Would you ever have a medicine cabinet with a secret door in your home? A unique Chinoiserie $300,000 renovation for a 2-bedroom condo
“I usually channel my inner spirits to grasp what my clients will possibly prefer and will then propose what I feel is best for them, based on what I can vibe off of them. The moment Alan informed me that he would be getting a new place, I knew Chinoiserie is a good option for him and his wife because both of them embody great Chinese virtues such as integrity, loyalty, filial piety, and consideration for others.”
By Shannon Osztonits -
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A medicine cabinet converted into secret passages…A marble bar as the centre stage of your home…A HEI drum in the living room…This condominium is anything but ordinary, and the more you explore its completely one-of-a-kind design, the more you spot these totally Instagrammable corners everywhere. It’s pretty cool, to say the least.
Not following a single theme; instead, this home is a reflection of the owners’ personalities! It forgoes the cookie-cutter designs you see everywhere. It presents many unique features and design elements as it is tailored to these homeowners. You will never see another home like it.
When it came to homeowners (Alan and his wife, Kelly), Alan had already worked with Carmen from Wolf Woof on his previous home renovation.
“There was no brief except that he wanted it to also be very different (since I designed a truly unique home for him previously). Such an open brief is a double-edged sword–no brief means you can propose ANYTHING, yet this is the scary part–design anything BUT WHAT…?” Says Carmen.
Would you have enough trust in your interior designer to give them an open brief?
For Alan, the answer was a hard yes.
Wolf Woof Interior Design Review
In fact, it’s one of the reasons why working with interior designer Carmen is so special. Not one of her homes is ever the same. She’s a designer who takes the time to get to really know you, your interests, etc., and tailors your home around this. Her attention to detail is impeccable, and Carmen loves playing with design elements that are never mundane.
“Carmen caters to your personality. She’s very creative. A lot of interior designers, they copy and paste, but not her. She takes the time to understand your personality,” says Alan.
“The theme I proposed to them was Chinoiserie. I once visited Mott 32 at Marina Bay Sands and was very captivated by the design of the restaurant, so I posted an IG story to which Alan replied, and we were both commenting about how cool the space was,” explains Carmen. “Alan and his wife appreciate Chinese culture and its beauty.”
According to the interior designer, Chinoiserie was favoured during the 18th century, and incorporates the use of Chinese motifs and techniques into decorative styles of Western furniture, architecture and art.
Who Lives Here: A Singaporean husband (in his mid-50s) and wife (who has just turned 50)
Home: 2-bedroom condo
Size: 1,163 sq ft
Interior designer: Carmen from Wolf Woof
This property was a very old apartment, built in 1997, and so a complete overhaul was required.
“We broke every wall that we could. We rewired every electrical and redid every bit of piping,” tells Alan. “The outcome was a place that I can stay in for the next 10-20 years.”
Featuring two bedrooms and two bathrooms, the couple compromised on the home’s central location.
“Kelly stayed in the east, and I stayed in the west. I thought west was better; Kelly thought east was better. Now, we’re in the centre. Kelly picked out the place.”
The Chinoiserie Bar meets Dining Room
It’s safe to say that everyone’s (including any guest that walks inside) favourite room in this home is the dining area, featuring a stylish bar, wet kitchen and gathering space for meal times.
As a couple who love to entertain, the standout in-home bar is the first thing that greets you as you enter the home. However, this is no ordinary bar. Built on a dark wood finish raised storage platform, the bar also doubles as the wet kitchen. Further down the 4-meter-long island, it extends into a 1.5-meter-long five-seater dining table.
“I love whiskey, and after a long, hard day at work, and meeting up with friends at a bar for a quiet drink. Now, when I come home, I can have a nice cosy drink at home instead of going out,” tells Alan.
“My wife and I are Christians and are very hospitable people. We called our bar the HEI bar. In Hebrew, it means ‘grace.’ So we invite people over to drink and extend the grace of God; enjoy a good time of sharing.”
