Building a Productive Cafe Shop

Tiny house lovers, meet Tikku. A super sleek, multi level tiny apartment that currently lives in a bustling Helsinki square, where it only takes up a footprint of 2.5 x 5 meters (roughly 8′ x 16.5′) — the size of a parking spot. The house, designed and installed by Marco Casagrande, is described as “a contemporary cave for a modern urban nomad.” Tikku, which means “stick” in Finish, seeks to bring a sense of the organic to city life.

How the furniture was arranged for entertaining, for conversation, for “company.” It was once common for friends to drop by, even unannounced, and for you to spread some refreshments around while you sat on couches, facing each other, to shoot the breeze. Nowadays that sounds insane. Comedian Sebastian Maniscalco perfectly and hilariously illustrates the difference between someone dropping by 20 years ago versus now.

It’s the combination of textures on the floor and bed, as well as the clear desk chair that takes up little visual space. Notice the boxes under the bed and the narrow wall shelf that add extra dorm storage without taking up too much space. Want a little extra privacy? Hang some curtains from the ceiling using Command Utility Hooks, which can hold a decent amount of weight and are easy to remove without making holes in the walls or ceilings.

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“Like every space I design, I tried to create a strong balance of color and tone,” she says. “We chose the comfy English Roll arm sofa first off in a French blue and then went with a steel coffee table for an industrial feel and hard line.” The texture play continues throughout the living room with leather safari chairs, an over-dyed blue patchwork rug, and a stunning walnut credenza.

Benjamin Hubert of LAYER design will be launching a furniture collection for UK furniture company Allermuir at London Design Festival’s Somerset House. The three piece collection consisting of a chair, a barstool and a small café table will be amongst many projects at the center for engaging design discussion and experiences during the anticipated design festival.

One of my biggest wardrobe “aha!” moments was when I found my sleeveless, mustard turtleneck crumpled on the closet floor next to my white and blue striped shirt. Frowning at the jumble, it was the first time I was thankful for my messy tendencies—the pairing was fabulous. And not something I would have ever pieced together if I was just standing in front of my wardrobe, trying to decide what to style that morning.

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The fabulous location is what initially drew Darren to his home. As he says “There are few areas that can beat the City Bowl for vibe, energy and convenience.” Although Darren currently rents, he’s hoping that at some point the property will become available so that he can buy and renovate it to its full potential.

The best part about the whole thing for design-lovers: Some really incredible rooms come out of it. The most recent ORC season finished up in April, and it resulted in some of the prettiest rooms we’ve seen yet. Here’s a recap of our favorite modern spaces from the One Room Challenge, from both official and guest participants alike. This living room came from one of ORC’s guest participants, but it’s as well-designed and full of inspiration as any space we’ve seen from the bigger-name bloggers.