Our Favourite Small Japanese Homes Under 60sqm/646sqft

Our flat is really a mixture of what we really like. Renting a flat, it is always challenging, but challenging makes it really fun. We don't really have much furniture, but we try to make things by ourselves. I'm Hige. And I'm Watashi from our YouTube channel Hige to Watashi. Our YouTube channel is about lifestyle, something like our daily life. Our flat is close to central Tokyo. This area is pretty quiet and good residential area. But also we have so many big supermarkets and shopping malls as well. There are 10 other flats in this block, and this building is about 20 years old. Our flat is open plan with a loft. Before we used to be in London, and then the flat was higher ceiling. I think we just wanted to have something similar. It's quite unusual to find in Tokyo. We think high ceilings make the space bigger. On entering the flat, there is a big built-in storage unit. As we love fashion, we own many shoes. We found adjustable shoe organizers. We can stack the shoes on top of each other. In front of the entrance, there's access to our balcony. The balcony space we use for drying our clothes and also gardening. The living room is a space filled with our favorite things. The main feature is all the plants and second-hand apple boxes that we use as shelves. We arrange the bookshelves in L-shape, so we can feel as if we are surrounded by our favorite books. It's easy to move around, so we can change layout whenever we want. We made our own curtains from a simple cotton fabric hung by these metal clips. Because the material is too thin to block the sunlight, we also placed another layer of curtain for some area. In Japan, we have to keep the flat exactly the same condition as we moved in. Because we couldn't do anything on the concrete wall, we found this wooden stick. We just put the hook in the light that we can now hang something. As we have so many things in here, we decided not to buy a sofa, but use beanbag chairs instead. They are from Muji, but we didn't like the covers, so we made new ones from a cotton fabric I dyed with coffee. Our flat has some tiny objects, but most of them we really remember where we get from, what was the story behind. We have a TV, but we barely use it, so we covered it with the fabric I dyed. The kitchen is relatively big for a Tokyo kitchen. It has three hobs and a big sink. Our fridge is from Muji. The only place we could fit our microwave was above the fridge. It's too high for everyday use, so I made this small stool out of recycled wood. We wanted to separate the kitchen area and the dining space, so we made that kitchen counter. We bought two flat back shelves, and then we added veneer around it, and then painted it in white. The dining room is the space we spend most of our time. We chose that table because we love the fact that the wooden top is upcycling material. I use the dining table as a work table sometimes. We have a bench on the other side, big enough for three people. Another constraint we had is not being able to paint the stairs. I decided to put our plants on the staircases. So we actually shift the attention from what we don't like to what we like. In the bedroom, we have most of our clothes and clothes storage as well. We bought a double-sized bed from Muji, which has enough space underneath to put some of our camp gears. Next to the bed, there's a built-in closet. We needed extra storage, so we brought these containers from Muji, and we put the board on top to make a shelf. And also, I have my favorite artist's collection as well. There's also built-in storage on this side of the room. We use here for the seasonal items, and in front of that, we put two racks for our clothes. To get to the bathroom, we go through this corridor, and there is huge storage that we usually put our daily life stuff. On the other side, we have a washing machine with a rack that we can hang the towels. Inside the bathroom, we have toilet, the sink, and then the big mirror, and the typical type of Japanese bath. There was a ridge that we could use to put some board to decorate the room. In a rental space, it's really important to know what's your priority to decide what kind of flat you want to live in. Whenever we choose some furniture or objects, we care about the height because we care about the space. There are many ways to make your space really unique to yourself. Enjoy the process, be creative, stick with what you like. This house has two buildings, one on the ground floor and one on the ground floor. It's a very small house, so we wanted to make it a spacious house. It's not just about the brightness or the size of the windows. It's about how you live in the city. My name is Hiroyuki Unemori. I'm an architect, and I represent the Tokyo Design Office. This building is located in a residential area in Tokyo. Mr. Osechi and I are friends and husband and wife. We've lived in Tokyo since we were young. In the future, we want to go back to our hometown. Mr. Osechi and Mr. Unemori are planning to rent this building to someone. The exterior of the house is made of large-scale galvanized steel and molded cement. There's also a large aluminum frame. There's also a small storage space with camping equipment on the front. It's