Devoid of styles and trends, this apartment’s contemporary design plays up its beautifully simple and functional interiors.
Devoid of styles and trends, this apartment’s contemporary design plays up its beautifully simple and functional interiors.
WHO A couple in their 30s.
HOME Three-bedroom executive condominium unit in Tampines Central.
SIZE 1,184sqf 106.
Finished in a black woodgrain laminate from TAK, the minimalist design feature in the form of a multifunctional ledge connects the dining and living areas. The sofa is from King Living, and the rug is from Commune.
ABOVE Peishyun, who plays the cello, wanted a dedicated music room and a neutral-toned theme for the home. She sits in the dining area, which features a personalised marble-top table from Somewhere&.
BELOW In the open study, the bookshelf has a geometric design that is flexible. The narrow table can either be positioned perpendicular to the wall, or tucked into it.
“Simple: no styles or trends” sums up the modern apartment that Peishyun Lee and her husband share. The home has a pared-down design, but it is inspired by a blend of ideas from the couple, says designer Kelvin Lim of Atelier Here. While Peishyun’s specifications were “neutral wood tones”, her husband envisioned their home to have a “sophisticated, chic look”.
Kelvin translated the ideas into spaces featuring minimalist forms and details, with a colour palette of black and light wood tones. He designed customised carpentry to give the home its character and cohesive sleek look. The open-concept living area incorporates, in particular, a linear element that ties the space together — functioning as a dining bench with shoe storage underneath, a display showcase for books and art, and a TV console, from one side of the room to the other.
A bedroom was removed to make way for a study, which is part of the open living area and serves as a transition between the home’s public and private spaces. Kelvin got a maple hardwoodfinished platform fitted in to raise the area, and its difference in height and contrast from the original tile flooring help zone the open space.
It’s not apparent at a glance, but a neat detail of the study’s display shelving – finished in a light oak laminate from TAK, a marked contrast to the black wall opposite – is that the table has a flexible design that allows it to be either positioned perpendicular to the wall or tucked into it. Also, Kelvin explains, one of the bookshelf’s bottom modules functions as a movable step to reach the higher shelves, and can be concealed in the bookshelf.
As for the private areas, one room was reserved as a music room (Peishyun plays the cello), while the master bedroom retains an understatedly stylish look, consistent with the rest of the home. For a simple feature wall that backdrops the bed and integrates ledges as bedside tables, Kelvin used raw plywood, and selected panels in a darker, reddish hue to give the bedroom warmth. The designer also preserved the apartment’s original finishes and fittings, such as the tile flooring, wardrobes, and the dry and wet kitchens.
With attention to detail, as well as streamlined and unique built-in furniture, the home – renovated for below $100,000 (excluding furniture) – was given a dramatically different identity.
WHERE TO GO.
Atelier Here, TEL: 6348-9932, www.at-here.co.
A platform, finished in maple hardwood, makes up the floor area of the study and also bridges the public and private zones of the home.
Behind the bed (from Commune), a simple feature wall was designed using raw plywood that the designer specially selected in a darker, reddish hue, to give the bedroom a warm and cosy look.
In the master bedroom, a piece of customised furniture functions as a dresser on one side, a worktop in the middle, and a sideboard for displaying decor on the other end.
Text LOUISA CLARE LIM photography DARREN CHANG art direction YEW XIN YI.
