Skylights are one of those features that can quietly transform a home, bringing in soft, diffused light and making even the most compact spaces feel like they have room to breathe.
Living in an HDB flat means a real skylight is pretty much off the table, but that hasn’t stopped some homeowners from getting creative. From full-ceiling stretch systems to DIY setups and hyper-realistic light panels, these alternatives recreate the same soft, airy effect without any roof cutting required.
Whether the goal is to brighten a gloomy stairwell or open up a compact living room, here are 6 of the best faux skylight setups we’ve spotted in real Singaporean homes.
Contents
- @nicolechangmin, @jamesseah: a hanok-inspired remote-controlled skylight
- @apt.rice: a massive ceiling skylight
- @puromurostudio: a shoji screen-inspired skylight
- @hausofjely: a large faux skylight in a maisonette stairwell
- @joycelyncjw_: a realistic controllable faux skylight
- @stefaloos: a $70 Taobao-sourced DIY faux skylight
- A different skylight for every home
@nicolechangmin, @jamesseah: a hanok-inspired remote-controlled skylight
Image credit: @extr.asia
Nicole Chang Min and James Seah’s HDB flat takes its cues from Korean hanok architecture, and the ceiling is where that influence really shows. Clad with custom wooden beams, these skylights were designed to mimic exposed timber rafters found in traditional Korean architecture.
Installed by Cellux Ceiling, this fully customisable stretch PVC skylight is fire-resistant, allows you to adjust colour temperatures, and is controlled entirely by remote.
For Nicole and James, this is more than a design flex. As content creators who film regularly at home, having a controllable overhead light source that mimics natural daylight means they’re no longer at the mercy of the weather or the time of day. The skylight effectively gives them studio-grade lighting conditions right in their living room, without the need to rearrange their filming schedule around the sun.
@apt.rice: a massive ceiling skylight
Image credit: @ascend.design
Lighting has a way of making or breaking a room, and in Natasha and Erwin’s living room, it’s doing a lot of heavy lifting.
Rather than a single overhead fixture, the entire ceiling glows. A stretch ceiling system uses a translucent PVC membrane stretched over a grid of LED lights, producing a soft, even wash of light across the room. The result is shadowless illumination that adds depth and makes the space feel noticeably taller and more open.
As content creators, Natasha and Erwin are particularly attuned to how lighting affects a space’s usability. At full brightness, the setup produces “almost zero shadow cast… which makes it ideal for shoots,” giving them studio-level conditions without ever leaving home.
That consistency also removes any dependence on time of day. They can shoot at 2am and still achieve full daylight conditions, with the skylight making “videos at 2 am look like it’s being filmed at 12 noon.”
At around $6,000, it’s not a small investment. That said, for a setup that pulls double duty as both a home feature and a professional tool, Natasha and Erwin consider it fully worth it.
@puromurostudio: a shoji screen-inspired skylight
Image credit: @actually.ashiie
In Ashley’s home, the faux skylights, or “box lights,” are recessed directly into the ceiling to mimic the look of natural overhead light. Rather than relying on a single source, the light is spread across panelled sections, distributing brightness more evenly throughout the space.
The panels emit a warm, diffused glow that softens shadows and reduces contrast, so the lighting never feels harsh or patchy. Visually, the grid also does something useful: it breaks up an otherwise flat ceiling and subtly defines the boundary between the kitchen and dining area.
@hausofjely: a large faux skylight in a maisonette stairwell
Image credit: @hausofjely
Maisonette stairwells are notorious for being dark and a bit depressing, tucked away from any natural light source. In this home, the fix was straightforward: an artificial skylight installed directly above the staircase, turning what would’ve been a shadowy corridor into a noticeably brighter passageway.
Made up of multiple panels arranged in a grid, the installation spreads light evenly down the stairwell, softening the harsh shadows along the steps and walls that typically make these spaces feel narrow and enclosed.
Image credit: @hausofjely
The homeowner shared that the stairwell was “originally quite dark,” and because it sits at the centre of the home, the faux skylight helped “lift the overall brightness of the entire space” instead of just fixing one corner.
Before committing, they weighed the technical trade-offs carefully. Instead of going with trendier options like stretch fabric or light tubes, they chose LED panels for their practicality: “durable… easy to maintain and replace,” which matters a lot when you’re dealing with a high ceiling that’s not easy to access.
The panels do get warm after extended use, but electricity consumption has been “very reasonable” thanks to LED efficiency. At roughly $4,500, it’s a meaningful spend, and one they say they haven’t regretted.
@joycelyncjw_: a realistic controllable faux skylight
Image credit: Joycelyn
Almost like an actual, functioning skylight, Joycelyn’s 3-room BTO hallway has a ceiling-mounted panel designed to mimic daylight.
Instead of a standard ceiling light, the elongated panel emits a sky-like glow that spreads evenly across the hallway. The design is intentionally seamless, with a glass-like surface and minimal framing so it reads more like a window than a fixture. Switched on, it closely replicates a bright daytime sky; switched off, it settles into the look of a dim, overcast night.
It’s not a real skylight, but it’s a convincing stand-in, and unlike the real thing, it works around the clock. Lighting can be adjusted across a range of settings, from cooler daylight tones to warmer evening hues, with preset modes like sunrise, noon, and sunset. It’s also compatible with voice commands and can be scheduled to shift automatically throughout the day.
@stefaloos: a $70 Taobao-sourced DIY faux skylight
Image credit: @stefaloos
Stephanie and her partner managed to install a faux skylight in their BTO by sourcing materials on Taobao for just $70.
Without enlisting the help of a specialised installer, the couple fitted a recessed cove in their ceiling with LED strips and covered it with a stretched fabric to diffuse the light. Once installed, the 1.6m-wide feature spreads light evenly across the dining area and makes the space feel more open.
Because it uses smart lighting, the brightness and tone can also be adjusted. In total, the installation came up to about $1,500, including the false ceiling, lighting and wiring.
A different skylight for every home
Real skylights might be out of reach for most HDB homes, but these examples show that the look and feel are still achievable.
With the right setup, lighting can do more than just brighten a room; it can change how the space is perceived altogether. Whether you’re going for a full-ceiling feature or a simple panel that mimics daylight, these alternatives offer a practical way to bring that skylight effect into your home.
Read more of our other articles here:
- All You Need to Know about Artificial LED Skylights
- Affordable Smart Lighting
- BTO With A Faux Fireplace
Cover image adapted from: @stefaloos, @apt.rice
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