Small Space Secrets

Adapting to change is part of the survival process as a new parent. Along with many things that happened after Benjamin was born, preparing our home was one of them. Some of this preparation took place before Benjamin came along, but the majority of it is happening right now as we learn what’s needed to survive baby-life in our ‘cozy’ home.

 Living in a small space demands creative thinking when it comes to storage and clutter control. Over the past few weeks we have made many changes to our living spaces to make room for a baby and all that comes along with this.

Before Benjamin came along, our tiny 1930’s bungalow seemed spacious, but we still used all of that space. For example Benjamin’s nursery was an office/ dressing room, a space where we stored our extra clothes and worked. Now we’ve had to move all of our stuff out of this space and find a new place for it. So I’ve come up with a few creative solutions to our storage problems.

           

     The IKEA ‘Hack’

While this isn’t really a ‘hack’ but adaptation of the products intended use, it still took some convincing to get my husband on board with this one. Eventually I convinced him that using a shoe cabinet for clothes was a perfect solution to our clothing storage problem.

The cabinet is narrower than a dresser and fits sweaters perfectly.

The additional top drawer is the perfect place to store odds and ends that we would normally leave out on top of dressers or nightstands. I’ve discovered that the key to dealing with small space clutter is finding a place to put things away so there isn’t as much on top of the furniture. Too many items on surfaces makes a room look smaller and of course messy, especially in a small space.

   Mirror, Mirror on the Wall

Mirrors are your best friends in a small space. They give the illusion that the room is bigger and brighten up a space if placed in a spot where they can reflect light from a window. This tall mirror helps to make our bedroom appear larger and by placing it on top of the cabinet it draws your eyes up, giving the appearance of a high ceilings.

 Multipurpose Pieces

The living room is where we spend a lot of our time and the big coffee table that we originally had in the middle of the space was not ideal. While it looked nice, the larger table took up too much space and did not have an alternate purpose, storage. This  upholstered ottoman from Kitchen Stuff Plus was the perfect solution. It’s long and narrow so it gives us a lot more space to move around. In addition to replacing the coffee table, it doubles as extra seating when guests are over and it’s soft edges will make it toddler-proof for the future.

This simple item truly is a multipurpose piece as it also offers ample storage space!

When choosing furniture for a small space I always look for style and functionality. These are just a few of the small space solutions we’ve come-up with recently to help make room for our growing family and all that comes along with it. Stay tuned for more!