The Washington Post reports on a trend that furniture makers are responding to: the demand for smaller furniture that fits smaller living spaces. Many small furniture pieces were on view at the High Point Market, the big biannual furniture industry trade show in North Carolina...
Shown above the jump is an example of a single fold-out desk cabinet. These cabinets are replacing larger home offices. Furniture makers are also reducing the size of their dressers, coffee tables, night stands, sofas, and entertainment centers.
Read the full Washington Post article "For Furniture, Smaller Is Better; Changing Lifestyles Push Demand for Scaled-Down Designs" by clicking here.
[photo by Chuck Burton via the Washington Post.]
© 2009 Apartment Therapy
I am glad the manufacturers are responding to this need. Smaller furniture is needed for apartments and the eventual turn away from McMansions and back to smaller yet well-designed spaces. This company is very forward thinking with upholstered furniture that can be broken down into pieces to move into tight spaces:
http://www.simplicitysofas.com/index.php
~Lorrie @ mydesignsecrets.com.
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Even in a house as big as you want, not that many people need as big a desk as they probably have (however that decision was made - retail, heirloom, thrift shop, or "same desk I've had since a child; that last one is me). I don't know if everyone has a desk at all, and I'm sure some people can do without it altogether. Whenever the topic involves a "home office," this usually means some central location where home business is dealt, not the kind of office a person needs where they work out of their home or run their own business there.
I don't think the pictured example is the right solution for me, but I think it's a wonderful concept. I'm not sure it's that new, I think I've often seen desks/computer centers that are built with low profile and small footprint as a prominent feature.
Entertainment centers don't have to be so big anymore, just the tv, at least in the screen. I remember trying to sell these when I sold furniture and the size of the wooden case was never at the right size at the right time for the size tvs people were upgrading to, and options were limited. Dressers I don't understand really. I kind of always thought there were several sizes available. Get a highboy or lowboy, or an armoire or scheme out your closet with a great shelving system.
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This is one of the reasons I like vintage furniture so much - the sizes and scale is smaller and therefore more appropriate for smaller homes.
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I had the hardest time trying to find furniture to fit through the narrow doorways. I actually purchased a sofa and chair from simplicity sofas (www.simplicitysofas.com) and they look awesome, and I would highly recommend them if you are having hard time finding smaller furniture.
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