a very small house with an area of about 57 square meters. There's an entrance on the first floor. There's a kitchen, dining room, and living room. There's also a dining space with a high ceiling. There's a washbasin under the stairs and a small storage space under the entrance. There's also a toilet and a bathroom. There's a small shower room and a bathroom without a bathtub. There's also a space for Mr. Osechi and Mr. Unemori to sleep. There's an entrance that leads from the main road to the glass door. This house is made of a skip floor. The entrance is between the basement and the ground floor. The storage space for the entrance shoes is usually on the ground. But this time, it's floating in the air to be integrated with the dining space. The glass door of the entrance has a curtain. It can be closed depending on the situation, such as privacy. From the entrance, the living room, kitchen, and dining area are on the stairs. The ceiling is 1.9 to 4.7 meters high. There's a place where the ceiling is the lowest at the end of the stairs. I made a sofa that looks like it's floating from the floor. The sofa is thin and fixed to the wall. The ceiling is low and calm, but it's a light sofa. The kitchen is located along the wall in the back of this room. The counter is made of stainless steel. The door is a round plate and is arranged with other storage. The air conditioner is also attached to the wall, but I didn't want to show it directly. So I attached it so that it would be integrated with other storage. There is a dining table for up to six people in the center of this room. The TV is attached to the wall. You can put speakers and other accessories on top of the storage. This room has a high ceiling, so the temperature difference is large. I made a duct with a fan to use the temperature difference. For example, in winter, the air around the ceiling gets warm. I'm thinking of a way to get the warm air down to the floor by the fan. The spotlight on the wall is a smart light that can be turned on when Mr. Osechi speaks. Alexa, turn on the light. The storage here is a little back from the front. It looks like it's a little far away, and it's designed to look like it's floating in the air. When designing this room, it was important to maintain the privacy of Mr. Osechi. At the same time, it was important to place a large window so that it could not be seen directly from the outside. This floor also uses tiles of the same quality as the entrance. It's like an outdoor space. Under the stairs at the entrance, there is a space where you can put a washing machine. Along the wall next to the washing machine, I added more storage to store vacuum cleaners. There are two entrances in the basement. On one side, there is a large washbasin and a toilet. On the other side, there is a storage and a shower. There is a toilet nearby, so there was no need for a bathtub. This is the bedroom in the basement. You can access it from both the bathroom and the shower room. There is a double bed in the center. Storage is placed on both sides and along the wall behind it. In the future, it is possible to divide it into two by dividing it in the center of this bedroom. So, I designed two entrances and two storage spaces so that each space can be divided. I don't just want to create a large space. I also want to create a small space at the same time. I also want to design a space that is as low as a high space. I want to create a space that is bright, dark, open, and closed. I want to create a space that extends the range of human perception. 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The train station is nearby, and there are temples, shops, and parks. The building was built in 1979. There are seven apartments here, each one with a different layout. The plan was to create a combined home and office. The space can function independently, but it's all connected. I wanted the space to be very simple, warm, and comfortable. Originally, there are two bedrooms on the opposite side of the house. The kitchen and bathroom were in the center of the house and connected to a living room. I removed most of the interior walls to open up the space and reorganize the floor plan. The idea was to increase privacy and quietness towards the back side of this apartment. So I placed the bedroom in the very back and office in front. Everything except the bath and closet is open, so you can fill most of the 46 square meter area. After passing through the front door, you will enter a small entrance. I made a walk-in closet next to the entrance. This walk-in closet is the largest storage in this apartment. The living room is a step lower than the rest of the apartment. I custom built a 2.2 meter long bench seat by the window. Beside the seat are a couple of shelves that are built into a wall. There are sliding doors to access a small balcony. Because of the apartment regulation, I couldn't make a chimney for the traditional fireplace, so a bioethanol fireplace was the next best choice. We love cooking, so the kitchen had to have both functionality and a simple look that would be a part of the living room. The kitchen has a gas stove, a fish grill, an oven, and a large sink. The fridge and small pantry are hidden in the corner of the kitchen. I wanted