This magazine article was originally published by French magazine
Cote Maison and picked up by Apartment Therapy. It's a fantastic
example of small space living. We're talking a family of four and
a dog living in a 430 sq ft apartment. Amazing isn't it? We never
think about it living with space is definitely a luxury. A luxury that
Americans are used to but not necessarily all places in the world have.
Your average apartment for a family of 4-5 in Hong Kong is around
400 sq ft. This isn't because they just happen to love living in small
spaces - there isn't any available land and square footage is seriously
expensive. Most families simply cannot afford more space. There's
a saying in Hong Kong that real estate is worth its weight in gold by
the square Inch! The above bedroom very cleverly utilizes the tiny
closet-like space very well.
Every available amount of space in the apartment
is used. Isn't this cubby in the ground great?
A Tibetan tapestry hangs in the doorway. The cupboards
and built in storage space is from the ground to the ceiling.
Here's the kitchen area with a dine in table.
Notice the stairs going up to another room.
Those same steps are actually built in drawers. Now this is what
I'm talking about. The Japanese also design in this incredibly
functional way as your average living space for a single person in
Tokyo is often no more than a small room.
What a lovely dining and living space. The windows almost extend
from floor to ceiling. I just love the exposed brick like floor. Hanging
curtains from floor to the ceiling creates the feeling that the room and
ceiling is higher than it actually is. Also using clear furniture like the
glass table is a great way to expand a space visually.
Here's the other side of the room which also leads into the kitchen.
The living and dining room double as the master bedroom.
The bed you see is a Murphy bed which is folded into the wall.
Here is the floor plan to this incredibly functional space.
You can see the dotted lines where the Murphy bed pulls
down for the living/dining room to become the Master
bedroom.
I recently purchased this book which I love! What's great about
that it showcases real homes and apartments that are small and
what owners and designers have done with their space. I highly
recommend it.
As of late, there seems to be a trend to downsizing and
living with less space. What are your thoughts? Less is
more? Or more is more?
All photos from Apartment Therapy and Cote Maison
Photos by Alexandre Bailhache
