Kelvin Lee (KL) is not your average graphic designer and web developer. Aside from being nimble with his hands, he’s also a passionate spider lover. Not one to keep them confined to tanks, Kelvin allows his spiders to free roam within his bedroom. The avid arachnid owner even created a make-believe company name for his bundle of joy, called Stacey’s Web Development Company. But with a growing collection of cobwebs forming in various corners around the space, Kelvin decided to use the opportunity to transform his former bedroom into a cool den where he can hang out with his eight-legged pals while working or gaming from home.
Utilising a mix of recycled materials and some new parts, Kelvin gave his normal-looking room a total makeover. His facebook post detailing the entire process (which you can see below) has since gone viral, and we decided to catch a one-on-one with the creative homeowner to find out more about the project.
H&D: What made you start Stacey’s Web Development Company?
KL: It is actually just a joke I came up with when naming Stacey’s little spider corner. Stacey (who has since passed on) was one of the first spiders I got, so I created the page to showcase my spiders, their lifestyles, and different bugs I take photos of. Hopefully, it also helps people understand and fear these creepy crawlies a little less!
H&D: Do you work at home full-time with your spider crew?
KL: Pretty much. I had been working from home for the past five years while overseas, so after moving back to Singapore, I naturally wanted to build a nice WFH setup for myself.
H&D: Why spiders though?
KL: I’ve been fascinated with them ever since I was a kid! Basically I like small creatures of all sorts, but spiders more. It’s amazing how they have evolved to have so many diverse ways of hunting their prey.
H&D: But won’t these free-roaming spiders escape the room?
KL: Nope, the species that I keep free-roaming are semi-permanent web builders, which means they hardly take their webs down once they find a spot they are comfortable with. The key is to understand them enough to create a spot they want to stay in.
H&D: So what are some tips you can share with those who are inspired by your project to give their own rooms a makeover?
KL: For building a WFH setup, I would just say go with what you are passionate about! Think about what you love and what you want to be surrounded by, and ideas will come naturally.
Intrigued? We certainly are! Below is Kelvin’s step-by-step recount of how the whole room came together (warning: close-up of spider shots included!)
This is the human’s corner. I built it to have some of my favorite tech around, but at the same time to be enveloped by greenery and not having a single wire in sight. Every single light, including basking lights for the spiders, air conditioning and 2 PCs are controlled via a Smartthings Hub, which I control using the Google Nest Hub under the monitor.
I specifically stated that this area is human only, and spiders are not allowed to build their webs here, but it seems nobody cares. Coffee and Pepper have blatantly build their gigantic webs here (More on the spiders in the later photos).
I love immersion and good sound, so I went with a 34″ Acer X34P ultrawide monitor. The vertical monitor I use it for coding. The front speakers are Dynaudio Xeos, chosen for their excellent nearfield performance and ability to perform in a space-limited setup. Rear speakers are my old Audioengine HD3s, hidden behind the 2 patches of plants you see above. An Audioengine S8 adds the much needed boom!
On the left is the spiders’ office. Stacey and Pepper used to live in the little jungle with 2 vertical vines to attach their webs to. Coffee lives on her own desk beside mine.
This was how it started. It used to be my bedroom, and has since been sitting dormant just collecting dust.
First thing to do was tear down the cupboard which I didn’t need anymore. It was still in good condition and I really like the doors, so they will be repurposed into the interior decor. More on them later…
The room has a beam right in the middle, which means I have 2 alcoves which really annoy me. But I managed to come up with a plan for them!
This is the room fully stripped. I left a speaker to entertain us as we worked.
I did a quick mockup of the room I had in mind. It’s much easier when you can place objects virtually first.
First thing to be blacked was the old and yellow aircon. I taped all the vents and just went mad with a spray can.
Next was the ceiling. I drilled 12 holes into them and installed 12 hooks, and rewired the ceiling light into 2 separate lines. I wanted to remove the cornices, but decided not to, it wouldn’t be very obvious in a black room anyways.