to hide some electric appliances, so I placed them on the side as you cannot see from the living room. The base component of the L-shaped kitchen and the small dining table are made of wood and finished with water-resistant plastering. It looks like concrete, but the cabinet was easy to install and the finish was done at the site. The office space is next to the living room. The thick beams coming down from the ceiling at both ends of the space create a cozy look. The desk is made out of laminated wood. There are two wall-mounted bookshelves above the desk. There was a bit of space at the end of the office, so we created a floor-to-ceiling closet. The bathroom and the toilet are in separate rooms. There is storage behind the mirror and even more storage built into the wall next to the sink. There is a washer-dryer and Kochi's litter box. The bathroom has a wet room. It is an all-in-one bathroom space which contains both a shower and a bathtub. This is typical in Japanese homes. When you enter the toilet room, there is a room with a unique floating sink. When we have guests, they are able to use the toilet and wash their hands here. That way, we can keep our bathroom private. I only use ambient lighting for this small space to make it feel comfortable. The bedroom entrance is through a wooden canvas sliding door. I made the bedroom on the platform so the place underneath can be used for some storage. To make use of the dead space on the wall above the bed, I made a custom hidden closet. There is an area for me to do my makeup in one corner of the bedroom. There is a large balcony in the bedroom. We have some plants here. A house is like a container for your life. When designing a small space, it needs to be well-turned to fit your lifestyle. I also think it should be adaptive and generous to future changes. There is a big rise in old vacant housing stocks in Tokyo. So we should be responsible for how we repurpose what we have and what is sustainable living. For me, a house is a place that gives me a sense of security. When I think of a house, I think of a spacious space, or a time when I can just gaze at the scenery outside. For me, a house is a space where I can relax, so I think a house is a place that gives me a sense of security. One of the big features of this house is that it has furniture-like boxes scattered around. Each box has a function that is necessary for living. For example, there is a bathroom, a toilet, and a washing machine. This building is located in Nakano Ward. Nakano Ward is located in the city center of Shinjuku. It is a quiet residential area with low-rise and mid-rise buildings lined up around it. In the neighborhood, there is a junior high school and a kindergarten, and there is also an old town with shrines that are familiar to the area. I feel the 50-year history of this district until I enter this house. When people enter this house, they are surprised to see the spacious scenery and the bright space. When we bought this house, the windows remained the same as they were when it was built, with two tatami mats and a small kitchen in the middle of the room. It was a very old impression. Sitting on the floor and eating rice, or laying a futon to change the dining room into a bedroom, it was an old Japanese lifestyle, and I felt that it didn't suit our lives. First, I removed all the walls other than the structure. In it, a box with a function for housing is placed between them. The space on the south side of the room is a space where the bed is placed, and by stacking the beds, it becomes a living space. A wardrobe is placed on one side of it, and a small gap between the walls can be used as a working space. The space on the north side is the widest in this room, and it is a kitchen and dining room. There is a unit bus, a toilet, a washing machine, and a box with a refrigerator next to the dining room. In the original entrance, there was a big step to take off your shoes, but here, the floor is lowered and the entrance and dining room are separated by a stainless steel board. This is a shoe rack from the Yamazaki industry called Tower, and the tree at the foot is put on a board that we made ourselves, and we use it as a shoe rack. The entrance is a steel door, so we hang a hook here and store the key. The color of the door is painted pink, but I painted it with the image of being able to go on an adventure anywhere, and I painted it pink with the image of being excited. When there is a large guest, such as a delivery man, you can cover the entrance with a thick curtain so that you can't see the inside of the room, and you can also prevent the sound of the outside from the old steel door. This space on the south side is a bed space and a living space at the same time. There is a U-shaped curtain rail on the ceiling here, and if you close this sheer curtain, you can separate the room loosely. There is an air conditioner in this room, but if you close the curtain and turn on the air conditioner, this room becomes warm and cold immediately, so it also serves as a curtain to increase the efficiency of the air conditioner, The sofa is used by stacking two beds purchased at IKEA. When there are large guests or on holidays, we use it as a living room like this, but on weekdays, we lower