The Wet Bar
Feel transported to a fancy spot for a nightcap or an upmarket hotel bar.
Custom-made printed and upholstered bar stools match the theme, especially all of the room’s gold detailing and finishes. Behind the bar is one of this home’s most insta-worthy moments: the distinctive medicine cabinet. Each individual box compartment is embossed in gold, and every label is the name of a different wine, cocktail or other famous alcoholic beverages.
“Carmen always considers your personality and background in her design. Kelly grew up with parents who worked in Chinese medicine,” details the homeowner. “People come here, and this is something that always catches attention; they are mesmerised by this medicine box. It very much becomes a talking point of the home.”
Hanging from the ceiling is a sign in Chinese, which translates to: ‘If you want to get drunk, get drunk in the holy spirit.’ On either side of this sign are ceiling-hung gold-rimmed wine glass racks. On the island top is a sink and a stove, and beneath it houses the dishwasher, oven and microwave.
The Extended Dining Space
“We sometimes host our parents, so we thought we should have a proper area to sit down. We purposefully built this dining area with proper dining chairs for a sit-down dinner once a week,” says Alan. “It’s a very seamless design–Carmen’s idea.”
The wall opposite the cabinets extends across both spaces. The bottom half is a fluted wall panel (concave), and above this, the interior designer used wainscoting with a special-effect texture paint. These choices make the space feel warm and homely. Looking up, the ceiling is also a special effect texture paint with a more goldish tone.
Interior designers Wolf Woof selected various pieces of art for the room, as well as beautiful light features.
“It would be a waste of space if we don’t maximise the potential beauty of the space. Hence, we endeavoured to make every light piece a statement piece,” explains interior designer Carmen.
(This includes a special curved ceiling feature above the bar as a way to disguise beams weighing down onto the dining room from the ceiling. The design team added curvatures as a false ceiling to hide the obviously chunky beams.)
“I also love the custom-made lightbox featuring a hip Chinese emperor wearing sunglasses. We superimposed the Chinese term for ‘Jesus’ onto the sunglasses as an expression of our clients’ faith.”
The Secret Room (Pantry)
If you didn’t know any better, you’d never guess there was another room beyond the medicine box.
“Sometimes, even after five months of living here, I mix up which is the real door,” laughs the homeowner.
This area is the pantry-meets-laundry space, where you’ll spot the fridge, the wine fridge, the washing machine, and other utilities. Contrasting black marble-looking vinyl flooring was used in this room, further highlighting its separation from the dining and bar. The cupboards have a black leather laminate finish.
The Interluding Living Room
“The TV console is also designed to mimic the steps leading to this Chinese ‘mansion,’” explains Wolf Woof.
The living room is a celebration of Chinese heritage, featuring ornate golden statues, rockery elements, hanging lantern lights, the ancient China pagoda setting wallpaper (from TM Interiors) and the artificial traditional Chinese roof (constructed from resin) above the TV reminiscent of a traditional Chinese mansion.
“After work, my wife and I go and sit on the sofa, listen to music and choose a really nice bottle of white or red wine to enjoy,” Alan says. “After a hard day, we choose to chill at home rather than other places. This is the type of belonging we wanted to create; to be with the one we love.”
To reach the living room, you walk down from the dining area via a few steps. Black marble vinyl floors were used to zone off the area. Black venetian blinds match the overall colour palette in here, covering the floor-to-ceiling windows. There is another concealed door leading to the master bedroom.
Opposite the leather sofa (from Grey and Sanders) is the customised TV, built from a wooden frame that is clad with black grained laminate, creating a multi-dimensional effect. Next to this is a HEI bass drum.
A Light and Elegant Master Bedroom
A sophisticated space for the couple, this was at Kelly’s request, who appreciates bright colours.
“Happy wife, happy life,” Alan jokes.
The look and feel is noticeably different from the rest of the home’s darker palette.
“We initially proposed a darker and more fierce look for the Master Bedroom to be in line with the bar’s dark Chinoiserie look, but the Mrs. prefers a softer and lighter vibe for the bedroom,” recalls Carmen. “They also prefer a simpler, more uncomplicated look; hence, we kept it as such.”
