• House Tours
  • Shopping
  • Design
  • IDs
  • H&D TV
  • Fight Covid-19
  • House Tours
    • Landed
    • Condo
    • HDB
    • International
    • Conservation
  • Shopping
    • Bedding
    • Best Buys
    • Furniture
    • Homeware
    • Kitchen
    • New Store
    • Reviews
    • Tech
  • Design
    • News
    • Interviews
    • Fair Report
    • Home Tips
    • Reno Tips
    • Style Tips
  • Directory
    • Projects
  • H&D TV
  • Events and Giveaways
  • Fight Covid-19
  • Subscribe
  • NEW HOMEOWNERS CLUB
Subscribe Now!
  • Also available at:
SPH Magazine

Copyright © 2020 SPH Magazines Pte Ltd. Co. Regn. No. 196900476M. All rights reserved.

  • House Tours
  • Shopping
  • Design
  • IDs
  • H&D TV
  • Fight Covid-19

House Tours

House Tour: This architect’s dual-function apartment takes working from home to the next level

Generic selectors
Exact matches only
Search in title
Search in content
Search in posts
Search in pages
Generic selectors
Exact matches only
Search in title
Search in content
Search in posts
Search in pages
House Tours

House Tour: This architect’s dual-function apartment takes working from home to the next level

by Tay Suan Chiang  /   July 5, 2020

Even before working from home became the new normal, architect William Ng, founder of Studio Wills + Architects was already doing so. In fact, he had designed his three-bedroom apartment at Serangoon Central specifically to accommodate both personal living and work.

He has had this home/office since 2018, which was designed together with his colleague Kho Keguang. “We’ve always felt a studio within a residential setting is appealing and relevant as our works are exclusively residential, be it architecture or interiors,” says Ng. “The apartment is designed for maximum flexibility for different needs.”

https://www.homeanddecor.com.sg/gallery/house-tour-singapore-architect-dual-function-apartment-home-office/
House Tour: This architect's dual-function apartment takes working from home to the next level
Studio Wills + Architects foyer
image

Pictured: The foyer is a buffer zone lined with louvered windows for a soft divide between the private and public realms. 

On the outside, the apartment looks like its neighbours, and clients who come are often surprised to find a studio in there. The first space that visitors enter is the foyer.

“It creates a buffer zone between the apartment and the public corridor, and at the same time enables two separate entry points so that the home and office spaces can operate independently,” says Ng, who lives alone.

Studio Wills + Architects lounge 1
image

At the design stage, Ng mapped out various scenarios in which the space could be used – whether or not to turn the entire space into an office during the day and convert it to an apartment at night, or to split the space into two. “Regardless of the configurations, there is adequate space and services, such as power-point sockets for the entire space to be fully functional.”

Read Next

The Cautious Spender: Setting up a home office with $500

Studio Wills + Architects lounge 2
image

Pictured: The lounge doubles as the living area.

The apartment has a 4sqm foyer, and the two separate spaces have an equal footprint of 30sqm each. Ng says that should he decide to sell the space in the future, it can be used by a single family or by two smaller households.

Besides separate entrances, each space has its own bathroom, so that they can function independently.

 

Studio Wills + Architects office and home
image

Pictured: Separate entrances for the office and the home. 

One door opens up to the studio, which is out of bounds to visitors. Besides work desks, there is also a specially constructed storage and utility timber unit running the length of the studio. The unit functions as a bookshelf and also hides a bathroom, lined with green mosaic tiles as a contrast to the otherwise all-white space.

Due to limited space, the home serves as an office during the day. The living area is a break-out area for the office and reception for clients and while the dining area is used as a meeting space during office hours.

Read Next

10 WFH essentials to boost your productivity

 

 

Studio Wills + Architects living room
image

To add some interest to the home, Ng created a tunnel to separate the living and the dining area. The tunnel also hides functional spaces such as the wardrobe and a changing room. “We wanted a spatial compression as you walk into the tunnel before being surprised by an expansive space when you emerge from either end. The duality of spaces and a route to experience them is a constant feature in all our projects,” he says.

Building a tunnel meant that a loft could be created, and the apartment’s high ceiling also allowed for it. The loft is accessible via a flight of steps with built-in drawers. During the day, it serves as a contemplative space, while at night, the loft converts into a sleeping area when Ng lays out his futon.

From the loft, Ng can look down onto the living and the dining areas, and also into the studio. “We wanted a visual connection between the two distinct spaces and also a point where the studio can be fully appreciated from an elevated perspective,” he says. “A friend once joked that the loft is the ‘supervisor window’ to check on the office.”

Studio Wills + Architects discussion area
image

With clients coming to visit, Ng designed for ample storage space to hide personal belongings. “I have the habit of keeping things in the place they are assigned to and de-clutter from time to time,” he says.

Ng says that because the two spaces are so near each other, he has a tendency to work longer hours.

“But once I’m at ‘home’, the office is out of sight. This is possible because both spaces are distinct in its spatial quality and separated,” he says. “In fact, people inhabiting the two spaces never cross paths because of the foyer and the two independent access points.”

Studio Wills + Architects bathroom
image

To fit into a natural palette, surfaces are kept predominantly white to reflect daylight, with accents of timber for a warm appearance, while green and blue tiles in the bathrooms represent greenery and water. Curtains help create more private spaces.

Photos Finbarr Fallon & Khoo Guo Jie

This article first appeared in The Business Times.

Read Next

House Tour: $110K renovation of a modern minimalist jumbo HDB flat in Marsiling

House Tour: A quirky Modernique 5-room flat for a bachelor and his cats

  • TAGS:
  • Home Office Design
  • multi-function home
  • small apartment design
  • work from home
SHARE THIS ON

Trending

House Tours

House Tour: A 70-year-old terrace house turned into a fashionable...

House Tours

House Tour: A former farmhouse transformed into a gallery-like ho...

House Tours

House Tour: A French designer's utterly inviting eclectic Parisia...

House Tours

House Tour: A curvilinear condo with red dining room and more sto...

House Tours

House Tour: A minimalist, barn-style hideaway clad in corten stee...

House Tours

House Tour: This airy modern contemporary home for three generati...

House Tours

House Tour: This 3-bedroom condo in Sengkang shows how to maximis...

Home & Decor Newsletter
Get exclusive weekly updates to Singapore's design scene, trend scoops, shopping and interior styling tips with our newsletter now. Join the tribe here.
Will be used in accordance with our Privacy Statement
Footer Menu
  • About Us
  • Advertise With Us
  • Contact
  • Conditions of Access
  • PDPA
  • Privacy Policy
?>
SPH Magazine

Copyright © 2020 SPH Magazines Pte Ltd. Co. Regn. No. 196900476M. All rights reserved.