Storage underfoot. That's one way to make the most of the space underneath the stairs. We spied this idea in one of the Chinese home decor mags we picked up on the trip. See a close up under the cut:
This type of storage offers easy access to what's in the pull out plastic drawers. A great use if it's near a home office so that you could store all of your materials. COuld also be a great place to store winter clothes in the summer, or summer clothes in the winter. We're impressed that in such a small space, the storage still looks clean and crisp.
Must-See Small Cool Homes: Week Two
Beth's Romantic & Retro Residence
Good Food to Share 
The Big Book of Small, Cool Spaces 
Apartment Therapy Presents 
The Eight-Step Home Cure 
Shaw's Original Fir...
How to Bake a Potato in the Oven
How To Cook Tender, Chewy Wheat Berries on the Stovetop
Are they ikea toy storage? Trofast I think?
Look!
They have IKEA in China too!
(Of course since most everything is made there...)
And what's w/ the fridge in the living room?
Bepsf,
Maybe it's a second fridge for... pickles? Beer? It wouldn't be the first Asian household I've seen with 2 refrigerators.
Actually, I've never seen a frig inside of the kitchen in China, and I've been to quite a few cities already. It is always close to the kitchen, but never in it, including the new constructions, so it can't be just a old building limitation either.
I'm not sure TROFAST was actually engineered to be used as stairs! I'd be scared.
the only thing wrong with any kind of plastic bin storage is plastic bins.
Can't tell for sure but it looks like the storage units were reinforced in some fashion so they can stand up to the weight of a typical human, how exactly now much and I'd be a tad nervous of not having any hand rails though.
I love that screen room divider any info on that? I live in China so it might actually be purchasable...