Many Singaporeans like visiting showflats. In many instances, the real genuine savvy buyers whom I do know purchase new properties without visiting the showflats. In actual fact, they told me that they do not want the showflat to sway their property judgement. Rather they rely on the type of developer, location and collaterals to get the feel of the project. More importantly, they study the layout plan in detail to make a judgement if the space is efficient and user friendly.

Of course, most of us would still visit showflat to check out the development’s offer in terms of exact location and spatial arrangement. There are some things that you must take note in patronising a showflat:

• No doors installed in the showflat: You will realise that almost all showflats will come without doors, as to facilitate the flow when the buyers visiting the space. Therefore the seamless and smooth feel you get from the showflat is much amplified  in comparison to a typical unit. In a way, it also makes the space appear bigger and less cluttered.
• No sliding doors between living and balcony: If the unit comes with a balcony, you will find a marker indicating the threshold between the 2 spaces of living and balcony . In reality, you should be seeing 3 or more panels of sliding glazing doors with bulky sliding tracks. In addition most showflats do not express floor drop between the spaces to prevent people tripping. As a result, the illusion of living and balcony as one big space gives you the bigger than normal feel. I have even seen one showflat with a sofa with its rugs at living being extended to balcony, making it appear as a single space. It is simply misleading and misrepresenting. Just imagine: how a sofa is able to extend over to balcony with sliding door frame and floor drop in the way. However you are just able to do it in showflat with many details being masked.
• Yard area: A showflat is always beautiful and neat. However the reality and practicality is still critical in a home buying. One of the check list you must have is to go for a naturally ventilated yard. With most of units becoming smaller in view of market affordability, you might want to take note that yard is still a necessity for clothes drying. Though there are many powerful dryers in the market, people tend to prefer sun dried clothes than tumbled dry method. You do not want to end up drying your clothes at the balcony, right?

There are many worth-noting pointers are highlighted in the article below. Do read them before you pay a visit to your showflat trip this weekendJ

Showflats & their telling displays

Fri, Jun 18, 2010
The Straits Times

Visiting showflats on weekends is very much a Singaporean pastime. Many who throng the showflats are not buyers, but browsers with noisy families in tow.

But for those who are thinking of putting down some hard-earned cash for a brand new home, this seemingly leisurely activity is actually the homework they should do carefully before they commit themselves to a purchase.

They should scrutinise every nook and corner in the showflat and be clear that they may not get all that they see.

Showflats, after all, are done up by interior designers engaged by the developers to make them look as attractive or as spacious as possible.

Ngee Ann Polytechnic real estate lecturer Nicholas Mak advises potential buyers to take note of ‘optical illusions’ employed to make the units look bigger.

For instance, glass partitions are often used instead of walls to separate the bedrooms from the living area. This gives the illusion of more space than there actually is.

Glass partitions are also thinner than actual walls, and thus take up less space.

A buyer can always do the same for his own unit, but may then have to compromise on privacy.

It is common for developers to remove the non-structural wall of the bedroom nearer the living area to make the unit look bigger and allow more space for visitors, said EL Development managing director Lim Yew Soon.

‘In such instances, buyers should ask whether the wall can actually be removed,’ he said.

‘Another question they should ask is whether all the appliances – for instance, the non-standard ones like dishwashers and washing machines – are provided or are there for interior design purposes.’

Wall mirrors are also often employed to give the living area the illusion of spaciousness, experts say.

‘The buyer can also use a wall mirror in his own home, but the key is where is the best place to put it. And that depends on the individual unit,’ said Mr William Ong, executive chairman of Axis ID.

‘Showflats do give you an indication of what you can put into the unit.

‘When you do up your own unit, you have to first think about how much furniture you need and how much storage you need.’

Where furniture is concerned, the key is in having it in the right scale, said Mr Ong.

Another expert, who declined to be named, warns that some small projects may use very small customised furniture. For instance, a supposed double bed in a bedroom may be much smaller than an actual double bed.

When checking out the bedrooms, Mr Mak says, potential buyers should ignore the furnishings and try to imagine if they can comfortably fit in a normal- size single or queen-size bed, a desk and a wardrobe.

Also, experts say buyers have to consider how efficient the layout is. A square or rectangular- shaped room is always easier to manage.

For odd-shaped apartments, it may be a good idea to engage an interior designer who can help to maximise space.

‘The smaller the apartment, the more you need expert help to help you maximise space,’ said Mr Ong.

Some home hunters have complained about having to pay for bay windows and planter boxes when they have no use for them.

