When Alban Diner moved into his tiny Parisian apartment, the rooms were cramped and dark; the only source of direct natural light was a skylight on the 4th floor. Instead of finding a new place, he turned to architects Marc Sirvin and Clémence Eliard of Agence SML to create more space and light.

Heavily influenced by Japanese architecture and narrow, tall Toyko apartments, the architect couple designed a metal structure that would act as staircase/floor/ceiling for the different levels while simultaneously allowing light to flow from the skylight through two floors to the main living area.

The space is only 269 square feet, but the architects managed to create four unique levels/rooms for a bathroom, kitchen/living room, bedroom and even a home-office.