DAY 54

The bathroom and kitchen fittings went up yesterday. I went down to the house when the plumber was there to let him know what goes where. It was a good thing I did because he thought the above right faucet was in the middle. We'd kept the Kraus faucet box in the storeroom and he didn't know about it. So we have two faucets for the kitchen sink, which now looks a little small in relation to them. Our Kangen machine will be connected to the faucet on the right but it can still function like a regular faucet. The pull down faucet will be the main one that we will use. The site inspection with the contractor and our designers has been set for 21 Nov. A week has been set aside for rectifications - which is inevitable - so the handover is scheduled for 29 November, way past what we expected but since we're not in any particular hurry, that's alright. I'd rather they do it well than to rush them. We've booked our tentative move date for Dec 7. Lots to do before this crucial date.

Due to the low ceiling in the kitchen bathroom - the false ceiling is much lower to accommodate and hide the AO Smith water tank - our rain shower is quite low, just a few inches above MJs head. The plumber had to saw off one parr of the original connector otherwise it wouldn't fit.

The Grohe faucet with the Otto toothbrush holder in the kitchen bathroom.

The handspray unit hung in between the shower screen and the WC. 

Toilet roll holder cum phone holder on the right.

The black faucet in the master bedroom bathroom. This is the first time we're seeing the installed semi-recessed basin too.

There was no issue with the shower set in the MBR bathroom since the ceiling height is higher.

One half of the shower screen is up.

A special hand spray unit purchased from Tokyu Hands. It's quite expensive compared to the regular ones so we bought one to try out first. 

On the left is the toilet roll holder with a side hook and phone holder on the top.

The void above the kitchen counter has been boxed up. I thought we could put some stuff up there to display but I guess our designers think it's quite unsightly and doesn't have that clean look. Boxing up also minimises having to clean the top area so we are in agreement.

Another few of the boxed up areas.

Lots of wasted space behind these boxes. This is the area above the shoe cabinet.

Behind the white door on the left is a space for our brooms and cleaning solutions etc. This is the dead space behind the fridge so we wanted to put it into good use and I suggested the broom/mop storage area. The main door has been removed. I asked the contractor about it and he said it was taken back to the factory to include some trimmings. He didn't elaborate and I didn't ask more. 

The configuration behind the white door.

Em's wardrobe solution. The smaller top left door can't be opened fully but it's wide enough to put in and take out stuff. The door below it opens fully so that's solved.

A better view of the top cupboard door.

No problem pulling the drawers out now.

Actually I thought we asked for a dark table top only because we know that the kids will dirty the white surface very quickly.

The power sockets, data points, TV antennae, cable point, LAN point all set up. The black wires are for our speakers and the OpenNet cable box.

DAY 51, 52 and 53

It was mum's birthday on Saturday so after an extremely luxurious dinner, we took the family to see the house for the first time since all the fixtures were assembled. Mum last went when everything was in rubbles. The main door was removed, we weren't sure why; the sockets, LAN point, data points had been set up in the TV console and part of the study desk which had been erected the day before was taken down. Again, we weren't sure why. On Sunday, the electricians came to install the brighter down lights in the kids' rooms but they were still not bright enough! It has to be changed again...

DAY 50 - Part 2

Went there again this morning after dropping Em off at school. Wanted to get some shots in daylight. So it's basically similar pix from last night, only that it's got a much better colour balance, with no tungsten cast.

The entrance is rather 'cosy' = tight now, with the installation of the shoe cabinet. Even though I lament the diminishing space, I acknowledge that we do need lots of storage area because we lack this in our current home and everything is left in the open, contributing to the visual mess.

View from inside the kitchen. The counter is on the right, shoe cabinet in the centre. 

A vertical version of the same view.

The kitchen cabinet doors have been attached.

Opening for the sink. The depth for this area is much more than usual. It actually extends beyond the normal human reach but because the cabinet, cooker and sink had to be aligned, it resulted in this anomaly in Anthropometry.

Laminate in roll form.

Super thin veneer.

I don't think there's enough cabinet storage space despite all these shelves. They're not that deep nor tall.

One of two doorways to the study.

Am so relieved to see that the top of the glass display cabinet has been aligned.

The super long table top for all our computers, printers, speakers and other gadgets.

A view from the bottom showing how its being supported and fixed to the wall. The box below will hold all our power sockets.

Close up of the box which will be hidden from view.

They've used these short wooden pieces to strengthen the table top. and to make the connecting points more rigid.

Top down view.

This would've made for a luxurious master bedroom!

We've asked for brighter bulbs in the kids' rooms and are awaiting its arrival.

Em's room.

The 'problem' door on the left side has been removed to be rectified. The solution is to have two doors for the left section, with the top part having a smaller irregular shaped door. It's visually not ideal as it won't match the rest of the wardrobe but I guess we don't have much of a choice.

A bunch of cables in the console for the TV, cable, speakers, amp, etc etc etc.

The small broom cupboard that is behind the fridge on the other side.

DAY 50 - Part 1

There was no work done yesterday, Wednesday, so I didn't post anything. We're nearing the end of renovation works and I'm surprised that they could afford to break for one day. At this rate, they are not going to complete by mid-November. As is our ritual, we went to the apt at around 10pm plus, after work. It's so difficult to leave the office earlier. There's work to be done and I can barely finish it. So the shoe cabinet at the entrance of the house has been installed. I feel as if the floor space of the house is creeping inwards inch by inch. There's so much built up furniture that has encroached the once humongous space that we are now left with very little. Sigh. 
Anyway, the outstanding (as in not yet finished, but yes, they've been pretty good too) work that's yet to be done are:-

01. Finishing up the long cantilevered table at the study
02. Installation of the kitchen sink and the standing cooker
03. All the bathroom fittings, the doors to the shoe cabinet and TV console
04. Three pendant lights for the dining table in the living room
05. To straighten all door handles
06. Finishing up the wardrobes and rectifying the oversights
07. Installation of the Ring video doorbell
08. Installation of the glass in the glass showcase
09. Installation of the glass doors in the study and kitchen
10. Connecting all the switches and sockets
11. Chase of a 2-gang power socket under the sofa
12. Paint the tiles outside the living and study windows
13. Replace the door magnet door closers
14. Replace bulbs in the kids' bedrooms and kitchen to brighter ones
15. Install clothes pole hanger
16. Install AO Smith digital thermometer
17. Install the washbasins in both bathrooms

And the list grows longer. Separately, I still have to get our Haiku fan installed, and arrange for the installation of the digital locks once the works are done. Oh and we also have the roller blinds to be installed at the end.

The shoe cabinet and niche at the entrance next to the main door.

The casing or frame for the door at the study room entrance.

A frame at the entrance next to the kitchen counter. 

Also the kitchen door frame.

The cantilevered long desk with no legs. It's as long as the study room, end to end.

View from the other side of the room.

All's good now with the glass display cabinet. The drop has been fixed, and the cupboards on top are back up.

Not sure where this piece is going. We tried figuring it out but had no idea. Most of the major pieces are already up and we can't imagine where this will go...