A Quirky, Mod-Con HDB Executive Apartment Designed For A Multi-Generational Family
Designed for the future needs of its inhabitants, this stylish HDB cohesively unites the various requirements of a three-generation family
For interior designers, one of the most challenging aspects of designing a multi-generational home is uniting the various needs and wants of the family members cohesively. This HDB Executive Apartment in Tampines is an excellent example.
The 36-year-old apartment belongs to couple Jennifer Yap, 51, and Andrew Choo, 49, who share the home with 29-year old daughter Rachel Foo and five-year-old granddaughter Raeanne, a helper, and various pets, ranging from a dog to an ant colony.
AT A GLANCE
Home: A HDB Executive Apartment in Tampines
Size: 1,593 sq ft
Who lives here: A three-generation family, a helper and many pets
ID: Wolf Woof
The family moved to the unit from a four-room HDB flat in Simei in search of more space to raise Raeanne. “This unit was actually the first unit that we viewed, and we were fortunate that our offer was accepted,” shares Jennifer. The family fell in love with the unit’s convenient location and the huge potential of its interior.
The search for a suitable interior designer, however, wasn’t that simple. After unsatisfactory meetings with five different design and build companies that offered her cookie-cutter design solutions, Jennifer turned the hunt to Instagram, where she found interior design studio Wolf Woof, helmed by Carmen Tang.
“I liked how Carmen approached her projects and documented them on Instagram, which was very personal,” says Jennifer. Their initial meeting went splendidly. The family members were also charmed by how Carmen listened to each of them and addressed their concerns with the design proposal.
The result of the $117,000 renovation –which survived a 10-week circuit breaker delay– is a whimsically cosy home with a balanced aesthetic that reflects each family member’s personality while anticipating the family’s collective future needs.
Each family member gets to decide on the aesthetic of the space they spend most of their time in. Then Carmen cleverly sprinkled design details that unite the spaces into a cohesive visual narrative.
The recess area was transformed into a foyer encased in geometric grill. This shared design vocabulary includes oblong and circular shapes, arches, and geometric patterns in tiles, wallpapers and breeze blocks.
Artificial plants, wall lights and a shoe cabinet make for a functional recess area.
This recess area can serve as an extension of the living space too.
This is the open kitchen with the quartz island countertop. This is where the family spends most of their time together.
“We also hung out a lot on the kitchen island in our old place, so for this new place, we thought, why don’t we make it cosier, like an informal dining room,” tells Jennifer, who also chose the kitchen’s colour palette, featuring dark blue laminates, black and white patterned tiles, and brushed gold hardware.
When they have guests or a larger party, they will move to the dining room on the other side of the living area. This formal dining room used to be the balcony, which was brought indoors and integrated into the living space.
The space’s centrepiece is a flatscreen TV mounted on a console designed to look like a fireplace – a Wolf Woof playful signature.
The previous owner had initially enlarged the living room by knocking down one common bedroom. Carmen re-partitioned this common room with glass doors and gypsum boards with a large glass porthole and turned it into a multifunctional room for the family.
“Right now, the room serves as a guest room, Raeanne’s playroom and my mahjong room,” shares Jennifer. “In the future, it will become Raeanne’s bedroom.”
Carmen has already built a wardrobe, while the custom arch niche was prepared to accommodate a bed.
Currently, Raeanne sleeps in Rachel’s bedroom, which sports a feminine yet timeless peachy pink and white palette with plenty of cosy textures and plants and rose gold accents.
Which features the same colour scheme and plants.
Meanwhile, Jennifer’s favoured dark colour scheme applies in the master bedroom and bathroom. The master bedroom features a walk-in wardrobe while the sleeping area is kept minimal.
Geometric wallpaper from Jupiter 10 recalls the geometric detail in the kitchen, while the patterned tiles in the bathroom tie it with the kitchen’s aesthetic.
Which Carmen articulated with patterned tiles that recall the look of the kitchen.
The flooring is uniform throughout the house: ceramic tiles. “This unit has a low ceiling, just 2.6m,” Carmen explains. “So uniform flooring draws the eyes to the expanse of the space. We also keep the built-in storage at a low height to keep the space airy.”
The homogenous tiles were also chosen to accommodate the honorary elder of the family
The homogenous tiles were also chosen to accommodate the honorary elder of the family: Elfie, a 16-year old chihuahua and silky terrier dog. “We liked to joke that with Elfie in the house, we’re actually a four-generation family,” shares Andrew.
The family rescued Elfie from SPCA in 2019, intending to give her a warm family and comfortable final home. And this home checks all the boxes.
Text: Asih Jenie/Home & Decor