Houzz Tours
Houzz Tour: A Colonial Bungalow Gets a New Lease on Life
Having regard for history and the climate while modernising for a young family brought this grand dame back to life
What design aficionado wouldn’t love to get their hands on an old black-and-white house to renovate?
When Davina Stanley from UK-based Paper+White was offered the chance to work with an expatriate couple in renovating a colonial bungalow in Singapore, she jumped at the chance.
“No one had lived in the property for years. It had a tree growing through into the living room!” says Stanley.
When Davina Stanley from UK-based Paper+White was offered the chance to work with an expatriate couple in renovating a colonial bungalow in Singapore, she jumped at the chance.
“No one had lived in the property for years. It had a tree growing through into the living room!” says Stanley.
The couple wanted to create a “colonial feel with a modern twist” and added comfort with three huge bedrooms. The original space was dirty, empty and had dated bathrooms and kitchen.
With the couple’s collection of online images as a guide, Stanley created a set of mood boards for the clients to sign off on. Then she began the transformation.
With the couple’s collection of online images as a guide, Stanley created a set of mood boards for the clients to sign off on. Then she began the transformation.
Although the house hadn’t received much love over recent years, the only layout change it required was the addition of an outdoor dining space.
“We realised pretty early on that the house was actually a room short for the family’s needs,” says Stanley.
“Whichever way we tried to plan the space we ended up a room missing. So the easy solution was to add on an extra room.”
“We realised pretty early on that the house was actually a room short for the family’s needs,” says Stanley.
“Whichever way we tried to plan the space we ended up a room missing. So the easy solution was to add on an extra room.”
“This extra room became the outdoor dining room. Which meant that the original dining room could be used as a TV room, snug (or small, cosy room) and playroom. This gave the most pleasing sense of flow as you were able to come straight out of the kitchen into this space and then straight out to the dining room,” the designer says.
“These series of rooms became the hub of the house leaving the more formal living room for entertaining and grown-up relaxing. The result is a home that really works for every member of the family,” says Stanley.
The house sits surrounded by jungle, when you enter the gate and walk up the drive. “I wanted to make an inviting entrance so the first job was to transform the carport into an outdoor living space,” the designer says.
“We custom-built a shoe store to the left of the entrance and placed lots of seating where people could comfortably sit, or use to remove their shoes,” says Stanley.
“We custom-built a shoe store to the left of the entrance and placed lots of seating where people could comfortably sit, or use to remove their shoes,” says Stanley.
The original louvred shutters – which were refurbished – are referenced throughout the home.
“We decided to echo this in all the custom made cabinetry in the house,” says Stanley. “Upon entering the double entrance doors you walk directly into the living room. I wanted to visually break this area to create a hallway.”
“We decided to echo this in all the custom made cabinetry in the house,” says Stanley. “Upon entering the double entrance doors you walk directly into the living room. I wanted to visually break this area to create a hallway.”
Despite the space still being part of the living room, it serves as a separate entrance hall now. This was achieved by placing a custom made table on a natural rug to define the space.
In order to create a sense of definition, Stanley painted the original stairs black after they were restored.
In order to create a sense of definition, Stanley painted the original stairs black after they were restored.
“To add to the feeling of flow we used the same light shades – which we commissioned from a family of artisans in Bali in two different sizes – throughout the entire house, both inside and outside,” Stanley says. “We also added the occasional Lee Broom crystal hanging bulb as a little nod to British design.”
The scale of the rooms was an issue the designer tackled with ease. “Being such large rooms, furniture either had to be oversized or we had to use two of everything,” she says.
“In the children’s bedroom, for example, there are two king-sized beds. In the living room, two huge consoles and two huge sofas; and in the master bedroom, two large daybeds.”
“We kept the original white tiles and dark wood floor boards throughout the house, adding texture with natural and wool rugs,” she says.
Yellow sets the children’s bedroom apart from the white and neutral tones in the rest of the house.
Keeping the existing black and white checkerboard tiles in the bathroom adds to the authentic feel of a colonial bungalow.
Additional reporting by Verlaine Marquez
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TELL US
What do you think of this daring home design? Tell us in the Comments below. And don’t forget to save your favourite images, bookmark the story, and join in the conversation.
Who lives here: English expatriate family with 2 labradoodles
Location: Bukit Merah
Type of property: Colonial black-and-white house
Size: 53,820 square feet (5,000 square metres)
Project duration: 3 months
Designer in charge: Davina Stanley from Paper+White