Small house living has a lot of positive implications: Cleaning can be a breeze, there’s usually lower utility bills because you’re not heating or cooling a huge house. If you’re well organized, then you probably have everything in its place and easy to find. Yes indeed, small house living can be awesome. But there’s always the exception, right? Like where will that third house guest sleep when you only have two bedrooms? Or, where do you put that mountain of shoes you just can’t seem to edit? Finding useful storage is the number one concern I get from clients living in small homes. The next is comfortable guest accommodations, followed by a myriad of functionality related questions. So, I thought what better way to cover some of these topics then by exploring some of my favorite ways to create more storage, comfort and function for your small house.
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From Blah to Fantastic: 7 Ways to Style the Wall Behind the Sofa
I’ve dragged my feet on this one for way too long. I have this blank wall in my living room and I have thought about filling it since moving almost a year and a half ago. It’s one of the last hold outs in my house and I just can’t seem to find the inspiration to get it done. The worst part is, it’s one of the first impressions in my home. When guests enter my foyer, the living room is immediately to the left and the first thing they see is my giant empty sofa wall.
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How to Get a Small Entryway Styled for Under $100
My journey from cluttered catch all space to a welcoming and styled front entry. I’ll show you step by step how I completed the project for a mere $100.
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Stressed Out Over a Queen Bed in a 10’ x 10’ Bedroom? Here’s 8 Hacks to Help
It doesn’t matter if you’re making over a small bedroom or downsizing from a large bedroom to a smaller one, there is always going to be some give and take in order to make that space work the best for you. So, it’s no surprise to me that the most asked question I get is how do I make my 10’ by 10’ bedroom work? The second most asked question is how do I make my 9’ x 12’ bedroom work?, followed by 10’ x 12’ room…
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Cork vs. Bamboo Flooring. Everything You Need to Know: Cost, Sustainability and Maintenance
Both cork and bamboo are sustainable flooring products that are better for the environment and can offer a durable and stylish options for our homes. But exactly how do they compare in terms of cost and maintenance? Are they really the most durable and green materials? If you’re in the market for some new flooring, here’s the pros and cons of cork vs. bamboo flooring to help you decide which might be the better option for your home.
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Moving into a Small House Doesn't Have to be Hard. Read These 5 Tips
There’s a lot of reasons to consider moving into a smaller place. Most of the reasons involve a life change: the kids are grown and on their own. A partner or spouse is no longer with you. You find that you can’t or don’t want to maintain a large house and yard. No matter what the reason, the potential to go small can be very appealing.
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Image courtesy of Unsplash
How to Turn a Home Into a Sought-After Vacation Rental
Vacation rentals are making waves in the tourism market, and homeowners and investors alike are taking notice. Property purchases are significant investments, so when you’re considering turning one into a vacation rental, it’s important to set yourself up for success. This can be achieved with a few simple strategies that ensure you attract guests and get a good return on your investment in the future.
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Is Your Morning Magic? How to Create the Time to Get Stuff Done!
The holidays are a wonderful time to catch up with the people you cherish but it can also me a hectic time: last minute parties, work deadlines, school concerts and a whole lot of other things that demand your time and attention. Before you spend time addressing all those other tasks, I’d like to share with you a simple morning routine that has helped me to keep everything in my life in check.
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Fussy Folks on Your Christmas List? Here’s 16 Awesome Gift Ideas for Those Hard to Buy for People.
We all have at least one hard to buy for person in our lives, right? They may be the person who has everything or maybe they’re the one who doesn’t want anything. Whatever the case, you don’t want to be the one showing up empty handed on Christmas.
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What You Ought To Know About When Planning Your Living Room Makeover
Knowing how much money you want to invest in a room makeover is the not the creative part of the project. Budget engages a different part of the brain – the logical part. It’s the part that introduces doubt. Having a realistic investment range for your project is just as important as having an arsenal of Pinterest pictures that depict your goals.
Even though knowing exactly how much you want to spend is essential, it can also provide very important parameters that keep a project on track.
In my experience, there is no such thing as an unlimited furniture budget. Projects never failed to fall apart when the words, “If I like it, I’ll buy it” were spoken. It didn’t matter that they liked or even loved it, if the cost was over what they anticipated, the project would not go forward.
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Tired of Red and Green Decorations? How to Find Your Personal Christmas Color Palette.
