Jack Chen Transforms His Own 1970s 35m2 Small Apartment
Jack Chen Transforms His Own 1970s 35m2 Small Apartment
Sponsored by Nordgreen | Homes
23rd February, 2021
Jack Chen of Tsai Design bought a 1970s walk-up apartment in Richmond, an inner urban suburb of Melbourne, Australia, and at only 35m2, it came with its challenges. It did have lovely east-facing windows, but the interior was pretty uninspiring, and the kitchen wasn't useable.
Keeping the original walls and fixtures in place to save on cost, Jack had three mains areas to focus his attention on, the kitchen, storage and flexibility.
He took out the small kitchen and inserted a 4m linear kitchen, complete with a cupboard for the fridge and washing machine, an integrated dishwasher and plenty of storage area. The kitchen would constantly be on display in this tiny apartment, so Jack wanted to make it visually appealing to look at it, so he used timber veneer and a black stone splashback to make it 'decoration'. Between the kitchen and bathroom, glass was introduced with privacy at a click of a button thanks to a clever film applied.
The apartment is full of little details for a tiny bit more storage, such as the entry with pegs and shelving. In addition, a storage wall/window seat gives Jack plenty of space for his books, DVDs, nic-nacs, as well as all the office equipment a young architect needs.
Jack wanted to experiment with flexible furniture, where through a couple of moves, he could transform his living area into whatever is needed at the time. A clever dining table slides in and out of the wall, folds down and clicks into place. A study desk folds up, and a TV is hidden behind some joinery that folds up in itself. Depending on if Jack is in work mode or relax mode, his living room can accommodate.
This small apartment proved to be quite the home for the architect, designed as a means for him to experiment with small footprint living. Jack has shown that this common building stock can be repurposed and made liveable with some attention and design for those who don't need 235.8m2 of house.
For your own timeless, simple, minimalistic watch, visit Nordgreen and use discount code DESIGNE for 15% off.
Videography, photography and words by Anthony Richardson.
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