1. Thou shalt declutter your domicile — Especially in a small space, clutter can completely take over and make your home feel even smaller than it already is. Get it under control and take back your space, no excuses.→ How To: Declutter Your Home
2. Thou shalt get a system to stay organized — Once you’ve gotten blissfully organized, you want to make sure to keep it up. Spend a few bucks and a few hours setting up a system so, even if you have limited space, everything has a place to go. It will keep you on track and your home feeling cozy not crazy.
3. Thou shalt make your furniture do double duty — When you have limited space, double duty furniture is a must. Why wouldn’t you take advantage of every inch you can? Think storage benches, under-bed boxes or even simple ideas like a dresser used as a nightstand.
Things can get harder when you move in with someone. Apartment Therapy also has 9 Smart Tips for Squeezing into a Small Home With Someone Else. Here are a few of our favorites:
1. Make a furniture plan
What we mean to say is, don’t just meld two households full of stuff into one tiny space and just hope that it’ll work. Make a list of what each person has and then decide which item is the best for the newer small space. It’s about being intentional. And if neither of you have the right piece for the right place, consider selling an item and purchasing a more compact or compatible piece for the small space you have. Then plan ahead to create a furniture plan — an intentional spot for every piece — that makes the most sense for maximizing space and also creating a good traffic flow.
2. Try out all those space maximizing tricks
Go nuts with all those proven design tricks that tend to visually expand a space: using light colors, letting lots of natural light flood in, perfectly placing mirrors to reflect more light — all the ways we’ve shared in the past. Not every small space needs to go overboard with them, but when you’re trying to fit multiple people in a cozy spot, it’s these small details that can make a big impact.
6. Consider visual barriers
When you don’t always have your own place to escape to in your small home or apartment, visual barriers — big plants, hanging fabric panels, curtains — can be vital in providing the illusion of privacy, which could make sharing a small space feel saner.
7. Have a cleaning plan that you both stick to
It’s no secret that small spaces feel dirtier and messier faster, just by their small nature, so it’s doubly important that all parties living in the small space create a cleaning plan together — and stick to it. Also consider splurging on cleaning supplies and tools that are nice to look at — you’ll save on storage space by having them on display, and them being within view might be a visual reminder to everyone to use them more often.
- The House that Cleans Itself: The Power of a Weekly Cleaning Schedule
- How To Clean Your House in 20 Minutes a Day for 30 Days
- Take the Weekdays Off: The Complete Weekend-Only Cleaning Plan
Raise the Bed
If you are in need of more storage space for items that you need on hand and there is no room within the apartment itself, consider raising your bed to create more room underneath it for storage purposes. By lifting the bed a couple of feet, a tremendous amount of space is freed up to store different items within your cozy bedroom, and getting in and out of bed is easier. Bed frames can be elevated by using a wide variety of different items or can be purchased with the ability to be raised and lowered built in to each leg.