30 ways to maximize any small space
Limited square footage shouldn’t cramp your style. A few small-space furniture and organization solutions can help you pack the function of an entire home into a tiny footprint.
Entryway essentials
Any front-door-adjacent space can function as an entry. Here’s how to make it work:
■ Mount wall hooks for the items you reach for daily, like your favorite tote or dog’s leash.
■ For a spot to toss mail and keys, try a slim console or accent table.
■ Delineate the area as an entry with art and lighting. Sconces are great for saving space.
■ Pull up a chair or small bench as a dedicated space to remove shoes.
Light & airy living room
The key to a sleek-yet-small living area is clean-lined furniture. Crisp upholstery and simple silhouettes minimize visual clutter.
A sleeper sofa can transform your living room into a guest room.
Multifunctional must-haves
In a living room that’s short on square footage, every piece should do double duty.
■ Float two small sofas facing one another to create the feeling of a room in an open-concept floor plan.
■ Use a group of accent tables together as a coffee table or apart as side tables.
■ A sleeper sofa can transform your living room into a guest room.
■ A reversible sectional lets you move the chaise to either side for flexible arrangements.
■ An ottoman can serve as a chaise or coffee table.
■ Look for ottomans and coffee tables with built-in storage for throws, extra pillows and more.
Jess Bunge
Profession: Editorial director of Style by Emily Henderson
Location: Los Angeles, CA
Small space: Her 650-square-foot apartment
“I chose a desk that can double as a dining table whenever I want to have a small dinner party,” she says. “FYI, that’s only happened once! I know this isn’t a new idea, but buying furniture that can have more than one function is going to make your space way more livable.”
“Don’t be afraid to make some holes,” Jess says. Hang utensils from a mounted wall rack, store everyday seasonings on a ledge above an oven and secure knives to a magnetic strip.
Compact
kitchen & dining
Maximize storage space in even the smallest kitchen with these tips.
■ An over-the-sink dish drainer can be rolled up when not in use.
■ A Lazy Susan makes it easy to find cooking basics, like salt, pepper and olive oil, at arm’s reach.
■ Invest in an adjustable cookware rack to create instant custom storage for pots, skillets, cookie sheets, cutting boards or platters.
Bookshelves are not only great for a living room or office—they can also store dinnerware, pots and pans, and cookbooks in the kitchen.
Layer hooks, pegs and shelves to max out vertical storage.
If you can’t stow essentials away, decant them and store on the countertop.
Alvin Wayne
Profession: Interior designer
Location: Long Island City, NY
Small space: His 800-square-foot apartment
“When I moved in, my apartment had a serious lack of storage,” he says. “One of the best things I did was purchase two West Elm tables for the main wall of my living room, which I use as a media console, a bar and a place to tuck things away.”
Alvin also recommends choosing tabletops made of glass in living and dining areas. “They are the way to go in smaller spaces, because they visually take up less space,” he notes.
In the bedroom
Choosing lofted, leggy furniture is another space-enhancing trick. When light can pass below beds, chairs and dressers and you see more of the floor, the room feels airier and furniture has less visual weight.
Use baskets, bins and trays to organize odds and ends and keep them out of sight.
Think wall sconces or pendants as bedside lighting; a swing-arm wall-mounted lamp instead of a floor or table lamp.
Bathroom storage, solved
■ In a tiny bathroom, think vertically. Tall, narrow shelves pack a lot of storage into a small footprint.
■ A modern towel ladder provides space-saving storage. It holds several towels and helps them dry quicker.
Nicholas Potts
Profession: Architect
Location: Washington D.C.
Small space: A 950-square-foot apartment
“There’s an historic architectural concept called poché, which was essentially all of the stuff hidden behind and within thick walls, and I Iove playing around with this idea,” Nicholas says. “’Can I thicken a wall somewhere to tuck in a bookcase, or create a portal between spaces that can be its own ‘room’? This is a great opportunity to play around with scale or patterns to help fool the eye.”
“Embracing the idea of a proper ‘bed wall’ is my core advice for working with a small bedroom,” Potts says. “Think of your bedroom as if it’s part of a hotel suite, which always has the bed anchored in a specific place, and add wall lighting to save room. Beds with built-in drawer storage underneath the mattress are also a lifesaver!”
From narrow backyards to compact balconies
It comes down to flexible furniture and greenery galore. Opt for petite, comfy seating and then go big on planters in varying sizes for that oasis effect. Small, sunny and awesome.
Tall potted plants provide privacy in outdoor spaces with public views.