this sofa and use it as a bed space for two people. This table is also movable, so you can easily remove this top plate and carry it, or you can fold this leg part into small pieces like this, carry it, stand it, and store it. You can also change the top plate and make it a little darker. The window has a resin inner sash for insulation and heat retention inside the original sash. The window frame itself is a simple shelf, and we also use it as a shelf to decorate our favorite things. This space can be softened by the curtain. You can put two curtains on the window to soften the light from the window, or you can put it in the place of the structure wall to make the space loose. The balcony is used to sit down to look outside from time to time Actually, this height is the height where the birds fly around, so you can see the bird well, so I observe the birds while drinking tea. This counter used to be used for work, but recently my wife plays the piano, I read books, and I use it for break time. At first, there was nothing here, and there was nothing in particular, but we have various books like this, so we decided to make a bookshelf here. We asked the official store to put this shelf pillar in the wall, and everything else, such as cutting this shelf board and painting it, is a shelf we made by ourselves. The closet is where we keep what we wear every day, and we put things we use on a daily basis like this. The wardrobe is bright and soft. We selected a soft material. We put a markless storage shelf and store clothes easily. We lift it up with our feet, and we make it like a furniture that doesn't reach the ceiling. Under this foot, we put an outlet, and by putting a Roomba station, it also functions as a hiding place for Roomba. By lifting the furniture of the whole house with our feet in the same way, Roomba can be cleaned smoothly. The space between the wardrobe and the wall is what we made by ourselves. We don't usually show our tools outside, but we thought we could use it as a display because we do that kind of thing often. Originally, we used to stick a stick in the hole where the equipment pipe went through and hang plants or hang bags. Because we stick a stick in one hole, we can use it separately on the entrance side and on the wardrobe side. The dining kitchen is located on the north side of the window, and it is the center of the room. If we put a big kitchen in a small house, it will have a big presence, so we designed it to be a part of the interior rather than a kitchen. The silver sink and stove on the ceiling are made by ourselves, but we designed the door below the ceiling. We put a silver sheet on the door to give a sense of unity between the countertop stainless steel and the box. By unifying the whole color, we create a furniture-like appearance. Also, the range hood is the same color as the wall, and we designed it to be inconspicuous as a machine. She can't reach it, so basically she can only use the switch over there. There is a switch for hot water and a switch for the kitchen here, so when we cook at night or use fire, we press the switch here to cook and work. In front of the sink, we hang acrylic boards. The glass gets dirty when water splashes, so we stick them in so that they don't get dirty. We often cook together, so we thought it would be convenient to have something like this, so we designed this trolley later. The rice cooker is stored in the trolley, and we use it to cook rice. We use it as a working space for the two of us. We cook rice here like this, and we can cut it here, and we can wash it right here, so we often cook while we put it here. Here, we put containers that are not often used, and we store bottles, bottles, and lunch boxes. We put a lot of effort into making this caster transparent. If it's black, the color will stand out, but we made it transparent so that it loses its presence. There is a lock in the back, so we made sure it doesn't move when there is an earthquake. The shelves in the middle of the window were made by the two of us from the beginning. It's easy to make, like putting a shelf on a window frame. Here, we put kitchen tools that we often use, and we put this wooden stick that we bought at IKEA on the board. The cupboard next to the kitchen also contains a microwave and an oven. This box is a tableware shelf. Inside, there is a microwave and a toaster. Here, we store small mug cups and glasses using MUJI's storage. Tableware is stored in the second row here. In the back, we store dishes that we use to store food efficiently. This range is from a brand called Marmuda. It plays music like this, and we use it. Regarding the dining space, we made it so that it can be used as a living room and we designed a dining table that is a little smaller than usual. At first glance, you may think that the top of the table looks very thin, but in fact, the top of the table is a part of the steel legs. So, only the outside part comes out with this thickness. I think it's a very light design. I bought these chairs on the Internet. You can get them cheaper than buying new ones, and when you let them go, the value doesn't go down. That's how I bought them. Kitchen dining has a lot of windows, so it's a very suitable environment for plants to grow. I've always