Mixing Love And Design

Meet Rai and Xuel, a dynamic mixed-race couple who have opened the doors to their eclectic home through their Instagram account, @block.518. In this feature, they take us on a journey from the initial challenges of securing their property in the highly competitive BTO market to the creative freedom they discovered in a resale unit.

Tell us about yourself and what inspired you to start featuring your home on Instagram.

We’re Rai and Xuel, a mixed-race couple who got married and bought our home in 2022. We initially started our Instagram house account mostly to learn and seek inspiration from others. However, after we moved in, our focus shifted toward documenting how our home has evolved and capturing the memories associated with each corner. Our living room has undergone around 20 modifications, as we enjoy rearranging things just for fun. It’s a wonderful way for us to look back at those pictures and reminisce about those moments.

What’s the story behind your home and how did you come to own it?

We’d heard many stories about the difficulty of getting BTO ballot numbers, and watched as our friends rushed to submit their applications in the middle of the night—does it really help?

This created a mindset that we, too, would face difficulties securing one. Additionally, we disliked that a 4-room BTO flat was smaller than an older 4-room resale and couldn’t see how we would effectively utilise the BTO’s walkway space along the bedrooms, feeling that there was less space available for use. We also knew that we wanted our own place as soon as possible post-wedding, so the wait for a BTO was not something we were willing to endure. When we first saw this unit, it had few built-ins and felt well-aged and even peaceful. We signed the OTP in July and received our keys in October. We’ve never looked back since and have been recommending resale units to anyone interested.

How would you describe your home’s design aesthetic?

We don’t have a theme! We mostly used a process of elimination; we knew we aren’t minimalists, we don’t like track lights, and we wanted some colour, among other things.