Secrets From Experts: Tips On Buying The Right Furniture & Personalising Your Home

You know what they say, there ain’t no place like home! And for good reason too, because when you shop at Tan Boon Liat, your crib is gonna be pretty hard to beat.

[caption id="attachment_18880" align="alignnone" width="580"]Tan Boon Liat Ethnicraft Online (#02-01) takes the cake for quality and durable furniture.

Retailing modern, solid teak, walnut and oak wood pieces designed in Belgium, their furniture is also known for its environmental stewardship and ethical craftsmanship.

[caption id="attachment_18881" align="alignnone" width="970"]Ethnicraft Online Ethnicraft Online[/caption]

What’s more, they provide lifetime warranty and lifetime maintenance service on all products.

Tip: To ensure that your pieces live to a ripe old age, it’s best to look for pieces from reputable, well-established brands or companies. These pieces are fumigated to ensure the absence of mould and pests, and kiln-dried to minimize the risk of warping and cracking. Last but not least, make sure your purchase is covered by a product warranty or after-sales maintenance services.

2) Purchase modular pieces to mix and match, and furniture designed with extra functionality in mind

Pieces that can be taken apart and re-arranged will increase their mileage as you assemble them to create an infinite number of new looks.

For instance, the Theo Wall Unit from Journey East (#03-02) is the master of all trades.

Tip: A module-based system gives homeowners the power to customise the furniture based on their needs.

[caption id="attachment_18882" align="alignnone" width="1800"]Journey East Journey East[/caption]

Where space constraint is the name of the game, this versatile piece contains modular units that can be taken apart, or combined together in a multitude of ways to fit any space. Plus, it’s made of hard-fumed oak, which translates to high quality.

Next up is the PLAYplay collection from Journey East as well.

Designed by award-winning design studio Lanzavecchia + Wai for Journey East, each piece was carefully conceptualised with the modern home in mind; in terms of design, proportion, and functionality.

Hamburger Side Table

These colourful little “hamburgers” are sure to be conversational starters.

[caption id="attachment_18905" align="alignnone" width="5760"]Journey East Journey East[/caption]

Take off the top “bun” for a slightly larger coffee table surface when you have friends over during a house party. Take your pick from 3 designs: round, oval and pentagon.

Cots from  (#07-05).

[caption id="attachment_18910" align="alignnone" width="4110"]
Fynn Cotbed from Deer Industries Fynn Cotbed from Ethnicraft Online Ethnicraft Online[/caption]

Neatly hidden when not in use, no one will be any the wiser when you whip out this party trick.

3. Seek out items with high transformative value and small price tags

Tip: A little goes a long way. Here’s why – small accessories can play up the value of a piece of furniture, transforming a cut-rate table to one that looks like a big-ticket item straight out of a designer showroom.

For home accessories, head to Arete Culture (#06-01), Make Room (#11-09B), or Plain Vanilla Home (#08-06). Bang-for-your-buck accessories include:

  • Flowers: Arete Culture stocks a wide range of high-quality artificial flowers that require no maintenance, and they can even be washed.

Arete Culture

[caption id="attachment_18924" align="alignnone" width="3344"]arete-culture_fake-flowers-2-min Floral Kokoro.

[caption id="attachment_18926" align="alignnone" width="600"]Floral Kokoro Cochine, Maison by Amanda Dyer, and Park London. [caption id="attachment_18911" align="alignnone" width="1024"]Cochine Candles Cochine Candles[/caption]
  • Trays: Trays are always useful when entertaining at a house party or serving dinner guests. Featured below are Ethnicraft Online’s Notre Monde Trays, which are individually hand-crafted and double as pieces of art.
[caption id="attachment_18930" align="alignnone" width="3362"]Notre Monde Tribal Quest Trays from Ethnicraft Online Ethnicraft Online‘s Notre Monde Tribal Quest Trays[/caption]

4. Collect meaningful memorabilia and make full use of Nature’s gifts to personalise your home

To go about making your home the most beautiful place on earth:

  • Travel mementoes and personal memorabilia are a fun way of incorporating your personality throughout the home!

Tip: The trick is to edit: Display only your absolute favourites.

[caption id="attachment_18912" align="alignnone" width="650"]Tip Junkie Pinterest Pinterest[/caption]
  • Pick a wall and paint a mural or a statement colour. You can also wallpaper it.
[caption id="attachment_18920" align="alignnone" width="600"]Decoist
  • Bring the outdoors in: Natural touches such as branches and shells are an elegant way of adding more organic textures and shapes to your home. This lends a tranquil touch to a visually-interesting space.
  • [caption id="attachment_18928" align="alignnone" width="455"]Pinterest Pinterest[/caption]

    Bonus Tip: How to Doll Up Your Home for the Christmas Season

    • For some holiday cheer, all you need is a little sparkle. Create a simple but stunning table centerpiece with some tree branches in vase, which you can spray paint or decorate with Christmas baubles.
    • To spice things up for the Christmas season, fill up a clear bottle or vase with festive items e.g. coloured eggs for Easter, and pussy willow for Chinese New Year.

    The best part? Make Room currently has a collection of Christmas items, such as recycled wooden Christmas trees and a wide range of Christmas décor.

    To keep things sophisticated, stick to the same colour family. Silvers and golds add a touch of glamour, and red is a good idea for the season.

    [caption id="attachment_18932" align="alignnone" width="554"]Pinterest Pinterest[/caption]

    To lend your home a burst of character, do also drop by Singapore Trading Post (#07-01) or FairPrice Antique (#01-10) for fun and eclectic accessories.

    Tan Boon Liat Block Party

    This weekend (26 and 27 November), Tan Boon Liat will be throwing its first ever Block Party!

    14680714_1331649423546202_5091117934796405056_n20 participating showrooms such as Journey East, Arete Culture and Make Room will be opening their doors for a train of design workshops, food and wine tastings, seasonal gift ideas and special offers.

    It doesn’t just end there – over $5,000 worth of prizes are up for grabs!

    For more information, check out their Facebook Page.

    Tan Boon Liat Building
    Address: 
    315 Outram Road, Singapore 169074

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