STYLISH SOHO
Clockwise: Pendant lights hanging from the ceiling also become a graphic feature in this home designed by Liquid Interiors. Loungers pop out of the floor on the roofdeck. Rowena Gonzales, founder of Liquid Interiors. Storage space is discreetly located under the standalone bed. The kitchen's exhaust fan rises from the island counter
時尚之選
順時針：此Liquid Interiors設計的家居，天花掛有矚目吊燈作亮點。休閒椅能從天台地面彈出。Liquid Interiors創辦人Rowena Gonzales。儲物空間獲隱藏在獨立睡床下方。廚房抽氣扇能從中島彈出
Large spaces are worth their square footage in gold: it’s the mantra that every expat hears when they announce their plans to move to Hong Kong and a simple fact of life that every local accepts with resignation. If it’s convenience and a central location you want, you’re going to have to skimp on space. Though Hong Kong is still an extreme example in this day and age with its sub-200sqft flats, due to myriad reasons from rising rents to an increase in single-person abodes, more and more people across the globe are downsizing their homes.
"Within the next 20 years, 60 to 70 per cent of the world is going to be living in cities," says Rowena Gonzales, founder of Hong Kong-based eco-conscious interior design firm Liquid Interiors. "It’s a global trend that properties are getting smaller." Mimi Hoang, co-founder of New York Citybased architecture firm nArchitects, echoes Rowena’s observation. "The demographics of New York and many cities are changing," she says. "More and more people are living by themselves, marrying later and studying more, so the worldwide trend is towards solo living. I don’t think everybody should live in a micro-unit [below 400sqft], but we should reflect the change in demographics with a more diverse range of possibilities for unit types."
Liquid Interiors recently completed a 400sqft apartment in Hong Kong’s Soho, while nArchitects has made waves in the US by creating the first micro-unit apartment building in New York, Carmel Place, featuring nine stories and 55 units ranging from 250sqft to 370sqft. Both projects take a transformable approach to space, maximising the use of every single square foot. The Soho flat features a kitchen island that opens out into a dining table, with a pull-out counter for added preparation space and a concealed exhaust fan; cabinetry and TV screens that are built into walls; and loungers that pop out of the floor on the rooftop. Carmel Place makes use of similar features, such as Murphy beds that fold away and make room
空間寸金尺土：每位僑民宣佈要搬到香港生活時，必聽到如此真言。要是位處方便中央的地段，更不能強求空間大小。香港雖為單位面積可少至200平方呎的極端例子：一人單位租金上揚原因眾多，但事實上，環球愈來愈多人也正在精簡家居。
駐香港環保室內設計公司Liquid Interiors創辦人Rowena Gonzales指：「未來20年，全球60至70%人會在城市居住。物業小巧化是環球趨勢。」駐紐約建築公司nArchitects合夥創辦人Mimi Hoang同意Rowena的觀察：「紐約和其他大量城市的人口分佈也不停在改變。愈來愈多人獨個兒居住、遲婚、唸更多書，環球走向個人生活。我不認為人們應居住在400平方呎以下的空間，但我們要為單位類別的眾多可能性上反映人口分佈的轉變。」
Liquid Interiors最近完成了香港蘇豪一個400平方呎單位項目，而nArchitects則在紐約Carmel Place打造微型公寓大樓而在美國掀起熱潮：9層高建築內有55個面積由250至370平方呎不等的單位。兩個項目均以轉型空間為本，善用每分每寸。蘇豪單位配置可開出餐桌的廚房中島，拉出工