For instance, the actual living space in a 1,200 sq ft unit that includes bay windows and planter boxes is much smaller than 1,200 sq ft.

But, under a new government ruling from January last year, developers – although they can still build bay windows and planter boxes – no longer have the incentive to do so because they will have to pay for the space for these features. Previously, they did not have to.

One good thing about showflats is that they are chockful of design ideas.

And as Mr Ong said: ‘Whatever developers show in the showflat is usually achievable. The ideas are there to make the space look bigger but they are doable ideas.’

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The flashy colorful advertisement in newspapers are for the masses. If you are a sincere quality buyer, try to get yourself to be a Very Very important Person to be invited for the preview in order to get your choice of unit at a before inflated price before the actual launch.

Interesting way for an agent to book their sales even before the launch day! I would just say the world for agents is just so competitive that it is good to be innovative! I must start to squeeze for more creative juice to churn out greater sales this month too:)

Get first pick at condo previews

By Joyce Teo

Official property launches, often announced in full-page colour advertisements in newspapers, are for the masses.

That is when the public throngs the showflat. Individuals, couples and families with kids in tow turn up in full force. Many are not really buyers.

What can a keen buyer do to avoid the crowds? He can simply head for the VVIP preview – a preview for very, very important persons, or quite simply, a preview.

Contrary to what the name suggests, you become truly important to developers these days once you show keen interest. Gone are the days – at least for now – when some developers screened their potential buyers.

‘Previously, the VVIPs were bosses’ friends, business associates. Now, anybody with money to buy will become one,’ said a property agent who declined to be named.

‘The whole intention (of the VVIP preview) is for the property agency to assess interest, and accumulate names of potential buyers. Nowadays, we assess the interest first, before the launch.’

Indeed, previews or soft launches are a way for developers to test the market. If the preview response is strong, the developer will likely raise prices come launch time, experts said.

Take the latest mass market preview of the 608-unit The Estuary in Yishun, which was launched yesterday. During the preview, its units went for an initial average price of $750 per sq ft.

But following strong demand after a preview starting on Feb 25 for staff, business associates and its property agencies’ clients, developer MCL Land raised prices twice, by 2 per cent each time, for the new units released the following two days.

On Feb 25, about 150 units were snapped up. The next day, the figure was more than 200 units. By Feb 27, more than 300 of about 350 units that were released for sale were taken up.

For keen investors, attending a condo preview means getting the first bite of the cherry. ‘You don’t wait until the launch date to buy because the unit you want may not be available any more,’ said ERA Asia-Pacific associate director Eugene Lim. ‘Besides, the first day of the launch is usually packed.’

Buyers now do their homework way before the preview and why not, given the service property agents happily render these days? These agents now take a proactive approach and will even visit potential buyers’ homes to do presentations on a new launch.

Mr Lim said property agents started doing presentations at potential buyers’ homes last year.

Buyers can also get quite a lot of information these days on the Internet. ‘You look at the floor plans, identify which unit you want to buy, and book it with the agent, all before the preview,’ said Mr Lim.

Agents will give an indicative price range for the buyers to work with, as the property’s pricing will be announced only on the preview day.

On the day itself, the agent will book the unit for his client, as long as the client’s choice unit is available and it fits his budget, experts said.

‘There’s been a change of buying behaviour. Buyers used to want to see the showflat before they made a decision,’ said Mr Steven Tan, executive director of OrangeTee’s residential division. ‘But during the boom in 2007, they realised the units they wanted were sold by the time they arrived at the showflat.’

He added: ‘Buyers want to feel special. So agents now let them book the units first.’

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CONDOMINIUM DEVELOPMENTS IN BALESTIER

There has been a lack of full-fledged condominium developments in Balestier, which is dominated by old apartments. De Royale in Balestier is the only one condominium development I can think of. Pavilion 11 does not come with tennis court, therefore I do not consider it a true condominium development despite of it has 180 units in one development.

However we are going to have these 3 full-fledged condominium developments side by side in a same area, led by CDL’s the Arte to be completed soon (I am seeing the hardscape and softscape works are in progress now), followed by Cube 8 & Far East Organization’s Vista Residence. Three projects have relatively large site area and spacious communal area with dense tall towers housing all the residential units. They all boasts extensive facilities, from large swimming pools, to garden walk, jogging track, playground, gym,  green terraces (with Vista & Cube having sky terraces), to the tennis court provision.

