counter public sphere

all pictures from The Everyday | EverydayNeeds

i'm still pining, i mean pinning furiously even if i have almost stopped checking the fb account where more people know me whether deeply or shallowly. i feel better. does it affirm that something about me? that i should delight in inhabiting places where nobody knows me, where i don't feel stifled? i have also begun reaching out to more colleagues offline, who aren't my friends on fb. i think some of them are on fb and maybe they think like me? a friend was sharing how she felt bad for excluding some people from complete access to her photos. i told her i won't understand because i don't have an audience in the first place. can you count the number of ironies here?

the photos above really got me. such that i'd blog a post, haha. maybe they tell me that i'm after all a sentimental fool for some distant past. i wonder if this is the mountain style. i think it's more retro, no? but not to the point of kitschy, kwim? i love the clear upper cabinets and the wood laminates (i think so because they look like formica to me). i suddenly hate my current kitchen. lol.

  

case studies

incorporated

i need the software that allows me to play interior designer or decorator so that i can make up my mind already. i was at the flat with the contractor a few days back. he said i may have to carve out a dining area of sorts in the just-as-tiny kitchen rather than squeeze it within the living room. and  he said it's ok to move the kitchen sink to where the windows are, don't think that'll affect our hanging out the laundry because it's not really our style all these years.

so, imagine here: the washing machine will go where the table is, the kitchen sink to move to where the fridge is, the hood will move to where the kitchen sink is, the fridge will go to where the washing machine is. 

which bathroom do you like the most? and why? me? duh. of course i can't decide.

immovable

the kitchn via d&oc

this kitchen layout is very close to the one at my nest. it looks wider and shorter here. i've seen this kitchen before but i didn't sit up until i saw it recently at d&oc. the position of the window is on the left, the sink's on the right (i'd really wish i could have the sink under the windows), and it's that washing machine right there that caught my eye. incidentally, i also had a foldable table in my previous kitchen. 

i wonder if people hang their laundry out like how it's done where i am. i don't think i've ever taken mine out in the sun to dry at my previous place. we'd have to haul the bamboo sticks out over the window sill. it's easier with the newer flats. typically, the common bath will be nested within the kitchen, so the washing machine has to go where the fridge is; the bath is where the table is (i was told the pipes were done that way anyway). so imagine the fridge and washing machine switching places but because my kitchen is longer, the fridge will be quite far from the sink and stove. doesn't sound right, right? that's why i asked the architect guy to help me mitigate these things. it's not impossible, if it's just about repositioning the movables but in the end it just always seemed to be a pointless endeavour. i was also cracking my head over how i could carve out a space for a 'laundry room'. impossible, of course. why does this kitchen not look ridiculous, i have no idea. but maybe it's indeed not practical for heavy-duty cooking? but i need my kitchen to be fully functional!

head.ache.  

bespoke

CustomMade

the people who did the cabinetry works are Butterworth Designs. i tried to hunt them down on good ol' google but couldn't locate them outside this website (all i gathered was that the guy with the guitar should be Obadiah Butterworth.). i thought the workmanship's outstanding. out of the many makers listed there, this was one of the few who stood out for me. but to be fair, there's a category for chairs and i did see some nice pieces crafted by other makers. maybe it's the lighting used in the pictures, i was getting quite put off by the numerous typical woody kitchens on the website. i do like warmth in kitchens but they looked so very dated, especially with the upper cabinets, making the space look so crowded. that's why i like this kitchen (above). i guess i like the clean look after all... although i'd like to tell you otherwise. i still find them really boring and lacking in character. yet i won't know how to decorate a space if my life depends on it. it's like what people say about the role of accessorising when dressing up. i do agree yet i'd rather play safe than fail at it. i'm such a chicken.

so i've sought the help of some really nice people. i think i shall not engage the service of the first guy, not that i was unwilling to pay for his professional expertise. but really, the space i have offers no room for any mitigation, so i don't need an architect nor a designer. they cost more than the goods and services tax, mind you. i could definitely save it for something else.

wooden it be nice

widawscy studio architektury

somehow the grain in the kitchen cabinet attracted me. not usually a fan but perhaps it's unusual to find these in kitchens.

i got the quote for the flat renovation. but i felt uneasy proceeding when i have no idea how to interpret the entire thing. the guy didn't offer to explain and i didn't know if i should ask. so i thought i should probably get a second opinion of sorts. found out that a church brother is in this business so i'm getting help from him. really dunno how it's going to turn out. i wish i don't have to make any major decisions at all.

