When you know all the features of your stove but can't turn it on — that's a sure sign that you don't cook at home.

Juin Teh admitted as much while giving Seow Sin Nee a tour of her home in Johor Bahru during a recent episode of #JustSwipeLah uploaded to YouTube on Oct 7, but shared that she was most proud of how the kitchen turned out.

"I designed this place for my mother, as she likes to cook and make some Lunar New Year goodies," the 34-year-old explained. "So this place is where she'll often be."

Juin shared that there were walls separating the kitchen and laundry room, and her mum had to squeeze, so she removed them both.

She also installed the washer and dryer at a raised height to benefit her elderly mother and positioned drawers and cabinets at opportune spots to make doing laundry easier.

Juin also opted for open flames instead of an induction stove as her mum felt they would "have more wok hei" while stir-frying food. But it is still controlled electrically, she added, as it could power off by itself when it gets too hot.

However, Juin couldn't actually turn the stove on and Sin Nee, 29, called out to the former's mum: "Sorry Auntie, it's faster for me to ask you." Juin's mum then demonstrated how to turn it on.

The whole renovation process for the apartment took 10 months as Juin didn't hire an interior designer, coming up with the design of the place and hiring contractors by herself.

She said she wanted to make the design as simple as possible as she was living with her parents, without too many "open-concept" things to make cleaning as easy as possible. For that, they have a handy cleaning robot nicknamed Jevin.

Juin advised people renovating their homes to shop for their home appliances first, and giving their interior designers the dimensions so they could plan the storage spaces around them.

"This is actually your mother's work space, right?" Sin Nee asked about the kitchen, pointing out that the washer and dryer were opposite the stove and washing sink.

"Is this the place your mother should be staying all her life?"

Juin joked: "Yes, I've designed her entire workflow for her. She can't get out!"

Bathroom also designed with parents in mind

Juin's home is mostly in shades of white and beige, with dark wood for furniture and some black appliances and fittings.

Her parents' room, the master bedroom, lacked any of the darker tones, and even the four steel cupboards lining the walls are white.

Juin also designed their en-suite bathroom with her parents' age in mind, with a ledge for her parents to sit right below the shower so they could bathe comfortably.

However, she remarked that there was no door to the bathroom as "there wasn't enough budget when the renovation work reached here".

"Even if there were a door, my mother will still walk around naked," she said, to which Sin Nee yelled: "Don't spill the beans on your own mother!"

Juin's own room shared the same colour scheme, and was minimally decorated and neat, which Sin Nee remarked made it look like a hotel.

In fact, Juin had taken inspiration from one she visited, fitting a socket behind a drawer with her hair dryer inside to avoid too many wires from showing. Her mirror - which was yet to arrive - would also be placed on the inner door of a cupboard.

"But will you find it a pity that there's no proper dressing table?" Sin Nee asked.

Juin replied: "No, because I don't like to see a lot of things around. So I prefer to have everything hidden."

Sin Nee then asked if her wardrobes were also made of steel, to which Juin said no.

"Mine is the usual wardrobe, because I'm scared the steel wardrobe will collapse," she explained. "So I only installed it in my mother's room."

Sin Nee joked to the camera: "I think, Auntie, you better not watch this episode. You'll be hurt when you watch it.

"You thought she's very considerate, but she's actually using you as a guinea pig."

Juin retorted, laughing: "My mum is very happy, okay?"

drimac@asiaone.com

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