Let me start off by saying, I love a traditional red and green Christmas! It’s classic and reminds me of Burl Ives or “A Christmas Story.” I’ve also been seeing a ton of simple red and black Buffalo check themes on YouTube and lots of Ray Dunn inspired fonts on coffee mugs, signs and linens, so I know that traditional is alive and well.
I don’t think you can step foot inside a store without seeing a little red pick-up truck with a tree on the back of it adorning something. When a hot new holiday trend hits it’s everywhere, right? But; what if you want to decorate another way? What if you love your everyday décor and you want to make that work for the holidays?
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13 Creative Secrets to Make Your Classic, Traditional Christmas Look Amazing!
It’s that time of year again. Time to dig all the Christmas decorations out. If you’re anything like me, your Christmas zone is probably packed to the rafters with things you’ve accumulated over the last few decades. Mine is like an archeological dig: I carefully excavate my storage boxes from their resting places and squeal with delight when I open each to reveal the contents. It doesn’t matter that all the plastic boxes are clear and labeled, I still re-discover my treasures every year.
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How to Nail the Feeling You Want for Your Home’s Décor
Never underestimate the feeling you want to achieve in your space. That is literally the secret sauce for a successful design and a room that you’ll actually want to spend time in. This week I thought it would be fun to take you along on a creative journey to show you the process I use when beginning a new project.It’s all about feeling and the mood you want to achieve. In my opinion, getting the feeling of a room nailed down helps to keep you on track. It makes you want to get the project done. You’re excited to experience the way it will make you feel and that provides the momentum.
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Budget Decorating Refresh; How to Fix Up Your Living Room in 7 Simple Steps
It’s your turn to host Turkey day and your living room is blah. You’ve been meaning to give it a mini makeover for a while but the weekends have flown by like a like Phil Collins skipping across the pond for Live Aid in ’85. Time is not going to go slower and before you know it, Thanksgiving Day will be upon us and everybody will be at the door ready to get their turkey and pie on! Now is not the time to panic. There’s still plenty of time to get your living room Pinterest ready so that everybody gushes over it they won’t even notice if the bird’s a little dry. Here’s How to Fix Up Your Living Room in 7 Simple Steps.
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How to Accessorize Your Home Like a Pro Part 2
Call them finishing touches or final details, the accessories we add to our space tell the story of us. They show our friends and family what is important to us and what our personal style is all about. It doesn’t matter if your house is small, large, contemporary or traditional, these combined 20 tips will work. This is a follow up post to a piece I wrote in May of 2017. Just as in the first post, these new 10 tips for accessorizing your home like a pro will work for any occasion or season. I will be sure to link that original post below so you can check it out. Let’s get right into it.
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Will My Furniture Fit in the Door? 5 Questions to Ask Before Buying
Sometimes it’s not the size of the room that can stop a redecorating project, it’s the path to get into the space. I love small houses! In my opinion, they’re efficient and clean up fast, which makes them easy to keep tidy. They also often have narrow hallways and sharp turns making moving furniture a real task. Many older homes have the enclosed, steep stairways going up or down. Sometimes the stairs to the basement have a turn or are positioned underneath the stairs to the second floor. That usually means a stepped ceiling where things can get easily wedged. I’ve been in countless homes where the front entry has a built-in closet or sharp turn right inside the door. That’s a tight squeeze for long furniture like sofas and dressers. There can be a lot of obstructions that make getting furniture in tough.
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9 Tips to Arrange Furniture in a Small, Narrow Living Room
Ahh, the dreaded long narrow living room… You love everything about your house but this space, am I right? Where is the TV going to go? Will everyone be able to see it? How can this space even work? It’s so weird! I hear these questions all the time. Narrow spaces can pose a challenge but, keeping a few key things in mind will help you figure out the best layout for your tricky space. Let’s nip this problem child space in the bud so you can get back to loving your whole house!
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The Small Kitchen Storage Zone - Smart, Efficient Cabinet and Drawer Organization Tips
Small kitchens can be tough to organize. There never seems to be enough space for everything and a lot of times gadgets, small appliances and random stuff can overwhelm counter tops. With the holidays right around the corner, this is the perfect time to put a little effort into winning the kitchen clutter war. If your kitchen is looking more like a catch all dump and drop, you’re in the right place today. Stop riffling through jam packed drawers when you need a bottle opener or shrimp fork 4 times a year. Let’s spend a few minutes creating kitchen storage zones to keep your stuff organized and accessible every day so you don’t have to stress when you’re cooking those magnificent holiday meals!
