Jump to content
Find Professionals    Deals    Get Quotations   Portfolios

Recommended Posts

The kitchen had an almost major overhaul. Finally got rid of the pink wall tiles that I hated. Hahahah....

Have both top and bottom kitchen cabinets really greatly increases my storage. At last, I can finally walk around in my storeroom without bumping into stuff.

The formica fo the bottom cabinet was specially chosen to match my beloved doors.

large.Bef_After_Kitchen.GIF.440219f84e8a

Edited by steffie
 

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
Looking for good contractors? Click here for your request

Removed my walk-in wardrobe and changed my bed from a king to queen. Was really amazed at how much more walking space I had in my bedroom. I can even put a console at the foot of my bed so that I can now comfortably work on my laptop in my room. Plus I no longer need to crab walk… hahaha….

large.Bef_After_MBR.GIF.9c4a0a4ec5e86d1d

Edited by steffie
 

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

To give my son a little more privacy, I moved his bedroom to the inner room. Created a cozy corner with the low cabinet with cushion so that his friends can have a place to hang out when they come over.

large.Bef_After_BR2.GIF.558085bbd17d93c1

Edited by steffie
 

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

What was my son's bedroom is now the study room. A good area to store all his toys and gadgets so that his bedroom is less cluttered. Another place for my son and his friends to hang out!

large.Bef_After_Study.GIF.f47ff70a8d2f51

Edited by steffie
 

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

The MBR and common bathroom are almost identical so I only took one set of photos.

Replaced the shower screen with a shower curtain as it felt a little claustrophobic previously, sitting on the toilet bowl and flanked by the sink and shower screen. I think it is a good choice as it was quite a challenge keeping the shower screen free of water mark and soap scum.

large.Bef_After_Bathroom.GIF.b09cb5cd2ee

Edited by steffie
 

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Most of my renovation went well. But as with any renovations, there were hiccups.

 

I had originally wanted to cement screed my kitchen wall so as to match the bathroom door. However, after the plumber and electrician were done and they patched up the walls, the walls had these wet, patchy marks that didn't seem to dry. The walls looks very messy. In the end, I reluctantly agreed to let Ronald paint over the walls with white weather bond paint. Admittedly, I was a little disappointed but I must say it did make the kitchen look brighter.

large.585731d59260a_Bef_After_KitchenWal

Edited by steffie
 

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Ronald did warn me that scratches on black solid surface tops would be obvious so I was prepared kind of for it. I wasn’t prepared though that even bottoms of porcelain bowls and cups can also cause scratches. Within 2 weeks of installation, my solid surface top was full of scratches and water marks (because we did wipe dry immediately).

Ronald kindly arranged for the solid surface guys to come again to re-polish the surface. The guy shared that using Pledge would help to maintain the shine. All you need to do is spray it on the top, leave it for 10 mins and then wipe dry with a dry cloth. It has to be done weekly for those of us who don’t cook often and possibly about fortnightly to 1 monthly if you do.

large.585731f7588df_SolidSurface.GIF.e7b

Edited by steffie
 

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

My last post so I will end with some of the lessons that I had learnt from this renovation experience:

  1. Ensure that your contractor provide you with a schedule before commencement and keep a close eye on it.
  2. Be around during installation of doors, especially if you are changing the direction of your main door. Luckily I was around when the door guys came. If not, they would have installed the door according to what it was previously. 
  3. Be around when aircon guys are doing the piping so that you can tell them how you want the piping laid. Also have your contractor around as well to make sure that they don't try to "smoke" you. Ronald was a real lifesaver.
  4. Check often when your contractor are doing the foundation work so that errors can be rectified. After the cement’s dried, it may be too troublesome to correct mistakes.
  5. Be around when electrician doing wiring so that you can let them know exactly where you want to have the lighting or electrical points.
  6. Choose the contractor/ID carefully. The most expensive may not always be the best. Doing some research on his/her track record is very important.  Contact previous owners for their experience working with him/her.
  7. If you want to build new walls or do cement screeding, get contractors that have experience doing it.
  8. I absolutely loved shopping on Taobao. But you need to ensure that you take time to read the reviews. Even with me spending hours on end reading up on the reviews, there were still furniture that didn't quite make the mark. And if you are fussy, don't get wooden furniture as they would most likely be scratched by the time they arrive.

Just like how I had benefited from the many forummers who had shared their renovation experience, I hope that what I have shared would be useful to other homeowners looking to renovate their place.

 

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Hey steffie!

recommend you a Magic Countertop spray (red bottle) and the 3M stainless steel spray for your solid top countertop. My solid top is quite well-maintained, and the 3M one is recommended by my solid top contractor and it does clean and seal the counter top very well. :) 

 

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
On ‎9‎/‎12‎/‎2016 at 11:18 PM, bykaraanne said:

Hey steffie!

recommend you a Magic Countertop spray (red bottle) and the 3M stainless steel spray for your solid top countertop. My solid top is quite well-maintained, and the 3M one is recommended by my solid top contractor and it does clean and seal the counter top very well. :) 

Thanks for the recommendation. Can most certainly do with a good cleaner and seal. Quite a bother to maintain. :unsure:

Have you have asked them to return to polish it?

 

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
4 hours ago, steffie said:

Thanks for the recommendation. Can most certainly do with a good cleaner and seal. Quite a bother to maintain. :unsure:

Have you have asked them to return to polish it?

Nope! Mine is light colored though, so probably isn't as obvious as yours, but the 3M works. :) 

what i do is I use the 3M magic sponge (melamine sponge) and a natural spray to clean the top (Method or Mrs Meyer's) after cooking, then dry it with a microfiber cloth. I cook almost daily so my solid top does get used a lot. 

Then weekly I use the magic countertop cleaner or 3M stainless steel cleaner to seal it and it will look v shiny. Haha.

 

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
Sign in to follow this  

×