SINGAPORE \u2013 More budget-conscious Singapore families are styling their Build-To-Order (BTO) flats to look like Ikea showrooms.<\/p>\n
Here, three home owners reveal their experiences and expenses in tapping the Swedish retail titan\u2019s new one-stop Home Design Service after bypassing contractors and interior designers.<\/p>\n
Each home owner\u2019s journey has been expedited by an Ikea specialist, progressing from initial space planning to final installation.<\/p>\n
Cost: <\/b>$40,000
Flat type: <\/b>Four-room BTO (90 sq m)<\/p>\n
Inside a stylish living room at MacPherson Weave, a family of five gathers for a cosy movie night with the blinds drawn and popcorn passed around. The traditional-modern space exudes a calm aesthetic that belies the initial terror felt by the homeowner, who wants to be known only as Seng.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow am I going to fit the family?\u201d the 53-year-old church worker recalls asking himself, during an interview with The Straits Times a fortnight after the family\u2019s mid-May move-in.<\/p>\n The living room of this MacPherson Weave BTO has a showroom vibe and lots of storage, and it is also perfect for movie nights or jamming.<\/p>\n PHOTO: IKEA SINGAPORE<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n The downsize to a 90 sq m flat was stark for the family, who previously lived in a more spacious 115 sq m resale flat in Pasir Ris. Last November, out of ideas, Seng bundled his wife Sharon, 52, an executive assistant, and their three children to Ikea Tampines for dinner.<\/p>\n That casual discovery trip sparked an epiphany. Strolling through the kitchen showrooms festooned with Christmassy lights, the spatial efficiency clicked. Spying a QR code for Ikea\u2019s new Home Design Service, they left their contact details.<\/p>\n From the start, the couple ruled out heavy structural hacking. Instead, they chose HDB\u2019s Optional Component Scheme for doors and flooring, which cost about $8,000.<\/p>\n Over the next few months, they popped into Ikea six to eight times, walking the floor for ideas and sitting down for intensive co-design sessions with home design specialist Shikin Ghani.<\/p>\n \u201cI told my wife that I didn\u2019t want to think anymore,\u201d Seng recounts. It would be better to have a clear, itemised breakdown of costs, he says.<\/p>\n Unlike interior designers who may push fixed packages, he felt Ikea\u2019s process was open. \u201cPackages are a horror,\u201d he gripes.<\/p>\n The cost breakdown was so granular that they once spent almost six hours locking in their final order with Shikin, ending up with a thick file of invoices. This also simplified refunds later for unused hinges and lights.<\/p>\n About 98 per cent of their home was handled directly by Ikea. Contractors stepped in for special components like the gas hob and made-to-measure shower screen, while Shikin worked with the family\u2019s electrician when the kitchen\u2019s power points needed repositioning.<\/p>\n Their completed home, with full installation taking eight days, stretches out horizontal and vertical spaces. In the living room, she customised an extra-wide, continuous bench seat across the bay window that doubles as deep storage.<\/p>\n Down the hallway, the bedrooms are optimised for three young-adult lifestyles. For their eldest son, 22, who is serving national service, a Vitval loft bed frees up floor space beneath for a sleek gaming station and guitar racks.<\/p>\n The 22-year-old son\u2019s bedroom in the MacPherson BTO reflects his love of gaming and guitar-playing.<\/p>\n PHOTO: IKEA SINGAPORE<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n His sisters, aged 20 and 16, share a bright room anchored by dual Smastad loft beds featuring integrated study desks and wardrobes. The overflow of their belongings is stashed in his room.<\/p>\n Two sisters in the MacPherson BTO share a bedroom with loft beds and lots of whimsy.<\/p>\n PHOTO: IKEA SINGAPORE<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n In the master bedroom, a floor-to-ceiling Pax wardrobe system was built with illuminated glass door panels to showcase dresses and handbags, while a Malm ottoman bed adds hidden storage for seasonal clothes and bedding.<\/p>\n The master bedroom is functional and aesthetic.<\/p>\n PHOTO: IKEA SINGAPORE<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n The contemporary, country-inspired kitchen has an extendable Nasinge dining table, and herb canisters line the fridge. A whiteboard dotted with handwritten notes that affirm one another is an affectionate, analogue design choice, inspired by mum\u2019s love of Ikea\u2019s classic corkboards as a teen.