• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Go to Expat Living Hong Kong
Get our Newsletter

Lifestyle Guide To Moving To & Living in Singapore - Expat Living HomepageLifestyle Guide To Moving To & Living in Singapore - Expat Living

Moving to Singapore and not sure where to start? Expat Living is the essential lifestyle guide to living in Singapore.

Login Pelcro Shop

Menu
  • Living in Singapore
      • Living here
      • Neighbourhood Guides
      • Schools
      • Property
      • Work & Finance
      • For Guys
      • Environment
      • Readers’ Choice Awards
        • Moving house? Get your Wi-Fi connection right!
        • earth hour festival earth hour Singapore WWF SingaporeSwitch Off for Earth Hour by WWF Singapore
        • Lydia Ko plays golf tournament in singaporeWatch a women’s golf battle for the Team Series title!
        • real estate in united states owning property in USOwning Real Estate in the United States
      • View all
    Close
  • Things To Do
      • Things to do
      • EL Events
      • Calendar
      • Competitions
      • Noticeboard
        • Elke & man k9 empawer walkWhat’s on this week and beyond
        • St Patrick's Day 2023 - irish pubs and drinking spotsSt Patrick’s Day: Great bars to celebrate at
        • Lydia Ko plays golf tournament in singaporeWatch a women’s golf battle for the Team Series title!
        • 10 places for teenagers to hang out in Singapore
      • View all
    Close
  • Kids
      • Enrichment
      • Kids Things To Do
      • Mums & Babies
      • Schools
      • Tots & Toddlers
      • Tweens & Teens
        • 10 places for teenagers to hang out in Singapore
        • Mental health support for toddlers to teens
        • Fun obstacle course in Singapore for kids and adultsHomeTeamNS challenges you to the ultimate obstacle course!
        • education system in Singapore Astor international schoolAstor: Small Singapore school with big impact
      • View all
    Close
  • Homes
      • Home Decor
      • Readers’ Homes
      • Furniture
        • Beautiful interior design by Arete CultureNeed decorators, home stylists or interior designers?
        • Bedrooms: Bed frames, bedding & bedside tables!
        • Affordable art in SingaporeBuying affordable art in Singapore – it is possible!
        • Where to buy a really good bed and mattress in Singapore
      • View all
    Close
  • Travel
      • Asia
      • Australia & New Zealand
      • Rest Of World
      • News
      • Travel Offers
        • property in sydneyBuying property in Sydney
        • international health insurance for singapore expatsHealth insurance for Singapore expats
        • Travel News & Hotel Deals
        • Chloe from E&A InteriorsBuilding a holiday villa in Sri Lanka from start to finish!
      • View all
    Close
  • Wine & Dine
      • Asian Cuisine
      • Western Cuisine
      • Bars & Clubs
      • Groceries & Speciality Services
      • Recipes & Classes
        • crab bee hoon singapore recipeAll you need to know about crab bee hoon in Singapore
        • local desserts in singapore - Rainbow ice cream breadMust-try local desserts in Singapore
        • St Patrick's Day 2023 - irish pubs and drinking spotsSt Patrick’s Day: Great bars to celebrate at
        • Best Restaurants in Singapore – Where to eat for foodies!
      • View all
    Close
  • Style & Beauty
      • Fashion
      • Hair & Beauty
      • Beauty Offers
        • ear piercing in SingaporeEar piercing in Singapore: types & how to avoid infection!
        • hairdressers in singaporeBest Hair Salons in Singapore for Haircut & Style
        • Best facial in Singapore? Read our face spa & beauty salon reviews
        • Niessing gold jewellery in SingaporeI discovered a 150-year-old jeweller in Singapore!
      • View all
    Close
  • Health & Fitness
      • Dental
      • Fitness
      • Medical
      • Wellness
        • Here’s why sleep is so important
        • core exercises in singapore7 Singapore Pilates studios for core exercises & more!
        • at-home personal training yoga in singaporeYoga classes in Singapore, and the benefits!
        • Here’s what inspires a top urologist in Singapore
      • View all
    Close
  • Shop
    • PRINT MAGAZINE
    • DIGITAL MAGAZINE
    • BOOKS
    • Close

Inside an eclectic East Coast house

4th November 2018 by Amy Brook-Partridge 4 Min Read

https://expatliving.sg/east-coast-house-living-in-singapore/

She may not live in the black-and-white she yearned for years ago, but Claire Salaria’s house on the east coast of Singapore is the next best thing for her. We loved its eclectic, creative style.

Who lives here: British expats Claire Salaria, husband Tariq, daughters Lila (12), Zakia (11) and Balquisse (Billy for short) (9), helper Grace, Pixie the dog, and cat Snowy.
Size of home: Five-bedroom, three-storey rented house (including attic office), with small plunge pool at the back.
How long they’ve lived in Singapore: Just over 11 years.
Style of home: Eclectic, with a sense of laidback elegance.

East coast home claire hallam outside area

There’s a theory that, in Singapore, there are Easties and there are Westies, and once you decide on an area to live in, it’s rare for anyone to cross over. This is true of Claire Salaria and her family, who first moved to Joo Chiat in the East 11 years ago. Living initially in a shophouse, and benefitting from shared facilities, they stayed there for four years until their family outgrew the space and they were on the hunt again, for something bigger, but still in the East.

“We loved the house we had – it was beautiful, but it only had three bedrooms. We wanted more space, and we wanted to pay less, and these properties would only let you renew once a year so we had to negotiate each time. The community thing also just got a little too much sometimes – I’d end up with ten kids in the house and there’s no getting away!”

East coast home claire hallam girls room
The blanket on Lila’s bed belonged to Claire when she was a little girl.

