Japandi Calm

The brief

Returning expats restoring a small Kyoto machiya wanted the upstairs bedroom to honour the building's tatami history while still working for two adults who use a Western mattress. The room had to feel grounded, quiet, and travel-light.

The challenge

Original ceiling beams sat low at 2.3m, and the only natural light came through a single shoji-style window. A standard bed frame would feel boxy and bright artificial light would kill the atmosphere.

The approach

• 01

  Designed a custom low platform bed only 28cm tall in pale oak, with the mattress sitting flush — keeping the eye-line under the beams.

• 02

  Replaced the overhead fixture with a paper lantern on a dimmer and added a single floor-level reading light beside the bed.

• 03

  Kept the walls almost bare: one hand-thrown stone vessel and a length of indigo linen on a brass rod.

• 04

  Specified a wool tatami-edge rug to bridge the Western mattress with the building's history.

Materials & finishes

Bed

Custom pale oak platform, hand-oiled

Walls

Soft chalk-white limewash

Lighting

Japanese paper lantern, 2400K dimmable

Textiles

Heavyweight washed linen + wool tatami-edge rug

The outcome

The clients describe waking up there as 'the quietest part of the day.' The room reads as a single calm gesture in photos and feels even softer in person — exactly what a machiya bedroom should do.

Frequently asked

What is Japandi style?

Japandi pairs Japanese restraint (low furniture, paper light, near-empty walls) with Scandinavian warmth (pale woods, soft textiles). This Kyoto machiya bedroom is a literal version: a 28cm pale-oak platform, a paper lantern and one stone vessel.

Why is the bed so low?

The original machiya ceiling beams sit at 2.3m. A 28cm platform keeps the sightline under the beams so the room feels generous instead of compressed.

Does this work outside Japan?

Yes. The same playbook — low bed, one warm wood, paper or linen-shade light, one textile moment — translates to any small or low-ceilinged bedroom.