A queen-sized canopy bed makes the master feel quite regal, matching that fancy hotel feel you experience in niche details and corners of the home. Wolf Woof used light grey-toned laminates for the floor, giving off a brighter feel.
The Walk-In Closet
A small illuminated “step” leads from the bed to the dresser. Built into the wall between the bed and the dresser is a doorway going into the walk-in closet.
Whilst the master bedroom isn’t massive, Carmen conceptualised a way of creating a separate walk-in.
“Both my wife and I have a lot of clothing, and we wanted a walk-in closet,” says the homeowner.
The interior design team constructed glass cabinets to safeguard and showcase Kelly’s designer bag collection. Certain walls are decorated with a cherry blossom custom-print wallpaper from Wallhub.
Within the walk-in closet is a mirrored door. You enter the primary en suite via this door.
Sophisticated Primary En Suite
The master bathroom continues the bedroom’s lighter palette, and this bathroom is specifically for Kelly–although it does have his and hers sinks, which the couple requested.
“We wanted something functional, and again, Carmen came up with a design beyond our imaginations,” tell the homeowners.
The vanity is custom-built with carpentry clad in dark wood laminate and fitted with specially curated gold handles. They match the brass Grohe toilet mixer taps, bathroom shower system and accessories. Casa Stone quartz was used for the countertops.
Carmen played around with a combination of various tiles for the bathroom, including the bathroom floor, shower floor and walls. The tiles above the sink are mosaic tiles imported from Hong Kong.
“We used different wall and floor tiles to dress up the areas so that even though the bathroom is small, there is plenty of visual interest,” explains the interior designer.
Guest Bedroom & Work Space
“One of our requests was a concealed bed, so we can have more space. I use this room for my morning exercise, too,” says Alan.
The room feels open and spacious, featuring grey vinyl flooring and gold trims and details on the cupboards and handles.
To one side is a custom carpentry desk setup with cabinets above lined with LED strip lights. All around the room are cupboards for more storage, yet there is one really special “cupboard.”
This area is framed by an artificial Chinese rooftop (similar to the one in the living room), with two gold lion head knockers in the centre, which are actually levers.
Pulling down on these reveals a Murphy Bed. A cherry blossom print decorates the wall, matching the wallpaper in the master walk-in closet. Cut-outs in the cupboard act as bedside tables, which are lit up with LED strips.
In the centre of the room is a mooncake-shaped pendant light, reminiscent of the home’s Chinoiserie design.
Dramatic Foyer
Although there are no walls or partitioning dividers, the Wolf Woof team ensured that there was an immediate zoning off of the entrance foyer as you walk into the condo, created by using dark grey format tiles before the raised platform. It’s very noticeable that this room commands its own.
Next to the entrance, Wolf Woof custom-built an arched shoe storage cupboard, patterning it with a gold motif.
Guest Bathroom Design
Via the medicine cabinet display is another disguised doorway to the guest bathroom, which Alan uses. For this reason, the homeowners stuck with the home’s dark and dramatic colour palette.
An arched fluted glass entryway brings you into the bathroom, featuring a shower, toilet and vanity and sink.
“The guest bathroom is primarily black and gold (with a bit of white in the floor) since the Master Bathroom is primarily white and gold in look,” details Carmen.
The vanity is made from Casa Stone quartz material for the countertop, and the cabinet is clad with black wood-grained laminate. Hexagon mosaic tiles are imported from Hong Kong, and the shower features black subway tiles from Hup Kiong.
Final Reflections
The design process took two months, and construction and renovation works were completed in four months.
“Carmen is the key to this. The challenges she faced are that she had extremely demanding customers who: wanted something different from what she had done in the past; kept the renovation cost within a certain budget; and the house decor must create an instant impact on people and leave a lasting impression,” say the homeowners. “Carmen has been pivotal in this beautiful house she has designed and created.”