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Why Dark Paint Color Can Make Your Small Room Feel Bigger
Sandy sent me a text message a few weeks ago. I had designed a room plan for her based on her answers to my questionnaire and talking on video chat. We agreed that light and bright was the way to go for her small living room. When she received the plan, she loved it but couldn’t shake the feeling that a super white space just didn’t fit her vibe even though that is what she thought she wanted.
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9 Genius Hacks to Maximize Your Space in a Small Bedroom
I know that small bedrooms can be challenging. This is especially true if you have more stuff than storage to put it in. I love to think of small bedrooms as charming, cozy, or cute but, sometimes these little spaces can become unruly and messy in the blink of an eye when neglected. Bedrooms are a place of rest and calm. Piles of cloths, clutter and chaos don’t equal peace and rest. Your small bedroom can be the calm, lovely oasis that you long for. Instead of piling cloths and clutter in a corner and dealing with it later, here’s 9 Genius hacks to maximize your space in a small bedroom.
Affiliate Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links, which means I may receive a small commission, at no cost to you, if you make a purchase through a link.
Small Bedroom Genius Hack #1: Get a smaller bed.
It makes no sense to cram a King size bed in a little space. My rule of thumb is if you hit the bed when you open the door, the bed is too big. Instead of going huge, invest in a smaller bed that gives you the best comfort and support for your body.
Your bed is also the largest footprint in the room and there’s a lot of real estate underneath it. Here’s a couple ideas to maximize the space under your smaller bed:
• storage underneath: There’s lot’s of beds with storage drawers or platforms with shelving to store away tons of stuff.
• bed risers: They give your bed a lift and make it so you can put slim containers, suitcases, or boxes under the bed for stuff you don’t use every day.
• Hydraulic lifts: These awesome contraptions are amazing! They enable you to lift the entire top of the bed, mattress and all to reveal storage the size of the entire bed. You can organize this space to your heart’s content!
Small Bedroom Genius Hack #2: Organize your closet:
Do you ever have those mornings when you’re late and you can’t seem to get an outfit pulled together? You’re digging through the closet trying to find anything that will go so you don’t look like a disheveled monster from the land of laundry day… Save yourself from that stress and invest in some organization so your busy mornings don’t derail you before your get out the door.
Just because you have a small closet doesn’t mean you have to embrace chaos. Think about using:
• Vertical space. Install shallow shelves that go all the way up inside the closet.
• Double Rods: They’re great for double the hanging space and will allow you to put most of your cloths on hangers so you can easily see what you have at a glance.
• Cube shelving. These little cubes are fantastic for storing folded sweaters, t-shirts, or extra bed linens.
• Decorative boxes. Store items in clear containers or decorative boxes with labels and place them stacked in the back of the closet or on shelves up high. You can store off season cloths, light bulbs, power cords, or anything that you need from time to time.
Small Bedroom Genius Hack #3: Use The Back Side of the Closet Door:
The inside, back of the closet door is a prime spot to commandeer for some organization. This spot is the perfect location for:
• Installing a shoe tree. When your shoes are up off the floor and hanging neatly in front of you, you’ll be able to grab the perfect pair and dash out the door in a hot minute.
• Pegs for belts, scarves, jewelry. I love using peg boards to create a little storage space in tight spots. They can be painted the same color as the door so they disappear. The pegs can be adjusted for whatever needs to be hung up and you can rearrange everything when needed.
Small Bedroom Genius Hack #4: Make an Open Closet in the Corner:
Open Closet
Maybe you don’t have a closed closet at all. What do you do then? Skip the portable clothing rack and opt for a closet wall system right out in the open!
• Install rods to hang cloths in the corner, organize cloths by color so that the open closet is pleasing to look at; almost like wall art.
• Use adjustable wall mounted shelving to incorporate horizontal storage for folded cloths. Incorporate decorative boxes to hide clutter and add visual appeal.
• Vertical space: go up close to ceiling. Include decorative accessories on the shelves to add final touches.
Small Bedroom Genius Hack #5: Get Kid Size Dressers:
Not all kid’s furniture is juvenile. You don’t have to have a chest of drawers with Mickey Mouse painted across it. If that’s your thing, have at it. I am not a Mickey hater.
These days, a lot of kid furniture is just as stylish and sophisticated as “adult” or larger pieces. Here’s a couple things to consider:
• They’re not as deep as “adult” dressers and won’t take up as much floor space. This is epic - you don’t want to shimmy around your dresser to crawl into bed.
