From the country that brought us the familiar blue-and-yellow retailer that epitomizes efficient packaging—it’s tiny houses, Sweden edition.
This one is 12 square meters (that’s just under 130 square feet), and it rents for the equivalent of $370 a month. One of Sweden’s smallest houses—built by AF Bostader and intended to be affordable living for students in the town of Lund—makes good use of vertical space and minimalist furnishings to create a space that feels surprisingly airy.
Just don’t adopt a Great Dane.
The cabin incorporates a hallmark of tiny spaces everywhere: the sleeping loft. Vertical space is a vastly underused resource in many homes—but mount a bed halfway up the wall, and you immediately gain valuable space underneath.
The cabin incorporates skylights, windows and light-coloured wood to create a light-filled, airy interior. As some commenters pointed out, cantilevering the shelves would avoid the necessity of having a pole in the middle of the room—but add some hooks to the support and you’ve got a place to hang wet towels. And while there’s no shot of the bathroom, it does have a toilet and shower—but there’s no room for a luxurious Jacuzzi in a space this small!
The tiny house even has room for a patio outside.
Although the builder had planned to construct several of these units, applications for building permits were denied. But the company, working with Tengbom Architects, recently unveiled plans for a mini village of these tiny student living pods on the campus of the University of Lund.
Tiny living is alive and well in Sweden.
Images courtesy of design-milk.com.