<\/p>\n The kitchen and dining room of the MacPherson Weave BTO flat is contemporary and country-inspired.<\/p>\n PHOTO: IKEA SINGAPORE<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n \u201cThe real magic revolves around turning architectural obstacles into daily opportunities,\u201d Shikin tells ST.<\/p>\n \u201cLike most modern flats in Singapore, space for a family of five was the primary constraint. We tackled it by treating storage as a seamless structural feature rather than an afterthought.\u201d<\/p>\n Shikin Ghani, a home design consultant at Ikea Tampines, co-designed the MacPherson Weave BTO and the Pasir Ris kitchen with the home owners to make “magic” happen.<\/p>\n PHOTO: IKEA SINGAPORE<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n For the family, the transformation has been full. \u201cThis was the best decision we made,\u201d says Sharon.<\/p>\n \u201cWe wanted functionality, but we got the aesthetics too. It\u2019s like a showroom.\u201d<\/p>\n Cost: <\/b>$9,500 For retired hotelier Tony Quek, 67, and his wife Cheryl-Ann Kee, 53, relocating back to Singapore after his 17 years in senior management roles in China soon presented a structural challenge.\u00a0<\/p>\n For their retirement years, they downscaled from an ample 128 sq m resale flat to an intimate 69 sq m three-room BTO unit in Pasir Ris in 2025.<\/p>\n Retired couple Tony Quek and Cheryl-Ann Kee, who love Peranakan cooking, had their kitchen designed and fitted by Ikea for $9,500.<\/p>\n ST PHOTO: SHINTARO TAY<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n While the square footage shrank, their culinary standards did not. Kee, who is Peranakan, loves cooking heritage dishes like ayam buah keluak and babi pongteh for her foodie husband.<\/p>\n Naturally, the heart of their home is their kitchen, requiring a logical design within a tighter space.<\/p>\n It helped that design is Quek\u2019s professional forte.\u00a0\u201cI also deal with design, so I\u2019m a detailed person,\u201d he says. \u201cHow do I maximise my space, so that the place isn\u2019t boxed in? It can be small, but beautiful.\u201d<\/p>\n While browsing at Ikea Tampines in 2025, the couple enjoyed touching and testing the kitchen displays. Interior designers might show a catalogue, he says, but Ikea has showrooms for home owners to experience layouts and colours in person.<\/p>\n Also, Kee preferred not to deal with the possible \u201cheadache\u201d of communicating with contractors.<\/p>\n In July 2025, they booked a consultation with Shikin, paving the way for their mid-November move-in.<\/p>\n She mapped out an efficient \u201cworking triangle\u201d that optimises the steps between the sink, gas hob and refrigerator. She helped the couple select the modular Metod kitchen system with over 12m of top and bottom cabinetry, and comes with a 25-year warranty.<\/p>\n Retired couple Tony Quek and Cheryl-Ann Kee\u2019s Pasir Ris kitchen, with its slim counter for kitchen appliances, was designed by Ikea.<\/p>\n PHOTO: IKEA SINGAPORE<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n Other choices include a custom quartz countertop, matching backsplash and integrated under-cabinet lighting to subtly brighten work surfaces.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n A simple grey-blue Raskog utility trolley sits adjacent to the hob, keeping essential spices and Peranakan sauce bottles within arm\u2019s reach.\u00a0<\/p>\n Counting other parts of the home, about 80 per cent of the flat\u2019s furnishings and lighting items were sourced from Ikea.\u00a0<\/p>\n Retired couple Tony Quek and Cheryl-Ann Kee focused on their kitchen design and installation by Ikea, while partially including the brand\u2019s furnishings elsewhere in their three-room Pasir Ris BTO.<\/p>\n ST PHOTO: SHINTARO TAY<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n Quek evaluates the brand\u2019s freshman service through a hospitality lens, and has offered feedback.<\/p>\n Enhanced ground operations will help seed thoughts of patronising Ikea among the younger generation who seek more choices, especially in a season of mushrooming BTO completions.