Notes on a first home.
Practical writing on designing a first home in Singapore, room by room: HDB and condo ideas, materials, the styles people ask us for, and what things really cost. Written by the studio that designs them.
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Built-In Wardrobe or Walk-In: Choosing for an HDB Flat
How much floor a walk-in really takes, when it makes sense, the fittings that matter and keeping mould out.
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HDB Licensed Contractors: What the List Means
HDB's Directory of Renovation Contractors, who applies for your permit, and what to check before you sign.
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Mid-Century Modern Interior Design in an HDB Flat
Teak and walnut, tapered legs, one strong colour, and how to build the look into an HDB.
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HDB Resale Renovation Package: How to Read One Before You Sign
What a resale package usually covers, what it tends to leave out, and how to compare it with an itemised quote.
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HDB Renovation Timing: Permitted Hours and Noisy Works
When HDB allows general and noisy renovation works, the days that are off limits, and how the rules shape a schedule.
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HDB Floor Plan Guide: How to Read Yours Before You Renovate
Where to get your HDB floor plan, what each zone means, and which walls and rooms cannot change.
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3-Room BTO Renovation: Ideas and What a Package Covers
The second bedroom, the kitchen wall, storage that saves floor, and what a 3-room package leaves out.
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HDB Ceiling Height: Planning False Ceilings, Cove Lighting and Beams
How high an HDB ceiling really is, HDB's 2.4 m rule for false ceilings, and where a dropped ceiling earns its place.
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Wabi-Sabi Interior Design in a Singapore Flat
What wabi-sabi means, how it differs from Japandi, and the textured finishes that cope with humidity.
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HDB Renovation Permit: What Needs One and What Doesn't
Which works need an HDB permit, which need none, what you cannot hack, who applies, and the hours and deadlines that follow.
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Resale HDB Renovation Guide: What to Check Before You Buy
The hidden costs older flats carry, what to check before you commit, when to hack versus overlay, and how big a buffer to keep.
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5-Room BTO Renovation Ideas: Using the Extra Space Well
What to do with the extra room, how to stop a bigger flat feeling emptier, and where the extra budget goes compared with a 4-room.
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4-Room HDB Renovation Ideas and Where the Budget Goes
The standard layout, where the budget really goes line by line, and the decisions that make a 90sqm flat feel bigger and work harder.
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BTO Interior Design: A Blank-Slate Guide for First Owners
Why a new flat is a blank slate, how to stage the work so you do not overspend, and a readiness checklist before you brief a designer.
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Condo Interior Design in Singapore: A First-Owner Guide
The MCST rules HDB owners do not expect, working with the developer finishes, and where a condo renovation budget actually goes.
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HDB Bathroom Design: Ideas for a Small Singapore Flat
What the pipes let you move, why waterproofing is the one thing you cannot cheap out on, and the finishes that make a small bathroom feel bigger.
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Minimalist Interior Design in a Singapore Flat
Why minimalism is edited rather than empty, the concealed storage that makes the calm possible, and the traps that turn it into a cold white box.
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HDB Living Room Design Ideas for a Small Flat
Zoning the long living-dining rectangle, three layouts that work, the TV feature-wall question, and the moves that make one room feel bigger.
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Scandinavian Interior Design in a Singapore Home
The pale palette that lifts a shaded flat, how Scandinavian differs from Japandi, and what to change so it works in the tropics.
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Interior Design Styles for a First Singapore Home
Japandi, Scandinavian, minimalist and warm contemporary, explained for a small flat: what each means, who it suits, and how to choose one you will still like in five years.
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HDB Interior Design: A Room-by-Room Guide for First-Time Owners
How to plan the living room, kitchen, bedrooms and bathrooms of your first HDB, and where the budget really goes.
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HDB Kitchen Design: Ideas That Fit a Small Singapore Flat
Layouts, storage and materials that fit a compact Singapore kitchen.
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Japandi Interior Design for an HDB Home
Warm minimalism in a small flat: palette, materials and the mistakes to avoid.
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HDB Bedroom Design: Small-Room Ideas That Work
Fitting a wardrobe and a bed, and making a common room work twice as hard.
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