Despite his love for Wong Kar Wai, the radio jock was not in the mood for earlier ID proposals to turn his house into a cha chaan teng with booth seats.
Despite his love for Wong Kar Wai, the radio jock was not in the mood for earlier ID proposals to turn his house into a cha chaan teng with booth seats.
YES 933 DJ Zhong Kun Hua, better known as just Kunhua, may be a radio jock at a hip station for the young, but he is an old soul at heart. The 35-year-old has a penchant for nostalgia and his love for all things vintage is reflected in his five-room resale flat, which he moved into about a month ago. He admits the $800,000 HDB flat, which he bought last October, was above his budget, but he was attracted to the 1,300-sq ft space and all the potential it held for a dramatic transformation.
The moment 8days.sg arrives at his 25-year-old apartment in the central part of Singapore, we feel like we’ve stepped into a quaint hipster café. Pass the retro-style mint green gate and you see the open concept kitchen and dining area decked out in a mix of vintage furniture and collectibles, and further in, a cosy living room. From the terrazzo bar counter and midcentury modern pieces to the Wong Kar Wai movie posters and vinyl record feature wall, the “retro rojak” space, as Kunhua calls it, is filled with Instagram-worthy spots and photo ops. We can imagine ourselves catching up with friends over coffee here on a lazy Sunday afternoon.
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Kunhua didn’t set out to make his home look like a café. Having lived in the heritage estate of Chinatown all his life, all he wanted was a nostalgic look for his bachelor pad.
Renovations for the flat cost about $80,000 and took five months to complete. The delay, he says, was due in part to his “fussy” nature. Kunhua looked to Pinterest and mature estates like Tiong Bahru and Chinatown for design inspiration, and also scoured vintage, second-hand stores, and even Taobao for the perfect pieces to fill the home. The result is an eclectic space dominated by green tones and wooden textures.
“I was a bit OCD when it came to designing my flat. I didn’t want to compromise as it’s my first home and I insisted on finding the best [furnishings and fittings], so it took me a while to communicate with my interior designer (ID),” he tells 8days.sg.
“For example, it took me a very long time to find the deep green tiles that I used for the kitchen backsplash. I wanted a specific shade of green and size, so we went around Singapore looking for it. I die die want that tile and was prepared to import it. Fortunately, we found it at a very small tile shop in Defu Lane. That whole process took about two to three weeks.”
His eclectic living room is filled with furniture from a variety of styles and eras. The Japanese '60s-style sofa is from Karimoko ($1,800), while the vintage-inspired Danish design lamp ($100) and custom-made cupboard ($500) are from Taobao.
To further enhance the nostalgic look, he also brought over some items from his parents’ home, like the abacus and plastic bag from his grandparents’ sundry shop in Chinatown.
“We closed the shop about 10 years ago and this is the last plastic bag that we have. It has a pic of our shopfront and I got the bag framed ‘cos I wanted to preserve part of my dad and grandparents’ legacy. It’s like an heirloom. I didn’t manage to preserve the signboard, or I would display it too,” says Kunhua.
“The place holds a lot of memories for me. I spent most of my childhood there, skating and playing with other kids along the corridor, and when I was older, I helped out at the store. This is also why I was influenced by all the heritage stuff around me and was inspired to come up with [the retro theme] for the house.”
But not everything that looks vintage is old. Kunhua also designed his own furnishings such as the saloon-style half-doors reminiscent of those on shophouses, as well as the metal grilles and gate, and got them custom-made.
“I wanted those retro grilles that you see in Tiong Bahru, but I didn’t want a design that you could find anywhere else, so my ID had to design something for me. He came up with more than 10 designs before we decided on these and got them welded from scratch. A lot of money was spent on customisation, but I think it’s money well-spent,” he says.
The charming wall of ventilation blocks in the living room is undoubtedly the centrepiece of the flat. But finding a place for it in the home was a challenge. As Kunhua wanted to keep his rooms intact, he couldn’t hack a lot of the wall. The blocks were eventually installed where his master bedroom door used to be, so you see them the moment you walk into the apartment. The geometric pattern also adds a decorative touch to the living room.
