Category: Space Planning

5 Tips for Space Saving in Singapore

5 Tips for Space Saving in Singapore5 Tips for Space Saving in Singapore

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Due to the increasingly limited space in many HDB flats, Singaporeans struggle to find storage in their homes. Here are 6 ways to maximise your home space while keeping them organised and tidy.

1. Built-in furniture

Opt for built-in shelves, cabinets and wardrobes to better utilise the limited space available for better storage. Built-in seating (Examples: bench, sofa etc) can also be installed. Below features a built-in seating for the owners of this home to put on their shoes while also having some storage for their belongings.

Hence, some built-in furniture can also serve as a storage space. An example would be a platform bed on top of pull out drawers, which can store items you want out of sight. (shown below) Another can be a sofa with storage space below or at the ends, which can be a shelving alternative to store books and toys. These are great alternatives with better practicality, while also saving more space for other furniture.

Blk 130B Toa Payoh Lor 5
Blk 304 Canberra Road

2. Sliding doors

Installing a sliding door for your kitchen, study room or even wardrobes can help save more space in smaller rooms, as compared to a swinging door. As a swinging door opens outwards, it may not be practical in a tighter space. Moreover, when sliding doors are retracted out fully, they help create a broader space between the 2 rooms connected, allowing your home to appear bigger. Example is in the photo below.

Blk 286 Bishan Street 24

3. Pull-out furniture

A great example is a pull-out dining table, which can be paired with portable and stackable chairs. It can be very versatile with its usage and be hidden away when not in use, giving you ample space for your home. This is especially useful for smaller households who rarely use the dining table.

51 Tampines Street 86 @The Tapestry

4. Ceiling Space

Don’t forget that you can also make use of the ceiling space in your homes! A suspended shelf or cabinet adds a unique spin to an interior design as well as allows for more room in the house. Not to mention, you can store or display while making them accessible.

308 Telok Kurau Road @Vibes at East Coast

5. Two-tiered drawers

Are there instances when your drawers are filled up but there is still space due to the depth of the drawers? To maximise the drawer space, you can install a smaller drawer within the outer drawer! These drawers allow you to fill up the extra space left above all of your already stored items.

Kitchen Cabinet Storage Ideas

How to better plan out your space

How to better plan out your spaceHow to better plan out your space

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Space planning includes mapping out the room, knowing the intended purpose and the actual interior design of your rooms. Without effective space planning, your room, and possibly even the whole home can lack a sense of unity, not feeling complete.

Hence, while making your home beautiful is most ideal, the functional design aspect is equally as important for it to be livable.

Things to take note:

When planning your room/ whole house, these are some things to consider to help you plan easier.

  • Take into account how each room is used and who will be using it

In order to best accommodate your needs, take into account how each room will be used. Those needs will eventually affect the layout and design. For example, a bedroom’s intended use as a place of relaxation and comfort; therefore this will impact the placement of your bedroom furniture, the type of lighting as well as what storage requirements are needed

  • Scale your furniture to your space

Consider the size of your room and plan how much furniture to fit into your space. Make sure the room does not get too cluttered

  • Consider focal points

Is there something (e.g a tall window) that can stand out in the room? Working around the focal point of each room can guide your planning better

  • Create zones

Plan out your space into zones of usage. Example: due to space constraints, many homes combine their living and dining into 1 room, so the dining area is in the living room. This is when you can consider where the dining and living areas are in your space and differentiate them within these zones, sometimes with furniture or carpet

  • Natural lighting

How much natural light is entering the room? Is there enough? Where are the areas requiring more lighting? Take these questions into consideration while planning your lights!

The most important tip is to have fun! Planning your space may be difficult at times but it will feel rewarding to design your dream home!

home interior designGet the Most out of Small Spaces

Get the Most out of Small SpacesGet the Most out of Small Spaces

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Exploiting Small Apartment Spaces

The fact that the space in your home might be little, doesn’t mean it needs to look and feel that way, a careful look at the room should reveal dead corners or areas that take up a significant amount of floor space, these open spaces are often located in areas such as passages, entrance lobbies, and staircase landings which could be used for a complimentary purpose such as laundry, reading nooks, craft rooms, office spaces, storage areas amongst other uses.

So how do you get the most out of these small spaces in your property?

Be furniture conscious

Large furniture can further make little spaces feel significantly smaller, rather than fill the living room with sofas, using smaller seats would do the magic. Your dining area must not house the queen’s royal table, try out smaller pieces that serve the family while still maximizing available spaces. Enhance your floor space, by letting go of large floor mats and carpets as center rugs should do just fine. Being conscious of the size and number of furniture in the room is a perfect tool in taking advantage of your small spaces.

Let your lights shine

One secret deal-breaker in interior design is lighting. Be it natural or electric, lights when used professionally provides an ambience that is second to none. Use white and natural lights to your advantage as they tend to create an illusion of a larger room. Open your windows, or use bright fluorescent lights to brighten up your space. Simple window coverings would work with the lights as it is advised to avoid dark and bold printed coverings rather than opting for a brighter coloured shade.

Get a distraction

Having a single huge painting of the Mona Lisa or an antique sculptural piece at a strategic position in your space draws significant attention away from the already small space. Having this focal point gives visitors something to gaze upon, as the eye automatically rests on the image or painting forgetting entirely how small the room is.