Then the rest of the room! Wifey and I really had lots of fun painting it. My wife has been really an invaluable assistant in this entire build.
To turn a beige room black, we had 2 go with 2 coats of paint. But I was a cheapskate, and wanted to save on paint, so for the 2 opposing walls, I went with only one coat, instead brushing it to look artistic. End result looked even better than if I had just blacked it out!
Back to the ol’ wardrobe. I had dismantled it, and cleaned it off 6 years of grime.
I drilled 3 holes in each board, this will be the mounting for my spotlights.
I stuck 2 pieces of the plywood together, drilled lots of holes in them and then wrapped it in foam fake wood panels. These not only look fabulous, they help to break up strong bass waves in my tiny room. This is possibly the single most important piece in sound-treating the room for music.
I hung them off the ceiling with some thick metal chains. They contrast really well with the black ceiling!
Both of them mounted. I also installed a new curtain rail and some thick, heavy curtains. Meanwhile, I also had a piece of plywood cut and laminated in a concrete look for my tabletop. You can also see what I am planning with the cupboard doors! They look great as feature pieces, and will help future spiders web more easily.
The room was carpeted. This helped to hide the fugly floor, and help with sound absorption.
Next up was the alcove. I decided to make it a plant feature wall to hold my PC, and 4 tanks for whatever I might want to keep in future. I made 4 acrylic boxes to the exact dimensions of the IKEA Lack shelves. The shelves were drilled into the wall, and the boxes simply slide in. This gives a really clean look. No hinges, lids or doors. The middle was a shelf bracket to hold my PC.
I test fitted the PC and started building the foam wall. The foam wall helped with sound-treating the room and attaching the fake plants. I cut air channels for the PC’s intake ports and the ventilation for the tanks. With the foam securely glued in place, I started with the flat plant panels, mixing a few different types together to give a flowing design.
I test fitted the PC and started building the foam wall. The foam wall helped with sound-treating the room and attaching the fake plants. I cut air channels for the PC’s intake ports and the ventilation for the tanks. With the foam securely glued in place, I started with the flat plant panels, mixing a few different types together to give a flowing design.
The frame for my old bed was falling apart, but still strong enough to stand. I stripped out the fabric, and repaired the frame.
I stuffed it full of rockwool. This behemoth will hide in the other alcove in my room to help dampen bass waves.
I also built another 2 smaller frames using some plywood. These will hang on my window, right behind my main speakers. They were also rockwooled up! I designed them to hook onto the sliding window frame, so they can slide with the windows.
I also had to address the rear speakers. I wrapped some rockwool up in some old T-shirts and stuffed it into the back of my Kallax shelves.
I built a simple frame from some wood and leftover plant panels to hide the speakers.
Ta-dah! The rear speakers for my surround setup fit snugly in this rockwool-filled cubby, and you wouldn’t even know they were there.
This was a fantastic deal I found on Carousell. A very nice lady was moving back to her home country, and wanted to sell her TV and TV console for $50. FIFTY DOLLARS. The console was bowing in the middle due to the TV’s weight, so I removed the legs, and instead just mounted it onto my wall as a floating shelf. Unfortunately I can’t use this shelf now, because Coffee has overtaken it.
This is the TV, it’s a decent 1080p 60hz display with no stand. I stripped the speakers to make it lightweight, and mounted it to the wall with an adjustable arm.
All the wires coming from the PC are hidden in a thick, leafy vine attached to my table. All wires are hidden below the table because I hate seeing wires. The table itself is a motorised standing desk, which now can no longer stand because part of Coffee’s web is attached to it. I made charging docks for all my wireless stuff because again, like I said, I hate seeing wires. The sound system is a 5.1 surround with a faux center channel. Rear speakers are hidden in the shelves behind me and woofer is in a corner.
