Artra Review

Propshort: Some of the best units to hit the market, Artra’s name may be derived from the phrase, ‘art of making time’, but it should really be the art of making timely and well-designed homes. As a mixed development, it offers a lot more to the surrounding area than its neighbours while its residential component looks to surpass everything else in Alexandra View. 

Artra was launched on the last weekend of April. Its first phase of sales saw 130 out of the 200 units released, sold. It is an impressive feat for a development coming onto an extremely crowded scene but Artra was the singular development everyone was secretly waiting for.

Redhill may have its amenities in tow but for the developments around Alexandra View, those shops and food centres are a little far out. Artra belays those concerns by being a mixed development with 15 retail shops, one childcare centre and more importantly, one supermarket.

Open pavilion with shops

The shops are all located on the ground floor in an open-air pavilion where non-residents may walk about unhindered. The supermarket, shops, even childcare centre are all available for residents of the area. The shops mainly face Redhill MRT station while the accesses to the development for residents face Alexandra View.

Resident entrance

The swimming pool, located above the shops is also on the level with the train tracks. Planted bushes and shrubbery however will provide cover for the residents and privacy. And where the train station is concerned, Artra is the closest, though its four other neighbours aren’t that much further away.

Swimming pool and tennis court

The biggest issue people may have would be loss of privacy and noise but unlike The Metropolitan where the train tracks run within the development, Artra is properly insulated from the noise by the many manicured plants. However, some slight vibration for the units that face the train tracks may be inevitable. But the severity of such things can’t be determined until after people begin moving in.

None of these potential issues detract whatsoever, from the incredibly well-done and beautifully designed units.

3BR + study + private lift Type D (1,410 sq ft.)

A unique shape that somehow manages to make the living room look incredibly expansive sets the bar high for the other developments in the area. Artra may be the latest and hopefully the last development in the over-crowded Alexandra View but it is hands down the best looking of the lot if the 3BR unit is any indication.

3BR living and dining

The space for the living and dining areas measure roughly 456 sq ft., even with the dry kitchen in the shape of an island, situated at the far back. The living area is fronted by a rather commodious balcony which accentuates the space to such a degree that at no point does it ever feel cramped or unimpressive.

The unique layout opens the further in you go and as such, the corridors benefit from a wider width that effectively eliminates the typical tight space seen in other developments. The wide spaces continue with the bedrooms as a common bedroom can handle a queen-size bed with plenty of room left to work with.

3BR common bedrooms with queen size bed

Not all common bedrooms however are designed to accommodate a queen bed but all do come with floor to ceiling windows that are crucial toward giving the room a much larger feel.

1st common bedroom

Built-in wardrobes come with the development but with an extra element; the interiors are lined to prevent moisture from seeping in to protect clothes and the wardrobe.

The wardrobe for the master bedroom is slightly different in that it is essentially a walk-in wardrobe. The master bathroom overlooks this walk-in wardrobe and from this angle, the bedroom proper is hidden.

The bedroom can hold a king-size bed and since it has its own access to the balcony, via a sliding door, it is possible for residents to even out the ground and extend the bedroom space out into the balcony. But as this may affect the façade of the development, approval must first be sought from the developer.

3BR master bedroom

It is a testament to the design here that the balcony is long, spacious and wide enough for residents to play around with it. But as big as it is, it in no way eats up valuable space to exist. The balcony thus, is seamless with the unit.

3BR balcony

The final piece of the unit is the kitchen, or as people like to consider it, the heart of the home. Starting off with the island in the living room, the structure comes built with hidden storage compartments on the exterior and a wine chiller in the interior facing the kitchen doorway.

3BR dry kitchen

The wet kitchen is long hallway outfitted with the standard appliances and gas cooker. There is a bit of dead space in the kitchen because of the unique layout but it is cleverly covered up as a wardrobe with a bi-fold door.

3BR wet kitchen

The space can be used to store brooms, dustpans and other assorted items.

At the end of the kitchen, it opens into a yard with two separate rooms; the wash area and the pantry.

3BR yard area

That whole area is accessible via another door which leads to the welcome area, the main door and private lift.

The 3BR is ostentatious but it delivers powerfully on every aspect. It is an attractive but grand and ultimately a fantastic unit to buy and call home if for nothing other than to show off endlessly to your friends and family.

2BR + study Type A2 (829 sq ft.)

Not often when one goes from being impressed with the scale and size of a 3BR unit to a 2BR unit and feel the same way, but at Artra, the 2BR unit despite being significantly smaller somehow makes a bigger impact on the senses.

2BR main area

This is attributed to the surprisingly large amounts of communal space available.

We’re used to seeing the open kitchen the moment we step through the main door. Most 2BR units are also impacted by a pseudo corridor because of a wall or partition that acts as a lead-in to a small zone reserved as the living area. At this 2BR unit, there are no clever partitions, only clearly designated spaces that exist in an open area that is a breath of fresh air.

The free space is staggering and even more impressive in that nothing seems to be lost. The open kitchen takes its own area and does not encroach onto territory reserved for the living area.

The dining table that can sit four is unobtrusively present and the living area next to the balcony gives the resident plenty of options when it comes to furniture. The wall to wall distance makes watching on a big screen television comfortable.

2BR from kitchen

A cool addition is the kitchen island which is movable and therefore, can be pushed out into the balcony (provided the residents build a small ramp there) for some BBQ.

2BR open kitchen with island

As this is a 2BR + study unit, the study area is essentially an open area along where the common bedroom is. It’s a nice nook to place a long study table, a book shelf or a piano even.

2BR study corner

Given the volume of space already seen, it is forgivable for people to assume that the common bedroom would be the one that suffers as a result. Fortunately, this is untrue as the common bedroom is spacious. It isn’t as big as its counterpart in the 3BR but it holds up well on its own.

The master bedroom is similar to the 3BR version, though a tad bit smaller due to this being a 2BR unit. The layout is the same, though in reverse.

2BR master bathroom

The 2BR unit only has one access to the balcony and that is through the living room. The master bedroom does not have a balcony which does wonders for its usable space.

This is how 2BR units should be presented; as quality, comfortable small homes for a family of three.