Whether you’ve escaped the confines of your family home, renting a room in the city or you’ve relocated to your first ever property, chances are you’re working with a smaller space that needs to serve different functions; bedroom and study for instance. Adjusting will take time, but there are ways to work around the limited space and maximising that space just takes a little thought. Here are six ways we find useful:
1. Think vertical – Don’t let your vertical space go to waste by displaying art, or installing floating shelves, cabinets and rods. It will draw the eye upwards, making the room feel more expansive than it really is, and you’ll be able to store so much more. You can even stack shelving units on top of each other to stretch the storage space upwards.
2. Go for built-ins – Customised shelves or furniture can cost a lot more, but by filling an entire wall from floor to ceiling with a shelf, you’re minimising the floor square footage used and can then use the shelf for many purposes; to decorate, store books, as a home entertainment centre and so on.
3. Take advantage of space beneath – Using the space underneath the bed is probably the easiest and smartest storage solution many people overlook. If your bed isn’t high enough, you can always buy bed risers to heighten the space underneath it. Storage containers can easily slide in, and you can even hide your clutter with a bed skirting.
4. Fill nook and crannies – Evaluate all your belongings and furniture, then think of the best, most strategic place they can sit in your space. The possibilities are endless, and every unexpected space can probably be put to good use. Think smarter space, not more space.
5. Invest in double duty furniture – All your furniture should be able to serve more more than one function, like a nightstand with drawers which can be used for seating and extra storage. Look for single items that can do many, many things if you needed them to.
6. Prioritise storage – With every item you make space for, ensure that there are some sort of drawers or hidden storage. This could be your poufs, coffee table, chairs, bed frame and more. Don’t buy a piece of furniture just for its aesthetic value as it would look redundant in a small space.
