Maisonette in Hougang: Rethinking spaces with Japandi touches
Updated: 6 days ago
If you grew up in the 90s, chances are you’ve played hide-and-seek in a classmate’s HDB maisonette - or what your neighbour Auntie called a “mansion-nette”. While the term “maisonette” is derived from the French word for “little house”, Auntie might have been on to something...
Years later, this maisonette in Hougang settles into its own version of quiet luxury. Taking cues from Japandi-inspired spaces, we worked with a restrained palette to deliver a minimalist home that offers calm and rest for its occupants.
Instead of accepting where spaces "usually" go, we reconfigured the layout around how our clients live, optimising every space and corner of the floor plan.
Here's what went down in the transformation of this (almost) 40-year-old HDB flat.
A Japanese-inspired WFH study
Our clients are a pair of creatives with two young children. As they work from home often, a proper study was carved out from the original dining area. To illuminate the living spaces, we used Shoji-inspired sliding doors with patterned wired panels instead of washi paper to allow light flow from the corridor windows. Being near the main entrance and kitchen, it provides a quiet workspace that remains practical for family life - be it greeting the children coming home from school or preparing their meals between calls.
Best spot at home reserved for hosting
The dining area now sits in the most inviting corner of the home to accommodate frequent hosting. The abundance of natural light accentuates the generous vertical space, providing a quietly poised backdrop for entertaining.
Conventionally used as a gardening or laundry area, this corner of the balcony has been converted to a dry pantry for slow rituals, effectively taking up the cosiest corner of the home. The utility room is now confined to a narrow space behind the TV wall, separated from the dry pantry with a noren. This preserves the airiness and light flow that spans
across the entire living area, making the room inviting and comfortable to be in.
An open kitchen for the chef
The living area seamlessly extends to a fully-equipped kitchen where the homeowners enjoy cooking and baking. With the walls taken down, there is room for a large peninsula that offers extra countertop space for prep or quick meals. Custom display niches filled with Japanese travel finds complement the home's warm woodwork - the defining feature that gives this project its subtly refined character.
An organised entryway for everyone's needs
The foyer area is now connected to the open kitchen, zoned as the mudroom. A bespoke pegboard wall utilises the corner layout with two long settees framing a recessed plant nook, creating cosy seats above open shoe storage.
Find out more: This pegboard setup was crafted in-house, finished in a light, serene palette tailored to this home. Take a look at our other project for a richer, bolder take on the exact same built-in.
For us, rethinking a space opens up endless possibilities for how a newly crafted home supports the way we live today. This project stands as a reminder that HDB flats hold much potential for great living. Curious about what your own floor plan could become? Let’s connect and explore the possibilities together.
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