Moving into their second home, this couple crafted a bright and spacious interior with a soothing, timeless appeal.

Rattan chair from Island Living.

Born and raised in Tampines, Faezah (@_faezahmokhtar) and Zulhairy were set on staying in the area when they first got their BTO flat. Having now moved into their second home, an executive maisonette, they once again stuck to the same territory, enjoying the comfort of their favourite eateries and amenities in the surrounding area.

The couple knew that they wanted more space when they sold their BTO flat. “Even though it’s just us and the cats, extra space is always nice,” shares the couple. “We wanted to get either an executive HDB flat or an executive maisonette. In the end, we went for the latter because it allows us to have our separate spaces.”

Having some renovation experience from their BTO days, Faezah and Zulhairy had clear needs and wants for their new home, including a spacious and airy design that required some hacking to open up the layout. The kitchen, however, was to remain closed, something they communicated to the design team at iDesign Direct. “Our previous kitchen had an open-concept layout, which meant that our cats were always sitting on the kitchen counter. This time around, I knew I wanted a closed kitchen so the cats would stay outside.”

To the couple’s dismay, the main bedroom in the flat didn’t come with an en-suite bathroom, leading them to combine two common bedrooms upstairs and hack the wall to the adjacent bathroom to achieve their dream layout. Now they essentially have two primary bedrooms with plenty of space!

The rest of the home was designed with equal care and consideration, resulting in a gorgeous abode filled with natural light, gentle hues and soothing textures. If you’re curious to know just how they go there, read on for the couple’s design journey and top renovation tips.

Looking at how beautiful your home turned out, do you have any tips for finding a great interior designer?

Meet with designers who can resonate with your style because different designers have different strengths and they may not all be able to execute the look you want to achieve. Chemistry and communication are very important too. It’s always a plus point of they can actually surprise you with their ideas!

How did you settle on a look for your home? Any tips?

Backsplash tiles from Hafary, oven from Bertazzoni and farmhouse sink from Modeste.

Research, research, research. Start from something that you really like and add your own, personal touches here and there to make it look like it’s your home and not some picture you picked out from a magazine or off Pinterest.

What are some of your favourite areas and features of the home?

It definitely has to be my balcony area, which is where I do laundry, as well as the kitchen. I really like the arched kitchen window, which faces the balcony.

What were some of the greatest challenges you faced during the renovation?

Time was the biggest challenge! Due to the pandemic, time was not our friend but we managed to work around it in the end.

Storage space can be quite tough to incorporate in an aesthetic way. What are some of your favourite storage solutions in your home?

We were contemplating custom-building a shoe cabinet. In the end, I decided to get a sideboard and store our shoes inside there instead. I think it’s aesthetically much more pleasing to the eye than a standard shoe cabinet.

Last but not least, can you share your top tip for homeowners renovating for the first time?

Do a lot of research and set a realistic budget. Also, don’t forget to enjoy the flow of the whole process!