For taobao purchases - there are really a substantial saving to be had. Don't poo poo made in China stuff because vast majority of the stuff we buy are made in China

In fact I have seen a lot of furniture at retails stores here which are no doubt from the same suppliers/manufacturers in China who are listed on taobao

Just that it's about 2 to 3 the prices excluding shipping

On my to-buy list from taobao if the quality of this shipment is good!

1. Posters/art for decor

2. Small furniture like bedside table, coffee table and bench

3. Rug and carpets

4. Edison light bulbs

May I know which forwarder did u use to ship these purchases from Taobao?

Agree with u greg.. I have done my research on Evorich's HERF and my other half and I really like it too.. Initially we wanted to install for our bedrms only but now decided to install in living rm as well!

Hi Redder, which design did u choose?

I think having the same design tile in the living/dining/kitchen area will be very nice cos it will appear like one big continuous space. I do notice some people prefer to

"section" off the various spaces i.e. living room and kitchen have different tiles. I think that the transition can be quite visually "disruptive".

May I know which forwarder did u use to ship these purchases from Taobao?

Hi MonsterBeng - I use Peeka. I chose them because this is my first time doing bulky purchases on taobao and quite a few renotalkers have posted good experience

with them. Pricing wise they are not the cheapest though. However, the advantage is that for shipping via sea the first 1 cubic metre is a fixed rate of $250 and the

price is calculated on a pro-rated basis after that.

Another option is Amcon Express. Their rate is 550 RMB per cubic metre - therefore shipping is obviously cheaper than peeka. Because of their pricing, you have to

plan the volume more carefully. Because the price for 1.5 cubic metres is 2 cubic metres. Nonetheless, Amcon Express also has good reviews by renotalkers.

However I opted for Peeka because this is my first bulky purchase on taobao. Amcon Express service does not seem very customer oriented because this is not

their primary business. They send you an excel spreadsheet to enter the items you wish to purchase whereas Peeka has an online platform.

Edited August 24, 201313 yr by greglhc

I'm really looking forward to unboxing my taobao purchases next week. Hopefully delivered on Monday.

Some of my purchases were a bit more expensive as compared to other sellers on taobao

But I wanted to only purchase from 1 crown or 4-5 diamond sellers or tmall sellers

Tmall sellers are generally more trustworthy as they represent commercial shops

Surfing the various sellers on taobao is quite time intensive as there is really a lot of rubbish out there

For industrial type furniture, the key word is "loft", so put 家具 or 灯 behind it to get the respective hits for furniture and lighting

I usually sort by "信用" to get the crown sellers

I also bought track lights from taobao - the variety is huge. Key word is 轨道灯

Anyway here my my taobao purchase links to share. Some of them I didn't buy in the end because it was going to take too long to ship to the China shipping centre.

Another reason to use Peeka because they will ask you whether you want to wait or cancel the order at no cost.

Kitchen

1. Dornbracht kitchen mixer: 580

2. Selena sink: 560

Toilet

1. Kohler sink: 210

2. HSK Rainshower: 1300

3. Sternberg floor drain: 169

4. Dornbracht sink mixer: 168

Lighting

1. RH loft grand cage sconce: 220

2. Assortment of Edison light bulbs: 15-60

3. Industrial pipe wall light: 630

4. Industrial octopus chandelier: 550

5. Pendant lamp dining area: 380

6. Bedroom centre lamp: 205

7. Kitchen pendant lamps: 118

8. Track lights (LED) 7W: 62

9. Tracks for track lights 1.5m: 25

10. LED bulbs shop E14 and E27

Furniture

1. Tolix chairs: 300

Edited August 24, 201313 yr by greglhc

i m gg to use herf too... there aren't no wood presence so shldn't hv to worry abt termites attack ...

thanks for sharing the links greg! Lovely!

Have a great Sunday!

hi ProjectH

termites do not just attack laminate flooring. what do you plan to do to ensure that all your carpentry work and wood products you owned are terminate proof ? I have been cautioned by a few friends about buying wood products from indonesia. I guess it applies to wood products from china and any other countries as well..

Edited August 25, 201313 yr by sarah833

Bedframe purchased this morning. very excited about it

Browsed it last night and went to see today. Was quite perfect in real life!

