With mandatory confinement, keeping family life organized and optimizing space so everyone (especially our furry friends) feels comfortable at home has become our number one priority. The best idea to facilitate cohabitation? Creating rest and activity areas specifically for our pets. Clever and also suitable for small spaces, they’re a real decorative asset for our home sweet home. Here are five inspiring projects to demonstrate.
A small, functional and fun apartment for cats…and parrots.
Confinement requires, with all the cuddles he’s having with the kids 24/7, Félix seems to have reached his point of no return… What if the solution was a small Zen-inspired niche, integrated into the storage space in the entrance hall, so that our cat can isolate himself comfortably? Like this 42 m2 apartment located in Hong Kong, designed for a couple, their cat , and their mother, the happy owner of a parrot. The professionals’ objective? To consider housing as an evolving space, allowing it to adapt to the rhythms and habits of everyone, humans and animals alike . To optimize the available space, numerous modular solutions have been planned in the house: a retractable dining area, a folding worktop… A semi-transparent removable partition has also been installed between the living room and the kitchen to allow the two animals to move around the house independently, without coming into contact and without compromising the beautiful brightness of the place. And to save space and harmonize the decor, the famous cat niche has been fitted into the wooden modules of the entrance… and remains invisible.
A designer playroom for dogs
Currently, walks are reduced to a minimum, resulting in Pepito, Figolu, and GranoIa having fun dashing 100 meters around the apartment! Our solution: this 100% playful installation designed by architect Soichi Yamasaki for a large house in Hyogo, Japan. In the center of the large living room, the architect designed a playroom for the family’s three dogs. It can be opened or closed as desired and is placed slightly below ground level to prevent hair from invading the house. Clever!
A cat walking trail
Is it possible to plan arrangements so our cats can let off steam, while avoiding the ugly cat tree? Better twice than once! The proof is in this project by the American studio BFDO. The owner of this Brooklyn house, a book and cat enthusiast, wanted an elegant and practical solution for storing his many books. To meet his request, the architects designed large bookcase-partitions with overhanging shelves and topped with a shallow edge. Felines can wander around, jumping from shelf to shelf like on an XXL cat tree… A real designer play area for cats!
A dog staircase
It’s not always easy to get active during lockdown… The solution from the architects at studio 07Beach? Create a small, special pet staircase, parallel to the human one, making it much easier for our four-legged friends to access. Lovely walks are in store.
A kitchen with a built-in niche
Enjoy a space to relax, away from the crowds, or perhaps enjoy a quiet bone…
Like in this ultra-bright Scandinavian-style kitchen, where natural materials take pride of place. To accommodate the family dog’s kennel, without compromising the elegance and beautiful purity of the space, the architects at Studio AC integrated it into the partition and designed it in the same materials as the room to cultivate a beautiful harmony. Featuring minimalist lines, in the pure Nordic tradition, it even becomes a decorative object in its own right.
