apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

Although closets are the best, I almost wish there wasn't a closet on that one wall because it would be great to put a desk there...I guess what I would suggest is to possibly construct or buy a corner desk and put it in the corner next to the door with the ironing board. Do you need that closet? Could you remove the doors and sort of try to make it a built in bookcase to show off nice books and some ornaments or something? I'd put a nice big mirror on the flat wall between the two doors as it will reflect light from the two adjoining rooms into that room and will also help to set that wall back. Use natural spectrum light bulbs and don't use an overhead light in there if you can help it...maybe get a nice desk lamp. For seating I'd see if you can get a nice chaise and maybe a floor lamp and place them in by the closet.

Sara - I also have a railroad with a small, dark, and oddly-shaped middle room. I installed a shelving system along one wall. It's a better use of space than bookcases. If only I can figure out what to do with the rest of the room...

I feel your pain! I have a similar situation...and serious fantasies about knocking down walls and putting in a skylight...but like you, my landlord is having none of it.

I tried to make it a work space for a while, but then I never used it because I naturally gravitated to the rooms with windows. In the end I think you shouldn't fight the nature of the room--no amount of fancy lighting makes up for no natural light.

You can make it a well-organized and functional storage space (clothes, pantry, work supplies, books, cds, whatever--but not piles of boxes) that enables the rest of your apartment to be clean and simple, and allows you to maximize the living areas.

Or you could make it your bedroom...a nice quiet dark space for deep sleep.

Good luck!

Here's what you do.

1. Remove the closet door. Replace with a sliding panel that slides left.

2. Leaving enough room for the door to slide left, place a large, comfy chair along that wall. Maybe a chaise along the other one.

3. Arrange bookshelves accordingly :)

4. Put up some free-standing reading lamps; if the closet is not used much, I'd place a lightweight one in front of the sliding panel, both to illuminate the artwork on the panel and to make the closet itself disappear.

Read! Have fun! Good luck :)

i think taking the doors off the closet and making that area a workspace is a good idea, put bright lighting up inside...the shelving unit is a good idea and maybe a comfy chair and rug as a "reading" area on the other side. that's probably about as much as you could do. oooh or make it a theater room. since it's so dark. put the tv in the closet area, surround sound and comfy seating with popcorn ;)

Tough situation...

An office/den is a great idea as the time you spend working and reading is an introverted activity and often requires a safe, secure, and intimate space.

Paint:
Consider painting the walls with two or three different colors; a dark, warm color on the lower 3 or 4 feet, a lighter, warm color up to the ceeling and then a medium color trim. I would also consider painting the ceeling the same color as the medium. This will draw the eye laterally and provide some continuity throughout the room.

Furniture:
clearly you need a good desk and storage solution. I would stay away from tall bookshelves and wall units as they will dwarf the room... consider lining the walls with a lower shelving- something that runs around the room and still provides a surface on which you can display stuff...

A good work chair, again stay away from a tall back...

A good reading chair- a club chair, something with character. Stay away from metal and skeletal forms- you need something solid, embracing and comforting. A Womb chair would be excelent but anything similar would work.

You'll also need a good warm rug- I would reccomend a persian rug, or something deep, rich and solid- stay away from light colors and neutral patterns etc... the floor should be dark and solid.

Lighting:
Stay away from overheads!! A reading lamp by the chair, a desk lamp a side lamp... with good lighting you can create "islands" in even the smallest of rooms.

Artwork:
No posters! Perhaps one wall with a big piece of artwork and then the opposite wall with lots of little framed photos...

Since it gets no natural light, I would suggest making it a room you will use at night (when you wouldn't get natural light anyways). Since you can't have light and airy, play up the cozy aspect and make it a library with lots of books, a comfy chair, small sidetable, and good reading lamps. You don't mention if you are allowed to paint, but if you are, choose something to enhance the mood. A warm neutral or maybe an soft, earthy green.

I would not make it an office because "cozy" doesn't work as well for an office atmosphere (at least for me -- I need light and space to feel organized.) A library/reading room is perfect for a small, cozy room. However, definitely decide the purpose for the room before you start decorating it or buying shelving.

Definitely get a large mirror and if you can position it so it catches a window it'll definitely brighten up the room.

Just had another idea for a library that I think I've seen something similar to in decorating magazines. You could put up a fireplace mantle and have a grouping of candles in it as a "fireplace". I'm not sure about what you'd have to do to make sure that the wall didn't catch fire though... somehow that's never discussed when you see the pretty photo of all the candles burning.

I really wish I had an extra room! I'd make it into a library/study. think of the lack of natural light as an advantage--easy "cozy" feeling and also, minimal fading of books or art! Depending on what you think you'd do most--read or work, put a desk or comfy reading chair/chaise, as others have said. I'd love to see floor to ceiling shelves on the wall, but I think tall bookcases lining the walls would be good too. Use some bookcase lighting, a reading light, and a table lamp. If I had a wide closet like that, I would remove the doors and make it a workstation/bill paying center kind of thing.

Embrace the darkness and go for cozy. Bookcases and lamps, some framed art on the walls. Paint it a darkish, warmish color. Instead of a chair, try a twin size daybed with lots of pillows. Nice for lazy reading, napping and an emergency guest room.

the first thing i'd do is stop looking at this room as a problem to be solved and start looking at it as a fun oppurtunity to create a really enjoyable space. i would not worry so much about the logistics of the room and how to make it "functional" unless you're REALLY at a loss for space in the rest of the apartment.

as i see it, you have 2 really good options here. the first would be to turn this space into a purely ornamental "gallery" area, sort of an enhanced hallway. hang some art, maybe put in some "occasional" type furniture. great place for a small tabletop vignette type setup, if you're into that sort of thing. use the closet for storage of course.

the other option would be to dedicate this room to some sort of hobby -- maybe a reading nook/library. or a sewing room, collection display area, studio space for at-home art projects, wherever your interests lie. it would be pretty easy to install wall mounted shelving for books and supplies, and if you do that via one of those elpha systems you could even put in a work table/desk attached to the wall rods. lighting should be dictatated by the task at hand.

You may want to play up the room's characteristics rather than fight them. I have exactly the same problem and I opted to make this room my bedroom and a temple to snoozing with few distractions (no tv / computer in here). Being a middle room it is very quiet. So the lack of light & noise make it great for night sleeping and also afternoon naps on the weekend (a goal yet unachieved.) I also decided to fight my natural miserliness and for once spend decent money on my bed (linens, duvet, etc.)to make it as luxurious as i could without going to the poorhouse. (it's possible.) i like old prints so am in the process of scrounging around fleas to find ones i like for the walls. it's all still a work in progress but my aim is to make the room a quiet, warm, romantic place I can collapse into at the end of a lousy day.

This is Sara here. Thanks for all of your suggestions so far. Keep 'em coming.

I love Opoponax's idea of turning it into a gallery. Also love the suggestions for some mirrors.

The closet is going to stay since I need the storage space, but maybe I can put the desk on castors and figure out how to store it in the closet when I'm not using it. ooh, I like that idea. I'm already doing that with the TV and it's been working well. That way it can be a gallyer/reading room most of the time but could also be an office when I need it to be, but without having to permanently take up floor space.

Any suggestions for where to find a SMALL comfy chair? There's a great one at Room and Board, but at $2100 for chair and ottoman, a little pricey.

Keep the suggestions coming and I'll send back AFTER pictures when it's all done.

Thanks!

Add bright color!!!
I had the same kind of problem in my old apartment. I decided to turn my middle room into a dining room, painted it my favorite color (a bright yellow/orange for me) and installed good lighting. Then I was always so happy to go in there because I saw one of my favorite colors, and my eye would focus on that, rather then anything else. The room felt bigger when I did that too, and it became people's favorite room when they came over. So I would say paint it a bright color, and you won't regret it.

Sara, you totally have my sympathies, I have a very, very similar problem with my middle room. The space is so useless we've come to calling it The Dead Room. What complicates things for us is that there is only one 'whole' wall in the entire 7' x 9' space. There is a closet (that runs the length of the room, also 9') then there are French doors at one end and it's completely open at the other--it's like something out of Willy Wonka! It used to act as our dining room, but we found ourselves never using it as it was too far away from the kitchen. So as others have already suggested, we (rather inadvertently) turned it into a 'reading room'; bookshelves running the entire wall opposite the closet, and a low-slung sofa parallel to the shelves. It seems to be a better use of the space, but it still feels makeshift and maybe a little schizophrenic.

A note on the paint; please don't go dark! Going on the theory that we could get away with something bold since it was a 'pass-through room, we thought it would be charming and cozy to go dark. Turns out the chocolate walls, however trendy, manage to further suck the life out of the space...and we *have* sunlight in that space! So just somehting to think about. Please pass along pics when you're done--I'd love to be re-inspired for my own space!

Paint a mural -
beach like with swaying palm trees
or
any of your favourite spaces

www.muralsuperstore.com

Before you start making any major change, I'd ask yourself a brutally honest question - are you REALLY going to want to spend time (working, reading) in a windowless room?? I think this goes against a very primal human need for 1) light 2) air. Even while you may be able to functionally arrange the space, actually wanting to spend time there (per the 'dead room' post) is another story.

If you already have lots of art or books, I think the gallery is the best idea.

If you don't, I'd go with the bedroom idea - even while it may seem weird at first. Removing the door is good, putting the bed you could paint it a rich blue, put stars or Xmas lights on the ceiling - just to give the feeling of space & air. A separation of some sort (hanging scrim or mosquito tent) could also make it nice. Use the closet for your clothes or storage, and your current bedroom as the reading/office, etc.

Good luck!

If you're going to use this room in daytime, think about painting it BRIGHT rather than dark. A vivid color with a yellowish base will look warmer and better lit than a pastel. When we had a second-BR/office that got no sunlight because it was too close to the neighbor's house, we did it in a bright yellow-based pink, and it always seemed sunny. (I worked in there as little as possible anyway, since I strongly prefer light and air.)

i definitely agree with wende, jess, and everyone who's talked about painting the room a bright or favorite color. i once had a tiny windowless bedroom, which i painted a rich, bright, buttery yellow. worked wonders. i still didn't spend a hell of a lot of time in there, but the yellow really helped.

yes I agree with the bright color thing. Also, when you have a dark small room I don't think there is any need to try to hide that by trying to add light colors and airiness. I don't think this can be a minimalist room with nothing on the walls and light colors. You will need to add a little something-somethin' so that there are things to draw you into the space.

Build up the feeling of coziness with proper lighting and a good shelving system which is a necessity. Instead of trying to mask the fact that there is no natural light, exentuate its study-like feel with high book shelves good cozy lighting and interesting things on the shelves or art on the wall.
THerefore when you or a guest enters the room, they are drawn to the interesting objects/art/feel of the room and are not turned off by the lack of natural light.
I am moving to a railroad on saturday and this is what I plan on doing.
-Jessica

Hi Sara,

Lucky you, to have an extra room to play around with! Sure, it's a little box with no windows, but there's no reason why it can't look good and serve a purpose beyond being a dumping ground for boxes.

First, I'd determine how much of the stuff in those boxes really needs to be kept and stored. I've found that an having extra space like that becomes a way to push junk out of sight without dealing with the problem of deciding whether or not it should even be kept. Once you've picked through those boxes and eliminated all the trash, then deal with properly storing what's left over.

I think it's important that you be very specific about what the room's purpose is (or purposes, if it's to do double or triple duty). That way, you can keep it from reverting into a general dumping ground.

If you feel that no amount of cheery paints and furniture are going to make you want to spend much time in a small, windowless room (I could if I had to, but given a choice, no way), you might be better off using it primarily as storage, rather than trying to make it into a place to hang out.

I would seriously consider turning it into a dressing room. That's the situation I have now (sort of), with my clothes and shoes and bags stored in a different room from the one where I sleep and I really, really like it that way.

If the closet is already storing other things, you could even bring in armoire, or a couple of smart looking garment racks. Get a beautiful full-length mirror, padded bench, decorative hamper, move your dresser, etc. It wouldn't take much. You'd need to really make sure that you get good lamps that give off flattering light, since there's no sunlight in there.

I really like the idea of having a sparse bedroom that's basically just a bed, bedside tables, lamps, and maybe some plants. An oasis.

Have fun, and please post pics of the solution you come up with!

Did I really just write all that? God, what a bore. Sorry!

One thing about a room with no windows is that if you did an outdoor mural-o-rama -- and by that I mean a mural on every wall -- not having any windows mean there would be nothing to destroy the illusion, in a weird way.

That could be photomurals or it could be blown-up versions of vintage paint-by-number paintings kind of like I did in my place. Except that I only did it on one wall.

I like Marm's dressing room idea too. I just had a really funny idea--kind of a take on the gallery theme...you could do a full-room kind of art installation. I'm thinking of a bunch of air-filled balloons or something like that, like in the Andy Warhol Museum. :) I know this is not what I'd do if I had that room, but it just poppped in my head.

I like the mural idea... I you have a green thumb - and are up to watering schedules- how about some plants that require much sunlight? You could have some fake greenery - not much - and it wouldn't be cheesy- there's some nice stuff (silk flowers, peacock feathers etc) to be had.
You could go the other way and make it a SUPER "dead room" - goth/halloween themes (not orange and black tho). Could work , tho maybe not for long term...Okay, I must be kidding to suggest this!
ceiling fan, light dimmer, some plants... life, and movement, and reasons to go into the room regularly....

... I meant "some plants that don't require much sunlight..."