Like that it appears to be floating

Hey, mind if I ask you where you found that bedframe? This is pretty much exactly what my wife and I are looking for for our place!

Hey Chrizz - this is called the burger bed frame and it's from ethnicraft. They have some really nicely made teak and oak furniture. Go check them out!

I'm really looking forward to unboxing my taobao purchases next week. Hopefully delivered on Monday.

Some of my purchases were a bit more expensive as compared to other sellers on taobao

But I wanted to only purchase from 1 crown or 4-5 diamond sellers or tmall sellers

Tmall sellers are generally more trustworthy as they represent commercial shops

Surfing the various sellers on taobao is quite time intensive as there is really a lot of rubbish out there

For industrial type furniture, the key word is "loft", so put 家具 or 灯 behind it to get the respective hits for furniture and lighting

I usually sort by "信用" to get the crown sellers

I also bought track lights from taobao - the variety is huge. Key word is 轨道灯

Anyway here my my taobao purchase links to share. Some of them I didn't buy in the end because it was going to take too long to ship to the China shipping centre.

Another reason to use Peeka because they will ask you whether you want to wait or cancel the order at no cost.

Kitchen

1. Dornbracht kitchen mixer: 580

2. Selena sink: 560

Toilet

1. Kohler sink: 210

2. HSK Rainshower: 1300

3. Sternberg floor drain: 169

4. Dornbracht sink mixer: 168

Lighting

1. RH loft grand cage sconce: 220

2. Assortment of Edison light bulbs: 15-60

3. Industrial pipe wall light: 630

4. Industrial octopus chandelier: 550

5. Pendant lamp dining area: 380

6. Bedroom centre lamp: 205

7. Kitchen pendant lamps: 118

8. Track lights (LED) 7W: 62

9. Tracks for track lights 1.5m: 25

10. LED bulbs shop E14 and E27

Furniture

1. Tolix chairs: 300

OMG... greg, looking thru the items that you purchased, that's quite a number of them. How much did u pay for the shipment via Peeka in total?

hey greg,

saw this at comfort design and some ideas u might wanna take a look at for your industrial concept place. its storage mainly.

storage1

storage 4

these are factory made. i would think if you can find something similar from sugei road can probly do a small restoration project if you are into it!

cheers

Incl agent fees, GST, shipping - about S$400. I just above 1 cubic metre worth of stuff. Generally I estimate the additional fees incl shipping, GST, agent handling fees - it's about 25-30% above the taobao price. So when you shop and see the price, add about that percentage to get the true cost of the item.

Honestly the savings I think the savings is quite substantial. For instance the stainless steel sink is about S$150 total cost. It's the China brand of the same Kraus sink that a lot of people bought on amazon. I think they paid closer to US$300.

Even the lamps. I saw the same pendant dining room lamp for $700 bucks here! And I paid about $90

OMG... greg, looking thru the items that you purchased, that's quite a number of them. How much did u pay for the shipment via Peeka in total?

hey thanks oldskool! it looks quite cool. I've seen it on taobao quite a few times. Tempted to get as a bedside table heh

Did you ask the price at Comfort?

hey greg,

saw this at comfort design and some ideas u might wanna take a look at for your industrial concept place. its storage mainly.

storage1

storage 4

these are factory made. i would think if you can find something similar from sugei road can probly do a small restoration project if you are into it!

cheers

Hey Chrizz - this is called the burger bed frame and it's from ethnicraft. They have some really nicely made teak and oak furniture. Go check them out!

Thanks Greglhc!

Hey greg, we have not decided on the design/colour yet. But will be using same design for living, dining, dry kitchen. Most likely one of the lighter colours. Prefer tiles in wet kitchen as we do heavy cooking. Rooms will be of a darker colour.

Im envious of your Taobao buys! If only they have a website in Eng!

Hey greg, we have not decided on the design/colour yet. But will be using same design for living, dining, dry kitchen. Most likely one of the lighter colours. Prefer tiles in wet kitchen as we do heavy cooking. Rooms will be of a darker colour.

Im envious of your Taobao buys! If only they have a website in Eng!

Hi Redder,

Vanessa uses google chrome to shop on Taobao in English!

.

Edited August 26, 201313 yr by sarah833