Kirsten Dirksen
1 HN recommender · recommended in 4 months, 2012–2018
9:38 · 33M views · Apr 25, 2011
A tour of Christian Schallert's 24 square meter apartment in Barcelona, designed so that it looks like an empty cube until he builds the furniture he needs. Kirsten Dirksen shows how the space is transformed for cooking, sleeping and dressing.
HN people link it as an example of a transformable small apartment in threads on micro-apartments and space-saving furniture.
4 comments from Hacker News
What about bedsheets, pillows etc. Also it seems it is hygienic to let the mattress air dry. I like this guy's sliding lego house: this video
The only thing I found weird about the article was the developers product development decisions based on a single female MIT student as opposed to talking to lots of people who are the target for a product like this, especially since he plans on putting it in SoMa and targeting the tech crowd which is largely male. This isn't sexism, it's just knowing the audience. For example, the pull out bed in this apartment seems far more practical than a Murphy bed that really only works if you make your bed properly so it's not subject to the perils of gravity: this video The other decision was the move to a tub style shower. The only people I know that that really take baths are women. Why? Because they fit in tubs comfortably. I can't think of any men who habitually take baths but know many women that do. Tub-size is probably a big contributing factor as to why. TBH, if someone is living in apartment like this, they value practicality over everything else. If that is the case, a bathroom space optimized for cleaning and maintenance is more ideal, such as the bathroom in this micro-apt, where the toilet, sink area and shower all share the same tiled floor [LINK] Anyways, really shortsighted product management in my view given the location and target market. If I were a single woman, SoMa is not a neighborhood I would live in. There is not enough foot-traffic and decent lighting at night to feel really safe.
Some similar designs: [LINK] [LINK] this video As others have noted, the inability to leave items (particularly monitors) on the desk is a major downside. I'm a fan of the collegiate solution: a loft bed. This is particularly suitable where high ceilings are available, especially cathedral or A-frame designs.
Polymorphic homes maybe, but what's robotic about these? A robot would self-clean for example. this accomplishes the same and doesnt require any motors: this video