I love all these "small spaces" stuff. I live in just under 1000 sq. feet in Chicago and thought I had a small space?!?!?! Wow!!!

I definitely agree with all of the advice above! In a small space, being in love with every single piece you own truly brings a great energy to your apartment.

I also think that mirrors help make a home feel more open as well as multi-tasking pieces like the Ikea Expedit bookshelf--which can divide space but also hold an amazing amount of stuff. I also love DIY projects that give the home a special feel--I took a bunch of cheap plastic toys, spray painted them gold and now use them as a table centerpiece. It creates a cool look without spending a lot of cash.

How I Waste Time

great tips! I have 2:

1/ create spaces/ buy furniture that can multitask. In my apt, the dining room doubles as the conference room (I'm live/work), the living area doubles as the guest room, and my work station is actually built into a coat closet.

2/ think about how a piece of furniture may be used, despite its name or intended function. A wire baking rack might be great in your bathroom; an old card-catalogue could make a great tv stand and provide additional storage; etc.

Incorporate double duty pieces - storage ottomans, chest coffee tables, small dressers for nightstands. Many of these can be pretty, expand storage and provide a surface for drinks or lamps.

"I like the rule if you can't eat it, it doesn't come into the apartment." (Bill Goes All Black) However, if you have kids, they will find a way to bring in all that junk. And husband has strong feelings about any 'thing' he's ever interacted with. We now have an instax mini camera that sits on the shelves with our family photos. When an item is in dispute (meaning I want to sell, toss, or recycle it and the kids need to keep it), we take a photo and stick the photo in a book, where they get to write a small eulogy about it. Then it goes out. You'd be amazed how this small project has taught them to view what is special and what is not. At first they wanted to keep the stick their lolipops were on, now we can happily toss all the sticks we gather on our walks back out into the yard on the way home.

Good post for someone like me who shares less than 1,000 square feet with my husband and pooch. thanks!

Great points, and I totally agree with Nicole. Have fun buying something that can make your space be exactly what you want it to be and not what's on every showroom floor. That's why I love my duobed set -- fits in a tiny space and converts in a second from couch to chairs to bed. Throw on a couple of my handmade quilts and it's really my space my way!

@ slocumnavigator : i love the idea of a "eulogy" book for items to go byebye. as a self-proclaimed packrat, i know tht smtg has to give! i am def going to give ur method a try. thanx!

These are some of my all-time favorite tiny homes; great advice all around. If I could get Paul to come work on my place, I'd be thrilled.

Keep things moving. I used to live on 170 and then 220qf for a couple years and it's so easy to forget about stuff you 'organized out of sight' too well.

A friend of mine loves to 'play' moving to clean out and then completely redoes her room (moving furniture and pics around and fresh paint every other year or so)

When I bought my home, a question that seems so clear and obvious rose to the top, but I rarely see anyone ask on this site: what do I want to do in my home? It drastically changed the way I looked at the spaces I was choosing from. People want to rush in and decorate rather than design. I planned for flexibility, because I knew that things in my life may change. I don't have the perfect home, but I love it. And it has actually served to change my life rather than simply exist as a beautiful home. And, it is quite beautiful, if I do say so myself.

How is Roy's advice relevant to living in small spaces? It just sounds like snobbery.

Storage. Storage. Storage!

I live in 680 square feet and with the exception of my bed (because I haven't found one I like) every piece of furniture provides additional storage. I have a Tansu step chest that's 8 feet long and stores all of my games, art supplies, office supplies, wrapping paper etc., an armoire that stores extra dishes, candles, serving pieces, a small tool box and also serves as a bar, bedside tables with drawers and storage, 2 dressers... even my ottoman stores extra linens for guests.

When you live in a small space, anything that serves double duty is a MUST!

My advice (I live in 560 sq ft).
Carry your measurements with you, I keep mine in the phone. If you have several items to get or spaces to fill keep the measurement on you so if you come across something you know if its gonna work or not. This is more important if your actively working on your space and have many nooks to fill.
Also with small spaces I have learned to be flexible with my ideas...my place has turned out to look nothing like imagined.

450 sq ft here! i would say the most helpful advice from my personal day-to-day experience is along the lines of advocating general cleanliness: sweep, straighten, organize... you can only put something away if it has a place to go, and if it doesn't have a place to go? pitch it. then you really don't need so much space, and you only live with the furniture and "stuff" you really use and enjoy.

though by "pitch" i actually mean "ship to your little sister who just got her own first apartment."

I had to laugh as l look around our cluttered 1200 square foot house (think building supplies and plans.) See we are in midst of adding footage to our smallish home because we are cramped. I loved the size of our home but with three between the age of 11 and 17 plus a huge dog and the occasional out-of-town house guests we needed breathing room. Having multipurpose furniture is truly a blessing and only bringing in what we love helps too. Recently we have instigated the bring ONE in and take TWO out policy which has proven to help eliminate the pack-rat syndrome of certain of our children. The eulogy book will be a wonderful idea to implement to help further!

400! One tiny piece of advice. I live in a small apartment but with full size appliances. Because I live alone I don’t have a tonne of groceries lying around. All of my food is now the fridge, I’ve invested in some nice stackable Tupperware and glass jars, and I have reclaimed very nice open cupboard space that had looked like a mess when all it held was torn-open bags and boxes. It makes a huge storage and aesthetic difference when the same old shelves are now a display area for my best dishes and utensils.

2 added benefits; 1. your fridge and freezer and much more efficient when full – points for frugality. 2. I buy my grains and flours etc. in bulk. I’m sure it’s happened to everyone but once I picked up a handful of these various plastic bags of stuff only to find them crawling with awful insects, I couldn’t eat for days. Things feel much safer in the refrigerator.

I live in 200sqft in San Francisco, what I have learned from living in such a small place.
1. I don't need a couch or a TV
2. Think--need not want. I need a place to sleep--check. A place to eat--check and a place to work--check. If you absolutely don't need it, then chuck it. (besides you don't have room for it anyway.

small spaces keep your spending down, so I took a month long trip to Europe last summer to make up for it :-)

Remember, many apartments have high ceilings so consider always going higher - putting your bed higher and having storage underneath, having wall to wall bookshelves with a ladder, trying to use "air space" as much as possible.

And I was amused to see a 650 foot apt listed here. That used to be the size of my old NYC place, and we had a family of 4 living there. I now live in SF but apartments are similarly sized here.

@slowartist: "When I bought my home, a question that seems so clear and obvious rose to the top, but I rarely see anyone ask on this site: what do I want to do in my home?"

YES. This is so true! Before I moved into my 290 sq foot studio, I stopped to think about what I really wanted to use my space for. I decided that a couch and TV were necessary, but a desk was not -- I don't work from home, and even when I had a desk in my previous apartment, I would bring my laptop over to the couch 90% of the time. So I bought a nice big TV stand that doubles as "desk" storage (part filing cabinet, part office supply storage) and a C-shaped side table that lets me use my computer from the couch.

So I guess my advice would be: think about what you want to do in your space, and use that as a starting point. The answers will be different for everyone. And don't buy a piece of furniture just because you think every apartment needs x, y and z.

350 square feet - NY City - my rule: Do not feel like you have to fill every square inch of space on the floor, walls, ceiling. Keep colors in the same hues - dark or light - so there is less contrast and you'll still have visual interest without breaking up the space. Continually edit your posessions - invest in a storage unit if you must so you are not tripping over things you do not need often (like those of sentimental value or family heirlooms that you do not want to part with). If you really aren't using stuff, find someone who can use it and give it away. You need less than you think you do!

1,000 sq ft.....such luxury! I live within 425 sq. ft. one bedroom tri-plex, next year I am moving to a new building which will be only 300 sq. ft......So I need all the good ideas I can get.

