Blue is prominent in the design scheme of this home and while it is easily assumed that it’s the homeowners’ favourite hue, the colour was actually chosen on a whim. The Joey Khu design team who was in charge of the design reveals: “They were in our office where they chanced upon our walls which are painted in turquoise.” The bold colour called out to them. “From there, they decided they had to have that exact shade in their home.”
Weaving across the design landscape of this 1,000-square foot resale unit, the chosen turquoise hue has been complemented by other variations of blue. It has also been paired with cement screed walls, as seen in the communal zones. While cement screed is commonly associated with an industrial style, the homeowners did not like that look. “Cement by itself is a very neutral-looking material,” explain the designers. “We wanted to use it here because of the tonality of the raw-looking textures. Another thing is cement tends to project different looks in the day and in the night.”
The cement brings a sense of cool starkness to the communal zones and this serves as the perfect contrast to the friendly strokes of blue. With that, it detaches from the industrial look successfully and conjures a warm and minimalist aesthetic instead. This was also what the homeowners had in mind: a relaxed and striking style.
An open-plan layout helps to introduce a larger expanse of space, and this also ticked off another item of the homeowners’ design wishlist. “The homeowners, especially the male owner, are into cooking at home during the weekend,” disclose the designers. The kitchen was then reconfigured into an open area with an island unit fronting the space.
Besides having the island establish a form of demarcation between the kitchen and the dining and living zones, the designers also worked on an arc-like feature. It outlines the entrance of the kitchen and the overhead laminate feature of dark woodgrained finish is integrated with the island unit as a half-height divider. It works as a dual-function fixture to host the power points on one side and a contemporary-style sconce on the other. It also conceals any visual clutter visible from the kitchen’s open shelves.
For the flooring, the designers re-polished the existing marble flooring and re-stained the bedroom’s timber flooring into a darker hue. “We noticed the flooring is in a decent condition for this almost decade-old resale unit,” say the designers. “It was only necessary to change the flooring in the kitchen and wet areas like the bathrooms.”
A turquoise painted wall stands proud in the master bedroom and as intended by the homeowners, brings a strong visual treat to appeal to their senses. It matches the bespoke storage bed and its bedside table perfectly. Curated by the designers, they went all out to put together a well-appointed ensemble for the sleeping quarters. The same careful planning is applied to the new configuration of the walk-in wardrobe and ensuite bathroom. By shuffling the space around from the bathroom into the wardrobe, the homeowners have a larger closet for their dressing needs.
For the other bedroom, the designers considered the lifestyle needs of the homeowners and that was to have a study table large enough for two. “They also wanted a work desk that could accommodate their gaming needs,” add the designers. A desk with elongated dimensions was therefore custom-built and it adheres to the design concept of an island counter. The table hosts handy slots for organising files or paperwork as well.
Always creating thoughtful designs, the Joey Khu designers have combined the best of form and function. This resale unit is a living testimony of how good design can go the distance, and how blue and bespoke design touches can bring out the best in a living space.
This was adapted from an article originally written by Disa Tan published in the May 2018 issue of SquareRooms. Photo credit: Joey Khu Design
