House Tour: A luxurious hotel-inspired contemporary-style semi-detached house
By Lynn Tan -
Homeowners Kevin Tham and Peggy Toh purchased this semi-detached property about seven years ago, but had it tenanted out as they were living in Hong Kong. Upon their return to Singapore, they embarked on a major renovation project that redefined the spaces — in order to create a family home tailored to their needs.
For Bu Shukun, the founder and design director of Architology Interiors, the design intent was to transform the rooms into proper family spaces and to sculpt a spatial sequence that flows through the entire house. The client’s brief was relatively functional and straightforward. “We wanted something that was Japanese minimalist, clean and contemporary,” says Kevin. Along with catering to what the clients wanted, Shukun incorporated elements that gave the home a touch of luxury reminiscent of that in six-star hotels. The result is an interesting juxtaposition of style and aesthetics.
The living room comprises a curated collection of well-known pieces such as the Ligne Roset Prado Sofa by Christian Werner, as well as the Love Sofa High Back by Marcel Wanders and Bart Daybed by Bart Schilder, both for Moooi.
A customised “Shou Sugi Ban” suar wood dining table takes centre stage in the dining room, complemented by a set of chairs from the About A Chair series by Hee Welling.
This aspect of “opposites” comes through immediately upon entering the home. A strong linear axis defined by a strip of teak floor and echoed by a dark walnut ceiling leads from the main entrance straight through to the pool at the other end of the house.
Instead of dividing the house into two, this axis “stitches” the open plan together and heightens the lateral connections that arise from crossing between the teak floor and the adjacent grey-coloured Grigio Carnico marble with its noticeable veining.
The design of the master bedroom is a continuation of that on the first storey, both with strong linear axes anchoring them.
The original master bedroom at the front was turned into the sons’ bedroom. The current master bedroom was created by combining two bedrooms and a study.
An open-riser staircase maintains porosity within the home, adding a degree of lightness that is juxtaposed against a palette of dark colours and materials.