wanted to grow plants before I moved in, but now that I've grown plants and surrounded them, I feel that I can live a very relaxed life. I bought this plant in Umberatta when I first moved into this house. At first, it was about 1 meter high, but since I moved in, it has grown to more than double the height. One of the windows in the dining kitchen has a more protruding window frame than usual, but here I made a window frame our favorite things. I made a window frame that can be used as a shelf to put things that I have collected. In a normal house, refrigerators and washing machines often appear on the front, but in a small house like this, there is a possibility that such a presence will come out very large, so I stored it in a translucent box This translucent box has a refrigerator and a washing machine on the right, and a toilet on the left. To pass the light from the outside window to the washroom space, I use a translucent material, which absorbs the light into the washroom space. If you close this curtain like this it becomes an easy escape space. This back is the toilet space. There is a small window in the toilet, so I used a polycarbonate material to pass the light through this box. This is a bar. This is a bar where you can hang a towel or a bottle of detergent to wash. The unit bus has a stand that was made in this open space, so you can bring it here, open it, and enter. This bath looks like an order-made one, but it uses a general unit bus inside to reduce the cost. The wooden cement version has a water-absorbing and heat-absorbing property, and this gray color is the color of the material itself. I made sure that the outlets and switches of this house are as inconspicuous as possible. For the finish of the wall, I simply painted the original structure of the wall, but I dared to leave traces of the demolition and the old state. Even in a small space, I am conscious of creating a place that feels bright and spacious. I didn't think of it as a small space, but rather, I thought it was close to the outside. I think that was my discovery. I enjoyed designing and designing by myself, and I was thinking about living by enjoying what I was making. I was thinking about living in a small space rather than in a big house. I thought it would be nice to live in a small space and enjoy what I was making. You'll learn how to maximize bench space, make your kitchen look and feel bigger, and even make it disappear. You'll also find smart ideas for flexible dining, multifunctional living, and making the most of every last inch. It's interactive too, with clickable links throughout, so you can jump straight to the video of a kitchen we're referencing. Whether you're a renter or a homeowner doing a full-on renovation or just looking to make a few small but impactful improvements, we've packed everything we know into this guide to help you find your way to your dream kitchen, no matter how small it might be. Download your guide today and start working some never-too-small inspired magic into your kitchen. This is a house for a couple and two children. It's in Osaka, Japan. It's surrounded by a pond, and the school is nearby. It's a very quiet place. I'm Kazuteru Matsumura, and I work at Koiru Matsumura Kazuteru. This house is about 57 sq. m. We wanted it to be compact, so we wanted it to be a house where everyone could fit in. The road in front of the house is a small road, and if you walk from there to the entrance, you'll see a wooden door under a stainless steel sunshade. In the entrance, you'll find original mosaic tiles. Mr. Okimoto of Kisaburo helped us with the construction, and we were able to use a lot of Yoshinosugi and Muku trees. There's an open shoe rack with a wooden board, and a closet with a space under the stairs. The space under the stairs is the entrance to the bedroom and the bathroom. The bathroom uses an experimental sink, so it's wider and less expensive. There's a mirror-mounted storage on top of the sink, and a washing machine on the other side. There's a door to the bathroom, and you can go out from there. There's a shower and a bathtub in the mid-bath. You can also hang your clothes by hanging them from the ceiling. The bedroom is on the first floor, and there are two children's rooms. There's a two-story bed, and there's a desk under the bed, which you can pull out and use. We bought all the furniture at a furniture store, so we can cut down on the cost. It's a curtain cut, so it's soft and cost-effective. There's a closet on top of the parents' bed. When you go up the stairs, there's a curtain, and there's a bookshelf there with pictures of your family. By closing the curtain, the air conditioner in the summer and the wall-mounted TV are compactly installed. The small window is a roll-type screen door, and it's compact when it's stored. The storage behind the sofa is a neat storage that can be used as a kitchen. There are two lofts, a ladder and a rock-climbing wall. The ladder can be moved to change positions, and the rock-climbing wall is also a place for children to play. The loft space has a storage that can be used as a kitchen. The kitchen has a sink and IH stove, and there's food on top of it. There's a microwave and a rice cooker on the back, and there's a shelf for cooking. The