Exuding a nostalgic Scandinavian flavour, this open and airy home harnesses the best of this clean-cut style
Key Ideas
1. Brick walls are becoming the hottest commodity as feature walls. Use strips of laminate to outline these coarse walls and make a stronger statement.
2. Claim the Scandinavian look with neutral doses of colour. Pastel, whitewashed and earthy hues all work well in creating a spacious and airy Scandinavian haven.
3.Be sure to select furniture with clean lines too. This helps with furnishing the space with an uncluttered feel.
4. Use fooring to expand the visual size of an area. A long strip of tiles or homogenous fooring from one zone to another can elongate the space effectively.
5. Move the vanity out of the bathroom if there are two people sharing it. Have double sinks so both users can wash up at the same time.
Fast gaining popularity in local homes, the humble Scandinavian style is about keeping things understated. The clean lines, crisp white tones and woody motifs attribute to a breezy space which is most of all, warm and welcoming. Dan Wu, Senior Design Indent from Distinct Identity, understood this theme well enough to carve out a piece of Scandinavia for the homeowners of this 4-room HDB fat. This married couple specifed for this down-to-earth style and on top of that, requested for the usual storage needs.
First things frst, the essential space planning was executed and Dan tore down the boundary wall leading to the kitchen and turned it into an open concept space. Other extensive renovation works included merging the master bedroom with another room, and moving the vanity out of the bathroom and into the newly created walk-in wardrobe. With the space reconfguration established, he took to whitewashing the walls to set the right tone. Save for the kitchen and bathroom, the entire home is doused in the neutral shade.
To anchor the Scandinavian theme, the foors in the public zones and rooms are decked with vinyl tiles which mimic the look and feel of wooden foorboards. It immediately lends the home a sense of warmth. In the dining zone, Dan upped the style stakes by designing a distinctive brick wall feature. He clad the wall with coarse stone painted in white and built a brick wall. It is then outlined with strips of black laminate to create a border frame for the entire wall. To make the brick wall more functional, Dan included a blackboard to be used as a memo board.
The same brick wall treatment is applied for the living area which lends design consistency to the communal space. It extends downwards towards the TV console which is constructed out of the same black laminate fnish. To top it off, the bay window is capped with a black laminate fnish and it now serves as
a ledge.
Heading into the cooking space, one notices that the stretch of vinyl tiles running along the bottom of the suspended cabinets. It spans from the dining space and this creates an illusion of an elongated kitchen layout. The expanse of foor area is enhanced by the open concept of the kitchen and its galley setting where the fow of air and space is fuid. The atmosphere also switches from Scandinavian to industrial chic in the cooking space and this transition in style seems ftting. With the use of raw materials such as cement screed on the walls and grey homogenous tiles on the foors, the cooking quarters is paired to good effect with counters and overhead cabinets in black and white laminates.
In the newly expanded master bedroom, Dan segregated each area based on its function clearly. In it resides the sleeping area, study and walk-in wardrobe. The sleeping section is separated from the study area with a partial wall. By mounting the study desk and open shelves onto that wall, Dan has created a cosy study spot for reading and quiet contemplation.
Like other parts of the home, Dan ensured the design lingo remained consistent and this time, he applied the use of the same laminate fnish. It appears on all the cabinetry within the room and most noticeably on the vanity counter which has been moved out of the bathroom. Dan explains that the unconventional position of the vanity with his and hers sinks is so as the homeowners wanted to get ready for work at the same time.
Just as intended by the Scandinavian style which is the essence of effciency, this home embodies that Scandinavian spark and more. It is all thanks to Dan’s ingenuity in keeping the balance between functionality and aesthetics.