SGAG’s Xiao Ming Moved To A $3mil Condo And His Wife Made Him Give Up 90% Of His Plants
The SGAG co-founder thought the bigger apartment would mean more room for his plants. He thought wrong.
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When SGAG co-founder Adrian Ang, aka Xiao Ming, and his wife, Goh Xin Lei, both 38, found out they were expecting their second child in mid-2024, they knew they had to move into a bigger space.
Within six months, the couple found a four-bedroom, 1,378 sq ft resale condo in the east, signed on the dotted line, and gave themselves just eight weeks to renovate and settle in, all while juggling work, caring for a three-year-old kid, and the arrival of a new baby.
They moved into their $3 million condo in late January with their son Zachary a couple of weeks before daughter Natalie was born.
Having been through two previous renovations, the couple knew what to expect, and more importantly, what they wanted.
But even with all that experience, nothing prepared Xiao Ming for the hardest part of the move: saying goodbye to 90 per cent of his beloved plant collection.
“I used to have more than 100 pots, now I’m down to about 10,” he tells 8days.sg.
In his previous home, greenery took over — from the balcony to the living room, even the bedroom curtains weren’t safe from crawling roots.
“The idea was to have Gardens by the Bay, but it became a jungle,” he laughs.
So naturally he assumed the new, bigger apartment — and its more spacious balcony — would mean more room for his plants.
But once other priorities kicked in like relocating the dining area to the balcony and installing more cabinets for storage, his plant babies quickly became the lowest priority.
It didn’t help that Xin Lei, who had long tolerated his “out of control” obsession, issued a firm warning: keep it to a “plant corner” in the balcony.
Only his favourites — big-leaf varieties and those with interesting shapes — made the cut, and the rest sold or given away to friends and fellow plant lovers.
Letting go, he says, was painful.
His current setup is a small fraction of what it once was. He even tried sneaking a few pots into other parts of the home but was swiftly told by the missus to remove them.
But ever the optimist, Xiao Ming jokes that maybe in his next home, the jungle can rise again.
Though the 11-year-old apartment was in move-in condition — a key criteria in their home search due to their tight timeline — the couple eventually decided to overhaul the space to make it feel truly theirs.
“It exploded to this [big project] and this budget,” says Xin Lei of their $200,000 reno.
Xiao Ming let Xin Lei take the lead on design, working off her Pinterest boards as the main brief for their interior designer (ID).
While Xiao Ming gravitates towards Scandinavian cabin-core aesthetic and Xin Lei modern luxe, their ID managed to blend both styles into a warm, cosy space featuring dark wood tones, marble accents and artwork.
Sneaky nature-inspired touches
And since plants are mostly off-limits indoors, Xiao Ming turned to subtle workarounds — like a rustic wood-slab coffee table and a custom-made sofa featuring botanical and animal prints.
“My wife doesn’t want me to put plants all over the house, so I sneaked it in a bit here, a bit over there,” he grins. “The sofa has animal print and it’s a little bit foresty, gives it some character.”
Cosy cabin vibes in the master bedroom
The master bedroom follows a similar nature-inspired theme. The forest-green bed frame pops against wood-laminate walls, wardrobe and door, giving the room a cabin-like warmth and a sense of continuity.
The open-concept bathroom, which came with the house, makes the space feel airier and visually spacious, though the couple admit they would prefer something a little more private.
“We considered removing the bathtub so we can extend the bedroom, but that would delay the reno by three weeks and incur extra cost, so we kept it. Zachary can play in it and the glass wall also gives the room a hotel vibe,” says Xiao Ming.
Xiao Ming's favourite spot
Xiao Ming’s favourite part of the home is unsurprisingly the balcony and dining area, where his “plant corner” lives.
He enjoys winding down here in the evenings, soaking in the view and what’s left of his jungle.
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