For any busy professional, home should be a place where they can truly let go of the bustle of everyday life and just indulge in some much needed rest. And things are no different for the well-travelled homeowner of this four-room apartment located in Compassvale. But before this resale flat came to be the tranquil haven it is today, renovation works were required, and design director Jackson Tan of SPORES_Studio was called in to oversee the job.
When asked for a design brief, the owner stated that she wanted to transform the flat into a bright and modern-meets-eclectic home where she could wind down from her busy work schedule in peace. Additionally, she also wanted the home to be a personal gallery where she could display her unique designer collectibles that were amassed from her years of travelling.
One look around the apartment brings forth the triangular-shaped painted walls that dot the living spaces, which was inspired by the geometric paintings from Australian artist Esther Stewart. Jackson explains of the design inspiration, “Esther Stewart’s paintings attempt to generate mapping of domestic spaces and the push and pull between abstraction and representation, creating tension between colours and shapes. And we saw a parallel in this project where the domestic walls became the tensioned medium – at times juxtaposing calm pastel colours against dynamic triangulated geometric patterns and others to provide a clean, muted canvas to contrast against the eclectic objects of desire.”
Upon closer inspection, it is quickly discernible that the geometric patterns on the walls throughout the home are separated into two sets of colours – one for the communal areas and the other for the private domain. “It was a deliberate decision,” adds Jackson. Doubling as a feature wall as well as providing a sense of orientation to the home, the first set – made up of white, light grey, pale blue and green – serves to provide a more dynamic presence to the communal areas. Additionally, this colourblock wall design can also be seen on the bomb shelter entrance. “By doing so, not only is there a cohesive visual guide when one enters the unit from the entrance into the living room, but painting over the bomb shelter door also became a simple yet effective way to visually dematerialise the existence of the shelter,” the designer explains.
To cater to the owner’s display needs, a bespoke display shelf-cum-divider screen was installed in the living room, which also offers the communal area privacy from the home’s entryway. To echo the triangular-shaped wall motifs, the divider screen also features a triangulated structural system to maintain and reinforce design consistency throughout the home. Besides this brass-accented structure, the rest of the living space was kept free from any other built-ins, effectively ensuring that the apartment remains a spacious and flexible canvas that can be easily adapted and personalised in the future.
Over in the kitchen, there is an understated luxurious quality, which is attributed to the warm timber tones on the cabinets as well as the marble-lookalike quartz on the backsplash and countertops. Meant to function more as a preparatory space for entertaining rather than an active cooking space, the homeowner’s top requirement for the kitchen was to have ample storage space, of which Jackson catered to by installing upper and lower cabinets on all available wall space.
Moving on to the owner’s private chambers, that’s where the second set of geometric patterns are found. Comprised of pink and grey shades, these triangular shapes are an extension from the pink-topped bay window settee and the full-height grey wardrobe respectively. Meeting just above the bedhead, the occupant’s sleeping zone is injected with a sense of calm and softness through the use of these two colourways. Meanwhile, for storage of clothes and accessories, Jackson designed and fabricated a series of full-height wardrobe units that feature a laminated finish as well as ergonomically-designed black stainless steel handles.
Being the first space that greets the homeowner every morning, the master bathroom scores high with its luxurious contemporary ambience. Complementing its monochromatic surroundings, large mirrors and a vanity that spans the entire length of the wall makes the master bath feel larger, brighter and more open. For added functionality, a storage cabinet was designed and fabricated to provide the occupant with additional storage space for her bathroom essentials.
When asked to sum up his thoughts on the project, Jackson has this to say: “With our client already possessing a refined eye for design, it was very fun and exciting to work with her and furnish her abode. Besides renovation and carpentry works, it became apparent our main task was to sieve through her collectibles and arrange them either through complementing or contrasting the vintage with the new, in order to highlight her chosen narrative of modern-eclectic.” And at the end of it all, it’s safe to say that what remains is a cosy and personalised home that’s truly the perfect reflection of the owner’s favourite things.
This was adapted from an article originally published in the March 2019 issue of SquareRooms. Photo credits: SPORES_Studio