Loved all of the advice from those who posted, and others. So true about bringing measurements with you...even floor plans. Furniture always looks different in the store than it will in your place. I would add that one should always think 3-dimensionally and consider the scale of pieces - size relative to space.

Re: Roy's comments - although this may not be what he meant, it made me think of a couple recent experiences: I returned some clothes storage bags I had just purchased because the chemical smell coming from them was sickening. On the other end of the spectrum, I just got a bookcase that's made in Oregon, of 100% wood, from U.S. trees. We have become accustomed to diminished quality in many items, in my opinion, and the advice to take time to consider sources and materials is something that can serve us well.

I always ask myself, "Will this item help me in some way, or will it become dated and/or end up in the trash?" "Do I already own something that does the same job?" "Do I love it?" I live in a 950 square feet apartment with almost no storage, and I find that I never bring anything into my home that I don't absolutely love. I'm absolutely ruthless about what I keep (even if its a gift). Normally if I sit on impulses, until I find that the want for that item diminishes, and I'm able to use something in my home in a different way that I didn't think about before. When I do bring things in I have a rule: If something comes in, something has to go out.

We're blessed with a glorious 900 sq ft recently (up from 450) and my best advice is this- find SOME place in your apartment to leave empty. Even with all my wonderful, multiperpouse, heirloom quality furniture, my favorite thing about our new apartment is one square bit of floor between the dining and living areas where I could lay down and reach out with my arms and legs in any direction and not hit anything. That little patch of floor is the height of luxury to me (I'm short, so it is a little patch). Having it now, I wish I'd tossed out things in our old place. Very little functionality can match my joy from that breathing room, that moving room, that place for my eye to rest. I think our last place would have felt so much less like a cage if I'd found some way to create that patch of floor there. I never felt like I could move around freely there.

1000 sq feet for 2 people and a pet is not "small". We have 900 sq feet and three kids, and make it work fine. Keeping stuff/clutter to a minimum (totally do-able if you train your kids young!) is the key to making any space feel larger.

This is great! I love them all. "Great" spaces.

By the way, did anyone see this 90sq ft NY apartment? http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1372926/Felice-Cohen-describes-miniature-90ft-home-Is-Americas-smallest-apartment.html

That's teeny teeny tiny! :)

Great place! I love the idea of not bringing stuff into the house unless you can eat it. We (5 of us) live in an old school house of not quite 900 sq ft..and I always suggest (if someone asks!) to only buy me things that are edible..wine, dinner gift certif or something I can use like a movie card:) We just dont need so much stuff!

What great ideas and beautiful small spaces. I noticed not many comments mentioned wall decor. Small spaces require small art. I love purchasing small original drawings or paintings. I've alwasy noticed my guests always walk up to them and look closely. Small artworks draw people in. Whenever I purchase I new piece I really have to love it. I usually look at it several times before I purchase and now I love that painting everytime I look at it. So display with meaning - no how large or small your walls are.

Best all-around advice I've received and now put into practice:

Contrast makes for visual interest. Mix an antique with a modern or transitional piece. In a room full of the same period/style/fill-in-the-blank, individual pieces are lost.

Chose paint color last.

Install dimmer switches.

Choose a palette with five key shades: at least two neutrals, only one thematic, and two accents. One can always increase neutrals or accents, but work from the key shade palette so that additional colors are intentional and are selected for their "value add" in specific places.

Always buy lamps in pairs. Always.

Unless you have an unlimited budget, your most expensive purchases should be infintely flexible in your overall design. This might includes a sofa, a rug, or a piece of art. Flexible doesn't necessarily mean neutral; it means you can change other things and not fret about whether your investment pieces will still work.

Please, for the love of god, can somebody help me source the table from the first picture. This is the second time today that I have seen it, and I am in love. Must have.

I think small spaces are wonderful. Think organization. Buy and keep what you love.