FACILITIES

The Arte @ Thomson features 50 metre lap pool, children’s play pool, sun deck, cabanas pool deck, steam baths, work-out room, yoga court, reflexology walk, garden walk, jogging track, sculpture plaza, arrival plaza, reflective pool, water court garden, eco pond, workout station, children’s playground, tennis court, party lawn, grill garden, clubhouse, party deck, outdoor lounge, basement car park, and 24-hour security.

Vista Residences also feature a 50 metre lap pool and lagoon pool, basket ball half court, and garden areas. However it is different from the Arte which have practically all communal areas at the ground level. For Vista Residences, the 2nd floor of each tower is a lounge area, while sky terraces are found on the 24th floor (T1) and 23rd floor (T2) respectively. Both blocks are connected to a separate podium block each – this is where the multi-storey carparks are located. On the rooftop of podium 1 is a tennis court and 2 garden pavilions (with kitchen and BBQ facilities), while 2 other garden pavilions, a bicycle track and a children’s play area are on rooftop of podium 2.

Vista Residences with sky terraces

In Vista Residences, the placement of the communal areas at different levels has allowed residents to enjoy good views if they are not blessed with staying at high levels. Sky terraces definitely add value to the facilities premium value.

CARPARK

In the context of high end residential developments, basement carpark provision has become a must. The Arte comes with a basement carpark, which is more popular with residents. One needs not need to be concern of weather, and the walking distance to the lift lobby will be definitely shorter than the use of separate multi storey carpark. Therefore for Vista Residences, it has invited criticism for the provision of 2 multi storey carpark, which one has to travel down from the carpark and travel up to the apartment again. It will be more of a hassle if you are tagged with grocery bags or tonnes of luggage.

Personally I do not detest multi-storey carpark. They are definitely much cheaper to construct. More importantly, I find them more environmentally friendly. Imagine we do not need to provide the costly mechanical ventilation and additional fire protection. If you are going GREEN, you should be going for something more practical and less energy consuming. Of course, this is my personal view, which might not be agreed by the end users who have paid millions to enjoy the lifestyle of luxury.

SITE PLANNING

The Arte is blessed with a large rectangular site easier for planning. The 2 towers are located at the centre of the site with the adjacent open spaces given to communal facilities. Personally I found the 2 towers being too design too close to optimise the view. In addition, it would have been more ideal if the 2 towers were to be site further from the PIE highway, with more acoustic barriers designed along the boundary in response to the harshness from the road traffic. Dust is another problem that it would face.

In comparison, Vista Residences is sited at a L-shaped plot which is less efficient in its site planning. In the site planning, the architect decided to detach 2 towers apart, with one orientated towards the Mac Ritchie Reservoir and the other block towards the rear development facing the adjacent, the Cintrine, in North South oriented in consideration.

UNIT ORIENTATION AND UNIT TYPES

From the earlier site plan illustrating the three development (Cube 8, the Arte, Vista Residences), it reflects the priority of view over basic thermal comfort consideration. It is apparent that all architects have been orientating the buildings premium view towards MacRitchie reservoir and siting the blocks carefully as to optimise the view ‘out’. However it is not possible to eliminate all negative factors that there are some unit stacks will be having blocked views.

Most buildings are orientated towards the Reservoir view, therefore giving most building façades with North West exposure. With today’s design with full height glazing, it would result in immense heat gain unless with sun shading features properly used. Maybe it has been taken for granted that every unit will be mechanically cooled in today’s context, that I found the immense amount of glazing used in all developments to be too excessive and not environmentally friendly.

The Arte comprises of a total of 336 units. It, in comparison to Vista Residence, boasts larger units — two bedrooms at around 1,055 sq ft, three bedrooms from 1,399 to 1,625 sq ft, four bedrooms of 1,873 sq ft, eight units of 2,896 sq ft sky suites and 10 sky villas of up to 4,000 sq ft. Vista Residences has a total of 282 units. It offers a popular 1 bedroom unit of 646sf, 2 bedroom of 926 sf, 3 bedrooms of 1109 to 1249 sf, 4 bedrooms of 1292 to 1313 sf, and the penthouses of 3229 to 3519  sf.

UNIT DESIGN FEATURES

In terms of design unit layouts for the Arte & Vista Residences, they are pretty standard. Basically, one enters into the living area attached at the back with a kitchen, with a corridor leading to the rooms. However there are 2 main features differentiating them:  the spacious balcony in the Arte and the bay window in Vista Residences.

