- Nature：Residential
- Style：-
- Color：-
- Property：恆麗園 Hanley Villa
- Building Area：970sq. ft.
- Practical Area：671sq. ft.
A Home for Fur Babies
If you have pets then you will understand that cats and dogs are not just animals, they are our friends and family members. However, humans and animals have different living habits and environments. Living in a busy and crowded city like Hong Kong, it is inevitable that the two need to share the same space. Those who consider pets as family members must hope that while you live comfortably, cats and dogs also share a comfortable living environment.
This design project is a unit with a usable area of about 671 sq ft located in Hanley Villa, Tsuen Wan. The owner has two medium sized Shiba Inu. The owner who loves dogs like their own children hopes to create a living space that blends with their pets’ wants through flexible interior design.
The owner's dog is active and playful. In order to provide it with more space to move around, the designer implemented a platform bed design in the master room. By reducing the height of large furniture, small animals can easily enter the owner's space, allowing more time to spend together. "Safety first" is our primary purpose in designing any space, especially for families with elders, children and pets. The platform bed is designed so that fur babies will not be easily injured even if they run and jump. We also considered the advantages of the large floor-to-ceiling glass windows in the master room. If a traditional high-rise bed would block the scenery and sunlight outside the window, a low-profile platform bed can amplify the advantages of the unit itself. At the same time, both "people" and "dogs" can enjoy the beauty outside and in.
Although most dogs may not be able to use furniture, we also must consider their living habits when making interior settings. Dogs are very protective animals, so they need a space of their own. When we designed the TV cabinet, we reserved spaces on the left and right sides, so that the owner has enough space to put the dog bed, and the other side can also put audio equipment. The space for people and pets is balanced without conflict. At the same time, in appropriate spaces, such as corridors and kitchens, we have also installed partition devices, so that the owner can partition the work or activity space when necessary, especially in places with high danger like the kitchen, or when the dog barks, you can close the partition door as a sound insulation measure.
In terms of colour, we mainly use lighter colours to design to match the black, white, and light brown hair colours of Shiba itself, bringing the dogs a sense of safety like protective colours. To avoid monotony, we chose brighter colours such as green and blue as accent, and at the same time creates layers in the space. In terms of materials, we mainly consider three aspects: waterproof, scratch-resistant and durable, so as to better cater to the living habits of pets.
The time that animals look forward to most is the time after the owner gets off work every day, so establishing interactivity is an important concept in our pet home design. Through the design, not only the owner has a space to relax and rest, but also the pets have more opportunities to get close and enhance the relationship between the two.
