Home Tour: $110,000 Brutalist renovation for a young man’s 4-room HDB in Pasir Ris
By Shannon Osztonits -
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A person’s home says a lot about them.
Sometimes, you get an interior designer who hits the nail on the head; other times, there might be small things that still niggle at you, post-renovation. However, when the homeowner is the brains behind the project, it leaves little room for design mishaps.
Envisioning a minimalist space that takes inspiration from Brutalist architecture (established in the UK at the end of WWII) — think geometry, rawness, solid lines and cool textures — it’s clear that this aesthetic is one that this former interior designer-turned-lighting advisor appreciates.
“I love dark colours and materials like metal and glass,” says homeowner, Darren.
Each room boasts clean lines and linear finishes, with dark neutral tones bouncing off one another, and an overall masculine feeling exudes throughout the space.
Furniture is purposefully minimalist. Pops of bright colour aren’t Darren’s vibe, which further echoes his love for the Brutalist style.
Fashion (Rick Owens is Darren’s favourite designer, renowned for his punk-y vibes) and gaming (a big Dota2 fan over here) are two of the homeowner’s major interests. With these facts in hand, again, one is not surprised by this lighting advisor’s personal and home style.
Who Lives Here: A 28-year-old Lighting Advisor, his partner and daughter
Home: A 4-room HDB in Pasir Ris
Size: 1,250 sq ft
Interior designer: Self-designed by homeowner, Darren Chu
Swapping careers three years ago, this complete gutting for Darren’s first home renovation wasn’t a daunting task for the former interior designer.
The home is a 4-room HDB with three bedrooms, and two bathrooms.
“One thing that drew me to this property was the location,” Darren explains. “The other was about how open the space feels; the windows and all.”
The primary objective and overall vision intertwine: creating a home to suit Darren and his partner’s lifestyle.
The dining and kitchen areas flow seamlessly into one another.
Dining Area Design
Designed with plenty of open space around the industrial-feeling all-chrome, stainless steel dining room table — and its organic wavy-edge — this type of setup truly allows the table to sit as the main feature.
It’s no surprise that the dining area is one of Darren’s favourite spaces in his home.
“In terms of layout, I needed a large dining space,” says Darren. “I love to host, and also at the same time, I need the area to be comfortable.”
Three recessed lights are fixed into the ceiling above the table. A wrecking-ball-type lighting fixture (designed by Darren, he specifically chose the chain for a Brutalist look) is angled mid-air next to the dining table. Parallel is a dark cabinet unit, utilised as a dry pantry with Darren’s coffee machine and water dispenser.
The kitchen boasts cool tones and textures.
Brutalist Kitchen Design
With its black Oregon teak cupboards, lighter sintered stone countertops and backsplash, and greyish-hued tiles (which sort of give the illusion of raw concrete), the colour palette compliments the home’s urbanised feeling.
Kitchen appliances are seamlessly hidden away, reinforcing the minimalist vibes.
On the other side of the glass panels, as seen from the living room, is the Master Bedroom.
Living Room Design
Entering the living room from the dining room, a glass-paneled corridor points you in the direction of the Master Bedroom.
The overall space is left uncluttered, with simply a sofa decorating the space.
Creating an illusion of an indented section for the TV, this is actually a partition feature wall for the TV to sit into. Below the mounted television is a stylish all-granite bottom design fixture, where a soundbar sits.
The glass feature wall is perfect for playing around with light and reflections.
Glass Feature Wall
Highlighting Brutalism’s appreciation for glass material, Darren installed glass panels into the corridor wall, doubling as the Master Bedroom’s wall.
“The glass wall allows a lot of light to filter through, but at the same time retains privacy,” tells Darren.
The glass’s glistening surface texture reminds one of water.
One of Darren’s favourite designers is Rick Owens, which you can tell from the lighting advisor’s favouring of dark colours.
Master Bedroom
The Master Bedroom exudes a masculine energy, coupled with tiles, glass and dark accents.
On the bedroom side, opposite the glass wall, is the homeowner’s walk-in wardrobe and study area. There is also a shoe display cabinet in the master, showing off Darren’s incredible sneaker and shoe collection.
The corridor in between these two spaces leads to the primary en suite.
Two side-by-side recessed ceiling lights provide moody lighting. There is a window in this room, too, allowing natural light in.
Brutalist Study Room Design
Working from home, the master bedroom is combined with a study, but they are two separate rooms. The way it’s set up is that you enter the study from the master bedroom corridor, but it’s done in a way that the one space flows into the next, and no door separates the two rooms.
The study room is dark; a perfect gaming situation. For any fellow gamers out there reading this, the chair is from Secret Lab. One stretch of the wall is the walk-in closet, sectioned off with a gorgeous dark fluted glass wall.
Darren cleverly balances the aesthetics of classical Brutalism with wood to add a sense of warmth to the bedroom, while still remaining industrial-esque.
King-Sized Bed
Where the WFH study is partitioned off, a king-sized bed is placed on the other side, leaning against a wooden paneling of black Oregon teak (identical to the kitchen). The headboard, together with the bedframe, is from Woosa Sleep.
The primary en suite is also done in the Brutalist style, but certain earthy elements feel Japanese-esque.
Brutalist Master Bathroom Design
Comprising a shower, vanity and toilet, the en suite is flecked in warm browns and cool neutral tones reminiscent of building materials, like cement. The combination works really well together, creating the perfect bathroom ambiance; a reprieve of calm.
A large floating console sink is constructed completely from an earthy-coloured sintered stone and is a standout feature of the bathroom.
The home is a gorgeous amalgamation of textures.
Overall, the home renovation process ran smoothly, showcasing how previous in-industry knowledge and experience matter.
Following on from this, I was curious to hear the homeowner’s take on whether an interior designer is always necessary, speaking on behalf of any homeowners who want to go the DIY route.
Seeing as Darren took charge of the design process from start to finish, we asked him for his view on going with an interior designer: Should you employ an interior designer for home renovation projects?
“Yes, if you have the budget for it,” he concludes.