The Arte unit layouts come with spacious balcony (big enough to put in a dining table) and planter boxes, with most of balcony spanning across to bedrooms areas. I personally do not favour the continuous balcony from living to bedrooms, since it has somehow blurred the areas of semi open area in living and private area in bedrooms. Can you imagine if your guests standing at your living balcony enjoying the outside view, and somehow get a glimpse of you in pyjamas in your bedroom? Though you may be able to do up divider and screening in between the balcony, I still do not find the space planning is efficient. I personally like spacious balcony, however it should be fully functional and useable.

 I personally find the spatial design for Vista Residences more efficient and design friendly.

 We do not have much area dedicated for bay windows in the Arte. However Far East is still trying to optimize the area for bay window for Vista Residences before the change in the GFA ruling. The bedroom areas in Vista Residences are generally smaller than the Arte. With the adoption of bay windows, it is not helping much to the internal spaces. To me I do not find bay windows much of useable areas except for sitting, placing books or displaying photo frames. It applies especially for small bedrooms. To me, it is just the loophole that the developers are exploiting since they are being charged the same price of the exorbitant saleable area in the S&P agreement.

 NOISE/ DUST POLLUTION

My concern for the stacks closest to the PIE highway is the noise pollution, since the traffic volume has been very high. The noise level could be unbearable during peak hours, and the condition could be worse at higher level. I visited the site to check out the noise level. The continuous pitching sound from the PIE highway was rather unbearable, and I was there during the off peak hour. I could imagine the noise pollution would be rather serious during the peak. However I believe many buyers of the developments are well aware of the site condition, and noise pollution is definitely not on the top of their list in the decision making. One thing you may need to take note is that, the higher the floor, the noisier it is as the sound always travels upwards. (in a way of saying, you are exchanging the noise level with better view)

 The use of balcony in the Arte and Vista Residences could bring about another problem. Sliding doors are provided at areas for access to balcony. And sliding doors system is considered one of the weakest systems in acoustic treatment, since the sliding profile of the aluminium tracks does not allow airtight closure and have high leakage of noise. The residents facing the PIE highway are not able to shut out the noise fully by closing the doors at night. Of course, this is my personal knowledge of glazing and aluminium system technology. The projects may have adopted an approach resolving the tricky noise issue.

Since Vista Residences is sited further from the PIE, separated by a wide canal, it may suffer less than the Arte. And the block with stack 01 to 06 may be the least impacted, with the rest of blocks in the Arte & Vista Residences blocking and softening the road noise. However in terms of viewing, the lower storey units are basically blocked by the adjacent developments like the Citrine and Gallery Fifteen.

 EXPECTED TOP

I would always like to purchase something with certainty. When the Arte is being launched, the site has commenced work. Therefore the buyers could anticipate the TOP to be in one to two years time. As for the case of Vista Residences, the anticipated TOP is 2015. If you visit the show room today, it is evident that the site has not commenced any work yet. If I am going to sink in my booking money and pay up according to the progress payment, I will feel that I am being locked into a position in the coming 5 years, without knowing the global economic impact in so many years. That is not something that I would feel comfortable, since there is simply too much uncertainty in today’s economic sector. Who knows that the property will sink in 3 years time, making today’s purchase appear far too expensive?

Though there may be worries over the over crowding and pollution concerns, I still think that there will be more positive elements arising from the developments. With much of the rejuvenation activities in Balestier area, I hold much anticipation to the place newly make over. It is with much excitement that Balestier will be transformed into an area popular with high end residential area, fighting the glory of Newton & Novena area, yet retaining its unique and colourful historical character in Balestier.

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Here I am continuing my study on Cube 8 from my previous article:

Cube 8 is a freehold condominium development located at 376 Thomson Road, Singapore 298130, in District 11, minutes’ walk to Novena MRT Station. With an expected completion in 2017, it comprises of 177 units in a 36 storey tower. Cube 8 is close to MacRitchie Reservoir Park and Novena Square Shopping Mall.

This development has full condominium facilities. They include function room, gymnasium, wellness studio, games arena, gourmet’s domain, fitness area, party deck, outdoor dining deck, BBQ deck, garden deck, children’s playground, family pool, infinity swimming pool, jet pool, sauna, sun deck, tennis court and 24-hour security. Considering the market condominium provision, Cube 8 has been pretty generous in its provision of communal facilities.

In terms of view, Cube 8 commands relatively good view with no near future threat of development blocking its view. With the intended orientation, many units should enjoy unblocked views towards city and MacRitchie Reservoir Park.

