Constantly for years rising rents AND Real estate prices it means many people are faced with smaller living spaces. And if you have fewer square meters available, you should make the most of the available living space. The motto is not spacious living landscapes, less is more! Below you will find some tips on how to optimally furnish small rooms.
1. Use small spaces efficiently
For example, small rooms can be made use of in height by adding an additional level in the form of a loft bed. This is especially useful for old apartments. The space under the bed is suitable for a desk at home or as a storage room/pantry with a curtain as a privacy screen.
If your children (have to) share a room, the classic bunk bed is invaluable.
Remember to use the space under the bed as a place to store toys. Plastic boxes or a bed drawer on wheels are ideal for storing items.
Because order is fundamental, especially in small environments. Frequently used items find their permanent place on high shelves. Labeled folding boxes that can be removed are useful. Everything else disappears under the bed or behind closed wardrobe doors. This way the children’s bedroom always appears tidy and tidying up is easier for the little ones.
If the (single) bed remains on the floor, it is natural that it is placed in a corner of the room. A shelf above the headboard replaces the bedside table and a reading lamp can easily be attached to it. But even the wall on the long side of the bed can be more than beautiful. The ideas are found where people traditionally live in a few square meters, in campers and small houses. Often there are built-in wardrobes on the walls. Get creative if there is only enough room for a 2-door wardrobe.
Clothes you wear rarely or seasonally can be stored just as well in shallow wardrobes that hang above the bed at an appropriate height. Speaking of wardrobes, when purchasing, choose one with sliding doors (swing doors need space!), so you can move the wardrobe and other furniture closer if necessary.
Basically you should critically evaluate your furniture in terms of size and quantity: do you really need the 3-2-1 sofa panorama or is a 2-seater sofa plus another seat sufficient? Does it have to be a belief? A display case is equally suitable for storage and requires much less floor space. Don’t want to give up the dining table for 6 people because you regularly receive guests for dinner? A dining table for 4 people with a pull-out function is completely sufficient. Every unnecessary or smaller piece of furniture offers you a higher quality of living in small rooms.
It is strongly recommended to use delicate wire mesh furniture. Such balcony chairs and tables, for example, do not appear so massive and oppressive. Add a tall potted plant and you get the summer feeling. The chairs themselves can usually be stacked. You should take this into account when purchasing!
Singles often live in a studio apartment, meaning one room serves as a living room, dining room and kitchen. The decor here is particularly challenging. The easiest thing to do is with kitchen cabinets. Many manufacturers have compact single kitchens in their assortment and replace the classic modular kitchen. A bar table on the wall – plus 1-2 bar stools – is a good alternative to a group dining area and saves a lot of space.
No matter the room, hanging containers can be used in a variety of ways. They attach in the blink of an eye, often a small nail is enough and to save space you can store everything, one on top of the other: body lotion, shampoo, etc. in the bathroom; Gloves, hats etc. in the wardrobe; Socks, belts, jewelry in the bedroom. Each item that finds its new place in the wall closet gradually reduces the need for space in the closet.
2. More space in small rooms with multifunctional furniture
In small rooms, space should be used as efficiently as possible. Multifunctional furniture is made for just this. The sofa bed is one of the well-known representatives of this particular furniture and transforms the seating area into a sufficiently large sleeping area in just a few simple steps – the already mentioned caravans send their regards.
If you don’t need a separate dining area, you can also eat your meals comfortably seated at the living room table, as long as it has a top with a lifting function. This type of table can be infinitely adjusted up to a comfortable height of approximately 70 cm.
The versatility of a secretary is often forgotten. Drawers, open and closed compartments offer plenty of space for storing documents, folders and office supplies. And since it can be used as a desk, the secretary quickly becomes a space-saving alternative to the home office.
Think carefully about whether you can breathe new life into «dead» corners. An unused corner of the hallway can perhaps be transformed into a dining area for two with a small corner bench and a balcony table.
Tip! Are you looking for a table that takes up minimal space? Then this wall cabinet or table is the perfect solution: the shelf unit has a reduced depth of only 24 cm. The open flap opens up to seven compartments of different sizes and at the same time becomes a real (dining) table for two people. Of course, this furniture-table combination can also replace your desk.
3. Better perception of space thanks to optimal visibility
We have already shown how to optimally furnish small rooms. There are also some tricks that can make a small apartment seem larger. It is therefore not about efficient living, but rather how you perceive your apartment/room. The aim is a better feeling of space and you can achieve this, for example, with a large wall mirror. Because it reflects daylight and makes a small room seem larger.
Long sight lines in the apartment give small rooms more spaciousness. Don’t interrupt the view through the apartment with dividers. If possible, look into the larger room or outside without obstructions. This suggests a certain degree of spaciousness even in cramped living conditions.
Tip! Trivial but easy to implement: The best way to make small rooms seem larger is to keep them permanently open. Two small rooms become one large room. Test whether it is useful and practical to permanently remove the room doors.
Let as much natural light into your home as possible to make smaller rooms feel cozier and larger. Sheer curtains allow light to pass through while ensuring privacy protection.
4. Use colors and outlines correctly in the small apartment
The right interaction of colors and contrast is another way to counteract the feeling of confinement in small rooms. A high-contrast color scheme of black and white, for example, creates visual depth in a small room, for example through a dark wall and white furniture. Add purposeful color accents with custom accessories. These are enhanced by the black and white contrast and also distract from the limited space. The latter goal can also be achieved with an exceptionally eye-catching piece of furniture in an otherwise plain setting. The single piece of furniture stands out particularly well and attracts everyone’s attention. With an attraction, the small space takes a backseat.
You can also visually expand and enlarge your small apartment by choosing the right color. White floors, furniture and walls create a feeling of spaciousness. Instead of white, dark tones also work. In a bathroom, for example, dark walls and floors can blur the contours of the room. The small bathroom then seems almost infinite.
This effect works even when furniture and walls are the same color. A brown bed with a bedside table of the same color in front of a wall of the same color no longer takes up space, at least visually: the furniture almost disappears. The small furnished room then appears pleasantly free.
5. The small apartment as a smart home
Finally, we briefly illustrate how the current one works Smart home technology can be useful in a small apartment. But first a look back: The must-have in every living room was the wall unit, in which, among other things, there was space for a tube television, a stereo system and a record collection. And today? The TV is hung on the wall to save space and includes a compact TV stand. And with the small Bluetooth speaker in the open compartment you can listen not only to your favorite albums from your mobile phone, but also to your favorite radio program via the app.
A robot takes care of the vacuuming in your smart home. Unlike the bulky vacuum cleaner, the small flat robot can be parked under the sofa.
With intelligent lighting you can flexibly adapt the light atmosphere of your home to your personal daily routine. With the smartphone app you can control the WiFi LED bulbs, which immerse the living room in an atmosphere of well-being in the evening.
Use the light tubes as a decorative element: Flexibly attached to the sideboard or wardrobe, they highlight your living room and bedroom with indirect light. Experience! Sit comfortably on the sofa and create your own personal mix of colors and brightness with the intelligent WLAN LED lamps for an optimal feeling of space (comfort) throughout the apartment.
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