pennywise

HouseBeautiful Sep 2011

loving almost every bit of this kitchen. doesn't the name of the paint make you laugh. haha. i'm still oscillating from here to eternity around colours. i tend to favour the yellows and oranges; seldom blues. a year later, the magazine did a colour report on America's Favorite Paint Color. guess what is the country's favourite colour? 

it's not that i don't like blue. i just find it really tricky. i feel the same way about it fashion-wise, so when i'm unsure about it, i steer clear. lately though my eyes were always trained on pale blues on bags and bottoms. 

ok, that's all for this unplanned post.

trip to nowhere

via groupon

as soon as i blogged the last post, my mind went into hyperactivity. everytime i thought i had it all figured out, i was thrown back to ground zero. i really don't think my idea's gonna work. the washing machine should probably shift to the other side of the bathroom entrance. then i was thinking about whether i could move the sink to the window side, rather than be situated under overhead cabinets as shown above. i've seen how awkward it was for my bro when he's at the basin. then i was also wondering if i should install those gigantic hoods over the stove. but the current stove is not located at the usual spot, so i'm not sure if it could be repositioned. 

i've been having real headaches this whole week. couldn't sleep last night so i got up and did some reading on kitchen flooring. a friend kept telling me to do up the flooring of the house first, then worry about the rest. yeah, that's one way. but i need to know what i don't want. and according to HGTV, i should invest in (kitchen) flooring.

poll: vinyl or linoleum or cork? 

i haven't even got started on the pattern of the kitchen flooring. i think i like the good ol' black and white square tile look. but i don't really want a black and white kitchen. yet somehow i'm very drawn to the idea of a black floor in the kitchen. i'm getting nowhere.    

booth

via apartment therapy


i'm loving this look above. been thinking of having benches as dining chairs, not unlike what you see in school tuckshops or canteens. then i could use some chairs on the other side of the dining table. these days when i went to school, i'd be checking out such furniture. ceiling fans too, wherever i went, especially restaurants. i wonder if i could write to the school to ask about these things :P

i was also thinking of using the booth to mark off the laundry area. not that i want the washing machine hidden because it's hideous. my sil also affirmed my idea of putting something over the washing machine so it could serve as a table of sorts. so, imagine: behind the back of the booth seat (underneath the hanging lamps), there would sit the washing machine. the booth would actually morph into a cupboard which would house the machine and powders and detergents, while the top of the cupboard would serve as a kitchen worktop.

what do you think? can do?    

the bigger challenge here, apart from having to customise the furniture, is to squeeze the dining area in a tight space so that the washing machine is lined with the attached bathroom in the kitchen. the other challenge is where do i start to close off the cooking area? much as i like the open concept, it's just not practical to not install slides or doors to contain the smoke and smells from the cooking. if i were to set the boundary where the booth ends, the already-tiny kitchen would only be able to fit max 2 persons at a time. i think the 2 may even have to fight for elbow space!

maybe i'd have to put up the floor plan just so you can see what i'm trying to say.    

exposed

share design

i've been going back to this site every now and then. i think i read somewhere that the pictures would come down soon, after the contest is over.

it's obvious why i loved the kitchens there. nothing pretentious. all real.

    

mirror mirror on the wall

small cool kitchens 2012

when i saw this photo, i wondered if it's for real. haha.

anyway, i went to see the flat for a second time in total.

i've obviously forgotten how the kitchen layout was like. i'd been thinking of knocking down a wall. there's no such need now. i was reminded of the size of the entire place.

oh wells.

i know a tiny kitchen can still be functional. my ma's kitchen's tiny but it's served us quite well. i suppose it's all about adapting. i can think of one problem only: two's a crowd inside a small kitchen. 

no i'm not going to resort to erecting a mirror in the kitchen. haha.      

flipper

freshome

my love for things tan and grey is consistent.
but i need to stop the discrimination.
but i have too many options.
but surely that can be minimised since i have a budget.
so what?
it's not going to help when i flip here flip there all the bloody time.
h e l p.
 

house to home

凹 or 凸

gdo

do you prefer the basin outside like that, or sunken?

i prefer it sunken, i think. but this looks nice. i think i like it cos it's metal. not like those typical 'cheaper' looking metal ones in kitchens.

oh i'm just rambling.