Houzz Tours
Houzz Tour: Blue and White Give This Flat A New Lease on Life
The 40-year-old home maintains a light, airy feeling thanks to the considered use of refined blue and white
Eric Chua of Sync Interior was tasked with giving his friend’s family home a major facelift and he relished the challenge, taking the 40-year-old flat from expired to renewed in just two months.
Floor-to-ceiling built-ins in a sophisticated blue demarcate the living and dining areas clearly and give the feeling that the walls are painted blue. The key to reducing the ‘bulk’ of these tall units is the insertion of crisp white insets – a display niche for the living room cabinet and a banquette for the dining – that provides a break from a single span of colour.
A greyish woodgrain finish was chosen for the flooring to match the grey undertones of the blue.
A greyish woodgrain finish was chosen for the flooring to match the grey undertones of the blue.
Another way Chua lightened the look of the built-ins was by ‘suspending’ the units a few centimetres off the floor. In fact, you can see a leg in the first photo. The fact that the floor is visible below the unit adds to the spaciousness of the flat.
What appears to be a panelled TV cabinet is a clever shared space between the living room and the bedroom behind. The wall between the bedroom and living room was demolished to allow the 60-centimetre depth needed for the wardrobe to ‘eat into’ the living room. Hence, the space flanking the TV is actually the wardrobe, accessed from the bedroom. This design also allowed for the two bedroom doors to be flushed with the cabinetry, creating a lovely long expanse of panelling.
The blue-grey-white colour palette continues in the kitchen. The simple run of cabinets serves the small family’s needs right down to their laundry. An island which also functions as a place to catch a quick meal anchors the space.
Flats of this age have the refuse chute within the home. Chua concealed it discreetly within this vignette. The faux brick wall and marble backsplash lend texture and a robustness that contrasts with the plain matte surfaces.
The colour palette in the bedrooms is more neutral, with grey dominating the master bedroom.
By removing the wall between the master en suite and the common bathroom, the designer gave the family one luxuriously large and elegantly-appointed bathroom.
By still maintaining the two entrances (one in the bedroom and the other from the kitchen), the bathroom is easily shared by parents and children. Louvred bi-fold doors minimise the space needed for full-sized casement doors.
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TELL US
What do you think is this home’s most striking feature? 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: A family with two children
Location: Yishun
Size: 850 square feet (79 square metres)
Project duration: 2 months
‘Out with the old and in with the new’ was the mantra for this flat’s overhaul. Though everything was stripped down, there were subtle structural changes as the unit houses the same four family members.