Cube 8 is sitting on a sizable plot of land having easy access to city and other parts of Singapore via Thomson road, Balestier road and the adjacent PIE. It may face acoustic noise issue due to its proximity to the highway, especially the area of highway is the flyer over section of the PIE. The architect has tried his best to orientating the building block, however there are 3 stacks 05, 06 & 07 nearest to the highway might suffer from noise pollution. Looking at the glassy design of the building, the architect might have adopted some noise reduction measure such as use of laminated glazing or others to effectively minimize the problem.

Below shows the types of units making up the 177 units.

1 Bedroom (560sqft) — 39 Units

2 Bedroom (~900sqft) — 58 Units

3 Bedroom (~1,300sqft) — 67 Units

4 Bedroom (~1,900sqft) — 9 Units

Luxury Penthouse (~3,000sqft) — 4 Exclusive Units

I did a rough arithmetical calculation on the development figures

• Total saleable area= 190,240 sqft

• Average selling price= $1250

• Gross Development value = Total saleable area x avg selling price = $238.8million

• Acquisition Cost of the Albany & Thomson Mansion = $67 mil

• Development charge = $174,000 (too insignificant for input later)

• Estimated Construction cost for luxury condominium psf = $450psf $400 psf (pls advise if you think the cost is not correct) = $76 mil

• Estimated Development Construction cost = $86.6 mil

• Estimated Consultancy fee inclusive authority submission= 10% of construction cost = $8.66 mil

• Miscellaneous cost i.e. financing, marketing, etc = 10% of GDV= $23.88 mil

The estimated profit for CDL, GDV after less the construction cost and others, is $76 million. Quite a profitable project. (Disclaimer: I am no expert in real estate development, therefore the above is purely the play of figures intuitively. Feel free to point out if there is something amiss:)

Afterall, Cube 8 has outperformed in the booming market. In the past January, URA’s figures showed that another 350 homes sold were in the city-fringe areas, led by City Developments’ Cube8 in Thomson Road – January’s top-seller. Out of 177 Cube8 homes launched, 167 units sold at a median price of $1,286psf.

I attach herewith the Cube 8 brochure for your perusal. If you are interested in Cube 8, and like my unbiased views towards all projects, you may want to reward me by engaging your agent so I could render my full fledged professional service to you (ha ha, I still have to advertise my realtor role now and then to make a living on it).

Cube_8_Brochure

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Diamond tower, Goodwill mansion and Waldorf mansion will be the 3 residential developments going for enbloc launch this year. Other than Goodwill Mansion which is of 3 plot ratio, the rest of 2 are of 2.8 plot ratio. These 3 developments are relatively old, and appear pretty run down. They are located at quite strategic places, especially for Diamond Tower sitting next to the up and coming Zhong Shan Park.

With the current launching price of more than $1000 in the same region, I expect the residents will be expecting selling pricing not less than that. Though judging from the current built up, I do not see much of incremental plot ratio the developments are able to gain from. Looking forward to see the successful bidding price. Any guess from your end?

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These dishes look so delicious!!! Sorry, they are not for you. They are for the lucky pets who have the luxury to enjoy all these salivating appetizing dishes at a comfortable café located at Balestier area.

I would say that all pets and pet owners are simply spoilt for choice when they come by the Urban Pooch. It is the first dog café & boutique being opened in Singapore and it is currently run by its pioneer Miss Raye Tan. Other than are area, the shop also provide pet care and grooming services.

If you are just irritated that there is no place to turn to with your pet in the coming weekends, the Urban Pooch may be a right choice for you. And be rest-assured, the café also provides food for human like us, and they taste equally delicious as the doggie food !

530 Balestier Road,

#01-07, Monville Mansion

Singapore 329857

Tel:6252 5046

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Yesterday I posted on the article of the industrial building at 6 Jalan Ampas being successfully enbloc-ed , as well as the anticipated increase in enbloc activity due to the re-zoning to the region. My friend commented if the adjacent site at 8, Jln Ampas which is the former Shaw’s Malay Film Studio would potentially be converted to residential development. It is currently sitting on a site which is already zoned as Residential site with 2.8 plot ratio.

If you are not aware, the above Google photo illustrates the old Malay Film Studio which was once famous in our parents’ age. Below is the extract from the Heritage Trail Singapore:

Set up by the Shaw brothers in 1947, the studio was a logical business decision by the Shaws who started with film distribution and then moved into screening the films as well. With the studio, they could produce Malay shows to cater to the local clientele as it was a relatively untouched market.

