When first-time homeowner Dylan Yap received the keys to his bachelor pad, he knew exactly what he needed to do.
Working with a tight budget of around $55,000 for the renovation of his newly built condo 2-bedder, he decided to keep to the existing layout of the home without spending money on hacking down the walls.
In addition, he also knew that he wanted a state-of-art smart home system with all the essential appliances connected to his apple home account.
Who Lives Here: A bachelor
Home: 2-bedroom condo unit at Canberra road
Size: 764 sq ft (70 sqm)
Interior Designer: The Interior Maison

Modern Luxury Interior Design
“I wanted the theme of the house to be modern luxury with strong personality. The said theme would fit into a bachelor pad concept well,” Dylan explains matter-of-factly.
“Usage of gold elements, marble or marble laminate, dark wood fluted panel, alongside with darker colour palate.”
“The furniture are mainly customised for the home. For instance, the settee on the dining table, which is also a storage space. The loose furniture are purchased from online shops.
Lazada Dining Table
The dining table and coffee table are from Lazada, as they offer a wide range of marble ware. As for dining chairs, I wanted to have some mismatch concept and grabbed them from Taobao.”
Smart Home Singapore
“To bring out some personality, there was some play of colour contrast, such as navy with maroon on the entrance carpentry works for shoe cabinet and settee.
Most importantly, as I am in the technology industry, I wanted to create a smart home. Lightings, appliances, curtains, outdoor zipblinds, aircon and even TV should fit into my Apple Home System and control via Siri command,” says the intrepid homeowner.
His clear design aesthetics and living requirements made it much easier when he sat down with Edwin from The Interior Maison to iron out the details of the renovation.
Concealed light
Attention to detail was crucial to this homeowner with specific demands.
Aside from the gold trims to the cupboard panels, notice the use of concealed lighting to illuminate the shoe cabinet.
This simple addition immediately makes the home look and feel like a boutique hotel suite.
Stone feature wall
The TV wall in the living area became the statement wall of the home, finished in a variety of stone textures.
Lamitak Laminates
“The materials used by my [interior] designer was handpicked and qualitative for my home. The high pressure laminate selections are from well-known local company Lamitak.
Kompacplus Kitchen
The wood like countertop in the kitchen is from Kompacplus, which is a high quality surface panel from Italy.
Floorxpert Vinyl
The flooring used is vinyl that was manufactured in Belgium and carries a residential warranty of 25 years, premium flooring from Floorxpert.”
Sol Luminaire Lights
“Last but not least, the lighting design and placement was very important to bring out the right hue and ambience, they are none other than Sol Luminaire,” Dylan lists out.
Colour Contrast
The colours in the living room extend into the kitchen area, with the navy blue creating an interesting contrast to the silver backsplash.
Power Points
For someone as detailed as Dylan, it was easy to decide where he wanted the power points in his kitchen to be, and the various placements of his appliances.
Blum Hinges
All the hinges in the kitchen are from Blum, which offer a lifetime warranty (essential when you consider that these moving parts encounter the highest usage and tend to break down easily over time).
Loft bed with desk
Dylan converted the spare bedroom in his home into a study.
“Carpentry wise, it was a trusted and long-time partner of my designer who was able to deliver the quality workmanship and design during the trying times of the pandemic.
Especially the for the construction of the loft bed which does not feel flimsy and it is sturdy with metal reinforcements at its core,” Dylan says.
The resourceful homeowner also managed to find a lot of personal contacts to get better deals in order to keep to his tight budget.
Vanity table
With space at a premium in this 764 sq ft home, Dylan had to get creative when it came to carving out space in his master bedroom for a vanity table.
Located next to his wardrobe, the small but well-planned table appears like an extension of the cabinetry, with a curved mirror to finish the look.
Soft backlighting helps to brighten up this corner of the room.
Smart home system
Asked what he was most proud about in his home, Dylan says it has to be his smart home system, which is connected to all the rooms in his house.
“I spent a lot of time understanding how the different smart devices can fit into the same ecosystem, and how I can control them via Siri. I handpicked even the smart switches on the wall that has a LED screen.
Typical smart switches do not have LCD screen and with LCD screen, I will be able to know which button controls which lighting.”
$55,000 Renovation Budget
The result of a 5-month renovation is a sleek home that reflects the taste and character of its owner.
Simply decked out, but functional and stylish, Dylan’s efforts show that you don’t have to break the bank to build a beautiful forever home.
Just make sure you have a clear idea of your needs, and are willing to ask around before taking the plunge.
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This article was first published on Home and Decor in September 2022.