Use your mirror

Ever observed how hair and beauty salons tend to look larger than their actual size, this is as a result of the significant presence of wall mirrors. Mirrors give a reflective look, especially of lights, colours and images. Placing a large mirror where it gives off reflections could make the room seem larger than its actual size.

Less stuff more space

Do you need to fit all that stuff into your room, the sofa, bookshelves, dining table, television sets, computer wardrobe and the likes?  Ensure that only useful materials are allowed into the room as this helps to keep the room neat and organized, less cramped and free, allowing more legroom, openness and ease of movement. To further achieve this you can learn to improvise and use a single item to serve multiple purposes. The kitchen could also house your dining.

Taking advantage of small spaces requires a closer look at your options, figuring out what’s important and what isn’t, getting creative and applying some of the ideas as highlighted above.

kitchen interior design5 Design Tricks to Make Your Home Look Bigger

5 Design Tricks to Make Your Home Look Bigger5 Design Tricks to Make Your Home Look Bigger

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In recent years, it has been a trend for homeowners to knock down walls to make homes look and feel bigger. And indeed, having an open floor plan can create a sense of space and fluidity. But of course, not every home is able to do so.

Implement these 5 tips to make your house look a little bigger without having to exclude anything significant. 

Make Strategic Use of Mirrors

Putting mirrors at the right places can create a greater sense of openness. Not only do they reflect light, they also reflect the view, tricking the eye into perceiving more space.

Choose Your Curtains Wisely

Avoid using dark-colored curtains or drapes. Dark and heavy drapes look bulky and can make your room look smaller. You can choose to use light window treatments such as slatted or roller blinds that can be lifted up. Make sure that the color of the curtains matches the color of your walls because contrasting colors give a cohesive and seamless effect. Alternatively, choose to use Day curtains.

Quick tip: When you install the curtain rod, make sure it extends beyond both sides of the window casing and mount the rod several inches above the top of the window so that it looks taller and wider. 

Create Flow Through Flooring

Using the same flooring design and material is proven to create the seamless visual effect that expands its dimensions, making it feel bigger than it is. If you want your home to look and feel bigger, consider using the same tiles/ vinyl flooring for the living rooms and the bedrooms. 

Cut Back On Clutter

Keeping the space tidy and organised can physically and visually open up the space. The fewer objects in a room, the airier it will feel. Scale down on bulky items and try to keep the floor as clear as possible.

This approach also applies to your walls – Don’t cover your walls with a lot of pictures. One large painting works better than a group of small paintings when it comes to making your house feel more spacious. 

Use Natural Materials

Furniture, upholstery and decorative accents made of natural materials such as rattan and jute can help a room feel more airy and open. Make sure to choose the lighter colours and add plenty of plants.

living room interior designBuilt-in Carpentry VS Loose Furniture: Which is better?

Built-in Carpentry VS Loose Furniture: Which is better?Built-in Carpentry VS Loose Furniture: Which is better?

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When it comes to furniture, you have the option of getting them custom-made or shop for ready-made pieces. There are pros and cons to both. 

So how should you decide between these two options? Ask yourself these 4 questions before you decide which is better for you.

What is your budget?

Generally speaking, built-in furniture costs more than loose pieces since they are made to your specifications. You also get to choose the finishing and materials used. With loose furniture, most of the time the cost is lower as they are mass-produced. 

To make the most of your budget, you would need to do a bit of homework. Start by listing down all the furniture you need for your home. Shop around; ask for quotations for built-in pieces and browse furniture stores to check out what’s out there. Then you can decide which serves your needs and budget best.

How much lifestyle changes do you foresee in the years to come?

Think about how different your lifestyle will be in the next 5 to 10 years. Will you be having kids? Will you be doing heavy cooking? Will your parents move in with you?

If you are a young couple that’s starting to build your family, you might want to leave a room without built-ins. That way you have the flexibility of changing it from a personal gym/workout space to a baby room, and maybe in the future change it into a study room.

How much/what kind of space do you have? 

If you’re blessed with a versatile squarish layout in your home, it’s easier to get away with buying loose furniture and arranging them however you prefer. Odd angles and awkward spaces are difficult to shop furniture for. In this case, you might need to customise built-ins to maximise your space.

This is also applicable if you’re living in a small home (think newer BTOs, or condos as opposed to large resale flats). Because of the space constraint, built-ins are the way to go since they can go all the way up to the ceiling – this lets you take advantage of the vertical height, and increase your storage space.

How long do you intend to use the furniture for?

Your long term plans are also an important factor to consider, before deciding between built-ins and loose furniture. Since built-ins don’t come cheap, it doesn’t make sense to spend on these if you’re planning to sell your home and move within a short period of time. If, on the other hand, you like to keep things fresh by updating your home every now and then, then it is more practical for you to get loose furniture to keep costs low and you also won’t have a hard time giving them up later on.

Protip: It is also alright if you don’t want to rush into committing (with built-ins), you can actually do your carpentry at a later time. 

Making your decision: Which is better?

Now that you know the pros vs cons of using built-in vs loose furniture, you’ll realise it is not about which is better, but rather which is more suitable for your needs and lifestyle.

Quick summary…If you’re looking for something more pocket-friendly in the short term and more flexibility, you can go for off-the-shelf furniture. On the other hand, if you want one that can maximise space and will be cost-efficient in the long run, then the built-in option would be better for you.

Need more inspiration before making your decision? Browse our projects or contact us at 9736 8330 to get connected with expert designers.