This style controls colour, pattern and finish — timber tone, cabinet finish, stone pattern, metal, glass and hardware. It does not fix your floor plan. Layout, dimensions, openings, circulation, storage and M&E are adapted to your actual property.
What you see · what we specify
Scandinavian · KitchenConcept study
05
A look you choose. Details we make buildable.
What you see
PaletteSoft white · Muted grey, sage or dusty neutrals · Fine light stone
Wood tonePale oak
Stone patternFine, light
Aluminium finishSilver
GlassClear or lightly textured glass
HardwareTitanium grey Gola
What gets specified
Cabinet materialby moisture zone — dry to branded P6, wet to ACP / honeycomb aluminium
Lightinglayers and colour temperature, room by room
Sockets & M&Eswitch, socket and appliance positions
Appliance gapsclearances and servicing access
Layout & dimensionsadapted to your actual property
Essential in this collectionConcept studies — not photographs of completed projects.
Kitchen
Entrance
Vanity
Kitchen island
Wet kitchen
Wardrobe
Explore more
Laundry
Study
TV feature wall
Display cabinetry
Bar
Prayer room
Kitchen
Entrance
Vanity
Kitchen island
Wet kitchen
Wardrobe
Suitable for
Young families & first homesCondominiumsChildren's storage & study roomsCasual living areas
Why this style works
Scandinavian interiors were engineered for scarcity: pale ash and white walls exist to multiply six hours of low northern daylight. Sarawak has the reverse problem — twelve hours of near-overhead light. The style still works, for a different reason. It survives children, which the other pale styles do not — the palette is pale but the finishes are not precious, so a scuffed oak edge or a marked wall reads as use rather than as damage. The muted greys and sage in the palette are not decoration; they are what stops white from turning into glare.
Full-house finish schedule
Every trade, in this style.
The fast track for a home with limited customisation: one decision per trade, who supplies it, and the phase it belongs to. Codes are ALUMAX finish-library codes; a specialist row is ELS-specified and trade-supplied; a client row is bought by you to the direction given.
Room shell
CeilingPhase 2Specialist trade
Paint, soft white — colour goes on the wall, the ceiling stays white, mattConfirmed
Wall paintPhase 2Specialist trade
Paint, muted grey on all four walls (sage or clay as the alternate), never one accent wall, mattConfirmed
Flush or shadow-gap skirting in the wall colour, silver where a metal trim showsConfirmed
Tiles and groutPhase 2Specialist trade
Matt porcelain in the fine family, 600×1200 or larger, grout matched to the tile — never a contrasting groutConfirmed
Cabinetry
Main frontPhase 1ALUMAX supplies
pale oak, one white system across a sightline22-08Confirmed
Feature frontPhase 1ALUMAX supplies
One feature front by default: sage or dusty neutrals, on the island, the tall run or the display niche; a second only by a documented exceptionConfirmed
Exposed carcass / interiorPhase 1ALUMAX supplies
Carcass interior in the main-front tone where it is seen (open shelving, glass fronts); white elsewhereConfirmed
Edge treatmentPhase 1ALUMAX supplies
Matched edge on every visible edge; laser or PUR edging wherever humidity is constantConfirmed
Wet-zone cabinetPhase 1ALUMAX supplies
Aluminium honeycomb in the main-front tone, code YQ017YQ017Confirmed
Work surfaces
CountertopPhase 1ALUMAX supplies
Quartz, fine, light stoneConfirmed
BacksplashPhase 1ALUMAX supplies
Same quartz as the countertop, run up to the wall cabinet; one stone by default, a second only by a documented exceptionConfirmed
Stone featurePhase 1ALUMAX supplies
One stone by default — the style spends its budget on the one countertop stone; a second only by a documented exceptionNot applicable
Doors and windows
Door leafPhase 1ALUMAX supplies
Flush leaf in the pale oak tone; white where the wall is whiteConfirmed
Door framePhase 1ALUMAX supplies
Silver aluminium door frameConfirmed
Entrance doorPhase 1ALUMAX supplies
Aluminium entrance door (D-series) in Silver; a timber leaf is the design intent — confirm a timber door with ALUMAX before it replaces the aluminium oneTo confirm with ALUMAX
Window framePhase 1ALUMAX supplies
Silver aluminium window frameConfirmed
Casing / architravePhase 2Specialist trade
Minimal square architrave in the wall colour, or a shadow-gap revealConfirmed
Glass
Door glassPhase 1ALUMAX supplies
clear or lightly textured glassConfirmed
PartitionsPhase 2ALUMAX supplies
Silver slim aluminium frame, clear or lightly textured glass; manifestation band in a neutral frostConfirmed
Clear glass on a silver base channel, capping rail in the same finishConfirmed
MirrorsPhase 1ALUMAX supplies
Backlit mirror or mirror cabinet, silver edge where a frame showsConfirmed
Metalwork
Cabinet handlesPhase 1ALUMAX supplies
Edge or bar pull, silver; where black is used it is slim powder-coated aluminium, never mild steelConfirmed
Door / window hardwarePhase 1ALUMAX supplies
Silver lever and window hardware, one colour across connected roomsConfirmed
Aluminium profiles and exposed trimsPhase 1ALUMAX supplies