kitchen light is a lighting rail. There's a work area next to the fridge, and there's a desk and a computer. The dining table is a carry-on furniture, and it's a one-piece design by making a drawer in the kitchen. The toilet is a compact but small toilet, and the toilet itself is a small tank-less space. The storage next to the toilet is a curtain, and I don't want to show it. The balcony on the second floor can be accessed from the front door, and there's a roll-type screen at the front door so that the wind can pass through. In Japan, the population is declining, but the value of the city's convenience is increasing, so I think it's important to have a small house nearby. I designed this house. My wife and I live here, and I bought the second floor as my office. The building consists of seven floors, and we move the floors a little at a time. We put a window in each floor so that light comes in. We both liked concrete, so we decided to build it with concrete. We also had a lot of books, so we could collect all the books. We talk a lot, so we can hear each other's voices and feel what the other person is doing. That's why I designed this house. This house is a typical residential area in Tokyo. It's close to the station, the park, and the seaside. It's a quiet residential area. It's a square concrete house with a big wall and a big window. The building area is 31 square meters, and the floor is 59 square meters. The first floor has a front door, storage, and a kitchen. The second floor has a living room, a bedroom, a bathroom, and a bathroom. The door is 1.8 meters high and 2.5 meters wide. It's a big iron door. It looks like a door from the outside, but it's actually a door. The door is 2.5 meters wide, and when you open it, it looks like it's connected to the city. There's a big stone at the bottom of the entrance. It's called a small stone. We usually bury the peacock on the concrete wall, but we put a hook or a hat on it so that the peacock doesn't run away. The first floor has a part of the floor raised, and we put a door under it. The door is made of wood, just like a kitchen or a toilet. I work at the office on the first floor every day. I use the office for my work, but I'm surrounded by my favorite books and plants. The light comes in at a strange angle all day, so it's a very comfortable and good place to work. The beam is a bench, and when customers come, I put a futon there and have them sit down and have a meeting. The lights on the ceiling are from my favorite artists, and I use them as a sample for my clients. The back of the office is under the floor, and it's full of things I don't use often, like clothes. It's 4.5 meters wide and 1.6 meters deep. It's like a walk-in closet. I use cheap wooden boards. Next to the front door is the first step to the upper floor, and I read books there. I put ink on the towels I used at IKEA, and decorate the model of the project I'm working on now. The bookshelf is about 6 meters high, from the bottom to the top. I've liked books for a long time, but I started designing books about 20 years ago. The first floor is for my work, and the second floor is for manga and novels. It's more like a private space than a work space. The stairs to the second floor are made of concrete. The concrete is heavy, so I made it look light. The ceiling is thin, like a triangle. The kitchen is in the middle of the first and second floors. The second floor is for living and dining, and the first floor is for the office. It's easy to carry food and drinks. The kitchen is about 3.3 meters long, and it's pretty big for this compact house. I don't put doors on the fish tank, and I make the ceiling thin to make it light and open. There's a small window in front of the kitchen. It's in the back of the space, so it's a bit dark. There's a stainless steel board in front of the stove. There are stairs in the back, like a pantry. I make it so you can sit down and rest in the middle of work. The second floor is for living and dining. It's the biggest space in the house, and the ceiling is about 5 meters high. It's a compact house, so when you look up, you can feel how small the space is. You can sit on the floor, and there's a lot of places to sit, so you can sit wherever you want. I didn't have a bed in this space, so I designed it myself. On my days off, my wife sits on the sofa and reads a book here. The bed is facing west, and there's a big open space where the sun shines, so I put a lot of plants there. There's a bookshelf in front of the bed, and I put a bed board on it. It's more like a storage than a bookshelf. The stairs to the living room are also made of steel. There's a toilet and a bath. I put all the space in the back to make the house feel clean. There's a dryer in the living room. It's a small house, so I bought a compact one with a solid design. I don't care about the bath at all, so I use a glass barrel. I sometimes use a curtain when I don't want to be seen. There's a steel bar on the top floor, and I usually hang my laundry here. I put a ladder on the top of the bedroom to go up to the roof. In summer, you can see the fireworks from the roof. Because it's a small building, I want to make a big miracle by creating a space that doesn't feel small. I think I can do that.