SINGAPORE TATLER HOMES

Modern Classic

Designed by SUMMERHAUS D'ZIGN, this apartment in District 10 is an au courant interpretation of the classical home

The Tesserina condominium development may be over a decade old, but for property hunters, its District 10 location remains sought after. Having found this apartment, the owner called upon Summerhaus D’zign to revamp the home. A look at the before and after reveals the extensive work behind the renovation of this 990sqft apartment. Spaces flow better and the home feels larger than before—a transformation that took three months to complete, according principal designer
Jess Koh and designer Careen Kho.

Space Optimisation

“After naming the basic requirements, the client pretty much gave us free play in the overall design. He was easy to work with and was concise about what he wanted, so most design proposals had very few amendments,” Koh says.

The door to the original kitchen was removed to expand the entranceway so the spatial experience flows better from one space to the next. In addition to the existing flooring, wall tiles and bath fixtures, the design team also removed the false ceiling throughout the home. In their place are new false ceilings. The
tapering along the inner perimeter of the ceiling helps to heighten the ceiling visually, an effect enhanced by cove lighting.

White Wonder

During the design stage, the clients expressed a preference for a classic interior with touches of French design in the furnishings. Concerned that the look would appear dated over time, the design team suggested going without intricate moulding. They turned it down with simple silhouettes for the walls and furnishings.

These work with the Volakas marble slabs, which were carefully book-matched so that the patterns flow. In the living area, the slabs form an inverted ‘V’ and resemble the shape of a mountain and frame the furnishings in grey, white and brown. The design team also introduced hints of gold as accents to the television cabinet.

The kitchen, fitted with white cabinets, would have been an all-white space too if not for the feature wall. It’s been jazzed up with blue glass mosaic tiles that match the quartz countertop from Caesarstone. The countertop, which resembles Statuario
marble, is an easy-to-maintain alternative to real marble.

Customisation Is Key

As interior designers, Koh and Kho know that understanding their clients is integral to the success of a project. The owner only does light cooking, so the mosaic wall tiles are suitable for the kitchen. That’s also the reason why the kitchen has been installed with “just sufficient” storage area with base cabinets on both sides of the kitchen. The apartment originally came with two bedrooms and a study. But the
latter has been turned into a bedroom. At 45sqft, though, it was a challenge accommodating the bed, storage and a piano. To make room for all these without the room feeling constricted, the design team customised a loft bed so the piano could be be placed beneath it.

The classic theme continues in the master bedroom, which is also awash in white. Trimmings on the wall-to-wall wardrobe bring the concept to life. While decorative,
the trimmings also have a practical function as handles of the wardrobe.

Finally, the master bathroom is another space with dramatic change. One section is dedicated to the bathtub fitted with a rainshower. A new wall was built to hide the
cistern, which was made possible by rotating the water closet 90 degrees from its original position.

The project had its challenges, among them being the wait for tiles. “Some tiles were indented from Italy so we had to work around the overall project schedule to
complete the other works first, and leave the tiling to the very end,” Koh says, adding that they had to work with a tight timeline as well. Through rounds of discussions within the design team and with the homeowner, the apartment was “transformed into an elegant, visually expansive space” that counters the space constraints and enhances day-to-day living.