Silver on every exposed aluminium profile; one declared shadow-gap dimension held throughoutConfirmed
Fixtures
SanitarywarePhase 2Specialist trade
White sanitaryware, wall-hung where the vanity is wall-hung; no coloured basinConfirmed
TapwarePhase 2Specialist trade
Silver tapware, matched across kitchen and bathroomsConfirmed
Lighting housing and CCTPhase 2Specialist trade
3000K; low pools after dark — table and floor lamps, under-shelf strips — not a ceiling grid; plan the pendant around the fan; silver or white housings, recessedConfirmed
Switches and socket platesPhase 2Specialist trade
Matte white plates, one system across the home, aligned to the joinery moduleConfirmed
Soft finishes
Curtains / blindsPhase 2ELS Source (materials) · installation as named in your quotation
a single white sheer; a recessed roller inside the reveal where a bedroom needs blackoutConfirmed
Loose-furniture timberPhase 3Client purchase
legs, not plinths; removable washable covers; cane on cabinet backs and inserts, seats only as tensioned weave on a solid frameConfirmed
Upholstery and rugsPhase 3Client purchase
Warm neutrals with visible weave; rugs in the wall tone family, flat weaveConfirmed
Equipment
Visible appliance finishesPhase 3Client purchase
Integrated behind fronts where possible; visible items in stainless or black glass, one family per kitchenConfirmed
AC grilles and ventilation coversPhase 2Specialist trade
Linear grilles in the ceiling white; any visible frame in silverConfirmed
Glass balustrade on silver channel outside as inside; metal-only railing in the same finish where glass is not wantedConfirmed
Exterior coatingsPhase 3Specialist trade
Exterior-grade matt coating in the wall tone family, one step deeper than inside; silver trimsConfirmed
Product Specification Levels
Same look, Essential to Bespoke.
Final materials depend on technical suitability, moisture zone and current availability.
01
Essential
Starts with FLYHOME — ALUMAX's preferred standardised, ready-to-assemble P6 cabinet platform for appropriate dry-zone applications — with other materials specified where the room, exposure or product requires them (wet zones step up to ACP / honeycomb aluminium).
FLYHOME P6 platform for appropriate dry zones
Cost-controlled approved finishes
Practical, reliable hardware
Standard glass and aluminium selections
Substrate by moisture zone — wet zones use ACP / honeycomb aluminium at any level
Curated SPC and WPC samples, each matched to this design language and to the surface it was chosen for — so the finish direction above resolves to a real code you can raise in an ELS+ enquiry.
Confirm colour, grain, gloss and profile depth against a physical supplier sample before ordering — these are application references, not exact colour proofs. ALUMAX supplies, installs and prices these products.
Cabinet platforms available through ALUMAX
Best ValueFLYHOME — Ready to AssembleP6 · Appropriate dry zonesAppropriate dry-zone kitchens, wardrobes, living storage and whole-home cabinetry.
FLYHOME is marketed, priced, supplied and installed by ALUMAX. ELS specifies the platform that fits the room and moisture zone — wet zones step up regardless of level.
Style specification
The technical layer, in full.
Palette
Soft white · Muted grey, sage or dusty neutrals · Fine light stone
Wood tone
Pale oak
Stone pattern
Fine, light
Aluminium finish
Silver
Glass
Clear or lightly textured glass
Hardware
Titanium grey Gola
Lighting
3000K–3500K, warm
How it is built
Lighting strategy
The instinct is to go cool because the style looks bright; that is backwards. Nordic rooms are warm-lit precisely because their daylight is cold. Hold 3000K and let daylight do the brightening. After dark the character comes from low pools — table and floor lamps, under-shelf strips — not a ceiling grid. Plan the pendant around the ceiling fan, or the blades will strobe across the table.
Industry standardColour-rendering behaviour is established lighting science, not one product's test.
Windows & curtains
This is the style that most wants a bare window and can least afford one here. Spend on the reveal rather than the glass — a deep return and a pale splayed jamb do most of the work, and unlike a coating they do not shift the colour of the white behind them; a single white sheer is then enough by day. Heavy blackout kills the idea; where a bedroom truly needs it, take it as a recessed roller inside the reveal rather than a second curtain layer — a stacked drape at the side of the window is the single detail that makes this style read as heavy.
ELS field guidanceHow fabrics and finishes behave in Sarawak's unconditioned humidity — ELS field experience.
Furniture language
Legs, not plinths. Raised furniture keeps the floor continuous and lets a mop pass underneath, which matters more here than in Copenhagen. Keep upholstery in removable washable covers — humidity punishes fixed fabric. Cane and rattan belong to this style but sag and mildew in rooms air-conditioned only at night; use them on cabinet backs and door inserts, and as a seat it must be a properly tensioned weave on a solid frame, not a stapled panel — the stapled kind sags here.