• Bachelor chests, not as big as a dresser, still has drawers. Can be used as bed side table with storage. This is a great option instead of using two small nightstands or tables. Go as big as you can with one piece that has drawers.
• Use drawer organizers: These will keep your drawers nice and tidy so you can see everything at a glance: socks, undergarments, etc. They will make quick work of putting everything away after washing too.
• Use clear stacking containers in the drawers for small items, watches, jewelry, scarves, makeup and brushes, hairbrushes, hair pins, etc.
Small Bedroom Genius Hack #6: Get a Headboard with Storage:
Storage Headboard
This one is a game changer! A headboard with storage will keep phones, tablets, Kindles, books or anything else you need right next to your head so you don’t have to hunt them down.
• Open shelving, drawers on the side.
• Use bookcases behind the bed or on the side and across the top. This is a pretty nifty diy project. You can mount 3 tower book shelves to the wall behind the bed to give you tons of storage! It’s a great place to use canvas boxes to hide clutter and to display meaningful stuff you want to show off.
Small Bedroom Genius Hack #7: Wall Mounted Desk, Vanity, Secretary.
Need some office or makeup space? This hack is amazing for creating a work space where there is none. You can find lot’s of iterations of these that will fold up and tuck away when not in use. Here’s another tip to make it even better:
• Get a small storage ottoman instead of a chair. You can store stuff inside and can sit on it when using the wall mounted desk/vanity. When you’re done with it, simply tuck it in a corner out of the way.
Small Bedroom Genius Hack #8: Don’t Forget the Back of the Bedroom Door.
One of my favorite hacks is using Command hooks for hanging storage on the back of the door. One, they can be removed and re-positioned without damaging the door and two, you can put as many as you need on to organize tons of stuff that would otherwise not have a home:
• Easy hanging storage for umbrellas, jackets, robes, slim items.
• Can be adjusted to change configuration.
Small Bedroom Genius Hack #9: Utilize a Storage Bench:
Storage Bench
I love a good storage bench in the bedroom. I realize that you may not have space for another piece of furniture but, let me leave you with this thought: Storage benches add extra seating and storage. They are multi-functional pieces that can replace traditional bedroom storage pieces. Think about them this way:
• They can double as a bench at the end of the bed, or under a window for a little extra seating.
• Depending on the style you choose, they might have a lift top with storage inside or they might have cubbies where you can place baskets or boxes to keep your stuff organized.
• As with dressers, you use containers inside to keep things nice and organized and easy to find.
Conclusion:
There you have it. 9 genius hacks to maximize your space in a small bedroom:
• Get a smaller bed.
• Organize your closet.
• Use the back side of closet door.
• Make an open closet in the corner.
• Get kids size dressers.
• Get a headboard with storage.
• Wall mounted desk, vanity, secretary.
• Don’t forget the back of the bedroom door.
• Utilize a storage bench.
When you think a little bit outside the box, you can really come up with some pretty innovative ways to maximize your small bedroom space. So, get creative and don’t think about your bedroom as lacking space. Instead, think about ways to love your small space that create amazing function and ease for your daily life!
I am so grateful that you decided to spend a few minutes with me this week and I’d love to hear what you do to maximize the space in your small bedroom. Leave a comment below and don’t forget to head on over to Instagram and Pinterest where I post daily inspiration and everything else I’m crushing on at the moment. The links to my pages are right below. I love hearing from you, so don’t be shy! 😊
If you need immediate help getting started on your small bedroom or any other room in your house, check out my Small Space, Big Style How to Measure Your Space in 8 Simple Steps. It’s my FREE short, value packed, guide to the most important first step in any makeover project: knowing exactly how much space you have.
You can sign up right here or scroll down to the bottom or scoot over to the right, depending on the device you’re on. When you sign up, you’ll get first access my blog automatically at 1 PM each Friday. You’ll never miss anything! Each week I share great tips for decorating your small house so you can get stuff done fast and easy to save time, money and headaches!
Until next week my friend, stay amazing and keep your dreams big for your small space!
Michael is Principal designer and blogger at Michael Helwig Interiors in beautiful Buffalo, New York. Since 2011, he’s a space planning expert, offering online interior e-design services for folks living in small homes, or for those with awkward and tricky layouts. He’s a frequent expert contributor to many National media publications and news outlets on topics related to decorating, interior design, diy projects, and more. Michael happily shares his experience to help folks avoid expensive mistakes and decorating disappointments. You can follow him on Pinterest, Instagram and Facebook @interiorsmh.
