We previously shared snippets of our resale HDB’s extensive $25k carpentry on Instagram. Many wanted to see why our carpentry had cost us so much, so here are the final photos of our carpentry!
To recap, our carpentry covered:
- storage platform
- settee
- shoe cabinet
- display cabinet
- feature wall with 2 hidden doors
- kitchen cabinets with tall unit for oven
- KompacPlus kitchen table top & back
- full height sliding wardrobe
Living room
What was built here: storage platform, settee, shoe cabinet, display cabinet.
Doorway
What was built here: feature wall with 2 hidden doors.
Kitchen
What was built here: kitchen cabinets with tall unit for oven, KompacPlus kitchen table top & back.
Kitchen
What was built here: full height sliding wardrobe.
Why did we spend so much on carpentry?
It would have made financial sense to buy as much loose furniture as possible. However, there were some items that still needed to be built in – especially the platform and feature wall!
We were also worried that the type & colour of wood textures used across our house would be inconsistent. Hence, we chose to build in and use the same laminate across the bigger pieces of carpentry.
Of course, we would have not spent so much had the previous owners left behind carpentry for us. Unfortunately, their design style was very different from ours, and a lot of their items were loose carpentry that they brought over to their new place.
Our review: was it worth spending so much on carpentry?
Our kitchen carpentry cost the most at more than $9k (!!!!) and sometimes we do think we were overcharged on carpentry even after ‘cutting corners’. We opted out of a lot of things, such as arches.
However, we were told that we paid quite little for our carpentry. This is considering that all of our carpentry come with Blum soft closure hinges. We did compare quotes with some other ID firms and thought the price was about there, so we didn’t make a big deal out of it.
As of now (more than half a year since we moved in), we would say the quality of the carpentry work done is really good. No wood peeling, caving in, chipping, etc. – Everything looks as good as the day we first moved in!
Our pro tip: ask around for as many rates as you can and compare apple to apple, to make sure you’re not getting ripped off by IDs or contractors who think you don’t know exactly what you’re paying for!
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