Handles & hardware
The finish follows the palette, so the choice is only Essential or Bespoke.
Scandinavian decides colour, pattern and finish. Depth is separate — it is built, not chosen — so ELS matches it layer by layer against your actual ceiling height, walls and floor.
The one rule
Depth comes from a plane change — shadow does the work — or a material change — contrast does the work.
Plane changeshadow does the workMaterial changecontrast does the work
Do both at one junction with no functional reason and they cancel: the eye stops reading either.
Plane ✓Material —
Sculptural depth
One material, a level change — the shadow reads the form.
Plane —Material ✓
Graphic depth
Two materials on one plane — contrast draws the line.
Plane ✓Material ✓
Reserve for a hard boundary
Different material AND a level change together — only where a real boundary changes: wet/dry, indoor/outdoor, public/private.
CeilingSame material — depth from drops & coves
Default to one material and earn depth from drops, coves and shadow gaps — never a busy patchwork overhead. Height is the hard constraint: services claim the void before the design does.
Clear height≥ 2,500 mm (UBBL) · hold 2,600 mm under any drop
The habitable-room legal minimum, with comfort headroom kept below every dropped feature.
Industry standard
Slab to slab2,900–3,200 mm typical
What you start with — before any services are run.
ELS field guidance
AC plenumCassette/FCU 250–350 mm · ducted 300–400 mm
Air-conditioning claims the void first; the design works with what is left.
Industry standard
Condensate fall1:100
The gradient the AC drain line needs to run — it sets where the ceiling can sit.
Industry standard
Cove cavity150–200 mm
Depth to hide the light source and throw an even wash, not a hot line.
Design recommendation
Shadow gap20–30 mm
The reveal that separates ceiling from wall as a crisp, intentional line.
Design recommendation
Board for humidity12 mm gypsum at 400–450 mm centres
Sarawak's high humidity sags thin board on wide centres; this spec holds flat.
ELS field guidance
We askOnce air-conditioning and services are in, how much ceiling height can we spend on a dropped feature?
WallSame material, broken by a reveal
Default to one material broken by a reveal or shadow gap. A material change must land on a plane change or a shadow gap — never stop mid-plane, where a finish that just ends reads as unfinished.
Reveal / shadow gap20–40 mm
Enough shadow to read as a deliberate line, not a gap that looks like a defect.
Design recommendation
Where material changesOn a joint — never mid-plane
A reveal or a corner gives the change a reason; a finish that stops in open field looks unfinished.
Design recommendation
Socket box depth47 mm behind the finish
A flush socket sets the minimum a wall build-up can be — thinner reveals will not clear it.
Industry standard
We askWhere do the material changes fall — and does each one land on a joint we can detail?
FloorDifferent material, one flat level
Default to a single flat plane and zone with material, not level. A level change is either zero or a proper step (≥ 150 mm) — nothing in between, which trips.
Level changeZero, or ≥ 150 mm
Anything in between is a trip hazard; keep it flat or make it a proper step.
Industry standard
Screed load50 mm screed ≈ 110 kg/m²
A raised zone adds real dead load — the structure has to carry it.
Industry standard
Raised sub-frameSteel or aluminium — not timber
Termite country: a raised timber floor is a liability here.
ELS field guidance
Kerbless wet zone20–40 mm slab recess
Holds water in a level-threshold wet room without a step to trip on.
Industry standard
We askDo we zone this floor by material alone, or is a real step justified — and where does water need holding back?
Figures are planning guidance, not warranties. Real performance depends on the product, its installation and the site's exposure; the product datasheet and site measurement confirm it.
These are the standard rules and typical Sarawak figures. The exact heights, falls and build-ups are confirmed by your designer against the real slab, services and moisture zones on site.
Construction notes
White lacquer and white foil yellow under UV at different rates, so a door beside a west window drifts away from its neighbour — keep one white system across a sightline and specify a UV-stable grade.
Slim black metal must be powder-coated aluminium rather than mild steel; cut edges and fixing points bloom rust in coastal humidity.
Low contrast leaves nothing to hide behind — a 1mm variation in a shadow gap that walnut would swallow is plainly visible on white and pale oak, so declare one gap dimension and hold it.
ELS field guidanceClimate-durability timeframes ELS has seen on Sarawak sites; not a manufacturer rating.
Common mistakes
What goes wrong, and what to do instead.
Painting every surface white to make the room brighter
Hold white for the ceiling and let the walls take a muted grey, sage or clay tint; daylight here needs absorbing, not multiplying.
Treating the sage or clay wall as an accent wall
The muted colour belongs on all four walls or none; one coloured wall facing three white ones reads as an unfinished paint job.
Running open shelving through the kitchen because the style is known for it
Keep open shelving out of the cooking zone — grease plus ceiling-fan dust turns pale timber sticky and grey.
Final materials, finishes and availability depend on technical suitability, moisture zone, load and the current ALUMAX stocking strategy, confirmed on site measurement and approved scope.