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Make the Most of Your Living Space with These Small Apartment Ideas

Posted in How-to,Looking for a Home on March 26, 2021

If you’re living in a tiny flat, it pays off to do all in your power to use up every quarter wisely and create a space that is vibrant, cozy, and pleasant to spend time in. Lucky for you, with our small apartment ideas, you’ll learn awesome ways to do just that and become one of those people who are admired for their interior design skills. So, let’s dive right in. Tinier doesn’t always mean worse. On the contrary, it might be much more functional and can instill some great habits such as decluttering regularly and actually keeping control of your belongings, which can help you feel much calmer and situated in your life. So, how do you create a space that represents who you are while being practical at the same time? Read on for some superb tips.

How to Decorate a Small Apartment – First Steps

If your living space can be described as smaller, there’s nothing to worry about. You may feel clueless and confused, but you can’t go wrong if you start with general organizing principles that make a world of difference in the entire impression.

Start With Colors

Rooms that aren’t spacious can easily get shrunken or dreary, so avoid dark colors unless recreating a gothic atmosphere was on the list of your reasons to move. Lighter colors can add brightness, and they don’t absorb light, so they’re perfect if you don’t have much natural light inside. And, if you’re making a household inventory list due to cross-country moving or renovation, ensure to take this as a governing principle in most decisions. This means that you shouldn’t restrict the light color palette rule merely to furniture but also include it when you choose surfaces, such as wood or marble.

Play With Texture

Many people forget about this because when they’re done with house-hunting, they feel like they’ve got bigger fish to fry. But, that’s not the case, as texture plays a major role in the final score, so reminding yourself of it in the beginning can be quite beneficial.

If everything is flat, it might give the place a too-serious appeal that not many people want for their safe space where they spend a large portion of their free time. Now, you shouldn’t go crazy with patterns to add the tactile element into the picture, but some miniature changes can already mean a difference. For instance, try adding a rug with tassels or some exciting cushions with cool patterns in your to-buy section of the moving binder, let it sit there, and see how you feel about it after you do some of the furnishings.

Use Items to Designate Boundaries In Your Studio Design

If you’re wondering how to decorate a small studio apartment, you’re probably living in a pretty shoebox in which room distinctions are blurry because, well, there’s only one. Still, this is not as it seems. You can actually use furnishing and some objects to create that zone feeling and separate, distinct areas and spaces.
Take rugs and light fixtures, for instance, and create a dining room where all the how to pack glasses knowledge will pay off. Or turn furniture against each other to get the illusion of size. Be creative and even decorate each wall differently to signal what purpose that quarter has.

A multifunctional condo
Details can differentiate spaces where you'll perform different activities

How to Use Furniture to Its Full Potential?

The largest portion of your moving budget or your new-life new-home budget probably goes to furniture, so you want to invest in something that will really do the trick in your space. And, if you’re not into buying, the great news is that if you look at things from another perspective, you’ll realize that you can use some pieces you already own and insert some tiny changes that can make your room shine.

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Try to Get Pleasant-to-Look-At Multifunctional Pieces of Furniture

This means that all pieces that are multipurpose come into consideration, and we’re talking about bookshelves that can be TV stands at the same time, storage ottomans, coffee tables with shelves included, and alike here. Not only are they decorative, but they also save you from having two or three separate items that can turn your room into storage.

And a pro tip here is to take the most out of what you have if you’re not ready to buy because you’re still recovering from learning all the packing tips for moving or you’re saving up for something else. You can always use some fancy dishes, books, flower pots, and such bits and bobs to add an element of novelty and to spark up the imagination of the viewer. And everyone is definitely more likely to focus attention on these rather than on your piece of furniture, which is shabby or old.

One of the Practical Ideas Is to Take the Doors Off if Possible

Everyone who lives in a tiny home knows that doors are somehow always in the way. So, what you can do to prevent this hassle is simply remove them wherever you can. Bedroom closets are the first thing that comes to mind, and you can always have a curtain to prevent people from snooping and asking you how you went about the question of how to pack clothes. Just remember that this also means dusty clothes, so weigh out the pros and cons before you get the drill out.

On the other hand, kitchen cabinets are an item that can do without the doors too, and that can actually have more than one benefit. First off, if you learned how to pack dishes, you’ll be ready to show them off in full glory, and you’ll know which ones to give the most prominent position. This way, they’ll adorn your kitchen, and you’ll also get irritated if they’re not clean, so you’ll be motivated to wash and dust regularly.

