Tiny Paris Apartment Reborn

It’s getting harder and harder to find adequate and affordable living spaces in big cities across the world, so it’s really nice to see all the ingenious solutions people are coming up with to solve these problems. The latest such solution comes from French architect Jérôme Vinçon who turned a tiny apartment with a 17-foot ceiling into a four-story micro home for a young couple.

This former doorman’s residence measures 269 square feet, and the couple bought it so they could be close to the restaurant where they work. With lots of careful planning, Vinçon managed to turn this micro space into a cozy dwelling, which doesn’t feel cramped at all. Due to the clever design, the home is also filled with natural light, which is quite a feat given that it only has one window.

According to the architect, he envisioned the apartment as open staircase of sorts. The kitchen is located below the living area and above the bedroom. The bathroom is above the kitchen, so that the shower is actually located right over the vent of the kitchen. It is also suspended and translucent, which offers a bit of a “peep show” but allows the shower to also be a light source for the apartment.

One of the owners is a chef, so the kitchen, while very small, was built to a professional standard. This was achieved via a thought-out organization and storage placement, with a few fold-down surfaces.

The bedroom is actually placed underground, which in itself offers acoustic dampening from the street above. They also installed a layer of soundproof terracotta and concrete screed with metal supports from the ceiling, which were all custom made. Since the owners work nights, it’s important that they get their rest. There is also a lot of storage space here, and there is also enough space for a washer/dryer and hot water heater in the closet.

Vinçon studied the design of boats, dormitories and space stations in order to come up with a plan, which would make the most of the available space in this apartment. I’d say he succeeded in turning this micro apartment into a cozy home.

[source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/jetson_green/~3/EI2_9BWc4e0/tiny-paris-apartment-reborn.html]