This is my PC, which used to be a white NZXT. I built it to a black and orange color scheme with a vent cut at the top for better airflow. It’s watercooled now, but next project will be a custom loop. When I can afford one
The little shelf charges my controllers and mice.
This is the wife’s gaming station from her POV. It’s powered by a custom-built PC (next photo) and also has a Nintendo switch. Surround sound is achieved by hooking the speakers on the massage chair up to the rear speaker channel. Main speakers is an Audioengine B2.
This is the wife’s PC. I built this beast on a budget of about $700! I didn’t have to spend on a case as I built the PC itself into one of the cubbies on the Kallax shelf. I’m really happy with how it turned out and performs. This build actually won me 1st prize in a competition, which is the GPU you see here.
The wife’s throne. I built her a desk using a spare board from my IKEA Lack table. It’s just enough to use the PC comfortably, but not enough for FPS games as the mouse area is tiny. Which is fine because she games with a controller.
The handprints in the corner is us dipping our hands in gold paint and marking a paint job well done!
This is where SWDC was born. This was Stacey’s favorite corner, so I built a really nice place for her with some driftwood and fake plants I had lying around.
And this is the sign that started it all! I made this sign for her just for fun, but it’s also now become the name of this page. I will probably rename the page to ‘Stacey’s Web’ soon, as too many people have been asking me if this page offers web development services. No…we make…um….real webs? And they’re not for sale.
This is the room as it is now! I’m always building something in this room to make it better for spiders and humans, so there’s a lot I haven’t posted or this post will be never-ending.
Stacey and Pepper used to live in that little vine-y corner on the left, which I built to let them web easily. You can also see where my old wardrode doors are at now. I’m really pleased with how it turned out, but I will be revamping it soon. Mostly to remove the carpet and setup a live plant/ high humidity area for free-roaming spiders. Also to paint the ceiling a lighter color so I can attached some cove lighting and brighten the room up.
And now, introducing the free-roaming spiders of SWDC! This is Stacey, a gigantic Golden Orb Web Spider proudly watching over her office. She is the first free-roaming spider in this room, and nothing makes my day more than visiting her in the morning as I start my day.
Stacey hardly leaves her favorite spot, and prefers making her web just outside of the jungle I built her. She also poops by swinging her butt in an arc, which is why my nice black walls are now full of white poop.
Pepper, the 2nd CEO of SWDC, and Stacey’s successor. Pepper came to our lives as a baby, right after Stacey passed. She is also a really impressive web builder!
One of Pepper’s many webs. Her webs were always huge and well-maintained. They were a marvel to look at every day!
One of Pepper’s favorite locations, right above my workstation. It was a little annoying, but I do enjoy seeing her there very much. And at least she left space for me to close the windows.
The annoying thing about her being here is that I have to clean to workstation EVERYDAY as she sprays poop all over my nice tech. And even once, on me!
This is Coffee’s little corner. I had raised Coffee ever since she was an egg, so naturally I love her the most. She has her own little corner on the desk beside me, right beside the pantry. I installed a piece of driftwood with a hole drilled out for her to hide in. She absolutely loves this log, and has never left it. She spends her days hiding in the hole, coming out only at night.
With backlighting, you can see why it’s called a waterfall web! Her web is so terribly tidy, with the edges neatly kept within the anchor lines. I love it! As she grew older, the ambitious little thing started building larger webs, even building an extra wing out of her waterfall web which encroaches directly into MY zone. That is also the reason why my standing desk is now no longer a standing desk.
Finally, the employee pantry! Or at least it used to be. With Coffee now taking up the entire area, I had to move the pantry to one of the Kallax shelve’s cubbies.
This is Coffee when she was first born. Quite literally, an egg with legs.
And this is her latest photo! Round, chonky and very happy. For scale, she was probably the size of the white dot on her bum when she was born. Wife complains I pamper Coffee too much, which I will readily admit I do.