Smaller living spaces can often present a challenge for people who live in them. Such spaces are typically more affordable in cities where the cost of living is increasing, but it can be tricky to make them work for their inhabitants. Often, one needs to get creatively clever in order to make sure there is enough storage or to ensure there is a good flow and integration between all the things that might be needed to make it livable, such as having a designated space for sleeping, eating, and cooking.
One solution is to make furnishings serve more than one function, in addition to integrating the outdoors with the indoors, and carefully planning and using every single square inch. These are some of the strategies that were used by Barcelona, Spain-based designers Diana Martin and Max Enrich, who converted a cramped, old villa apartment into a well-designed small space that they and their dog can call home. We get a tour of this thoughtfully renovated residence via Never Too Small:
Martin, who is a creative director and copywriter, and Enrich, who is a furniture and object designer, have meticulously tailored the space to fit their daily routines and tastes. The villa where the small apartment is located actually dates back to the 1930s and is a conglomeration of six separate apartments, each named after their former owners. Villa Monserrat’s 484-square-foot (45 square meter) footprint has now been completely transformed by Martin and Enrich, who demolished all the old partitions to open up the interior.
The interior, which once had separate rooms for each function, now has all the various zones seamlessly integrated into one main living space. Here we can find a place to sit, a home office, a place to cook and do laundry, as well as various nooks to store and display design objects that the couple collects.
Starting with the entryway, which is defined by pale blue walls, we have here a spot to hang up coats. The couple decided to make a cut-out in the door, in order to let more natural light in.
Stepping in further inside, we see a mustard-yellow wall that acts as a place to put the television, in addition to prominently displaying various design objets-d’art here. An open set of shelves serves as the couple’s library, as well as a way to give more visual privacy from the entry area. The lower built-in cabinets are also places to store more books and objects.
In the center of the main living space, we have a custom-designed couch that has a lower profile, so that it doesn’t block the flow between the different zones.
Behind the couch, we have a long counter that can fold up or down, if more counter space is needed in the kitchen.
The kitchen occupies most of the other wall and features white cabinetry above and below. There is a small sink here, as well as an induction cooktop and a dishwasher hidden behind one of the white cabinet doors.
Every square inch of usable space has been filled here, as we can see with the kitchen extending over to the nook on the other side of this wall. A small refrigerator and oven can be found here, in addition to a laundry space tucked behind a door set under the stairs.
To the right, there is a small work area that has the same “design language” as the kitchen, allowing it to blend in seamlessly with the rest of the elements on this side of the apartment. The desk has a glass top that allows the couple to display their intriguing collection of antique scissors.
Beyond the main living space, we have the bedroom, which can be closed off with some sliding doors.
The bedroom has a generous amount of storage for clothing and shoes, all located along one wall.
The other side of the bedroom is actually where one can find the bathroom. The couple chooses to seamlessly integrate the spaces to let more natural light in, as the shower has an automated skylight, and the sink has a window above it.
But there’s more: back into the main living space, at the other end, we have the glass-walled enclosure where the dining table sits. This clever setup allows more sunlight to come into the ground floor apartment, as well as giving the impression of a larger living space.
Going outside and up the stairs, we arrive at the rooftop terrace, which the couple uses almost year-round. Equipped with custom-made furnishings and plenty of plants, it has been redone in a way so that it feels like another “small house” that allows the couple to extend their living space into the outdoors.
As the couple explains, cities would be better served by rehabilitating older buildings such as the one they currently live in, which is also greener than building anew:
