apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

i have one of those extra clothes rods that hangs from the original clothes rod. my husband's stuff is on top and mine is below. we get double the hanging space. my closet is about your size - it's a bit small for 2 people :)

another thing we did is buy a captains bed. but you can just use storage boxes that go under the bed.

Get rid of the husband? Just kidding ;)

I would suggest moving the tall purple cabinet to the wall beside the closet, and paring down on the items you display on it's shelves. It looks like you have a little vanity arrangement beside the rad - could this not go onto the main surface of the tall cabinet? You may have to remove the cabinet doors to do this for leg room. Clearing out the area where the trunk and vanity reside would make the space look less cluttered. Perhaps the truck can sit at the foot of the bed and as need be, it can be used as a seat at the newly placed vanity?

I would remove the gry piece (it doesn't seem to fit the other stuff in the room and is a poor waste of space), and put the pine piece against the wall next to the closet.

I would put several long floating shelves on the larger newly emptied wall. I would not center them, or make them symmetrical, as it would be too rigid. The floating wall can accomodate those books and photo frames in the grey piece.

I'd try to pur the stand alone oragnizer thing on the right side of the bed into the closet. Better to be hidden - it's not a particularly pretty piece.

And finally the chest needs to go to the foot of the bed.

gray, not gry.

just as a visual trick, how about changing the bedspread to something light and airy, maybe white? and perhaps consolidate the palette among the hutch, dresser and bedside tables? right now it seems as if you have great pieces to store your stuff, but the room lacks cohesion. i would suggest going with lighter colors than black and red because it will give the bedroom a lighter, more open look as well has unify the palette.

Go to anthropologie and buy new hardware for the dresser/night stands.

And ARTWORK, ARTWORK, ARTWORK! For something inexpensive, why not print out the freebee posters we were linked to yesterday? http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/chicago/artwork/five-poster-designs-inspired-by-the-great-depression-free-downloads-from-readymade-magazine-071657

Also (and I'm sure most would agree). Try organizing the closet/bookshelf and organizing--it does wonders!

And I disagree with kanyonyc. I think the blue piece of furniture is nice. It's def. in the wrong place, but I wouldn't say it isn't pretty--the color is great!

*I meant try organizing and CLEANING. :)

Ikea has shoe cabinets that you can mount to the wall. I saw someone who used them as laundry storage - this could be good for the empty space on your closet wall. Then you may be able to move one of the chests out (I'd say the purple/gray one - as it doesn't seem to hold anything pertinent to the bedroom).

Something like this:
http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/90111895

It looks like there isn't a lot of room on either side of your bed, so you may think about decluttering either side or pushing the bed up against the wall.

Hope that helps!

p.s. the truck would look nice at the foot of the bed, if you have room there.

You've got space galore, you're just not using it effectively-- the bare wall that now sports the puny wood chest and storage bin could instead support a big wall-mounted shelving system, which could be tailored to your exact storage needs (books? on shelves. Socks or accessories? in attractive storage boxes on shelves. Computer? desk-level shelf.)

If you're in NYC, there's the Shelf Shop on 70th St. Poor? Container Store. Cheap do-it-yourselfer? Buy the mounting hardware then have lumber shelves cut at your local lumber shop, then finish the wood yourself.

When you move, just disassemble and spackle over the holes.

The bookshelf isn't doing much to help you organize your clothing - I'd consider putting it on Craigslist and starting anew. I'd would invest in some matching furniture - whether it be aligning to one color family of ikea furniture items, or picking up a newer, higher quality bedroom set all together.

I'd also invest in some decor balancing curtains for the windows, as well as art for the walls.

replace the dresser and bookcase with a pax wardrobe system from ikea, then move the bed so the foot faces the pax.

I'd start by removing the items on the wall where the little trunk is...and replacing everything with the bookshelf unit. Maybe all of that stuff could be stowed away someplace else. I'd go thru everything, including the little 3-drawer unit, and ask myself if I really need to keep those items in the room, and maybe you can edit out a lot of your things. I'd replace the blinds with Roman shades in red, maybe.

For now paint is not the issue.
However, you can paint in NYC rentals.
If you are rent stabilized you're entitled to have the landlord paint every three years!

Matcahing furnitrue that is utilerian and holds clothes and hides all your stuff.

~Only antiques /vitage looks nice when they don't match.
~Get rid of the canvas draws

Get rid of the decorative shelf you keep all the family photo that is the biggest waste of furniture usage.

I would move the bed away from the window wall and see how it looks elsewhere.

This is too hard to do without dimensions of each wall.

I agree with kristykreem about her placement ideas.. Ikea has several great wardrobe options that you can customize to fit all your clothing and little do-dads in. If you get that, you probably don't need the dresser, so sell it or move it to another room.

I really like the purple bookshelf, so I wouldn't get rid of it if you like it. You could move it between the closet and door. But I would tak down the pictures cuz it makes it look cluttered. Instead, hang multiple frames on the wall in a more orderly manner or buy one frame with room for lots of pics (there are tons of options and walmart and target).

You definitely need to get some color on the walls. How about some curtains on those windows. A really light purple since you already have some purple in the room or maybe a gold to match the pillows.

Put that little drawer thing by the trunk in the closet. What's the trunk for? Do you really need it? It might be a good time for both of you to go through your stuff and get rid of stuff you should have years ago.

I think the biggest visual help would be to change your bedspread to white and decrease your pillow collection. The printed colorful pillows are beautiful, and if everything else on the bed was white, it would really showcase these. (Also, getting rid of the red bedding would draw the eye to the art above the bed, making a nice focal point, rather than the bed itself.)

Get rid of (or move to a different room) all furniture except for the bed, nightstands and wood dresser. Move the wood dresser to the wall opposite the bed and declutter the top of it.

For organization: utilize under the bed, add an over-the-door shoe rack to the inside door of your closet (not just for shoes--but socks, paperclips, whatever), and consider adding a high shelf that goes around the perimeter of your room (about a foot from the ceiling, all around). This could house books, baskets of out of season clothing, etc.

Post pictures when you're done! Good luck!

1) go through and purge both of your wardrobes. It's amazing how many boxes you can send to the goodwill full of stuff that you don't wear or doesn't fit, and toss anything that is too worn to donate. Be brutal.

2) Put away clothes that you don't wear in this season. Under the bed storage is good if you can manage it.

3) Add hooks over the door, facing inward to catch your coats, belts, and robes and such

4) If you have storage space anywhere else in your house, use that to store what's in your closet that doesn't need to be in your bedroom, so that you can add a laundry hamper on the closet floor.

5) get rid of/hide the ikea storage thingy

6) organize your bookshelves and pictures, putting the pictures in front of the books makes it feel cluttered and stressful, also pare down what's on top of the dresser.

7) move the trunk to the end of the bed if you can, and then put the tall bookshelf on one wall, and the dresser on the opposite wall to balance the room a little more.

8) soft floor to ceiling sheers over the windows can break up the white wall color, hide the miniblinds, and maybe pull together some of the color issues you have going on.

9) consider a softer color palette for your bed. Maybe a mix of purple, browns, greys, with greens or reds for a small accent. The pink/red makes the bed seem overwhelming and paired with the purple comes accross really girly. Since you're trying to incorporate a new husband it might be a good chance to bring a bit of him into the bedroom and unify your palette at the same time.

10) You've got some ethnic flavors in your room, maybe find a large pretty map for the wall at the end of your bed? They're inexpensive and cover a lot of space when you can't paint or afford a lot of art. They even look good unframed.

11) I'd get a few prints framed and hung, maybe one (or three) above the brown dresser on one wall, and one on each side of the bookshelf on the opposite wall.

You could make some extra space around the bed by exchanging the bedside tables for reading lights mounted on the wall above the headboard and perhaps a shelf running between them.

I'd buy a set of bed risers:
http://www.amazon.com/Plastic-Bed-Risers-Set-4/dp/B0009H2JPI/ref=pd_bbs_sr_3?ie=UTF8&s=home-garden&qid=1229716876&sr=8-3
and take advantage of under-bed storage possibilities. Something like this:
http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/30039586
I'd pick up another Hemnes dresser and place it where the blue shelving unit currently resides. Then I'd scan Etsy for cute prints and artwork to hang above the dressers. Similar frames will create a unified look.
If you're still in need of storage space, then a pax-like wardrobe on the wall where you have the trunk could work. That said, it might make the space feel cramped. So a trio of floating shelves for books and such would be better.
I'd move the trunk to the foot of the bed, and possibly place a tall mirror against the wall to the left of the closet to create the illusion of space. Try:
http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/50135515
Finally, I'd replace the metal blinds with light, airy sheers (that can be mounted easily with tension rods) and go with a white bedspread and fewer pillows to create lightness around the bed. Good luck!

I definitely agree with the first suggestion. I did the same thing myself on the cheap with an old curtain rod and some twine that supports in on either end and in the middle.

I guess as lot of it depends how long you plan to stay here..

Neaten up the bookshelves. You can maximise the space by stacking books on their side to rise vertically and get some closed storage boxes on the shelf. Can you give away some books, or if the situation is temporary put some stuff in storage for a while? Can you move the bookshelves out to other parts of the house?

Another good option is hooks on the wall, or if you really are adverse to putting anything in the walls (Spackling is easy though) how about a back of the door hook thing...I have one inside my closet also for scarves, belts and accessories.

You could paint the pine dresser to match the bookshelf to unify on the cheap - sand, prime, sand, paint, sand, paint.

If its possible I would put the storage trunk at the end of the bed and put a slim unit of some kind along that wall. A narrow metro shelving unit can be configured with closely spaced shelved on the bottom for shoes, and more open shelves for folded clothes, or storage boxes. or you could get the a waist height expedit type shelving unit, and put some storage boxes in for hiding things, stand a mirror on it and set up your hair/make up area - and then place the thing thats currently holding your hair make up in the closet under the current rack of clothes?

Lots of random thoughts..good luck!

I recently added curtains to my bedroom (with similar window placement) and I can't believe what a difference they make. The ceiling looks taller, and I got the color the room needed (we can't paint either).

I would go the sleek, simple route and just get a nice big wardrobe unit that you can set against one wall:

http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/S29843175

You can trick it out with drawers so you won't need the dresser anymore.

I'd also suggest editing down the number of pillows on your bed and knicknacks on the shelves. Why not blow up some of your photos, put them in coordinating frames and hang them on the walls? I live in a small space, too, and I've found that you should take advantage of whatever you can hang on the walls or put on a wall shelf. It really helps cut down on the clutter.

I also agree with the commenters who recommended going for a lighter coloured bed spread, or, if you really crave colour, using something with a simple and bold graphic element, like this:
http://www.designpublic.com/shop/amenity/10752

Good luck! I hope you'll send photos of what you come up with. I love seeing how people tackle the small space/two people conundrum as I'm going through that myself!

1) Get at least two of the pieces of furniture to match. I would paint the bookshelf black to match the night stands.

2) That night stand on the right side of the bed? The door opens out the wrong way. It should be simple enough to flip it around....it's Ikea after all.

3) Move the bookshelf. Next to the dresser, the proportions look all wrong. You could try placing it between the bedroom and closet doors. Or, if you move the bed, it can go between the windows.

3.1) That bookshelf would make a great spot for the tv/laptop/stereo system, esp. if in a spot where you could watch from in bed.

4) Simplify the color scheme! Nix the purple and pink. Go with maybe:

light gray yellow white black.

Or, white green black natural/wood accents.

Or, turquoise cream white black.
5) Perhaps move the bed so that the head is against the empty wall.

6) The bed looks bloated and heavy next to the dainty lamps and nightstands. Fewer big fluffy humungous pillows. Add a well-defined headboard.

7) Curtain! Light, airy curtains!

8) Almost forgot...Separate clothing storage spaces for you and him.

1. Move the bed, so that its head is along the wall where your dresser and bookshelf now stand. Move the bed right up to the wall with the windows, leaving about 3-4 inches for long curtains to hang.

2. put up a couple of long wall shelves above the bed, high enough not to hit your head (about 4 ft), and put your pictures and books on those. You can put books and boxes on the shelves, and hang the frames in between shelves and bed.

3. Put the bedside tables side by side between the newly positioned bed and closet door. You can use the surface area for a reading lamp, knickknacks, catchalls, lidded baskets. I use a short Ikea dresser as our bedside table, and we like that better than a bedside table with limited storage space.

4. Your key move should be 'add height' to anything and everything in a small rented space. Anything you buy now should be sturdy, removable and pleasing, things you can keep or recover some money on by selling. To that end, do the following:
(a) as other readers have suggested, add long curtains, semi-sheer or in open-weave fabrics like linen which let light through while preserving privacy. Use soft colors that will go with a variety of bedspreads.

5. If you want to keep the Ikea set of drawers (I have a taller one) you'll either have to put it elsewhere or drape its sides completely to hide the metal. If you MUST use it, get the platic drawers for it. they look better.
If you can part with it, DO, and get something in wood, like a tallboy (narrow but with plenty of drawers).

6. Get risers for your bed. Get canvas storage totes in short and long (Bed Bath and Beyond has sets with cedar panel inserts), and keep bedding, linen, extra clothes and rarely used personal items under the bed. I don't recommend plastic versions; they tear more easily than canvas, and I don't like the smell of some plastic when it gets into my stuff. You also get under-bed rolling storage in wood (I know Pottery Barn used to have them; you can probably get them elsewhere for cheaper). Under-bed shoe storage is also available.

7. Get baskets, boxes and lidded totes (Ikea, Crate and Barrel, and your local thrift stores will all have them) for small stuff that you don't want to lose. Label and stack, even on the floor in a tall tower, if need be. Use one or two on your bookshelf (on the very top, above it) to keep things you don't need all the time. I keep 2 on my bookshelf for different things--cords, sketching supplies, stationery, receipts.
Boxes like these will also add the illusion of more 'shelves' to your bookshelf, whose long gaps between shelves isn't helping your space vs. usefulness issue any. Add a box, lay books on their side on top.
Also get sturdy metal bookends, and use them to hold books on bookshelf, on top of said shelf, on top of over-the-bed shelves, on dresser.

8. Over the door hooks for closet.

9. Dresser and trunk can go on wall between door and closet.

10. If you can't get rid of the trunk, consider stacking trunks.

11.A small wall-mounted mirror above dresser, and a small shelf with safety rim below it for your vanity needs.

12. You will still have the entire wall along the radiator to play with. Use that for the bookshelf (keep one of the bedside lamps on it) and to get a small chair, if you have space. You'll have a reading nook and a thing-to-throw-stuff-on-object.

I'd advise you to keep away from the red-purple combo. Get a different bedspread if you don't want to have to paint or distress your bookshelf. Nothing against color, or personal taste, just that with small rooms, one splash of color is often enough to enliven the ethos.

Good luck!

I'm going to be brief. Personally, I like the orange/red bedcover and pillows and the lavendar walls, but I've never yet met a man who would willingly live with such a color scheme.

This is what I would do. I would strip everything out of the closet and off the bookshelves and off the walls, and strip the bed while I was at it. I would sew a simple bed cover in a dove gray, which will go fine with the lavendar. I would make or buy two pillowcases with muted lavendar/dove gray stripes.

I would hang simple silvery silk curtains at the windows.

Everything I have thrown in the hallway to get this far, I would review with a cold eye. To get back in the room, an item has to be useful or attractive. The extra pillows, begone! Everything else that you no longer need -- off to Goodwill! The photos would receive a careful examination. Duplicative photos would be quietly tucked into a drawer. I'd consider the fact that these hard times have lead to unbelievable sales, and choose a number of photos I wanted to keep, and then buy frames that coordinated with one another. You won't find a better time to do this than now.

The books could be arranged in a fashion that makes the most sense to you intellectually. But get a few book-ends to help them stand up straight if you're not filling the shelf end to end.

If you take these few steps, you'll find that the bedroom suddenly seems more peaceful, welcoming and pulled-together.

Good luck!

First thing you should do is invest in an armoire. You would get extra space hanging space for clothes and probably at least two more drawers for clothing. I'd put the armoire in between the closet and bedroom doors. Make the bookshelf into a new vanity using the main area...it would look good where it is with a nice small chair - you could store books you like to read at night on the upper shelves along with some pictures. Put the trunk at the end of the bed. Also, curtains also help. As for a color scheme, go towards light and airy - light tans, creams, etc. In my honest opinion, I'd paint all the furniture in a cream color (maybe leaning a little more towards yellow). The trunk could stay the same color as one dark piece to anchor the entire room.

That is a pillow-intensive bed! Hanging the wall art a bit higher would look more balanced.

I'd frame the head of the bed and the windows with curtains all the way across - to give it the sense of almost a really big headboard (you might consider getting a real headboard, too - but curtains will def do the trick till you're ready for that). Anthropologie has tons of really interesting curtains. Restoration Hardware has great Velvet curtains that are pretty and on sale right now (and pretty useful for the winter).

Good luck! And congrats on the hubby moving in!

1.) Get rid of gray / light purple looking thing.
2.) Co-ordinate picture frames by color, get rid of 70% of your books / knick knacks
3.) Get shorter side tables and or lamps.
4.) Black lamp shades
5.) Lower wattage light bulbs.
6.) Move Dresser unit to opposite wall, and push bed closer to wall.
7.) Go to the container store for things like under bed storage, space bags (amazing), Shelves for books (clear Umbra ones)
8.) Get some huge mirrors to make your room look bigger

There is a pretty cool room planner online - http://beta.floorplanner.com/. Measure every piece of furniture you want to keep in the room - then try to fit things in. You can keep rearranging until you get the layout you love - it's better than moving furniture around over and over. I used it to layout my entire apartment before I moved into it.

Nothing seems to match in my eyes.

First: Declutter (waaaay too much going on in the bookshelves)
Second: I'd paint the furniture!

Hey guys, these are all some great suggestions! I'm in the middle of doing some of the changes. It might take a little while due to budget constraint, but I'll definitely post pics as I go along. I'm in the process of painting the dresser black/brown to match the side tables. I bought a hemnes mirror. And I bought a roman blind to put on the bookcase to cover up the books (see below).

Here are some responses to a few comments (sorry if they're blunt :-P):

Small Canvas/Metal set of drawers...I need it for beauty supplies but I can store in the closet. I just found out husband can purge some of his stuff...yes! Just have to wait for him to start cleaning it out ::ahem:: But for now stuff is on the floor in the meantime.

Over the door hooks...right now the closet has over the door hooks for the shoes but we leave the closet open because it won't close with those. I'll look into some of the suggestions people posted about boxes and closet units.

Trunk I store linens in so I don't want to get rid of it right now. But it could definitely be moved.

We have a closet in the hall, but a lot of it is full of photo equipment, coats, suitcases (separated by a shelf which has filing equipment, craft supplies, iron, etc).

My husband likes to sleep on the outside, and so do I, and both of us feel claustrophobic when we're on inside. I've tried the bed against the wall and it just doesn't work.

Agree that some things need to be moved around and I could possibly get rid of the bookshelf, but right now can't afford $500 storage units (yet). For the time being, I have to make due with what I have as far as furniture and either paint it, move it, or work with it. I don't want to part with the books because some are photo books (expensive), some are husband's books, some are, novels. I've already gone through my stuff over and over to get rid of things, but if I know I'll use them again I don't want to get rid of them because that's a waste of money.

I did buy a roman blind that I'm going to try to install and maybe some blinds (still don't know where I'm going with it, but the consensus on these comments seems to be do something with the books).

Thanks again, everyone! I'll update you on how it all goes.