Japanese houses work well with the Japanese climate. The wood used becomes stronger over time. The paper in shoji screens helps to regulate the home's moisture levels.
Homes use grass mats for flooring and shoji screens to divide interior spaces. During the day the Japanese use tables and cushions for seating, replacing them with futons at night.
The exteriors feature heavy cedar or cypress wood columns. Builders often use traditional motifs like pine branches in the woodwork for decoration.
Japanese use 3- by 6-foot tatami mats for flooring. They count the number of mats to measure room sizes. A typical room uses six mats.
Not all Japanese live in wood and paper houses. Many live in concrete condominium apartments and modern manufactured homes.
Traditional Japanese homes have separate bathroom and toilets. Some even have separate male and female toilet rooms.
