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30 Aug

Communication starts in the Kitchen: Mercato Shin-okachimachi

 Category: TOKYO SHAREHOUSE, Share House Report, Taito-ku, Woman only

A spacious kitchen and dining area resembling an Italian marketplace.

Mercato means marketplace in Italian. It is also used to express the transfer of players in European soccer in summer and winter. There is one other beautiful hidden meaning in this word, and that is ‘a place where people come and go through life.’

Sharehouses are exactly that, places where people come and go through life, and just as I was thinking so I came across the property I will show you today.

Mercato Shin-Okachimachi is a female-only sharehouse opened this past summer, about a 2-minute walk from Shin-Okachimachi station on the Toei Oedo line and within walking distance to Okachimachi station on the JR Yamanote line. With Asakusa and Ueno 10-minutes by bicycle you can also enjoy sightseeing spots within the city.

With the 4m long kitchen and 3m high ceiling reminiscent of an Italian marketplace it is possible to interact with your housemates at the dining table through food and cooking. Today I will be showing you around the rich variety of private rooms and wide, spacious communal areas of the house. 

So, without further ado, let’s head on into the house!!

「Mercato Shin-okachimachi」House Details Page

   

A most cheerful entrance with a white color-scheme bathed in light

Inside head left to the living room or up the stairs on the right to the floor with the rooms. With the living room and private rooms divided like this there’s no need to be worried about noise.

Inside head left to the living room or up the stairs on the right to the floor with the rooms. With the living room and private rooms divided like this there’s no need to be worried about noise.

House plants have been placed in the entrance, and a little bit of green in the house will spice up your life ever so slightly.

The bicycle parking area. There is no need to worry about your bike being stolen with a gate in place.

Large-scale living and dining area boasts 38㎡ of space and a 3m high ceiling

As you can see, the spaciousness of the area stands out as soon as you set foot in the living room. A table and chairs have been arranged in the middle of the room as if encouraging you to enjoy food and cooking.

Shelving stretching up to the ceiling has been fitted on both sides. The symmetricalness of it all may be quite novel to you!?

Turn around from the dining room to find the living area. The thin television suspended from the ceiling adds to the unusual interior.

An exposed ventilation system hangs down from the ceiling in the kitchen. The chairs had a splash of color to the room.

There is space down below in the kitchen to store dinnerware and cooking utensils. 

The dining table is a tiled design. 

The blackboard painted onto one wall in the dining area can act as a platform to share recipes as well as a message board for the tenants.

Tableware is stored in these wine crates.

This is how they are supposed to be used but with such a simple design you can use them for anything.

Shelves are lined with everything from rice cookers to a microwave oven, and a bread maker to bake your own bread in.

Let’s move onto the living area. The bare room, furnished with only a sofa and coffee table, is somewhat stylish to the eye.

The sofa is quite an interesting shape with its beautiful, curved design.

Now let’s look at the kitchen, laundry and toilet facilities. In the kitchen two sinks have been arranged facing each other.

The toilet and laundry room.

The dressing room and bathroom. There’s also a shower as well as a bathroom with a tub.
       

All rooms are rich in variety and come with a unique chair

Rooms are all one size and come with a bed, storage space and a chair in each. The design and layout of the rooms are different, so it might be an idea to come on over and check them out yourself! 

Room 204 has a large window and simple layout to use as you please. There is also quite a lot of storage space.

The 2F. Washstands are fitted outside the rooms.

Next is Room 303, located up one floor. This type of room has a bookcase for storing your things neatly in sections. 

You are greeted a sorrowful bird ornament on the 4F floor.

Rom 402. The Japanese-style cabinet in a Western-style room adds an accent to the space. 

You can exit out onto the balcony from the 4F rooms. You might want to hang your clothes to dry out here.

 

Managing this sharehouse is R Bank, a company that takes care of over 20 other properties, mainly female-exclusive houses and they conscientiously create houses one after the other with a variety of concepts and themes in mind. It is because of this that I headed to this shoot from the station in great anticipation of what kind of house they had thought up this time.

Okachimachi, the location this house is in, flourished as a craftsman's neighborhood in the Edo period long ago and has recently seen some popularity known as Kachikura, with stores featuring the younger generation’s handmade goods opening one after the other. There are many opportunities to explore the variety of items, works of art and ideas while browsing the streets for those of you interested in the creations of young designers and artists.

This is a place where people come and go through their lives, and a place to share things with each other. Magic happens when people gather, and a new culture and lifestyle has come to be amidst such a historical area. I can’t help but feel that the opportunity to transform a house into such a home by its tenants lies hidden here at Mercado Shin-Okachimachi.

/Author: Kagawa