How an architect transformed an existing house into a building with interesting design features

As I drive up to this house in Bukit Timah, its front gate has been slid open. Architect Alan Tay, co-founder of Formwerzk Architects, is sitting on a long, low concrete bench looking out for me. Above him, the roof dips low, extending into a car porch canopy that provides shade together with the outspread cover of matured roadside trees.

This relaxed image reminds me of traditional kampong dwellings, designed to function for comfort amid the tropic’s scorching sun and rainfall. This house’s uncomplicated architecture, with its clear expression of roof, and a post-and-beam structure in-filled with louvre windows, easily pays homage to the vernacular precedent.

It is not entirely new. The homeowner had bought the bungalow because he liked its simple design. “At first glance, we loved the big sloping roof of the original house; you don't really get that in newer houses these days. The layout was also unique; instead of facing the street the living area faced a long stretch of tall Banyan trees in the backyard, which created this enclosed, private area you could relax in. We prefer quiet living so this matched all our requirements,” he said.

The homeowner lives here with his wife and two children who are currently attending university abroad. The family had been residing in Serangoon but wanted to be near the Botanic Gardens. “We really liked the almost-overgrown greenery the plot had,” he said.

It was kismet that this house was meant to be theirs. The previous homeowner had declined their proposal after the first viewing but later reversed his decision. “By some stroke of luck, we found out that the potential buyer decided had decided not to proceed, so we immediately placed our deposit,” enthused the homeowner.

His search for an architect through browsing countless magazines, books and websites led him to Tay. “We brought our wish list to our discussions, and it was very exciting to see the synthesis between his ideas and our own; he has helped us to build our dream home,” the homeowner said.

They gave him an instruction anomalous to many Singapore projects – to keep the house rather than demolish it. When Tay visited the house for the first time, it was clear why, and he too fell for its idiosyncrasies that are rarities in today’s run-of-the-mill white box housing stock.

Working on existing houses rather than tabula rasa is a more strenuous process but Tay was dedicated; a project such as this is a labour of love. “It offered a fun opportunity to uncover and reinterpret the richness and potential of the existing house. The challenge is always in the moderation – how much to do so as not to end up losing the charm that attracted us in the first place.”

He stretched the house's footprint to one side, enlarging it by about a third. This resulted in a larger living area and patio on the first storey. On the second storey, this extension allowed for an additional bedroom, as well as a larger master bathroom and walk-in wardrobe. The footprint grew from 280 sq m to 480 sq m, and the treasured roof was redone with discreet slate tiles – the same material used for many buildings in the Botanic Gardens as “we like how it balances with the greenery,” said the homeowner. Inside, Tay wove new and old parts seamlessly to create an interior with good circulation and improved liveability, plenty of light and views to the outdoors.

The entire elevation was opened up as much as possible with glass walls and windows. For example, large windows at the front and back allows one to see right through the house. On the second storey, the planning takes a page from colonial bungalows. Tay set back the children’s bedrooms that front the road to create a little walkway for privacy. Eschewing typical doors, large sliding panels open the sleeping areas to the corridor where louvred windows allow the option of wind.

To facilitate the tweaking of the second storey layout, Tay had to re-route the services, impacting the already low ceiling on the lower floor where the living area was. He mitigated this with a gridded ceiling structure in the latter, which helps to lessen the illusion of a lower ceiling. The ample windows on two sides of this space also helps to create a spacious atmosphere through extended lines of sight that extend far into the distance as the neighbouring plot sits on lower ground.

The plot’s slanted terrain dipping 1.85m down from front to back forms part of its quirks, which Tay highlighted with a series of slopes and steps in and around the house. “One enters the house at the mid-level of the two-storey house. This was the main pivot that guided our design in the placement of the new extension, the pool and the outdoor deck. Spatially and experientially, we wanted to respond to this topography. The derived from this awareness and negotiation,” he said.

Tay also wove in some quiet drama. Through the front door, large steps lead down from the foyer ceremonially toward a large landing. This fans off to the living room on one side, the enclosed granny’s room on the other, and the dining room in front, accessed via a second flight of steps.

Tay explained: “This hallway was many things to us – a central spine that traverses the sloping terrain and connects all the first storey common spaces; a gallery, and a place to linger before and after a dinner party.”  It is also a “void space” – a visual and spatial breather to the different functions.

This terracing space is the grandest part of the house. The rest of the home maintains their original intimate proportions. “That’s the charm of the existing house – it focuses and relates more horizontally to the outdoor landscape,” Tay commented.

This was one of the ideas in creating an “open concept” house, which the homeowner desired. “Having a whole wall of glass sliding doors means that the living room opens up seamlessly into the patio, which is nice for ventilation and letting the breeze in during rainy days,” he said.

It is not only underfoot that traces sloped profiles. The exposed pitched ceiling, dipping 4.3m from the roof’s peak to the back of the house, creates lofty proportions on the second storey family room and bedrooms. It is beautiful that one can feel this height, and then turn toward the main door and see the roof extend far beyond the edge of the house through the glass walls.

Clearly, the indoor-outdoor relationship was a result of careful calibration. For example, Tay not only carved a relationship between the front facade to the exterior views, but also physically to the driveway. “The front porch with the deep, cantilevered roof was more of a porte corchere. We introduced the long bench to demarcate the driveway from the house. It also works as a barrier to a ramp that takes one down front and around the side of the house to the living area that faces the rear,” said Tay.

As the back garden is lower than the patio due to the terrain, Tay had the ingenious idea to construct the pool upwards rather than dig into the earth. Unfortunately, the Banyan trees had to be removed but a line of new planting completes the picturesque composition.

For the family, this old-new house satiates all their needs. Their daily habits are tied deeply to the external environment. “We usually enjoy our breakfast at the kitchen bar counter or the sofa at the living area’s terrace because we get a good view of the trees, the fountain and the pool. It’s also fun to figure out at what time of the day different squirrels and birds might arrive,” the homeowner mused on other critters and fowl that have also taken ownership of the land.

When not abroad for work or at the office, the homeowner enjoys strolls and resting amid the greenery. “It’s nice gardening, feeding the koi and washing the car to pass the time in this setting,” he shared. With the children grown up and away for studies most of the time, the couple have the house to themselves most days.

And when the children are back in Singapore, it is nice to be able to hear and see where they are in the home due to its well-connected spaces. In those times, the entire family gravitates towards the living room. “It’s big enough for everyone to have a corner but still easy to chat,” said the homeowner.

When I ask what more they like about living here, he replied: “Almost too much to share! When designing the place, we mostly wanted the house to be easy-to-maintain, and to have a big and open common space. That simple brief led us to a lot of interesting design features that we added in.” The best praise for the creator of the home lies in this last testament: After living here for two years, the couple can see themselves retiring here.