Our shrinking urban living spaces have spawned lots of architectural attempts at creating new housing that is small but perfectly formed, but what about those who already own or rent an apartment or flat? They have to rely on inventiveness to create more space from nothing. The "Story" tackles this idea with a new addition to an old favorite – it's a sofa bed and workstation combined.
A final project study by Fanny Adam, a student at École nationale supérieure des Arts Décoratifs (EnsAD), the Story answers a design brief for a sofa that successfully overcomes the challenges linked with living in urban dwellings.
Sofa beds obviously aren't new, but Story also features a tabletop built into the headboard, which, with the addition of a barstool or two, can be used as either a small dining area or as a workstation.
The Formica sofa also features plenty of storage space, with drawers located underneath the sitting/sleeping area. When Story is laid out as a sofa these drawers pull out forward, and when it's laid out as a bed these drawers pull out from the side. Thanks to an ingenious design the armrests of the sofa become the headboard of the bed.
Unfortunately the project piece is just a one-off, but I suspect the idea could take off. While it may not individually be the greatest sofa, bed, or workstation ever forged, it could be the greatest combination of all three. In fact, it could be the only combination of all three.
