For a country with such high design standards, it's surprising that many Japanese apartments are pre-fabricated plastic matchboxes with little longevity. Few and far between are Sir David Tang's sisal floors, paulownia woods loved by Studio Nendo or Hasamiyaki ceramics.
Perfectly placed in Design Trawler's highly rated Hankyu Men's store sits the Monocle Cafe. A little basement oasis of democratised design; taste makers sit alongside teachers, enamel lighting, soft woods and typographic detailing. Everything Japanese studio apartments should be, yet seldom are. Do we over-romanticise Japanese design? Most likely there's a blog in Japan that thinks everyone in England has a four poster bed and a chesterfield. Which is entirley untrue of course. We all have Chippendale's.
