Muji has had such a chokehold on Singaporeans that it isn’t uncommon for some of us to want our homes to look like the furniture section of their stores.
And while we’ve seen quite a few Muji-inspired homes, none quite hit the mark as well as this 5-room HDB resale flat does.
The main theme of the home centres around Muji and creating a minimal and timeless home, and the entire renovation cost was around $120K.
Japanese genkan entryway
Can you really call yourself a Japanese otaku if you don’t know what a genkan entrance is? If you’ve ever watched a J-drama or movie, you’ll notice that most Japanese houses come with a demarcated entryway where members of the household or guests leave their shoes.
Traditionally, genkans are much lower than the rest of the house’s rooms and are built this way because it centres around the idea that the area within the genkan and the items stored in it are a “token of the outside.”
Image credit: @muji_uchi
The Muji-inspired home took this as an inspiration and even made the area lower than the rest of the house, using tiles rather than the wooden laminate flooring used in most of the house.
According to the homeowners who detailed the entire reno process on their Instagram account @muji_uchi, the idea of the genkan drop was inspired after they had seen a lot of pictures on Pinterest of the genkan area in various Japanese homes. They then went on to check with Vincent, the interior designer behind the house, whether the drop was realistic, and the rest was history.
They told us that initially, during the reno process, their contractor had forgotten to build the drop in the genkan. Thankfully, as they visited the site almost every day, they noticed the mistake and requested rectifying it.
Image credit: @muji_uchi
Although the concept is simple enough and is aesthetically pleasing, it also ensures easy organisation and cleaning with its tile flooring, as a key purpose of genkans in Japanese homes is to make sure that dirtied footwear remains outside of the home.
Meanwhile, the genkan area also features built-in Muji-esque wooden cabinets and a wooden and glass panel as a divider to separate the area from the rest of the home.
Wood-clad ceilings & flooring
After taking off your shoes in the genkan area, with a small step up, you enter the home’s dining area, where the homeowners opted for vinyl flooring throughout their entire house and a ceiling laminate that matches the laminate used in all of their carpentry work.
Vincent told us that the decision to opt for laminated wooden ceilings was to give the space a different ambience whilst ensuring that the space doesn’t end up looking flat.
“I’m super anal when it comes to aesthetics. I decided to keep (to) 3 tones, the key tones for the Muji concept. Mainly white, oak wood, and concrete,” he added.
Most of the furniture you’ll spot in the home also looks straight out of Muji’s catalogue.
A before and after transformation of the flat’s living space.
Image credit: @muji_uchi
Meanwhile, the homeowners, via their Instagram posts, shared that very little was done to spruce up the dining area apart from the laminates, the partition between the dining and living area got an extension and a curved finish to make the home’s flow more organic and smooth.
In the living area, the bigger furniture pieces, such as the sofa and the photo frames, were procured from Taobao, while the soft upholstery, such as cushion covers and blankets, was from Muji.
Image credit: @muji_uchi
Minimalist style kitchen
Image credit: @muji_uchi
Meanwhile, the kitchen area features a full set of Takara Standard kitchen cabinets, which perfectly match the Muji aesthetic in other areas of the home and is also a quintessential look in Japanese homes.
The backsplash is made of the same material as the cabinets: high-quality enamel. Not only does it give the kitchen a minimalistic look, but it is also super functional as it is smell, stain-resistant, and easy to clean.
Left to right: The flat’s pantry and wet kitchen.
Image credit: @muji_uchi
Concrete feature ceilings & Muji-fied bathrooms
Image credit: @muji_uchi
While the master bedroom’s overall aesthetic is minimalistic, with ample storage accounted for, our eyes are drawn upwards to the concrete accents on the ceiling that lead to the master bathroom.
According to the homeowners via Instagram, although they love the idea of Japanese bathrooms, where the bath, sink, and toilet are separated, it wasn’t something that they could do. However, they shifted the sink to the vanity area to make the shower and toilet area less cramped.
They also opted for a larger sink instead of two his and her sinks to give them more counter space, and they found a large wooden-framed mirror on Taobao, which perfectly matched the look they were going for.
Image credit: @muji_uchi
5-room resale flat looks like a Muji showroom
As self-proclaimed Muji otakus, the homeowners now have a home that reflects their likes to a T and have managed to create a home that would definitely appeal to all Muji lovers.
Vincent said the design was a success because he and the homeowners were aligned, and every detail was made with the mindset of what a Muji home should look like.
When asked about tips for those wanting to replicate the style, Vincent said, “The tip is to keep an open mind and be brave and go for it. Another simple tip is that the loose furnishing has to be right, and eventually, the entire concept will flow.”
For more featured homes:
- 4-Room Modern Peranakan Home Renovation Only Cost $40K
- Yio Chu Kang landed house that has an F1 chamber
- Country-Themed Telok Banglah HDB Flat
Cover image adapted from: @muji_uchi
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