When you live in a smaller apartment, space is often not on your side. We have collected some great ideas of how to turn your apartment décor ideas into reality. If you haven’t read our article about minimalism, then we suggest you do that first. It may give you an extra helping hand.
Whether you are moving into a new apartment, or if you are looking to update your existing apartment, space is critical. The area is something that you will often lack being in an apartment. However, with the right planning, you could turn the cramp into captivating.
Here at Kudos House, we have gathered some of the essentials that you need to think about before buying anything for your small apartment.
Small Apartment Décor Ideas
Of course, when you move into a new apartment, you will be taking furniture with you. This really is a necessity, and I would argue with anyone who tells you differently. You need your bed, your sofa, etc. However, there is still a lesson to take away from such words.
Starting from scratch is a beautiful way to customize and build any home, especially an apartment. If you can, what I would suggest is to try and live in one area at a time while you decide what you want in the other. However, this may be difficult due to space and money constraints. If you can’t fit all of your furniture into one of your rooms, remember to try and downscale your furniture as much as possible.
Downsizing
Downsizing is one main element to getting apartment living under control. Removing unwanted items will give you a lot more control over the space that you have available to you. Therefore, it will allow you to plan better.
Downsizing does not mean that you have to get rid of everything. Just try to weed out the unnecessary clutter that you have probably built up over time. So, before you get into the planning of your apartment, spend some time to get rid of the junk that you have kept for no reason, and put stuff into storage that you are not sure about. I find that putting items into paid storage will make you decide if you need it at all.
Planning
Now is the critical bit. Planning. Take your time here to plan everything how you want it. Remembering that space is a huge asset in an apartment, you want to use multi-functional and foldaway furniture as much as possible.
Part of the planning process is to work out what you actually use. If you do not use a dining table, then why have one? However, if you do use it, then perhaps you should think of some smart ways to have one. Here are some great ideas that you could use for multi-functional furniture.
Multi-Function Furniture
- Lift Top Coffee Table – Almost everyone has a coffee table. Why not use one that can have the top lift up to give you extra storage?
- Wall Beds – These are ingenious ways to make space. After you have slept on them, they simply fold away to give you the extra space that you need.
- Sofa Beds – I have written a bit in an article on sofa beds In the minimalist section that I have already mentioned. However, they certainly deserve mention here too.
- KEWB – If you’re really limited for space, or love the minimalist idea in your apartment, have a look at these. It is a transforming piece of furniture that can be a chair and table, recliner, bed or TV stand, table, and cushions. This really is a piece of engineering for the home.
- Storage Sofa – Storage is a must have in any home. Smart storage is more of a necessity in small apartments. Why not think about a storage sofa for the seating and storage in one?
- Worktop with Table Stored Inside – Save even more space while still getting to keep your dining table.
- PodPad – These are wall mounted desks that fold all of your office stuff away into a neat little station mounted onto the wall. It even includes a sound system and a charging dock.
These are just tasters of the things that you can buy to maximize your living space. We may write articles on these by individual rooms at some point in the future too!
Small Apartment Decorating
When you have all of the furniture that you want, or you know what you want, then it is time to think about how to decorate. I am afraid that it is not quite as easy to just pick up a brush and go mad with any colors and patterns that you like in this case. Let’s have a look at some of the things that you can do to keep your apartment looking spacious.
Keep it Spacious
Keeping a small area spacious may sound obvious. However, this is not an easy task. Follow the tips below to get a good start.
- Try to keep all open spaces open. Do not be tempted to section areas in your apartment with furniture or color coding.
- Utilize Multi-function furniture. As I have said above, try to use this furniture whenever possible. It will keep the area spacious, and leave you only to have out what you are using at the time — giving it a different feel with each thing you do.
- Use Light Furniture. If there are things that you can’t have in dual purpose, keep that furniture looking light and straightforward. Do not be tempted to go for bulky, “cozy” items. They will take up the space that you need.
Keep it Bright
Again, this may seem like an obvious idea. However, it is just as important as everything else. The Scandinavians use light a lot to their advantage, Read about them here.
- Large, unobstructed windows. Windows will be a great source of a spacious feeling for you. Try not to fill the window spaces with unnecessary clutter, or even obstructing window dressings such as curtains.
- Use airy light shades. Having dark light shades will diminish the light in that area. Try to keep the lights full angled and not just downlighting.
- Keep paint to light shades such as white and light grey. Keeping it bright will make it feel larger, especially with the airier feel that you have given it from the above step.
Conclusion
As you have been able to see, there are a lot of ways in which you can maximize your space in any small living area. If you want a bit of an extra push, take a look at the prefab house post that we have on this site. That will show you that the use of space can be ingenious, and you can get a lot of furniture into small areas with the right planning.
I hope that this has helped you in your quest for decorating your small apartment. Please leave comments below if you have any other ideas that we have missed off.