<\/p>\n Where the retail giant clearly excelled was installation speed. \u201cThey said it would take 10 days for the full kitchen. I got it in eight,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n Their visitors have responded with wonder. \u201cOur friends ask if this is a four-room flat,\u201d he says. \u201cThey start taking photos and say, \u2018You mean Ikea can do this?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n Cost: <\/b>$30,000 For security industry professionals Zack Tay, 31, and Kelody Goh, 29, managing risk is a daily job. So, they prepared defensively for the chaotic parenting reality of moving into their 93 sq m flat in Woodlands with two active sons, aged five and seven.<\/p>\n With that scenario in mind, the couple devised a triple design brief: child safety, storage and style.<\/p>\n Zack Tay and Kelody Goh in their Woodlands black-white-grey kitchen designed by Ikea.<\/p>\n PHOTO: IKEA SINGAPORE<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n \u201cOur boys play very roughly,\u201d Goh says. Having witnessed painful incidents with little fingers getting jammed in conventional cabinets at her in-laws\u2019 place \u2013 where the family of four stayed before moving across the street \u2013 she wanted to eliminate home hazards.<\/p>\n She needed a space where her sons will not collide with sharp edges, without sacrificing the clean, contemporary look she loved.<\/p>\n They sought out interior designers, Tay says, but quotes came back high at $40,000 to $50,000. The turning point was in July 2025, soon after getting their keys, during a shopping trip to Ikea Tampines. Spotting an advertisement for the Home Design Service,<\/u> she registered online.<\/p>\n Goh told her Ikea design specialist Hailey Chin that she envisioned a palette of black, white and grey.<\/p>\n The rooms of this Woodlands BTO are anchored by three design pillars: child safety, storage and style. The minimalist look and coordinated black-white-grey palette open up the small flat.<\/p>\n PHOTO: IKEA SINGAPORE<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n For the kitchen, they chose the Metod cabinet series paired with Voxtorp handleless door fronts in dark grey. With gentle push-to-open mechanisms, the cabinetry banishes protruding hardware that might clip running kids.<\/p>\n A central island with a light grey marble-effect quartz countertop also acts as a room separator, keeping Goh close to the family energy while she cooks.<\/p>\n To foster bonding, the brothers share a bedroom. This keeps the guest room free for visiting grandparents, and the space-saving sliding doors in the Pax wardrobe system allow freer movement.<\/p>\n The spare room in this Woodlands BTO was designed by Ikea as a sanctuary for visiting family members, though the owners have now tenanted it.<\/p>\n PHOTO: IKEA SINGAPORE<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n The room is tenanted now, but can easily convert into a bedroom when the siblings grow up, or into their study room.<\/p>\n Storage is plentiful, to Goh\u2019s delight. Chin integrated extra vertical storage atop the wardrobes, for instance, to keep Goh\u2019s collection of family-essential shopping bags and backpacks.<\/p>\n Overall, by embracing a minimalist design throughout the small flat, it feels open and airy.<\/p>\n The family moved into their home last Christmas \u2013 a gift for themselves.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n SINGAPORE \u2013 More budget-conscious Singapore families are styling their Build-To-Order (BTO) flats to look like Ikea showrooms. Here, three home owners reveal their experiences and…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":58502,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2611],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-58501","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-buzz-headlines","wpcat-2611-id"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58501","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=58501"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58501\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/58502"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=58501"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=58501"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=58501"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}<\/picture><\/div>
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Flat type: <\/b>Three-room BTO (69 sq m)<\/p>\n<\/picture><\/div>
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Flat type: <\/b>Four-room BTO (93 sq m)<\/p>\n<\/picture><\/div>
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