A personal touch

Despite its small size, the kids’ room has more than enough space for a full-length mirror, a bookcase, study desk and a bed frame with a second pull-out bed.

Despite working with a small floor size, the Egg3 designers made this family home fit just right

The renovation journey is such a harrowing process, where relationships are either made or broken along the way.

Some homeowners come back with distressing stories of nightmarish contractors and designers while others have nothing but glowing compliments for the people they’ve worked with.

For Elaine and Timothy Tan, their relationship with stylist and designer Mike Tan proved to be a rewarding one. The partnership came about when Mike designed the couple’s first home seven years ago. Over the years, their working relationship soon blossomed into a friendship.

A small apartment is made more comfortable with optimal use of space

A Trustworthy Connection

So, it came as no surprise that when Elaine and Timothy moved into their brand new apartment in Dakota, they approached Mike for help.

“They’re one of my very first clients, and there’s no way I would have turned them down,” said Mike.

“We enjoyed working together on the first home, and we’ve always kept in close contact after that. We understand each other, and the collaboration was fruitful,” he said.

Having an existing friendship already in place further helped as Mike was very familiar with what the family’s lifestyle needed. As such, designing this three-room condominium unit came naturally to him.

A streamlined bedroom makes full use of the windows. Instead of a bulky wall-feature, the designer simply used a wallpaper as backing behind the bed.

Building for the Future

“I already knew that this needed to be a family home for them to raise their two young children, so I made sure that the rooms could last through the years and grow and evolve along with the kids,” said Mike.

One of the biggest considerations was the lack of space. The active children need a lot of room to play, and Mike didn’t want to crowd the home with unnecessary furniture.

As such, he made do without a coffee table in the living room and customised a compact dining table. He even opted for wall treatments instead of building bulky feature designs.

When asked for another example, Elaine pointed to the piano tucked away in the corridor.

“We wanted to bring in a piano, but we had no idea where to put it! Luckily, Mike came up with a plan to push it up against the niche in the corridor, and it fits perfectly,” said Elaine.

With the piano in place, the designers built storage cabinets, and even a study desk, around the instrument.

By keeping the number of furniture to a minimum and removing unnecessary accessories, the family keeps the home looking neat, organised and, more importantly, spacious. The designer complemented this look by utilising layers and textures to create depth.

Other Features

The joinery work continued with a full-height divider that separates the living and dining room, and a TV-feature wall. The bedroom also features streamlined carpentry (specifically along the windows) where Mike built bay shelves that make use of the wall-to-wall window span.

“We basically left the design up to him,” says Timothy.

“Our main concern was the space, and we knew that Mike is amazing at space-planning. As you can see, the place is exactly what we need.”

Article first published in Lookbox Living #29, Nov/Dec 2013