New trends in small-space design prove a small footprint means edgy aesthetics

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New trends in small-space design prove a small footprint means edgy aesthetics

 

The swankiest addresses are still the costliest, and the new buildings emerging within them are just too large. “While a young professional may buy a luxury studio in a swanky downtown space, he will not put his money into one if his only option is a three- to five-bedroom apartment at that cost,” points out Aaron B. Schwarz, managing director of Perkins Eastman, the American redevelopment firm which set up base in India in December. The need of the hour, then, is small luxury spaces. “And the smaller the footprint, the easier it is to be edgy,” Schwarz says. Here are four trends in small-space design.

1. Pod living

Small apartments need to be compact, but the regular hall-kitchen-bedroom format is not the best utilization of a 400-650 sq. ft space. It is merely the most traditional one. The solution is the pod. Pods make small spaces functional, they are utility-driven and high-tech. “Which means the trendiest appliances, the most compact use of space, and the functionality of a generation that’s not necessarily cooking every day,” says Schwarz.

2. Flexi spaces

2. Flexi spaces. Photographs by Paul Rivera/ArchPhoto

Our cities host floating populations of students and professional migrants. The need now is not for large family apartments but for small apartments that can co-host two unrelated people. “People share a space but may not be a couple, so they still want privacy. Putting a utility unit (such as a kitchen and bathroom) in the middle of the room makes it edgy, and splits the functions,” says Schwarz. 3. Senior-friendly

3. Senior-friendly. Mike Tauber/Stribling

Senior housing is a huge trend in Europe, the US and Japan. Single-unit senior homes are preferable to retirement homes in unfamiliar areas or to managing a family home alone. “It’s like being a member of an exclusive lounge for the rest of your life. Such units come with community areas, restaurants, medical facilities, skid-proof flooring, handrails and security. It’s the next step,” says Smita Rawoot, associate principal at Perkins Eastman.

 4. Adaptive reuse
“In Mumbai, old buildings and chawl buildings are interesting. They have single-room units and since they

4. Adaptive reuse. Sarah Mechling/Perkins Eastman

are thin, they don’t face the problem of lack of natural light which lofts in New York face,” says Rawoot. With structural viability and plumbing, old buildings make chic stays with great addresses, and perfect starter homes.