“Initially I was worried about privacy [‘cos you can peek into the bedroom], but I eventually went with it ‘cos this is the best spot for it. A frosted glass sliding door was added behind it so I can shut it when I want privacy or when I turn the air con,” shares Kunhua. He later learned that this also creates a different vibe at night when the lights are turned on in the bedroom. “It’s like a lightbox effect,” he says.
Kunhua got the bedframe ($1,200) and bedside tables ($350 each) custom-made 'cos he wanted pencil legs.
The vintage aesthetic carries through every inch of the home, including the yard area behind the kitchen and bathrooms. Here, green half-walls and mosaic floor tiles give off an old-school vibe, while custom-made glass-embossed doors add a touch of quaintness to the space.
Ironically, Kunhua’s favourite spot in the house, his walk-in wardrobe, is the least retro-looking.
Simply designed with wooden cabinetry lining two sides of the wall and a daybed, this cosy room is where Kunhua retreats when he wants some me-time.
“This is where I relax and read. I can sit here all day and also sleep on the daybed. Sometimes I will bring in one of the crates [from the bedroom] and do my work here, and when friends come over, we can sit around here too,” says Kunhua.
8 DAYS: You bought your flat as soon as you turned 35. Have you always wanted to move out?
KUNHUA: I wasn’t actively looking. But because of the pandemic, I had more time on my hands, so I started doing research. I was looking for a four-room flat but couldn’t find anything suitable, then I saw this place and it was love at first sight. It’s very spacious, bright and airy, plus it’s near my parents’ place. It is also good for future planning. It is a bachelor pad now, but who knows in a few years I might have a family, so I felt I should invest in a bigger space.
Were you only looking in a specific area?
Yes, I wanted something in the central area ‘cos I am kind of a ‘town kid’. I’ve lived in Chinatown for the longest time and this is near my parents’ place. I could get the HDB [Proximity Housing] grant. (Laughs)
Why do you like the retro theme so much?
Retro has more character and the mood that I really like. When you step in, you will immediately know this is Kunhua’s house. You can tell what my hobbies are, so every part of the house is me except maybe the kitchen ‘cos I don’t cook. I like Wong Kar Wai films, so I felt my first house should be something that creates that kind of mood. I am also quite a sentimental person, so I have quite a lot of things that are not very new that I want to keep in the house, like my books, CDs, and vinyl records, so this is the best way to showcase them.
Was any part of your interior design inspired by Wong Kar Wai movies?
Not really, just the posters. Maybe at night when I turn on the yellow lights and it’s dim, it will evoke the vibe of his movies. I didn’t want it to [have the] cha chaan teng feel. I met with a lot of IDs and when I told them about the Wong Kar Wai mood, some came back to me with the cha chaan teng feel, suggesting things like booth seats. If you want cha chaan teng, please go to the shopping mall. (Laughs)
Did you keep any original fixtures from the flat?
The doors are the only things that I kept. I like them ‘cos they have this stained glass design which is very retro. A lot of people thought that I added the stained glass myself, but it came with the house. Though the colours don’t really go with the rest of the house, I like it. I also like the arch design, which is on trend now.
You also like Lego and plants.
I started playing with Lego during the pandemic and now I’m hooked. It’s the same thing with the plants. I only got them after I moved in and now I have more than 10. This is my lemon tree, I call her Tarcy ‘cos [Taiwanese singer Tarcy Su] sang ‘Lemon Tree’. There were some flowers, but it hasn’t borne fruit yet. I always tell her, “Don’t die so soon, let me try your lemons first.” Otherwise, my $200 will go to waste.
What does your family think of your retro-style home?
They just said mei (nice). That’s all. (Laughs) I think my parents find it very weird that their kid likes retro stuff. Why would a young guy like things from their era?
You performed some moving-in rituals like rolling a pineapple and stepping over a charcoal stove Did you engage a fengshui master to look at the place?
No, but a fengshui master, who is a friend, advised me on basic things like which windows to open or keep closed. I didn’t want to go into detail ‘cos I don’t want it to affect me and restrict how I was going to design the flat. Some things are better left unknown.
Has anything memorable happened in this house?
Just the other day, the TV turned on by itself. (Guffaws) I mentioned it on air and Cynthia [Koh] asked me if I wanted her to introduce a method to cleanse the place. But I’m an optimistic person, so I just brushed it off as something was wrong with the TV. It doesn’t bother me.
All photos cannot be reproduced without permission from 8days.sg.
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