A Studio Apartment that Doesn’t Feel Like a Big Bedroom

Too often, thumb entering a studio apartment feels like entering someone’s bedroom albeit with a few pieces of daytime furniture sitting around. No matter the size of the space, buy the presence of a bed tends to give the impression the room is for sleeping–an impression that is tough to shake without some sort of hiding bed (wall, sofa or trundle). A few years ago, Jordan Parnasse Digital Architecture, the same guys who designed this awesome East Village studio, created a clever way to make a small studio not feel like a bedroom.

Aside from a separate kitchen, bathroom and closet area, the 461 sq ft studio was an open rectangle with one window bank. JPDA added two pieces of custom millwork. The first was a bank of storage along the space’s north wall. At the end of the bank was a cutout that made a desk area.

The other piece is a loft bed with built in storage. By concealing most of the mattress’s bulk, the wood volume creates a nice boundary between bed and living spaces. While it’s not a mystery that there’s a bed in the volume, it goes a long way to making the space feel less bedroom-y.