The clients are a young couple who wished to purchase a land and build a house within a limited budget.

The purchased site, which was low price because of the very irregular shape, is 3.26m in width (and 0.79m at the smallest width) and 29.3m in depth-in other words it is a very thin and long shape that is cut off from regular residential property lines. Considering the set back width of exterior walls, effective width of the structure is about 2.0m at most. We worked in collaboration with clients, structural engineers, contractors and manufacturers to design a livable space on this very difficult site.

Our design concepts are the three following points: firstly to take advantage of the extremely long space, secondly to provide a maximum livable space underground, and thirdly to keep exterior skin as thin as possible to obtain the maximum useable space.

Exterior walls are made of fiber reinforced plastic panels and floors are made of expanded metal mesh. These translucent materials bring in soft natural light down to the basement floor.

In order to keep the retaining walls as thin as possible to obtain the maximum livable space, we use steel sheet, insulation board, insulation paint and waterproof layer to build basement walls.

The name ‘lucky drops’ comes from a proverb meaning that the last left over portion often brings you a fortune. This sliver of land, the last left over piece in the urban context, has given a birth to a very special and beautiful urban house.