Cl7A Fa'atagāfaga o Totonu o Fale Nofoaga by Serlyn Tan

Cl7A Fa'atagāfaga o Totonu o Fale Nofoaga by Serlyn Tan is a highly esteemed winner of the very prestigious 2025 A' Design Award Uʻamea in Mamanu Totonu Competition Category.

UʻameaTotonu· 2025

Cl7A Fa'atagāfaga o Totonu o Fale Nofoaga

by Serlyn Tan

Client: Communique Bold

A' Design Award Uʻamea Winner in Totonu Category

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Verified Award Winner

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Colors

The Design

About Cl7A Fa'atagāfaga o Totonu o Fale Nofoaga

Cl7A o se fa'atagāfaga o totonu o fale nofoaga mo se fale faleoloa savali-a'e i Sigapoa. O le fale e 978 futu sikuea o lo'o iai potumoe e lua, faleta'ele e lua ma se umukuka fa'ata'atia matala e tafe atu i totonu o vaega o le nofoaga fa'atasi ma le taumafataga. O le taualuga fa'ase'ese'e fa'atasi ma laupapa laupapa fa'aalia na fa'asaoina e fai ma foliga fa'ailoga o le iunite muamua o le fale faleoloa. O le fola sima fa'amago fa'apea ma le laupapa mafanafana ma le maa granite e fa'aopoopo ai le loloto ma le fa'aeseesega. O laina fausiaga malolosi e fa'apaleni e ni ie mama'i vaevae ma ata fatufatuga filifilia. Na toe fa'aleleia le iunite tuai a'o fa'aopoopo atu foi le mafanafana fa'aonaponei.

The Recognition

About the A' Design Award Uʻamea

O le A' Design Award Uʻamea na manumalo ai Cl7A Fa'atagāfaga o Totonu o Fale Nofoaga, o se faamaoniga mamalu e tuuina atu i mamanu lelei e faataunuu ai manaʻoga faapolofesa ma pisinisi e faamoemoeina mai galuega ua mamanuina lelei. O ē manumalo i le Uʻamea e faaalia ai le tomai tele, le faapitoa maualuga, le malamalama o tagata poto ma le mafai fatufatuaʻi o ē na faia. E faamoemoeina Cl7A Fa'atagāfaga o Totonu o Fale Nofoaga e avea ma mea ua matuā vivii, mataʻina ma pelepelea e aogā ma fou. O lenei mamanu na manumalo i le A' Design Award Uʻamea e tuufaatasia ai faiga sili o le pisinisi ma e iai uiga faatekonolosi mafai ua fesoʻotaʻi ma le poto ma le taleni. Ona o lona faatuatuaina, e tatau ai Cl7A Fa'atagāfaga o Totonu o Fale Nofoaga ona faaaloalogia ma ua mamanuina e tuuina mai ai faaleleiga o le olaga e fesoasoani e faia ai e le lalolagi se nofoaga e sili atu ona lelei.

Behind the Design

Press Kit

Credits, team members and technical details provided by the designer.

Unique Properties: This walk-up apartment in Singapore is designed for someone who loves bringing people together. The open-concept space blends modern elegance with cozy, personal touches, creating an inviting atmosphere perfect for hosting friends and family.
Every detail - from the soft drapes to the curated artwork makes this apartment feel like more than just a space; it’s a home meant for laughter, shared meals, and late-night conversations.
Dimensions & Packaging: This 978 sqft home offers a perfect blend of comfort and modern living. Featuring 2 spacious bedrooms and 2 full bathrooms, it boasts an open-concept kitchen that seamlessly flows into the living and dining areas, creating an inviting and airy atmosphere.
Tags: Communique Bold, Home, House, Residential, Interior Design, Architecture, Singapore, Walk-up Apartment, Shophouse, Asian Inspired, Asian, Modern Twist, Modern
Production Technology: This home beautifully balances heritage and modernity by retaining the pitched ceiling with exposed timber rafters, a signature feature of a shophouse unit. The use of raw materials, such as polished concrete flooring, adds an industrial edge, while natural elements like warm wood and elegant granite create depth and contrast. The design embraces a masculine aesthetic, with strong architectural lines and bold textures, yet introduces soft, inviting touches that make the space feel welcoming. The result is a refined yet comfortable home that honors its historical charm while embracing contemporary sophistication.
Design Challenge: This home renovation is a thoughtful restoration of an aged unit, bringing back its former glamour while preserving its original charm. The design carefully revives existing structures and architectural elements that have deteriorated over the years, breathing new life into the space without erasing its history. By blending restoration with modern enhancements, the home retains its character while embracing a refreshed, sophisticated look—honoring the past while making it functional and beautiful for the present.
Research: This study explores the integration of heritage architectural elements with contemporary design principles to create a harmonious living space that respects historical integrity while embracing modern functionality. By retaining key structural and aesthetic features of the original architecture, such as exposed beams, the design preserves the cultural and historical essence of the space. Simultaneously, modern interventions, including open-concept layouts, minimalist detailing, and advanced materials, enhance spatial efficiency, sustainability, and user comfort. This approach demonstrates that heritage preservation and modernity are not mutually exclusive but can coexist to produce aesthetically and functionally cohesive living environments. The findings contribute to the growing discourse on adaptive reuse and sustainable architecture, offering a framework for integrating past and present in residential design.
Inspiration: This home renovation is a journey of revival, seamlessly blending heritage and elegance. The vision was to restore an aged shophouse unit to its former glamour while respecting its storied past. Careful attention was given to preserving and enhancing existing structures and architectural details that had weathered over time, ensuring that the soul of the home remained intact.
Project Duration: The project started in September 2019 and finished in October 2020
Operation Flow: A sense of warmth and the owner's story and heritage greets you as you enter the space. Once upstairs the high, exposed-beam ceiling gives the room an expansive, almost airy feel. Every detail invites you in, making you feel instantly at home.
The kitchen, with its sleek island and inviting bar stools, feels like the heart of the home. The room is alive—not just with furniture, but with the essence of home. The bookshelf, filled with framed memories and trinkets, whispers stories of the people who live here.
It’s a place that doesn’t just function well—it feels right. A space designed not just for movement, but for moments and life.
Patents: Copyrights belong to Serlyn Tan of Communique Bold Pte Ltd, 2025
Team Members: Serlyn Tan
Image Credits: Kelvin Yan