Our Humble Little Crib

Owning a home is a very important matter in our lives and especially in Singapore, having your own unit and a roof over your head is like an achievement already because property here is so expensive! So for average people like us, getting a HDB unit will probably be the biggest financial commitment we'll ever make!

OUR LONG TERM GOAL

Hubby and I have been planning to purchase our own unit ever since we got married 3 years ago, back when I was 19. But due to him being a SPR(Hubby's Malaysian and have been working in Singapore for many years) and me under 21 years(Singaporean) of age back then, we could not apply for BTO nor get a resale flat. So all we could do was wait till I hit 21years old and while waiting save up.

3 years later, I finally reached 21 years old and we went hunting for a resale flat.

Many have asked why didn't we apply for a BTO(Build To Order) instead just like everyone else since it's so much cheaper than a resale flat?!

Well the problem is, for many others, they have the time and means to wait faithfully for 3-5 years for a new BTO while hubby and I did not have that privilege and time. We did not have our parents' home to stay in while we wait. We were renting a master-bedroom and the money to rent would be better off paying the housing installment of our own unit!

So every time someone asks why I did not go for a BTO, it's cheaper and etc I'm like, "Yes I am well aware that a BTO is so much cheaper and I would've went on that road instead if I had the time, place and money to wait!"

We could have gotten a 5-Room flat instead of just a 4-Room if we were to go for a BTO and I looovveee balconies but oh well... :/

Okay anyway, we applied for a HDB Loan Eligibility Letter straight after I turned 21 in November 2013 and soon after found a suitable and affordable unit! After we confirmed the purchase of the house, we found out about Baby X! Lol. (READ HERE)

Renovation Plans

After purchasing the unit, next step was to look for a interior design company and make sure we have the unit renovated to a decent, modern condition! I'll show you why as the condition of the unit when we bought it was near to original from HDB. It was owned by a middle aged lady and her mum. They kept it very simple and little to no renovation was previously done except for the painting I guess.

Hubby and I was not gonna settle in that condition as we'll be living in the unit for years, raising our child and etc, we wanted to make it modern decent.

We weren't going for big wow factored designs and did not have the budget for it as well! Lucky hubby and I both fancy simple and neat designs that does not require crazy renovation nor complicated carpentry.

We went to a few design companies, compared their package prices, negotiated and discussed, before we finally decided on the company, design and etc.

I've always pictured that working on the renovation plans, purchasing furniture and etc was gonna be fun and exciting but it was damn tiring! Yes it was fun and exciting at first but as we looked into detail the colours, designs, prices and etc, it wasn't that fun anymore and me being pregnant didn't help as well cause I get tired easily and don't have as much energy as I had pre-pregnancy. :/

Anyway, here's a few design details and 3D images of the reno design to be executed.

3D Illustration of the living room area~

3D Illustration of the dining area~

3D Illustration of the master bedroom~

3D Illustration of the master toilet~ The 3D looks damn great, but in real life it's not as glamorous~ lols. You'll see~

We went for grey and white as our base colour. Both hubby and I did not fancy wild colours like red/green/yellow to be used for our house's designs so hubby chose grey and white! Simple, easy to match~

BEFORE RENOVATION

Here's a few before photos of how the house looked like when we bought it over.

Original Floorplan~

Living Room  The area where our home office area will be~The intersection of the office area and kitchen, where our dining table will be. We decided to hack off the storeroom and relocate it to in between the two common rooms. Kitchen Area~ Common ToiletMaster BedroomMaster Toilet

So that's about it! And you could see why hubby and I needed a decent reno before moving in! It's not that it's not "livable", but since it's our 1st home ever and we're gonna be here for many years, we might as well reno it to our liking before moving in!

PROCESS

We hacked off the floor and wall tiles of the following:
- Storeroom stationed at the kitchen
- Living Room's Floor Tiles
- Both the Master & Common Toilet's Floor & Wall Tiles
- Kitchen Floor & Wall Tiles
- Service Balcony's Floor Tiles

The space in between the two common rooms where the new storeroom would be.
Storeroom hacked to be relocated, revealing an open concept kitchen~

AFTER RENOVATION

Okay I shall not bore you with the process photos, let's see how our humble little crib looks like after renovation!

As I mentioned on my Dayre account before, it is not one with crazy wow factors but just decent, modern and good enough for us to last through the years~

HERE WE GO!!!

Our Main Door equipped with the Samsung Digital Lock, styled with a handle bar (hubby's idea). We also removed our gate, so basically we have no gate. haha.
The entrance, loving my shoe cabinet and settee! A better view of the cabinet and settee. The area behind would be the small cosy living room area~The corridor with downlights that are able to be dimmed down for a cosy/romantic ambience. And here's how it looks like when the lights are not dimmed. We have the same dim lights in our master bedroom! We chose this series of lights cause I told hubby that I am one that loves to create ambience and 'feel', and I love warm lights, which you'll see in other areas of the house. :) Spotlights at the entrance area and office area~ Our home office area~
Dining Area - Our benched theme dining set!
The common toilet is beside the fridge, we had the door resized so that it's smaller since it's facing the kitchen.
Common Toilet~
|My starry starry dining light! Bought from JB~There's a full length mirror that's made up of 3 pieces of mirrors, added to make the area look more spacious and also we can check ourselves once more before we step out of the house! Also hubby's idea! Basically the whole house's design is by hubby and I'm loving it!

From the reflection you can see the other side of the kitchen where all the cabinets and cooking area is at.
Warm light setting again, which I love! Orange Orange! Lol.

Living Room~

Our Master bedroom, where the lights can be dimmed down according to your liking!

I have a cove light and spotlight near the wardrobe area too so I can take good selfies and #ootds! Haha. And also to create the woman's wardrobe area feel since I don't have a walk-in wardrobe!

Hubby and I loved the idea of being able to lie down on our bed and watch a movie together after a long day so we wall mounted a 46" Samsung Smart TV up there for our enjoyment! Lol. My gaming/work station is just below the TV so I can easily link whatever I wanna watch over to the TV! Even my CS matches! hahah.
My full length mirror cabinet, where I do all my makeup and store my accessories and etc. :) Bought it from Groupon for $199 back then way before I had my own home. Lol.

Master Toilet~ Warm cove lights for the resort feel, or when you need the ambience for doing your big business. Whahaha...

Bright normal white lights when you need to do makeup and etc.

Shower screen! ^.^ 
RAINSHOWER!!! Rainshower damn shiok, must have if you're renovating your house!

So that's our humble little crib! Modern, decent and good enough to live in for years! ^.^ Finally, after striving for years, we have a home to call our own! Hubby and I are enjoying it everyday, although we're also enjoying all the repayments at the same time. LOL. But it's all worth it!!! Can't wait for Baby X to arrive and enjoy the house with us!

Oh anyway, here's a recommendation of a property agent, Mr Tham. He was the one who served us and helped us purchase the unit and is very friendly and efficient!

You can find him here!
https://www.facebook.com/SingaporeResidentialCommercialProperty?ref=profile

https://www.facebook.com/tham.choonfong

Alright, any questions do leave a comment and I'll get back to you soon!

Till next time!

Love,
Vall~