The family loved the area, and with Lila already attending UWC Tampines, Claire did initially look at colonial houses in Changi and Seletar. “My dream was to live in a black-and-white but it just wouldn’t work with Tariq’s commute into Marina Bay. Here at least it’s just four stops for him to get into the city.”

They found the five-bedroom East Coast house through an Australian family who were leaving Singapore, and its proximity to Tanjong Katong Road was convenient for the family in terms of school, work and socialising. “We also deal directly with the landlady, who’s very reasonable and handson.”

Having moved initially from London, just after renovating their house in South London, Claire was keen to ensure the family had a real home to live in here. “When we left London, we were a small family of four, with Lila and Zakia being only 18 months and two months respectively. We still managed to fill a container when we relocated, and this property has some heirlooms and UK pieces dotted around the rooms.” Claire is also a big fan of mixing old and new, so these heirlooms are interspersed with, for example, shiny metallic decorative skulls, a black peacock chair, and plenty more monochromatic, textural and contemporary pieces.

East coast home claire hallam bedroom
The picture above the bed is of Claire and her daughters’ hennaed hands in Jaipur.

Textiles & Interiors

Clearly demonstrating a flair for home styling, Claire’s skills have grown from her background as a buyer and product developer in fashion and interiors for high street brands including Next and House of Fraser while in the UK, and a subsequent online interior design course here in Singapore.

She also launched clothing brand Cotton House eight years ago, along with a friend who has since left Singapore. After a brief hiatus, during which time she took said interior design course, Claire re-launched the brand at the end of 2017, with a view to incorporating her home-styling services, and eventually selling home textiles. “I visit India frequently, Jaipur in particular, on research and buying trips. It’s a beautiful and stunning place to visit, and it’s where I source my hand-printed textiles.”

East coast home claire hallam dining room
The dining table used to sit at Café Beviamo in Tanglin Mall, before they refitted the restaurant five years ago. Claire picked it up for free, having to pay just the $100 transport.

She calls her clothing “relaxed dressing”, with the aim of creating a range that can work across the day, from the school run to work, to a trip to the shops and meeting friends later for drinks. “It’s not simply resort wear, it’s comfortable and easy to wear but stylish and versatile and can be dressed up or down.”

For her home, Claire’s stylish fingerprint can be seen throughout the first floor; however, a visit to the second floor and it’s clear that she’s let her three daughters have free reign on their own rooms – each is a vision of pinks, purples or blues. Beside these three rooms is the master bedroom, a much more sedate and subdued affair compared to the pops of colour next door. Upstairs again and you find Claire’s Cotton House studio, hidden away in the attic. This mix through the house is indicative of Claire’s own style; as she freely admits, “I’m a bit bohemian and eclectic, and I love a bit of laidback elegance too!”

East coast home claire hallam decor
The peacock chair was bought from (now defunct) Modern Eclectic. The pineapple lamp is from Graham & Green in the UK, the shade made by Design Intervention.
East coast home claire hallam pink kids room
“Billy is still into unicorns and anything that’s pink and sparkly!”
East coast home claire hallam
East coast home claire hallam kids room
Zakia is a fan of blue; “Typo does some really nice, fun stuff for children’s rooms, including these fairy ights.”
East coast home claire hallam living room
East coast home claire hallam cotton house
East coast home claire hallam trunk
“Among these trunks, there’s one for each girl, with all their mementos in. I figure they’ll take the whole thing when they need to.”
East coast home claire hallam

Recommendations

Home & style

Cotton House 9146 3901 | cottonhouse.com.sg

Carlmey Manufacturing (“speak to Michael Tan if you need to have curtains made, anything reupholstered or a screen made”)
6283 6894 | carlmey.com.sg

Ruby Slipper (“for handmade, made-toorder rugs”)
9171 1251 | rubyslipper.com.sg

Singapore Trading Post (“for quirky homeware, pineapple ornaments, ice buckets, tea towels and more!”)
#07-01 Tan Boon Liat Building 315 Outram Road
6221 4619 | singaporetradingpost.com

Local eats

Bottega (“for a mid-week date night”)
#01-02 Suites@Katong 263 Tanjong Katong Road
6816 1834 | bottega.com.sg

The Mango Tree 91 East Coast Road
6440 1285 | themangotree.com.sg

Trattoria L’Operetta (“our kids’ favourite pizza”)
244 Tanjong Katong Road
6440 9322 | trattoriaoperetta.sg

Town dining

Don Ho (“for great cocktails, food and amazing décor”)
1 Keong Saik Road
6223 5001 | don-ho.com

Singapore Polo Club (“for a touch of the countryside in the city”)
80 Mount Pleasant Road
6854 3985 | singaporepoloclub.org

Want more home inspiration? See our Home decor section!

Why we put roots down in River Valley

Best furniture stores in Singapore

This article first appeared in the July 2018 edition of Expat Living. You can purchase a copy or subscribe so you never miss an issue!

Get the latest events, stories and special offers sent to your inbox
Get the latest events, stories and special offers sent to your inbox

Categories: Homes Readers Homes Tags: Cotton House East Coast Home Decor Homes Interiors Readers Homes Singapore East Coast

Amy Brook-Partridge

Amy has two kids, one dog and one husband - although she'd love to have more than one (dog, that is). She's mad about F45 training, running and playing Gaelic football, when she isn't injured or drinking a little too much wine.

You May Also Like

home cleaning sendhelper

Here’s how you can get your rental deposit back

Living a full life!

king albert park living near the rail corridor

Living next to the Rail Corridor and nature!

Primary Sidebar

  • Competitions
  • Noticeboard
  • Subscribe
  • About
  • advertise
  • Contact
  • Privacy

© 2023 Expat Living Singapore, All Rights Reserved.