A 75sqm Apartment Reimagined

Reimagined Apartment - Bedroom #2

Ola,

This morning I came across an interesting article on ArchDaily - Flinders Lane Apartment / Clare Cousins Architects.

This project was to 'reimagine' a 75m² (807.293 sq.ft) apartment for a young family.  The apartment is located in a heritage-listed building in Melborne CBD (Central Business District).  The clients were expecting their first child and wanted to convert the existing one bedroom apartment into a space suited to their needs.

Reimagined Apartment - Building in Melbourne CBD

The two bedrooms were inspired by traditional Japanese houses. The first bedroom was based on the length of a single bed and just 2m wide (6.56 ft).  In the second bedroom, the mattress only bed is supported by a raised platform.  Sliding screens allow the room to be open visually and provides additional seating to the living space.  It can be transformed to a private zone by sliding the screens closed.

Reimagined Apartment - Bedroom #1

With a footprint of 25m² (269 sq. ft) per person, this design minimizes the sleeping areas and maximizes the living and social spaces to be enjoyed by the young family.

Reimagined Apartment - Bathroom

The young family's small space and modest budget has been maximized by efficient spatial planning and the creative composition of commonly available materials.

Reimagined Apartment - Living Area

The use of plywood enhances the perception of space, as well as providing dual cost benefits; plywood is affordable and readily available and most of the joinery was designed to be constructed by a carpenter, further minimizing construction costs.

I am a serious advocate of living spaces with a small footprint.  BRAVO to the architects on this project!

- Eddy

Salvaged Ring Coffee House

Salvaged Ring - Coffee Shop - Nha Trang, Vietnam

Olá,

I was reading Dezeen.com the other day when I came across an article about a coffee house in
Nha Trang, Vietnam that was made of scrap wood.

As you all already know, I am a staunch advocate of eco-friendly building.  I immediately fell in love with this structure.

The Salvaged Ring is a coffee shop located along side a highway in the countryside of Nha Trang, Vietnam.  After years working, the owner, which is a local carpenter, had a big stock of scrap wood that he wished to have another life. a21studio brought these pieces of wood came to life.

Upper Level of Coffee House

The timber skeleton supports a thatched roof that spirals down from an entrance near the road to cover a lower level with seating scattered about a central garden.

Stairs leading to lower level

Lower Level and Central Garden

"The advantages of using the salvaged wood are that it saves the owner money and it gives the wood another life instead of being left useless in the warehouse." 

- Toan Nghiem, Architect

I immediately fell in love with this Coffee House, because it took me back to my time in Thailand.  It would be great to sit there having a great cup of coffee, enjoying being close to the river and having a great view of the garden.

View of Wood Frames

Traditional carpentry techniques including mortise and tenon joints were used to connect the variously sized sections of wood needed to build the frame, meaning no additional timber had to be sourced.

The palette of natural materials also included coconut leaves, used to form the thatched roof, and stones that were used to make low walls next to the entrance.

Street View - Coffee House

It is great seeing that recycling of materials to be used in construction is taking off all over the world!

- Eddy