FAQ with @hitotema.home

269

Japandi
HDB (BTO)
~700 sqft
2 br
Couple Living

よ！ We're back with a post to answer some burning questions from Hipvan readers, DMs and viewers of our Stacked Homes and Qanvast covers. Hitotema.home is a Modern Japanese (not japandi) cozy 3 room BTO, designed to bring traditional elements of Japanese houses into the modern era.
Q: Wood floors - bad for Singapore weather? Prone to water damage and mould? A: So far, no. We've grown up around wood flooring and such, so we get your concerns. Our floors and dining tabletop are by Onewood, it's a reconstituted timber material that's actually super hardy. It's also water resistant and termite resistant, and sustainable. If it's good enough for commercial projects, it's good enough for hitotema.home.
Q: How do you clean under the table? Isn't it troublesome? A: Honestly, it's not more or less troublesome than mopping or vaccuming under any regular dining table. Also, the table can be extended taller than regular seating height, so there's lots more space to stick our Dyson vacuum and submarine right there to work. Also, cleaning the table legs is as easy as wiping it down with product and a cloth. Because our table only has 2 legs instead of 4, it's half the job too.
Q: Your house looks like there's not enough places to store things. A: Truth is, new BTOs have little space to store things coz they're tiny. That's where good space planning comes in. By building up our storage into the space, it looks seamless but at the same time, all present. Perhaps it doesn't show well on photos or videos, but we have lots of space to store stuff. In fact, we haven't even exhausted all our storage space yet. That being said, isn't it a wonderful thing if storage solutions could be so well hidden?
Q: Who did your kitchen? A: A combination of folks. From the ceiling down, our ID and carpenters handled the overhead cabinets. Then, we hired a friend to help cut and install the Cerarl panels that form our kitchen backsplash. Lastly, ANOX Studio fabricated the metal cabinets and worktops.
Q: Why a double shower? A: It's great. For one, the missus and I never need to fight for the shower use. Also, because the missus showers in lava and I shower in water (or ice, as the missus calls it), we don't have to freeze or burn with our own separate shower areas. If you've done a BTO reno before, you'll know that the toilets have 2 water outlet points - a shower outlet point (at regular height), and a sink outlet point (at a low height of around 50cm or so if I remember correctly). What you might not know is, that the sink outlet point doesn't have the same dimensions (the gap between the two pipes) as the shower ones. So, because of the low height of the sink outlet point, creating a sit-down onsen shower was a perfect idea. Also, because no regular shower mixer would fit over the sink outlet point, we bought our bath mixer from Japan, as Japanese bath mixers have adjustable piping at the back to fit any distance between the cold and hot water points.
Q: Is your home a smarthome? A: No, well, yes, kinda, but no. Only a few things are smart. One, is our bedroom curtain. Having it open and shut automatically according to time of day is just convenient. Also, two, if you count motion sensor lights as "smart", then yes. Our foyer lights are motion controlled, as well as the corridor lights leading past the kitchen to the common bath. Also, a temperature sensor and our pet camera work in sync to control the air-conditioning in the living room. Just in case it gets too warm, it turns on to, well, give the doggo that first-class lifestyle. Otherwise, nah. Small house, no need for smart lights.
Thanks for reading! For any further questions, please comment or DM us on instagram @hitotema.home!