On April 4, 2026, South Korean model and YouTuber Lee Hyun-yi, known for her candid takes on modern parenting, shared a revealing look into her family’s life with a new video on her channel ‘워킹맘이현이’ (Working Mom Lee Hyun-yi). The episode, titled “Turning the Living Room Into a Study Room?! Why Do My Sons Only Respond and Not Act? A Full Inspection by Son Expert Choi Min-jun,” offered viewers a front-row seat to a bold home transformation—and the parenting philosophies behind it.
Lee’s motivation for the dramatic change was simple yet deeply personal. Her younger son, Young-seo, had just entered elementary school, joining his older brother, Yun-seo, at one of Seoul’s prestigious private elementary schools. The family’s home, previously arranged for comfort and leisure, was suddenly ill-suited for two growing boys with mounting academic demands. “Originally, there was a sofa and a mirror here,” Lee explained in her video, gesturing at the now-transformed living room. “But that space has become a study room. It’s now a reading room in the living room.” (as reported by Sports Chosun and TenAsia).
The decision wasn’t made lightly. Young-seo’s bedroom was simply too small to fit both a bed and a wardrobe, let alone a desk. The older brother, Yun-seo, a fifth grader, had developed a habit of retreating into his room and firmly shutting the door. Lee confessed, “When I opened the door unexpectedly, I’d find comic books hidden under his workbooks. He’d spend hours like that, and I can’t just stand in front of the door watching him all the time. So, I brought him out into the open.” (OSEN and TenAsia).
With both boys now attending the same school—a well-known private elementary in Seoul with annual tuition around 10 million KRW, according to TenAsia—Lee made another big decision: she combined their bedrooms into a single shared sleeping space. “Since Yun-seo attends private school and wakes up early, Young-seo wakes up early, too. Now that they’re in the same school, they can get up together, so the bedroom is combined. That’s a big decision,” Lee reflected in her video.
The new study zone in the living room was meticulously arranged. Desks and study furniture replaced the old sofa and mirror, creating a space where the boys could, in theory, motivate each other. Lee even purchased a motion desk, inspired by a room she’d seen on the TV show ‘동상이몽2’, where a gifted student’s daughter studied standing up. “But my sons haven’t done that yet,” she admitted. “They haven’t studied for that long yet—they’re still elementary students.”
But the best-laid plans of parents often run headlong into the reality of childhood. Lee soon discovered that putting the boys’ desks side by side didn’t foster competition or focus—instead, it led to giggles and distraction. “I thought if they sat together, they’d stimulate each other to study. But not at all. As soon as they see each other, they just start laughing,” she shared, a mix of exasperation and amusement in her voice (Sports Chosun).
To address the unique challenges of raising two very different boys, Lee invited study expert Choi Min-jun to her home for a professional assessment. Choi praised the new study space, saying, “This is a space I really want to recommend. Beyond improving grades, it increases the sense of belonging. The sense of belonging for all four family members increases.” But he also offered a word of caution: “There is a concern about academic leveling down. Adults need to set the standard. If adults are always reading books in the background, that helps.”
Choi’s advice didn’t stop at interior design. Lee voiced concerns about her younger son’s strict adherence to rules and difficulty adapting to change. “He goes to bed at 9 p.m., but yesterday his dad hugged him because he was cute, and it went past 9. He started to tear up because it was past his bedtime,” Lee recounted. Choi explained, “A person who is very rule-bound often has inner anxiety. These behaviors are an attempt to relieve that anxiety, so they’re not necessarily bad. It only becomes a social issue if they force others to follow their rules.” He suggested that parents of such children should gently prepare them for changes in advance, rather than springing surprises on them.
Lee’s husband, Hong Sung-ki, is a semiconductor engineer at Samsung, and Lee herself is a graduate of Ewha Womans University’s economics department. The couple’s reputation for prioritizing education is well-known, and their sons’ enrollment in a prestigious private school is often cited as an example of the lengths to which Korean families will go to secure the best opportunities for their children (TenAsia).
The video also touched on the broader context of home renovations in Seoul. As Lee recorded her update, the sounds of construction echoed from a neighboring apartment. She commented, “The apartment next door is under renovation. But we have to be understanding, because we recently renovated our bathroom. It must have been noisy for them, too. These days, not only our neighbors but many people are remodeling their homes. Moving is difficult and housing prices are so high, so people are adapting their homes to their lifestyles. We’re doing the same—continuing to fix things as we live here.”
Lee’s story is emblematic of a growing trend among urban families in South Korea, where soaring real estate prices and limited space force creative solutions. Rather than moving, families are increasingly choosing to remodel, tailoring their living environments to the evolving needs of their children and work-from-home parents. It’s a phenomenon that reflects both economic realities and shifting cultural priorities.
But the heart of Lee’s narrative isn’t just about furniture or floor plans—it’s about the messy, funny, and sometimes frustrating process of raising children. Her openness about her sons’ quirks, her own doubts, and the limits of even the most well-intentioned plans resonates with parents everywhere. As Choi Min-jun put it, “Parents find it harder when their children’s personalities are different from their own. In the case of your younger son, it’s important to let him know in advance if something might change, so he can adapt.”
For Lee Hyun-yi and her family, the new study room is more than just a place for homework—it’s a living experiment in parenting, adaptation, and togetherness. And if the laughter and occasional chaos are any indication, they’re learning as much from each other as they are from their books.