“A man’s home is his castle,” so says the old adage. Except we don’t all live in castles, do we? In fact, most of us don’t even live in houses anymore. As the world continues to urbanize, more and more people are living in apartments, and if you want to live where it’s hip-and-happening, that often means compromising on space. But that doesn’t mean you have to compromise on comfort. Clever layout and furniture choices can do wonders to maximise space.
There’s plenty you can do to make your home feel more like a chateau than a shed, starting with a good declutter. If you want a comfortable home that’s easy to live in, it is essential that you surround yourself only with the things you truly need, and that is especially true for smaller spaces. Once you remove the excess from your limited surface area, maximising your available space will be a lot easier.
Pick the right Furniture
A great way to maximise any space is to make sure your furniture is multifunctional. A window seat that doubles as storage or a couch that can pull out into a guest bed mean you are getting four uses out of two items, without sacrificing precious square meters.
Coffee tables that transform into dining tables or desks are an excellent solution for particularly small homes, such as studio apartments.
From nesting tables to modular sofas, a plethora of multipurpose furniture solutions are available these days at all price points. It’s always handy to have extra chairs that can be folded and tucked away when not in use, and who doesn’t need the added storage a bench seat can provide?
Choose the right layout
Now that you’ve picked out some space-saving pieces, the next step will be to rethink your layout. When it comes to the design of a room, size doesn’t matter as much as layout does.
Reconsider the position of your room’s largest piece of furniture, and make sure that your view into the room is unobstructed. The further back your eye can travel through a space before it’s blocked by a piece of furniture, the larger it will seem.
Think about how the room is used on an average day, and arrange your furniture accordingly. There is no use navigating around a cramped living room every day because you occasionally (read almost never) have to seat 20 people.
When Christmas comes around, or you’re hosting a dinner party, feel free to add some extra seating, and by all means and extend your dining table. Otherwise, arrange your furniture in a way that works best for you and your household every day.
perception matters
Perceived space is an important factor in how big or small a room feels. A room filled with colours and patterns is bound to seem busy and cluttered, no matter how big it actually is. In small spaces, opt for solid coloured sofas, armchairs or bed linens, and include pattern in a few statement pieces, such as cushions, throws or area rugs.
The use of glass or transparent materials in your furniture can help objects to ‘disappear’ into a room, giving you the perception of a larger space. Reflective finishes can have a similar effect by creating more surfaces for light to bounce off of. Bright rooms tend to feel larger than they really are.
When it comes to how big a room feels, the amount of floor space you have isn’t as important as the amount of floor you perceive. That’s why it’s so important to free up your floor. The more of it you can see, the bigger your space will appear. When choosing furniture, avoid bulky pieces, and look for ones with legs, preferably slim ones. Raised sofas, chairs, and beds make floors look bigger. Wall-mounted storage has the same effect and can be an especially good solution for hallways and entryways that would otherwise feel heavy and cramped.
Think vertically
Now that you’ve freed up some floor space, it’s time to make the most of your wall space. A great way to maximise space is to think vertically. Think floating shelves or bookcases that go all the way to the ceiling. In addition to granting you more storage, they create a sense of height, making a room feel bigger.
Another way to create the illusion of height is to raise your curtains. This will draw your eye up, automatically making any room feel larger. When choosing window treatments, be careful to pick light and flowing fabrics that will let in the natural light and won’t weigh down the windows.
Lighting is key
Making the most of the natural light available is important, but don’t forget about your interior light fixtures. Most rooms have a centred ceiling lamp, but no matter how bright, it only casts light in the centre of the room, creating a visual boundary around the area it illuminates. Place lamps in the corners of a room to erase that boundary.
And since you are thinking vertically now, consider wall sconces. They’re a great way of adding more light without taking up floor or table space, and they too draw the eye away from the centre of the room, making a space feel wider.
Zone off your space
To define different spaces in open-plan homes such as lofts or studio apartments, divide rooms with open storage or bookcases, which will create separation while still allowing light through. You can also create rooms within a room through the use of area rugs, which help to define separate spaces without taking up any floor space.
The correct placement of light fixtures and a clever choice of colour can also go a long way in creating a zone within a single space.
The ideal solution will be slightly different for everyone, as the key to successfully maximizing a space depends on its exact size, shape, and use. Just remember, don’t let the size of your home limit your imagination. While you might not live in a castle, you can use any or all of these tricks to help create a spacious and comfortable home you love to spend time in.