They brought in equipment and experienced technicians from Hong Kong and Shanghai while singers and actors came from local Malay opera troupes.In the beginning, most of the directors were Chinese but were later replaced by Indians as the audience enjoyed the plots and directional style of the Indian “Bollywood” style of film production.

 

One of the most famous actors and directors that came out of the Jalan Ampas studios was the legendary Tan Sri P. Ramlee (1929-1973). P. Ramlee started as a playback singer providing vocals for the lead actor in the movie ‘Cinta’ in 1948 when he was only 19 years old. He later went on to become the lead actor on the silver screen. In 1950, he became the first actor to sing in his own voice in the movie ‘Bakti’. His talent and energy enabled him to rise from an actor to become a prolific director, singer and songwriter who created most of his masterpieces in Singapore. For the next 20 years, P. Ramlee went on to win international accolades and multiple awards with over 70 films and 200 songs to his credit.

You might be interested to check out the blog by the son of the director Jamil Sulong @ http://sayaanakwayang.blogspot.com/2009/02/malay-film-studios-jalan-ampas.html and the video showing the old studio.

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The site is of 4.6 hectares, is located across from the Sun Yat Sen Nanyang Memorical Hall. As the name Zhong Shan Park suggests, it is named after the Sun Yat Sen in Chinese. The site is zoned as hotel site, having gross floor area of 425,942 square feet, which can potentially yield some 675 hotel rooms. 4,844 square feet of space in the public park can be used for outdoor refreshment areas and tea pavilions.

Property developer Hiap Hoe has put in the top bid of S$73.3 million for a hotel site in Year 2008. The price works out to S$172 per square foot per plot ratio for the 99-year leasehold site. As illustrated in the artist impression on the hoarding, the development will be providing a strong linkage to the Sun Yat Sen Nanyng Memorical Hall, through a public greenpark with water body. It seems to be an exciting project, which may revitalize the Sun Yat Sen Nanyang Memorical Hall.

Currently the Sun Yat Sen Nanyang Memorical Hall is pretty deserted even during the weekend. I thought this is quite a waste, given that the place is pretty lovely with the garden and good architecture. Maybe one suggestion to the board, we should waive the entrance fee and make it a place for the nearby residents to gather and enjoy.

Given the excitement commencing at the Zhong Shan Park, it is no surprise that the property at the area has been excelling in its transactions. Not to forget that Balestier Road is also known for its delicious local fares, such as Tau Sar Pia and Bak Kut Teh, that are tucked away in shophouses that line the road.

This is one of the many tile shops we have in Balestier Road. Lian Seng Heng is located at 568-A, Balestier Road. The shop is pretty packed. It shows that the property market is very good, that every one is renovating their new hom. Outside the shop shows a variety of stoneworks outside its corridor, from ceramic tiles to slates.

Here we see the palettes of different types of slates sample board. Aren’t they beautiful? Most suitable to be used for external wall at garden area.

These panels appear to be homogenous tiles, which are pretty popular for its easy maintenance and wide variety of choices nowadays.

This side displays the different choices of Ceramic Tiles. You will be amazed with the techology of ceramic tiles. It is no longer like the types we use in our traditional kitchen and toilets, limited color and boring in selection. Nowadays the ceramic tiles are able to mimic after timber boards, granite or marble texture.

How to differentiate a homogenous tile from ceramic tile? Homogenous tiles, as the name suggest, is homogenous throughout its section. If you happen to chip off a corner of it, it will appear the same pattern with the inner section. However with ceramic tile, the chipped off section will reveal the dark clayish body.

I love mottifs too. If they are used well, they can really bring out the beauty of the space.

These organic glassy mosaics are my favourite. Simply gorgeous!!!

I managed to source their website address. I would say their featured images are even more impressive. Welcome to check this out! http://www.liansenghin.com.sg/

D’Ixoras is a freehold development located at 23 Minbu road, Singapore 308172, in District 11. It is located beside the Mandalay mansion, minutes away from Novena MRT Station. It will be completed in 2013 with 22 units, made up of 13 storeys. It is within 10 minutes walk to the nearby Novena MRT Station. Residents can do their shopping at the Novena Square & Square 2. Food lovers can enjoy a wide selection of local dishes at Balestier Road, the Singapore food street.

Piling has been completed. Superstructure work is proceeding towards the 2^nd level of residential units.

The developer is Singlap Company Pte Ltd.

Expected TOP stated in marketing brochure is 2013.