You folks are amateurs!!! Lol! I lived for four years in a 150 square foot travel trailer! My rule-and it still holds true: One thing in two out.
Now I live in a huge 600 square feet with my teen age son and two tiny finches...and we are happy as clams!

@ JuliaMaeGrant : That is a Platner table. Google it. There are lots of sources. Knoll is the genuine article. Be prepared, they are not inexpensive.

Not accumulating stuff that you don't need is important whatever the size of your house. It just creates more work. There are so many elements in the bottom pic (Kens mixed media dream home) that I love. The table is so clever and I adore the tall slim floral artwork in the background.............. clicking on the link now. Thanks. :)

700 sq ft for 2 adults, 1 child. It's SPACIOUS compared to anywhere I've lived before. We're in StuyTown, so we have the exact same layout/dimensions as our neighbors, and guests who live here too are amazed at how BIG our place feels. It's because we just plain don't own much furniture. Not packing every available space with double-duty storage furniture lets us breathe a little. Now if I can train my daughter to let more toys go (she is great at finding new uses and games to play with old stuff), we'll have a giant apartment.

Just a brief comment on Roy's suggestion to buy originals and not knock-offs...I get what he's saying but some of us do live in small spaces because of limited resources and we can't all afford to buy an Eames chair for our space. I think we should absolutely draw inspiration from the great designers but if I can find a similar piece for 1/10 of the price, I'm going for it!

I live in a house that's just over 2,000 square feet, but since it's a 120 year old Victorian many of the rooms are small. There is also minimal storage, especially when it comes to closets. These are still useful ideas for a house this size!

Me and my husband live in a 450 sq ft apartment with no storage what so ever since the only closet was made into a bathroom. I used to put a lot of energy into finding good storage soloutions for our small home until I figured out that we didn't need more storage space. We needed less stuff. We used to have a huge bookcase that was always stacked with all sorts of things we just kept but didn't really need. So we got rid of it, and a lot of other storage too. Having less storage space made us more organized because before we buy something we need to think even more about where it should go. So, my best advice is to consider if you need more storage space. Or just less things :)

http://50kvadrat.blogspot.com/

I live in a spacious 125 square foot motorhome (plus overcab sleeping loft and exterior storage compartments). I have four rooms with real doors to separate them: a home office, a dressing room, a toilet room, and a combination kitchen/entrance/living room, plus the aforementioned loft. This is the most functional and uncluttered home I have ever had. My secret: having a vision of my ideal life and removing from my home anything that impedes achieving this vision. One of big part of this ideal life is being focused on experiences rather than stuff, so having less to maintain is a good start.

Three adults in an 865 ft. home. I'm not the best decorator, but my key to making it feel spacious is clear surfaces. Every counter I can leave empty (or with 1 well chosen item) adds 100 sq ft to my perceived room size. ^_^

I'm passionate with classic furniture!
Really like the environment created.
I've found on Behance a vintage lamps brands: http://www.behance.net/gallery/HERITAGE-Collection-Presentation/776418.
Take a look!
Thanks

does anyone have any information on the first picture in this post? i'm interested in finding out where the glass coffee table is from! thank you! ...i love apartment therapy!!

Always be editing and evaluating what you want the space to be. Doing it when you move in is great but lives and priorities change. And follow the BUM principle, everything has to be at least one of beautiful, useful or meaningful

We are a family of 5 plus one dog living in 1000 sq ft. I wouldn't have it any other way!

I agree that every piece has to serve double duty. Our end tables are wooden file cabinets. The small hutch's drawers make the piece great for storage and display. A buffet in the kitchen makes up for the lack of a pantry and cabinet space.

The way I keep my 850 ft apartment clutter-free is when something comes in, something's gotta go. @AmmoniteInk, I feel ya' on the having enough space to stretch out on the floor deal, it's nice to have that room. As far as Roy's advice is concerned: not everyone can buy the real deal, what you want to be concerned with is quality not whether or not it's the original. I've seen some knockoffs that were high in quality. You just have to know the hallmarks of quality in anything.