The project is named after its owner, a bachelor seeking a minimalist lifestyle with a wood-filled interior and a desk for building Lego. This new 47-sqm two-room public housing flat came with the standard compartmentalised areas for living, kitchen, bedroom and bathroom. I broke this mould to re-engineer the space and optimise it for Alex and his lifestyle.

When I design, I like to erase the previous layout and plan the new space based on the homeowner’s priorities. Here, it was to maximise the space for one, discarding the status quo of dedicated spaces for the kitchen, bedroom and living room. To create openness and pared-down interiors, the functional spaces are reconfigured and expressed as a series of cuboid structures (cabinetry) with a unified design language. They are pushed against the perimeter of the flat to optimise the common space. The profile of these structures and their openings are carefully calibrated for a sense of order and proportion. For easy maintenance and pattern consistency, the cabinetry used wood-look laminates instead of solid wood.

The singular wood-look laminate and microcement flooring throughout the home— even in the wet area of the bathroom, formerly the kitchen—creates visual uniformity, From the home’s entrance, the floor flows seamlessly into the bathroom, with a slight downward slope towards the shower area. I cladded the internal walls of the shower with the solid phenolic version of the same laminate as the cabinetry. The only hint of this being a wet space is the lone overhead shower which controls the spray of water (there is no hand shower). The space dries quickly with a window at the side.

In place of rooms, the cabinetry conceals various functions such as a desk for building Lego, the wardrobe, the kitchen, and appliances such as the fridge and washing machine. The super-single-size bed is housed within a cabin-like enclosure. The open space around it is Alex’s sitting area, and this is shared with the kitchen that has a sink and stove sited within adjacent cabinets. The interior of the bomb shelter in public housing flats is seldom on show—but it is here. Its 180-degree hinge door allows it to open fully, concealed by a moveable cupboard. This now open room becomes part of the common space and is repurposed as a gallery for displaying Alex’s collection of Lego Architecture Series models on custom backlit shelving.

Finally, I designed a wall-hung coin bank that was spray-painted fluorescent orange to meet fengshui requirements. Its shape and high-energy colour make it look like modern art in this landscape of straight lines. A round blue metal tube, measuring 32 mm in diameter, traverses the space like a piece of visual art too.

Less is more. I don’t design more than what is required. This, to me, reflects sustainable design.