00:02living in Tokyo means dealing with limited space in a dense environment it also leads you to the
00:11simplest way of life and way of thinking it doesn't matter if the space is small or large
00:19it's about how you can adjust your life in a simple way I designed this home for my partner
00:26and my cat Kochi it has been our home and office the apartment is located in Setagaya Ward which
00:41is five to ten minutes away from central Tokyo the train station is nearby and there are temples
00:51shops and parks the building was built in 1979 there are seven apartments here each one with
01:01a different layout the plan was to create a combined home and office the space can function
01:09independently but it's all connected I wanted the space to be very simple warm and comfortable
01:19originally there are two bedrooms on the opposite side of the house the kitchen and bathroom were
01:27in the center of the house and connected to a living room I removed most of the interior walls
01:34to open up the space and reorganize the floor plan the idea was to increase privacy and quietness
01:42towards the back side of this apartment so I placed the bedroom in the very back and office in front
01:50everything except the bus and closet is open so you can feel most of this 46 square meter area
01:58after passing through the front door you will enter a small entrance I made a walk-in closet next to
02:07the
02:07entrance this walk-in closet is the largest storage in this apartment the living room is a step lower
02:17than the rest of the apartment I custom built a 2.2 meter long bench seat by the window beside
02:26the seat
02:26are a couple of shelves that are built into a wall there are sliding doors to access a small balcony
02:35because
02:37of the apartment regulation I couldn't make a chimney for the traditional fireplace so a bioethanol fireplace was
02:45the next best choice we love cooking so the kitchen had to have both functionality and a simple look that
02:56will
02:56be a part of the living room the kitchen has a gas stove a fish grill and oven and a
03:04large sink
03:06the fridge and small pantry are hidden in the corner of the kitchen I wanted to hide some
03:13electric appliances so I placed them on the side as you cannot see from the living room
03:20the base component of the l-shaped kitchen and the small dining table are made of wood and finished
03:28with water-resistant plastering it looks like concrete but the cabinet was easy to install and
03:35the finish was done at the site the office space is next to the living room the sick beams coming
03:45down from
03:45the ceiling at both ends of the space create cozy nook the desk is made out of laminated wood there
03:54are
03:54two wall mounted bookshelves above the desk there was a bit of space at the end of the office so
04:02we
04:02created a floor to ceiling closet the bathroom and the toilet are in separate rooms there is a storage
04:13behind the mirror and even more storage built into the wall next to the sink there is a washer dryer
04:22and kochi's litter box the bathroom has a wet room it is an all-in-one bathroom space which contains
04:31both
04:31a shower and a bathtub this is typical in japanese home when you enter the toilet room there is a
04:40room
04:40with a unique floating sink when we have guests they are able to use the toilet and wash their hands
04:48here
04:48that way we can keep our bathroom private i only use ambient lighting for this small space to make
04:56it feel comfortable the bedroom entrance is through wooden canvas sliding door i made the bedroom on the
05:06platform so the place underneath can be used for some storage to make use of the dead space on the
05:14wall
05:14about the bed i made a custom hidden closet there is an area for me to do my makeup in
05:22one corner of the bedroom
05:25there is a large balcony in the bedroom we have some plants here
05:32a house is like a container for your life when designing the small space it needs to be well turned
05:40to fit your lifestyles i also think it should be adaptive and generous to future changes
05:49there is a big rise in old vacant housing stocks in tokyo so we should be responsible for how we
05:58repurpose
05:58what we have and what we have and what is sustainable living
06:03you
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