The Best Storage Spot Is Under the Bed

And where do these items go – the old Iliad copy someone in your family once bought, ancient books, your prom outfit, a teddy you won at a fair years ago, some postcards you still don’t feel like throwing out, figurines from your (insert the name of the movie) fan phase that inspired you to learn how to pack fragile items, a picture you painted when you felt you wanted to express your feelings artistically, you get the gist. In one sentence, where do all the hard to put the finger on things get stored in tiny spaces?

If you feel like the time for top-rated storage facilities hasn’t come yet, obtain bed risers. Some beds are already elevated and create invisible space in the bedroom for you to put boxes, suitcases, baskets, and alike underneath. And if not, bed risers come to your rescue and are usually super cheap. Just don’t forget to cram in as many thingies as you can into those boxes you shove down there. It’s the meta-level of storing, and it’s extremely convenient for bedroom and other rooms alike.

Dishes on shelves
Cleaning out your closet metaphorically and opening up in the kitchen can do you a world of good

How to Decorate a Small Living Room Apartment

The living room is the focal point of every home, and it’s where you’re likely to invite guests, study, work, or simply wind down and relax. So, you want to give it all you’ve got here and focus on this one as the first of your things to do after moving priorities. And, how can you make it clean-looking and homey?

Mirrors Make Your Small Apartment Living Room Look Bigger

Mirrors are hailed by all fans of interior design, especially when it comes to studio flats because they create the impression that the rooms are larger than they actually are and because they invite more light. And, if you aren’t into full-length mirrors on your wall, opt for circular ones or smaller ones, and you’ll be amazed by the results.

And since mirrors need to be handled with care at all times, don’t forget to pay attention to them when you’re relocating. Getting professional packing services with boxes and packing supplies included might be the best way to go to avoid any regrets in this case.

Use Up All the Available Space

People usually forget about bulky stuff and ideas such as moving a piano if they’re thinking about studio design, yet many often feel like they crammed too much of their stuff in nevertheless. And this is because they don’t recognize all the potential niches that allow the space to breathe, and that can work a treat in the central area first and foremost.

There are two killer ways to declutter your living room and help the most interesting decorations come to light. These are:

  • Going upwards – Meaning that you need to obtain shelves or other elements that go in height, not width. And take out all the objects you preserved in packaging fragile items to add those final touches.
  • Creating layers – The cool coffee tables you own aren’t just awesome for a future office move, but they can also be put to work in your home as you browse through articles on how to get a job in a new city or deal with other obligations. So insert some boxes, cushions, newspapers, fav books, or toys if you were moving with pets underneath, and voila, you just applied the game-changing principle we’ve been talking about all along, and that’s being practical and artsy simultaneously.

 

Plants Add to the Warmth

Even if you don’t have a green thumb, consider plants whatever your result of the where should I move quiz was. They can help the dullest of places come to life, and they always add that element of happiness. Research what plants need little care or can survive in darker environments if you’re hesitant to commit or simply buy some pretty artificial ones.

Green leafed plant
You can't go wrong with houseplants

How to Decorate a Small Apartment on a Budget?

If you’re still processing the work market and trying to learn how to get a job before you move, or you simply want to be frugal and save up for more significant matters such as getting outstanding car shipping or creating a bigger budget for top-rated international shipping, these are some ideas on how to be thrifty:

  • Browse online sites that have affordable home decor, such as Target or Urbanoutfitters,
  • Check out jumble sales in your vicinity as these can hide real gems for low prices,
  • Find a new function for the items you already own, and if you’re stuck, check out tutorials that deal with this topic.

 

Person working and holding a cup of coffee
Google is your friend in affordable interior-design research

How to Decorate a Small Apartment for Christmas?

And finally, many people wonder what to do with their studios when the season to be jolly arrives. And if you’re moving in winter, or you simply need inspiration, the world is your oyster. X-mas is when anything goes really, so you can get into DIY and try some of these super simple suggestions:

  • Cut stars, Christmas trees, Santas, or whatever you like using cutouts from the Internet and decorate your window sills,
  • Put some cones and baubles in a bowl and place it at the center of the dining table,
  • Get festive dolls or decorations, glue them to a stick or pole, and stack them in your flower pots, and they’ll be the easiest to remove when the time to learn how to store Christmas ornaments comes,
  • Play with details, such as plaid cushions and blankets, as well as faux fur, as these can add to that warm and snuggly holiday atmosphere.

 

Take a look at the following video if you want to learn more amazing hacks on how to help tiny studios shine on that special day.

Cross Country Movers Can Help You Apply Expert Small Apartment Ideas at Your Home

If you decide to arrange top-rated cross-country moving services, you won’t be sorry as they can also help with all kinds of studios and create the layout you dream of without you having to lift a finger. Enquire how much do movers cost and do only what’s best for you.

 

Eva Johnson

Digital nomad born in New York but currently living online, Eva knows everything there is to know about packing and moving.

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