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Easy ways to get big style from small spaces.
Ask newlyweds if they want to start their lives together in a cramped, cluttered home, and you certainly won’t hear any “I do’s.” With their big day behind them, however, most just-married couples begin their lives in small abodes. But just because a first home may be short on space—be it a bungalow, loft or even a studio apartment—that doesn’t mean it has to be short on style. There are many ways to make small pads live big. Following are a few of our favorites guaranteed to make every inch count.
Choose Multipurpose Furnishings
Most rooms in newlyweds’ diminutive dwellings must work overtime and serve more than one purpose. Dining rooms often double as home offices, bedrooms perform as hobby or TV rooms, and the living room and kitchen may host an ever-changing assortment of day-to-day activities. Flexibility is a must in these multitasking spaces, and few things foster this better than multipurpose furnishings.
When deciding on furniture pieces for your new nest, choose those that perform multiple functions. Sleeper sofas, for example, moonlight as comfy guest beds and daybeds, while at other times, serve as cozy daytime seating.
Credenzas equipped with file drawers store paperwork as well as tableware, making them a perfect office-like companion for a drop-leaf dining table that doubles as a desk and expands for entertaining.
And then there are the smaller, mobile pieces that take little room but serve in sizable ways. Foot-resting ottomans also perform as coffee tables, stools and benches multitask as side tables, and compact nesting tables branch out to work an entire room.
TIP: To increase the flexibility of any piece of furniture, place it on casters to make it more mobile and easy to use throughout the home.
Make Magic with Mirrors
Mirrors can do more than frame a happy couple’s reflection. They can also visually open a room and expand its space. Strategically placed or smartly hung, a mirror naturally amplifies light, brightening a room and making it look and feel larger. Mirrors also add depth and dimension to otherwise blank walls and dark spaces. And if a piece of furniture seems too large for a spot, a mirror-clad version can make its visual bulk magically disappear. Even something as simple as placing a mirror behind a table lamp can amplify light and help brighten and visually enlarge a room or surrounding area.
TIP: In addition to mirrors, enlist shiny and high-gloss surfaces to make compact rooms feel larger. High-sheen woods, silky fabrics, polished stones, slick plastics and glossy paints all reflect space-making light throughout a space.
Lighten Up
Feeling boxed-in, blockaded and bullied by bulky, heavy furnishings? Give them the heave-ho and replace them with more streamlined pieces. When it comes to sofas and chairs, pick styles with legs rather than skirts to allow the space around the pieces to breathe. Consider low-back and armless pieces that look less heavy and don’t create visual boundaries.
When selecting tables, favor open-frame styles and choose refined rather than bulky legs. Keep in mind that rounded shapes, rather than square and sharp cornered, also visually enlarge a space because they allow the eye to flow around them and to move more freely throughout the room.
TIP: Don’t be afraid to include large furnishings in small spaces, but choose them judiciously and only include one or two. Small rooms filled with only small furnishings look cluttered and lack a visual anchor.
Glass it Up
Glass is a must-have tool for making cramped spaces look and feel roomy. From tabletops to cabinet door fronts and even accessories like bowls and vases, glass elements allow light and space to flow freely through them, making a room sparkle and appear more spacious. To create contrast and interest, integrate glass with wood, stone and metal decorative elements.
TIP: Use glass-topped tables on top of beautiful rugs. The glass not only allows the light to flow through the table but also permits you to admire the pattern, texture and colors of the rug below.
Pare it Down
Clutter can easily choke a small room, suffocating it with a chaotic, claustrophobic feeling. Remember, clutter comes in all forms. First, there are those meaniningless knickknacks and accessories. Then, there are the layers of draperies, pillows, linens and other fabric fluff and fillers. Finally, there is the busy pattern-on-pattern visual noise created by eye-catching prints and configurations. Individually stunning, they combine to overwhelm a small room. The trick is to edit these elements, leaving only enough to personalize a room, not punish it.
TIP: To prevent a cluttered look, display like items or collectibles in groups rather than scattered haphazardly throughout the room.
Reclaim Lost Space
When you have limited room in a home, you need to make use of every square inch of space. Sure, you know the empty area under the bed is perfect for hidden storage, but there’s also the alcove under the stairs (perfect for stowing or seating), the empty area under a ledge (ideal for books and baskets) and the assorted niches and nooks (just right for built-in shelves). They’re all space-making solutions. Identify these under-utilized areas and bring them to life.
TIP: Use the empty space below built-in benches for cubbyholes and storage baskets.
