Influencer Nicole Liel slams interior designer for home renovation issues
With horror stories about home renovations circulating on the internet, it can be pretty nerve-wracking to spruce up one’s BTO flat.
Recently, local influencer Nicole Liel shared several videos detailing her unsatisfactory home renovation journey with the lead designer of Studio Siris.
@lielnicole
Ms Liel said she and her husband, Jeremin, had been staying at the unfinished flat for almost a month, though the renovation began in April this year.
Ceiling lights and fan allegedly placed randomly
In a video posted on 18 Aug, Ms Liel named Mr Wayne Huang as the interior designer (ID) of her BTO flat. The clip has gained over 600,000 views at the time of writing.
In the video, Ms Liel highlighted the backsplash installed in her kitchen, which was of an inadequate length and left a significant gap between it and the cabinet.
Source: @lielnicole on TikTok
An earlier video even showed the influencer measuring the kitchen cabinet, which showed that it was made in the exact proportions Mr Huang had planned.
The influencer also shared that she had designed a mural to go on a wall in her home, but claimed the ID decided to place a switch right in the middle of it.
Additionally, part of the bathroom walls had to be concealed with black panels, as they were not clad in sintered stone as allegedly intended.
However, what angered Ms Liel most was the light and fan installations on her bedroom ceiling, which she claimed were so randomly placed that she likened them to constellations.
Source: @lielnicole on TikTok
“They’re not even centred to anything,” she stated.
On Thursday (28 Aug), she shared that the Consumers Association of Singapore (CASE) had reached out to her regarding the incident.
Interior designer addresses home renovation issues
On 27 Aug, Mr Huang, who introduced himself as the co-founder of Studio Siris, posted a series of 12 TikTok videos explaining his side of the story.
Mr Huang stated that he had provided his design services to Ms Liel in exchange for “exposure” and even connected her to other vendors that he had worked with.
He then addressed several of the issues Ms Liel highlighted in her home renovation.
With regard to the gap between the backsplash and the cabinet, Mr Huang said it was due to Ms Liel changing some of her kitchen appliances to ones with smaller dimensions.
As for the electric socket in the middle of the mural, Ms Huang said he had asked Jovan, a subcontractor, to move it away.
However, he also admitted that both he and Ms Liel had made many changes to the renovation plans that the subcontractor may not have been able to keep up with.
“He was reacting to Nicole, and he was also reacting to me. While Nicole was changing stuff, I was changing stuff,” Mr Huang said, adding, “I can totally understand why. On his side, he claimed that there were many things going on.”
Addressing the “constellation” lights, Mr Huang said they were initially centred to other appliances, which Ms Liel and her husband had decided to do away with to cut costs.
As for the ceiling fan, Mr Huang said he had been “fired” from the project at that point, and so he was unaware why that was the case.
Source: @abigfatslice on TikTok
Mr Huang also explained that repeated design changes and prolonged discussions with sponsors contributed to the project’s delayed completion.
However, he admitted that he could have made it clear to the homeowner that these would ultimately affect her move-in date, which was supposedly 15 June.
To make up for the setback, Mr Huang revealed that he had sent S$4,000 to Ms Liel’s husband to cover the lease extension of the place they were staying at.
Source: @abigfatslice on TikTok
Netizens divided on the issue
Many netizens have weighed in on the issue, with some siding with Ms Liel and others with the ID.
Some netizens believe that the incident could have been completely avoided if the influencer had not gotten sponsored services and materials.
They added that the external vendors made it difficult for the ID to have control over the project.
However, others stated Mr Huang should have done a better job, regardless of whether the home renovation was sponsored or not.
Source: TikTok
Another netizen said that Mr Huang should have been more hands-on on the project and caught the mistakes before they were finalised.
Source: TikTok
Also read: Sentosa resident spends S$55K on home renovation, dismayed by uneven cabinets & shoddy work
Sentosa resident spends S$55K on home renovation, dismayed by uneven cabinets & shoddy work
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Featured image adapted from @lielnicole on TikTok.
