I've mentioned before that my wife and I are currently living in a 130 square foot apartment in Paris, and now I have the pictures to prove it!
We met the property manager when we moved in, and us three (plus our luggage) was such a tight squeeze that I could barely contain my laughter. We committed to a six-month rental without seeing it in person. We didn't even know if there was going to be room to store our bags (there was), or what the view was like (amazing). Trying to find a long-term place to live in Paris is... tiring.
For those who can't visualize it, 130 square feet is small. Really small. If you take 4 sheets of plywood and lay them side-by-side, you would have a 128 square foot rectangle. Three king-sized beds laid side-by-side will get you pretty close - 125sqft. Our apartment in Vancouver was around 900sqft, which is nearly 7 times the size of this one. Our BEDROOM was 200 square feet in Vancouver and now our bedroom, bathroom, kitchen, living room, and office is 130sqft combined. Breakfast in bed is more like breakfast FROM bed - just roll over and give the bacon a flip. And boil some water for coffee while you're at it.
So, how did we do it? Simply put, the space was well-designed and we had to adjust our lifestyle. Click on the pictures to make them bigger and hover over them to read descriptions and I will explain more:
I also run a floor plan measurement company in Vancouver, so naturally I measured the floor plan. You can see how tight things really are without the camera lying to you
Apparently the owner of the space designs yachts, so she understands living in tight quarters. My wife is an interior designer focused on small living in Vancouver, so this has been a really great experience to push things to the limit.
To be honest, we love our little petit nid and it will be a sad day when we have to move out. It is well-designed, in a fantastic building (with elevator), a rare panoramic view, and it's in the best neighbourhood. It's just a bit small :)
Thanks for reading! Let me know what you think in the comments, or send me an email.
All images © Levi Groeneveld - Travel and Fine Art Photographer