Living in a square-foot challenged apartment, I constantly follow articles about small living space trends. I like the clever and dual purpose solutions I find. There is a plethora of ingenuity. I applaud designers that tackle that sort of challenge.
But I sometimes wonder if this will ultimately lead to one's motorized coffin-home with wifi.
Many of these articles cite movements in major cities, NYC, especially, and SF, too.
Now both NYC & SF have ridiculously expensive housing markets, and both are very desirable places to live.
And think of the vast wasteland of McMansion foreclosures over recent years; yes, they were Icarites. Who, realistically needs that much space?
But I am suspicious of a trend to get human habitation below 300 square feet. There must be some optimal space a human needs to be healthy & happy.
The person who can use their toilet seat as a chair while plinking on their laptop, cannot have even a small dinner party with friends. Unless it is a Skyped dinner party and most of your friends are Facebookian.
I think of the arguing that says: "you are reducing your carbon footprint, which unfortunately enables others to grab all the space and energy they can."
Austerity by stealth? Those famous free market forces that put us in smaller coops to produce more eggs?