Living in a tiny apartment

CygnusZ

I'm going to be making the move to a new city soon, and I'm a little worried about my new apartment. In accordance with the opinions of all my co-workers, whom seem to think that apartment houses built in the 1970s would not survive an earthquake, I have choosen to live in a brand new apartment in the downtown area. The problem is that the apartment is only 26.6 sq meters big.. that's around 285 or so sq. feet.

Half of the space is taken up by a hallway with multiple little rooms. The toilet, bath, a shower and the kitchen (just a sink and a single burner). My actual living/bedroom is 131 sq. feet. This apartment is in an urban area of Japan (the main living space is 8jou) , so I'm counting on using a futon to sleep on and folding furniture so that I can invite people over for drinks etc. Still.. it seems like it's going to be pretty cramped.

Any advice?

T. J. Nutty Nub

Anything you have in there should have at least two uses

BlochWave

I read it as 26.6 sq. feet at first and was like "man....I don't think that's gonna work"

Well of course it's gonna be cramped, it's tiny! You get used to it though.

That's about what my sister lives in (she's in China and that's like what a FAMILY lives in. No joke), though hers is probably smaller (NO kitchen. Only sink is in the bathroom. No bathtub, shower goes on the bare floor and gets everything else wet)

You could probably get a bed into the bedroom, I know she has a full sized bed in hers, the side effect is your bedroom becomes literally the bed-room (har) but comfort while sleeping > pacing around your sleeping area or whatever you like to do

A normal non-foldy couch too. Even a table! The thing about living space is, well, if you invite friends over does everyone circle each other and walk in intricate patterns while talking, or do they just plop their ass down on the couch and chat/watch TV/drink? Living space is one of those really pure luxuries. If you can fit the basic necessities into it, what more do you really need? Space to walk around and not feel cramped? That's all it is. You can go for walks outside and if my sister, who moved from her parents home in Texas to a small apartment in China can adjust, you should be peachy. (don't get me wrong, I love me some wide open spaces, but I guess you don't have the choice)

Wall mounted LCD TV would be a nice space saver if the wall can support it. A small cheap one, considering you probably can't sit far enough away to properly view a big one. I know apartments in Japan often don't have central HVAC, does yours? If not, that small space will probably get pretty warm pretty quick if you help it. Maybe think about low power bulbs, make sure you don't accidentally leave your computer on, etc.

Talka

Does your floorplan happen to look anything like this? I'm moving into an Osaka apartment with this floorplan in four days. It sounds pretty similar to what you'll be moving into, except it's fully furnished. To give you an idea of what this kind of space looks like with furniture in it, you can take a look at these pictures:

RUNN1NGMAN

If you can get to an Ikea, they actually have displays set up that show what kind of furniture you can use in that sort of space. They have some cool stuff for studio living as long as you don't mind your room looking a little like it belongs in a college dorm (bed above the desk, built-in drawers, etc.).

KalTorak

Make use of allll the space that you can, including vertical space. Wall-shelves, stacked drawer/shelf units, lifts under the bed for under-bed storage.

Improvolone

RUNN1NGMAN wrote: »

If you can get to an Ikea, they actually have displays set up that show what kind of furniture you can use in that sort of space. They have some cool stuff for studio living as long as you don't mind your room looking a little like it belongs in a college dorm (bed above the desk, built-in drawers, etc.).

This, and HGTV has a show called Small Space, Big Style which coincidently, showcases living in small spaces.

Darkewolfe

KalTorak wrote: »

Make use of allll the space that you can, including vertical space. Wall-shelves, stacked drawer/shelf units, lifts under the bed for under-bed storage.

Vertical space, vertical space, vertical space. Get used to stacking shelves.

psycojester

And use the lack of space as an incentive to get out more so you don't get cabin fever.

TwoQuestions

I'd have to recommend small furniture and large mirrors to make your place seem bigger. And a nice big bookcase to keep all your junk in, instead of keeping it in random places like most people do. If you're and organized person, it will be easy for you.

Pure Din

Hey, that's bigger than my college apartment!




I have some photos, but they're all kind of crappy drunk-photographer pics. I didn't use any folding furniture, since to me it's a waste of time. I feel like most people are too lazy to put it away every time, so you end up having an apartment full of flimsy uncomfortable stuff.

Instead I made my bed every day with a picnic blanket thrown over it, so if people came over to play games or watch TV, they could spill or get crumbs on it, and I could just wash it once they were gone. I bought a ton of wire stacking cubes from wal-mart and built vertically as suggested before, also I raised my bed and kept linens, out of season clothes and ski equipment there. My biggest advice is to always make your bed, because a made bed is a comfortable place to sit and relax, and an unmade bed is just gross.

Janson

Our apartment is also smaller than that...although admittedly we don't have the long hallway.

Keep your furniture white or another light colour; dark furniture will become overbearing very quickly.

We have a bed with a low height; that helps prevent the bed from dominating the room (you'll be fine with a futon).

IKEA really is excellent for giving ideas.

I'll second the big bookcases. We have a lot of books and dvds but they don't seem too much even though our bookcases are pretty huge; the main thing is that they're off the floor and don't clutter the room.

NargorothRiP

i personally dig your setup janson. very cozy and effecient.

supabeast

Learn not to buy things that you don’t need. Get rid of things you don’t need. Learn to shop for food at local stores, just buying a few days worth of groceries instead of stocking up American-style.

JebusUD

STORAGE!

Is the bed raised? Put things under it!

Have a kitchen? Get a magnetic strip to stick metal utensils to!

Have a table? Make it a multifunctional kind, one that can expand into a bigger one when you need it and a smaller one when you don't!

It is all about how you think about furniture and storage really.

Janson

NargorothRiP wrote: »

i personally dig your setup janson. very cozy and effecient.

Thanks!

Oh and Jebus is right:

Our bed has shallow drawers underneath it; you can't fit a whole lot in there, but we still managed to fit all our underwear, most t-shirts and a few pairs of jeans there.

We have two wooden folding tables/TV trays - $8 in a sale in Target, and they can easily be stashed away when not in use.

muninn

I suggest getting a bunk bed (without the bottom bunk) and sticking a desk or closets/shelves underneath it. beds are the biggest wastes of space out there.

Godfather

Make sure to have everything organized well. You'd be surprised at how easy it is to junk things up, and how long it takes to clean, even though it's a small space.

Plus a cluttered area that small will get you all sorts of depressed.

Robos A Go Go

Yeah, buying less stuff is a given. Get a library card and a Netflix account, donate clothes you know you don't want to some charity, and keep your trash situation under control.