Smart Design Makes a Teeny Spanish Apartment Feel Much Larger

Adrienne Breaux
·4 min read
sunny apartment deck with lounge chairs and patio table and chairs
person sitting on wood window shelf in the sun
white apartment with large window, wood stairs, and tile floor
living room in small white minimal apartment with white futon, a small black table, and a floor lamp
white living room with some framed art and futon sofa
white and wood apartment with stairs leading up to loft, black door to living area, and tile floor
small white apartment with wood stairs leading up to loft space
small white apartment with wood stairs leading up to loft space
wood frame bed in white minimal loft bedroom
white apartment with lots of wood and stairs leading up to loft
Wood kitchen with black countertop and tile floor
all wood kitchen with black countertop
white apartment with lots of wood and tile floor. view from hall/stairs area
small white apartment with wood stairs leading up to loft space
small dining table and chair in minimal apartment with lots of wood
gray bathroom with wood ceiling, wood shelves, and black accents
gray bathroom with black framed mirror and other black details
wood landing area in white apartment with sliding glass doors looking out onto deck
sunny apartment deck with lounge chairs and view of the water
patio table and chair on the deck of an apartment
Floor plan and scheme for apartment
Thanks Iñigo! Credit: Iñigo Gómez Credit: Iñigo Gómez

“Actually, I did not look for this house, but it was the house that looked for me,” begins architect Iñigo Gómez of this teeny home-away-from home he designed in El Masnou on the coast of Spain.

small white apartment with wood stairs leading up to loft space

“Since I was a child, when I played at my grandparents’ house, this space was the one I liked the most in that huge house,” he explains of the structure’s familial origins.

person sitting and reading on their apartment deck

“The clear views of the sea and tiny dimensions adjusted to the minimum living space I needed allowed me to see a distant horizon and, at the same time, feel comforted. It’s the same now.”

person in wood kitchen

“Without even knowing that 40 years later I would live here, I spent hours playing with my cousin pretending that my grandfather’s office was our house and dividing the rooms according to our whims and needs. In the end, it is as if my ‘dollhouse’ has indeed become my forever home,” he continues about his ties to the space.

detail of large black ornate door/window into living room

Gómez explains that the space had been used as an office, so to change its use as a place to live, it had to be completely renovated.

Sunny wood deck with succulents and cacti in pots and small patio table and chairs

“The renovation consisted mainly of emptying the main room, removing partitions, insulating walls and roof, and creating a large opening towards the terrace that would allow light to enter,” he describes.

detail of framed art on wood step/shelf

“From there, everything had to be done new, always with the premise of adding as little as possible and always maintaining harmony with the pre-existing style and materials,” he writes.

small white apartment with wood stairs leading up to loft space

The smartest update is how a large pine wood structure was designed to house the kitchen, bathroom, and bedroom loft. All impressively built around a gorgeous giant mirrored existing closet/cabinet that he wanted to keep.

Resources

detail of vintage lamp

PAINT & COLORS

  • CAPAROL — Palazzo 30

living room in small white minimal apartment with white futon, a small black table, and a floor lamp

LIVING ROOM

Thanks, Iñigo!

This tour’s responses and photos were edited for length/size and clarity.

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