SINGAPORE - As first-time home owners, Mr Timothy Cheng and Ms Elaine Lin were open to exploring various ideas for the design of their marital home.
The five-room, 1,216 sq ft Housing Board (HDB) flat was new, so Ms Ruth Tan of interior design studio EightyTwo had a lot of freedom with the concept.
The couple wanted a contemporary style. "We find the industrial style too heavy and Scandinavian, too minimalist. Something in between would be perfect," says Mr Cheng, who is in his early 30s and works in the legal field.
He and Ms Lin, a nurse in her late 20s, did not want a monotone interior, so they were excited by Ms Tan's proposal, which incorporated colours.
The designer says: "I love colours and like to experiment with contrast. They add depth and character to a design when complemented by the right details, finishings and other decorative elements."
For example, the entrance and the living and dining areas serve different functions, but appear as a seamless space. A circular, mustard-coloured seat at the entrance contrasts with the deep green wall, and it is part of a series of built-in cabinets and top-hinged storage compartments that continues along the living room's back wall.
These suspended storage compartments go around the corner and continue below the living room windows before turning again and morphing into a television console.
The entire installation forms a C-shape that wraps around the space.
All the corners of this built-in feature, as well as most of the wall edges, are rounded, which is one of Ms Tan's signature design elements. It is not purely for aesthetic reasons. For instance, the TV wall has a boxed-up detail that ends in a rounded edge to conceal unsightly cables.
Ms Tan also designed a dual-toned, double-layered, curved ceiling over the entrance foyer and living and dining areas. The light yellow - a similar shade of green as the living room wall - and the different heights of the ceiling add depth and contrast.
The green powder-coated sliding and fixed glass panels separating the semi-open kitchen from the dining area sync with the overall colour scheme. "I cook quite a bit, so a semi-enclosed kitchen is more practical," Mr Cheng says.
The master bedroom introduces a bolder colour combination: blue-green and coral on the built-in wardrobe and ceiling.
The en suite bathroom, like the common bathroom, has a pop of light yellow on the vanity counter that is the same shade as the ceiling feature in the living area. The curved details on the vanity tops, washbasins and mirrors in both bathrooms relate back to the main concept.
The home owners spent about $70,000 on the renovation, excluding furnishings. Despite the considerable amount of time needed to perfect the curved ceiling, the renovations took about 21/2 months, and the couple moved in a few days before the circuit breaker started last year.
This article first appeared in the October 2021 issue of Home & Decor, which is published by SPH Magazines. Get the December and latest issue of Home & Decor now at all newsstands or download the digital edition of Home & Decor from the App Store, Magzter or Google Play. Also, see more inspiring homes at the Home & Decor website.
