composition. 2. for the expedit, remove the soft toys (upper most rack and within the shelvings). rearrange the files/books based on height, remove the trays/'basket' and use only files and bookends. the computer and computer table is, unfortunately, out of place and doesn't fit in the design. 3. for the bedroom, since there isn't a comforter/blanket, consider changing the bedsheet to one solid colour and the pillow cases to another. you need to create a focal point (which there isn't now). the wall behind the headboard is a good place to start - a different colour with large/oversize picture/painting or some decals. clear the dressing table, leaving only the essential (i'll leave the perfume bottle and less than 4 other glass bottles without those 'loud' design/logo). set the bedside table next to the bed (as in bed side), and hide/clear the hair dryer. put a bedside lamp on it. and definitely hide the bin from view.

minimalism follows a set of prescribed ethos, of which, the most famous 3 words should be: "less is more". minimalism is a celebration of bare forms and extreme simplicity; a reduction to basic shapes and defined lines (not necessary straight ones). it makes sure everything serves a functional need (or at least has one), while serving an interesting (or boring, depending on the side of the fence you are sitting on) visual purpose. the original post renovations photos do have elements of a minimalist design: the dining table and tubular chairs; the tv bench, coffee table and sofa; and the ikea expedit (a designers' favourite). the picture of the living room could have been a good example (albeit with a different choice of curtain). pro photo shoots are staged events, the photographer can choose to remove elements that aren't fitting with the theme. unfortunately, we don't often do that when we snap around the house. besides, it is not easy to live out of a minimal home if we are not focused or used to keeping 'in character'. imho, the elements of the basic design are there, just that the owner may have found it hard to live with (or understand the design principles of) the theme. that's evident from the choice of the bedsheets, sauces on the kitchen counter top, soft toys and ornaments around the house. ultimately, as long as the owner is happy in his own abode, doesn't matter it's a minimalist house or not

if you are not a ceiling fan kind of guy, this would be a great fan choice for the minimalist look. yes, it's a fan without the blade.

quite a number of fellow treelodgers if anyone is into facebook, check out the treelodge group for some photos and a video showing a sneek peek.

i'm keen in the Brandt FC842XS1 can add me in the group buy? drop you a pm.

both shops have modern mid-century reproductions (including eames and barcelona). you can pop by their showroom/warehouse to take a look when you are here. both shops are close to each other.

the original one won't (at least not as easily). the reproduction one will. it's pretty to look at, but it's not meant to be rocked. if you have small kids, must bear that in mind.

original from fritz hansen, a couple of thousands. reproduction, a couple of hundreds.

i don't know whether talis e2 is made in china or germany, nor do i find it a concern, given the proliferation of items being made in china these days (e.g. iphone, ipad). the important thing is, as long as it has hansgrohe quality (and quality control) and not cheap knock-offs, i'm happy with the purchase fyi, the items are shipped in direct from germany.

if i offer you the same set, i.e. hansgrohe raindance e120 air 3jet (#28507000), talis e2 single lever bath mixer (#31642000) and talis e2 single lever basin mixer w/o waste set (31614000), brand new for $500, would you be keen? drop me a message if you are.

off-topic: applecare (for the laptop/desktop) is a must even though it seem ridiculously expensive (without discounts). i have always utilize it to the max for my ibook and imac. hopefully, it won't be needed on my macbook pro (although i seriously doubt it). the only occasions where it didn't pay off were for the ipods.

lush carries several lookalike at reasonable prices. mod living and space carries better quality stuff at higher prices.

not entirely the real baroque stuff but you can find baroque inspired knock-offs at chinatown, little india and arab street.

unfortunately, bras basah complex offers you the best selection and prices for art supplies are somewhat 'fixed'. while art friend probably offers the widest selection, you can always compare prices among the numerous shops in bras basah. alternatively, you can cross the road and check out straits commercial. i see very difference in their prices also. the cheapest alternative will be to buy the canvas and stretch it yourself.

it means u find 1 designer for each room. then u find the contractor to fix up each room separately. theme: the central idea of a work. most people wants a unifying theme so that "it won't look as if it belongs to different occupants" but don't be too caught up with design buzzwords like country style, modern style, resort style, etc. look beyond these terms, think out of the box. it is difficult to accommodate everyone's taste and it is in everyone's interest to find a common denominator. there are many ways (fortunately) to create a theme. 1. general - contemporary, modern, pop, art nouveau, art deco, baroque, classical, etc 2. locale - thai, balinese, french, indochina, chinese, mughal, middle eastern, american south, etc 3. colours - warm, cool, neutral, pastels, rainbow, etc 4. shapes - regular, irregular, organic, etc etc etc etc in your case, you may want to change your brief to your ids, eg. "i want a house with warm colour walls". then, you varied the questions, eg. "can you make this room a little more resort-like", "how can this bed be made more country-like", etc. ultimately, you may have a house that's unified by a design element but fulfill the occupants wish to have it look more resort-like, country-like, contemporary. p/s: i love home deco survivor. but it is, at its core, a made-for-tv entertainment programme. it's great to watch for ideas generation but keep in mind that the hosts only need to fix up 1 room (living/dining room) and there isn't a dire need for them to link up the design considerations of the kitchen and bedrooms to the living/dining room.

i think their comments echo the comments here. if you still want the rojak theme, you may want to consider diy or be the main contractor and sub- each room/area out ala carte style.

deathcoth already provided the answer: jatuchak / chatuchak. everything imaginable under the sun you can think of. pets, if you need them too. get there early to avoid the crowd and sweltering heat.

sell the pc buy a mac seriously...

check "system preferences -> network preferences -> location and network" is set up properly.