Houzz, the world’s leading platform for home renovation and design, today unveiled its SmartHouzz at the annual designjunction exhibition on 22-25 September. The bright green SmartHouzz is a pod that showcases ways to maximise small space living through smart design, smart storage ideas and smart technology, located on Granary Square, King’s Cross. The SmartHouzz has been created to provide inspiring solutions to common space dilemmas faced by the Houzz UK community, as ‘small bathroom’, ‘small bedroom’ and ‘small kitchen’ are consistently popular search terms on Houzz.co.uk. The 40 square metre exhibition space has been designed by Jennifer Chong of Feioi, an interior design project manager from the Houzz community, with input from Houzz data and insights. Houzz identified key trends and insights from its community of more than 40 million unique monthly users and used inspiration from the 11 million home design images on the global platform. The SmartHouzz’s furnishings, colours and features have been chosen based on community data to make it a true representation of the modern UK Houzzer’s home. For example, grey is the most popular sofa colour among UK Houzzers1, so the SmartHouzz living room sofa, which transforms into a bed, is also grey. The inclusion of hi-tech solutions, e.g. a security camera with face recognition and a ‘smartplug’, reflect the 19% of renovating Houzzers who rate smart home integration as very to extremely important.
Victoria Harrison, Editor of Houzz UK and Ireland, shares her top features from the installation:
Making the most of dead space “Small space living is a key search term on Houzz and Houzzers are always looking for clever ways to maximise a compact living area. The built-in 'up and over' shelving around the doorframe in the SmartHouzz was inspired by a clever idea spotted on Houzz to make the most of dead space. Rather than take up valuable wall space with traditional shelving, we've put slim shelves either side of, and above, the door. Perfect for storing items that aren't used every day, it also doubles up as a display feature in its own right for vases, books and ornaments”.
Transform the space under the stairs “The dead space under the stairs is often used as little more than a messy storage area, but with some clever thinking it can become so much more. Houzzers have come up with many clever solutions to this design dilemma, transforming them into playrooms, reading nooks, even a mini utility room. Here, we've added a slimline desk and staggered wall shelving to create a compact home office that slots neatly under the staircase.”
Look up! “Bikes are essential to many homeowners living in urban environments, but storing them can be a challenge. Inspired by a similar idea on Houzz, we've raised ours up to clear valuable floor space and turned it into a feature in its own right. And we haven't just stopped at bikes! We've also stored folding chairs on the wall in the dining room to maximise space when they're not in use.”
Is it a chair, or is it storage? “Space is at a premium in urban living rooms and each piece of furniture has to work extra hard. In the SmartHouzz our sofa transforms into a bed for guests and we've added flexible seating solutions in the form of stools that can be tucked neatly along the wall when not in use. They also double up as portable storage boxes for tidying away toys, books, newspapers etc. Nifty!”
The space is furnished exclusively with John Lewis A/W furniture and accessories, including their Design Project by John Lewis range. The new collection is a series of pieces for the contemporary home, developed in the John Lewis design studio to be original, progressive and beautiful. Inspired by nature, the luxury vinyl flooring (LVT) is Karndean Designflooring’s LooseLay Longboard in French Grey Oak, a 1.5 metre plank design with excellent acoustic benefits. Houzz is offering homeowners free design consultations with Houzz professionals during the four day designjunction event. Homeowners with design dilemmas can connect with professionals for 30 minutes to share and discuss ideas. Drop-in sessions will be available 4pm-6pm between Thursday 22 and Saturday 25 September and 2pm-4pm on Sunday 25 September. For home renovation and design professionals, Houzz will offer 1:1 consultations on maximising their exposure on Houzz
