Sweet Daily: A Cozy, Minimalist Residential Design

Jen-Kuang Fang's Award-Winning Design Combines Warmth, Light, and Open Space

The design was inspired by the client's desire to relocate to a greener location for their children's growth and education. Fang reconfigured the layout and materials to optimize interior lighting, ensuring that the top floor received ample natural light. The design features a minimalistic and cozy style, with beige and gray as the primary colors and wood grain accents. The overall design creates a sense of spaciousness and warmth, providing an environment where children can immerse themselves in sunshine and greenery.

What sets Sweet Daily apart is its minimalist lighting and intriguing vista. Fang used minimalist color blocking and facade design to showcase warm, soft daylight throughout every corner of the space. Unnecessary partitions were removed to extend the public area, allowing natural light to flow seamlessly from the balcony and living room to the dining room and walkway. To maximize the living space, several partitions, including the foyer and study room, were removed, ensuring there were interesting design elements at every possible vista.

The design was realized using building materials such as stone panel, eco-friendly latex paint, black mirror, glass, system cabinets, and laminate flooring. The materials were selected according to the site conditions and the children's living habits. The stone panel brings a good visual presentation, and its warm texture adds to the comfortable space under the daylight. The color scheme is low saturation tones, such as beige and gray, supplemented by wood grain brown as a highlight.

The site is a 10-year-old pre-owned apartment on the 14th floor with a total area of 105.7 square meters. There are 3 plus 1 rooms, a living room, and a dining room. The significant layout changes are the removal of the study room and foyer partition, and the widening of the dining room. By removing the study room partition, natural light can better illuminate the private walkway to achieve the visual effect of enlarging the space.

The project was completed in July 2022 in Taiwan. The design research focused on pure color blocks and natural materials, stacked and matched to present a minimalist visual design. The natural materials reveal the delicate texture and the large grayscale color blocks accentuate the warmth of daylight, showing the unique warm atmosphere in a minimalist style. The design faced challenges due to the site being a decade old, and after numerous occupants, the apartment had suffered slight damage and unevenness. Despite the time-consuming process, a smooth and flat surface was achieved to enhance the diffusion of light from light to dark, complementing the minimalistic and cozy ambiance.

In conclusion, the Sweet Daily project is a testament to the power of minimalist design and thoughtful planning. The project meets the client's needs perfectly and echoes the designer's initial design and planning. The minimalistic style and elegant wood tones are interwoven to create a cozy living for the family. At the same time, more lighting possibilities are arranged to create a unique color and light in the space. The rearranged layout is also closer to the family's daily habits, allowing them to enjoy a tranquil home that is comfortable, convenient, spacious, and refreshing.