Compact Life Storage in the Shape of Life

MUJI

Case
1

A simple, pleasant life in Hong Kong

Renovating the Ho family home

Organizing the living space clearly highlights items the family feels are exciting.

Interview with the Ho family

Mr. Ho and his wife and daughter live in a condominium incentral Hong Kong. Their home is a typical size for Hong Kong, but storage space is a problem. MUJI put Compact Life into practice to help the Ho family think about their lives and renovate their living space, which was overflowing with clothes and items for daily living.

Renovator

Ho family
A Family of 3: Mr. Ho, a mechanical engineer (50s); Mrs. Ho, a homemaker (50s); and their daughter, a company employee (20s)

Before renovation

The 2 bedroom, living room, kitchen, dining room layoutis a typical living space for Hong Kong (41 m2). There is also a windowless room. Their son has moved out, sohis room is also being used by the daughter.

Problems prior to renovation

Renovation requests

Comfort after the renovation

Changes in lifestyle after the renovation

Lives around the world can be changed by “arranging living spaces”

Creator of the renovation plan

Toru Arai
MUJI interior advisor

Floor plan

Placing stacking shelves here and there loosely divides the space while providing excellent storage without making it feel cramped.

How will the problem of overflowing items at the Ho home be solved by MUJI? That was the starting point for the renovation. MUJI has versatileproducts with efficient design that can be used in any room. The concept for this renovation was shaping life using a single MUJI product. The entire home was renovated using stacking shelves, which provide storage and serve as walls to divide the rooms.

The renovation was carried out using the steps for arranging lives into a Compact Life . First, we worked with the family to divide items into “exciting” and “unexciting” to leave only those that are truly necessary. We showed the family how to fold and put away clothes, and stored them in stacking shelves according to criteria such as how often they are used. To maintain a well-ordered life, the family promised not to acquire more items by practicing precepts such as rethinking each piece of clothing when they buy another piece of clothing.

The Ho family values gatherings of family and friends, so a unit sofa was placed in the living room to accommodate lots of people. In addition, four tables were utilized so that each family member could have their own area in the limited living space. When several people gather, the tables can be pushed together. Places to sit and relax, as well as individual spaces with tables, were created to give a spacious feel even within the limited space.

Special memorabilia that were a jumble give a very different impression when placed amid an organized living space.

Organizing the living space clearly highlights items the family feels are exciting.
That lets their personality shine and leads to a pleasant lifestyle.

*The stacking shelf measurements are different from ordinary specifications.

Before

after