Thank You Shell...

Just made a redemption with my shell points before part of it expires on 31 Dec 2008. Well, it's pretty timely as we will be needing a rice cooker eventually. A fairly decent one would cost us approximately $145 onwards. This was redeemed with 2200 Shell points + $10 at Heap Seng located at 36 Liang Seah Street. I intentionally choose a small one as storage will be an issue to us. The capacity is good for 2-6 helpings. In any case, cooking time is only 15mins. So if we need more rice on rare occasions, we can easily cook up a second round pretty swiftly.

SR-TEG10 (SR-TEM10)

Features
Electronic Jar Warmer (1.0 L)
Concave Lid - Water droplets prevention
Prevents water droplets from dripping onto cooked rice, keeping rice warm and fluffy.
Smart Cap - Prevents over boiling
Prevents boiling over during rice cooking process.
Steam basket available
Non stick inner pan

Colour

Crystal Silver

My First Insomnia...

We arranged to meet our contractor Patrick and his foreman 龙哥 at our unit to discuss some renovation matters on Monday. As usual, we were faced with additional challenges with our small kitchen. Patrick advised us that the location of our microwave (above our fridge) may post some operational issues. He didn't think it is practical to use a step-stool when ever we need to use the microwave. Sigh...we have to drop that idea and re-think where else we can place the microwave. Not that we have a lot of choices to begin with!

Not sure if it's the thought of this challenge or it was mummy's 爱心燕窝 which I took before bed time, I was kept awake till 5.30am!!!!! Gosh! In the end, with less then 3 hours of sleep...I took half day emergency leave the next day and headed down to Kranji Loop to see 龙哥 to further discuss this.

It was a good 2 hours discussion with him in their factory which brought us to some form of closure. We managed to find another 'spot' to place our microwave. Of course some other sacrifices were made to compromise this. We also concluded the use of two pull-put baskets for one of our cabinets. Can't use more as the stainless steel ones are priced at $80 per tray. Hopefully our contractor can absorb this. SN will be happy to know that we managed to confirm the Blum System for our kitchen drawers and cabinet. No more 'loud slam doors'. hehehe

Most rewardly, I managed to steal pictures of our 'mini' kitchen cabinet at the factory. They are pathetically 'mini' indeed :(

Pictures of Our Kitchen Carpentry

I travelled half of Singapore to see our contractor

I No Prima Donna

On the name of our reno blog, I am not a 100% prima donna who chases fine and exquisite stuff blindly. I do believe and am constantly reminding myself on living within our means and also to shop smart. Thus, how can I forget to show case two of our earlier purchases from the cyber 'flee market'?

Curtain Tassel
These will come with some higher end custom-make curtains but as we intend to buy most of our curtains from Ikea. Thus, we may not have the luxury of having this. A lady whom I 'met' from the Renotalk Forum was selling this as she has extra pairs. So, I bought it brand new at a mere S$5.00 per pair, inclusive of postage.

OM Carpet
Thanks to the two Cassandra friends I have, they alerted me on someone selling this at the Motherhood Forum. The initial offer was $250 - 50% off from the initial price they paid one year ago. The couple had to sell this away due to the arrival of a new baby which prompted them to stay away from light colours furnishing. I made a joke to the two Cassandras and said I will take the offer if they are selling it at S$100. Hold-and-behold, the couple agreed. SN & I made a 'no obligation' trip to their house at Punggol to view the carpet and made the purchase immediately as it was clear to us that the couple kept their house speck and clean. So how dirty can the carpet be? Besides, we do have the intention to have the carpet professionally clean by some laundry shop, prior to using it. This will probably cost us about $80-100 more. There is no way anyone can get an OM carpet at below $200 for sure. **Grin Grin ** :)

Thank You Amazon...

Thanks to the wonder of technology, I have been cyber shopping!!! Hope the items will arrive timely and safely...

I cannot wait to lay my hands on those Voodoo Knifes. Arggg...

SN & I are cereal lovers. Thus, this ZEVRO dispenser will come into good use.

Bathrooms Design

Here's another attempt I took to design our bathrooms vanity. Hope it will take shape soon...

TV Feature

I could feel it's taking shape every day. Our contractor drew a draft based on our description. I added some cosmetic work on it so that he understood what we wanted.

Unveiling My Kitchen Concept

My left angel is telling me I am getting better with designs. I am amazed I could piece this together effortlessly. If only I can do the carpentry work myself too :(

Some new purchases from IKEA over the weekend

1. KOMPLEMENT Wire Basket @ $25 each

2. RATIONELL VARIERA Pull-Out Basket @ $25 each

3. 365+ Serving Stand @ $29 each

4. LOCK Ceiling Lamp @ $3.90 each

5. SPARSAM energy-saving bulb E27 linear $7.90 pack of 3