Small Space Decorating

While they may be adorable, a lot of tiny houses are just not very practical. Most are built on trailer bases so you have to find someplace to park them, and hook them up to utilities, and many cities don’t allow them, due to minimum size restrictions. Plus, there’s often the hassle of climbing up a ladder to get into bed.

When Robert and Samantha Garlow of Shedsistance designed and built their tiny home in the woods of Yakima, Washington, they created a super cool small space with an impressive amount of room for all of their outdoor gear. Fast forward a few months and they have to make room for another form of adventure: parenthood. The couple spent about $30,000 building the 24-foot long, eight-foot-six-inch-wide, 13-foot-five-inch-tall home.

Fake a larger room through the magic of paint, people!

You’ve probably heard of the site Dormify, but didn’t consider giving it a second glance because, well, you’re not in college anymore. However, considering the brand’s well-curated selection of decor for small spaces, it’s just as ideal for the urban dweller as it is for collegiate dorm rooms. Check out some of our highly covetable finds below. This black-and-white Scandi-inspired pillow sham will take your bedding game to the next level.

If you live in a small space, chances are that your kitchen is also equally diminutive. As you can see, my particular kind of tiny rental kitchen is of the single wall variety, with a paltry two cabinets width of counter to speak of. While that (and the single outlet) mean I have to cull the clutter and keep appliances elsewhere when not in use, even when the counter is cleared, that’s not a ton of space to work with if you’re trying to cook a meal.

By New York City standards, my bedroom is huge, which basically means it’s the size of a walk-in closet in the Midwest. But I’m a card-carrying member of the “fake it till you make it” club, and fortunately, it doesn’t take much to make a small sleep space look bigger. It’s all about fooling the eye and really is as simple as this: Don’t overcrowd your furniture, which should be appropriately-sized for your room in the first place.

In a small space, every inch counts. There’s quite literally no room for frivolous decor items that don’t also provide a function. But the items in this post—spotted in real homes from recent house tours—are hardworking and good looking. Melina Peterson’s 300-square-foot New York studio apartment is not just small, it’s an odd shape.

I’ve been living in small spaces for almost a decade so I have my fair share of tricks for dealing with the lack of room. And lately, I’ve been writing about small spaces a lot too, which requires asking different decorators for their ideas. I usually get annoyed when the pros all say the same thing.

‘Tis the season for holiday decorating! Year after year, I find myself wanting to spend a small fortune on mini trees, lights, and all things festive. But after the first year of going all out in my apartment, I had to pull back. Because there are only so many places you can add cheer to in 600-square-foot apartment, that is, without stumbling over faux reindeer or worse, blowing a fuse.

We could all learn a lesson in restraint from the tactful ways these tiny house and small space dwellers work farmhouse features into their overall decorating schemes.

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: Having a tiny house doesn’t mean you have to abandon all signs of style and personality in your place. Nay—you can be what I’d like to call a mini-maximalist, and as long as you do this strategically, you can pull it off with flying colors. Don’t believe me? That’s okay. Because I’m ready to state my case with some house tour proof.

One of the most perplexing things about moving into a new place, especially a small place, is where to put the furniture. This apartment, with its curving wall of windows, presented a unique challenge. How do you create both a bedroom and a living space (and maybe a dining room and a study, too) in a place that’s so small, and so unusually shaped? We went to the drawing board to come up with a few ideas. First, an intro: This is an advice column.

As apartments get smaller, traditional furniture becomes less likely to fit in—literally. As cities trend toward micro apartments in the realm of 300 square feet or under, multifunctional pieces are not just nice, but necessary to create a functional space in such a small footprint. Luckily, the geniuses at MIT Media Lab and Yves Béhar teamed up to create Ori Systems, a freestanding unit that’s essentially an entire apartment in a box.

Name: Kittie and Lotus Blossom (her Shih-Tzu)Location: Tudor City, Midtown East, ManhattanSize: 170 square foot studio coopYears lived in: 5 years Original 1928 Pullman kitchen and Murphy bed Kittie and her husband pulled out the original Murphy bed and the original Pullman kitchen in order to create a small office nook and a modern kitchen counter, bar and sink area, respectively.

A good over-the-door organizer can be a game-changer when you aren't working with a ton of storage space.

Everything you need to get the look of some of our most popular spaces.

For the design on this off-the-grid Midwest residence, Midland Architecture’s Greg Dutton opted to stay close to his familial roots. The 650-square-foot home known as The Hut sits in the Ohio Valley on the family’s property, which they’ve owned and worked for the last four decades. To bring the project to fruition, Dutton enlisted the help of his brother Chris, other relatives and a group of friends.

It doesn’t matter if you were playing with your American Girl Dolls, doodling in a coloring book, or racing a stylish set of Hot Wheels, one thing’s for sure: A child’s playroom is so, so much more than a room. It’s a place where kids can foster their creativity and, well, be kids. Chances are, you probably have some pretty wonderful memories if you were lucky enough to have your very own childhood playroom.

In a quiet East Austin neighborhood, newly-constructed homes sit side-by-side with the time-weathered structures in need of a fresh coat of paint, homes where overgrown grass reaches out to touch the cracked sidewalks. But, along with the apparent signs of gentrification, there is also something quite unexpected hiding behind a fenced-in backyard: the first permitted 3D-printed house in the world.

Thanks to the evolution of residential spaces, the term “house-hopping” has gained an alternate meaning. Case in point: Berlin startup Cabin Spacey’s prefab tiny houses. Singularly known as the Minimal House, the conservatively-sized structures are designed to accommodate so-called “urban nomads” who are in search of instant housing.

With more and more people committed to adopting a nomadic lifestyle, the case for making permanent living spaces out of campers continues to grow stronger. Recently, we’ve seen a family of four living in a Mercedes sprinter van and even received an up close and personal look at this newlywed couple who transformed a retro van into a cozy tiny home to travel cross country.

Name & Location: Nicolas in Florida My Favorite Room: Bedroom Specs: 100 Square Feet What did your bedroom look like when you were 16 years old? If you were anything like me, it had walls covered in posters, a floor covered in piles of clothes and a mix of furniture from when I was a kid. To say this teenager’s room impresses me is an understatement! From Nicolas: I gained an interest in vintage Mid-Century furniture about two years ago when I was around 14 or 15 years old.

ICYMI: Living in a small space isn’t all Instagrammable tiny houses or fun D.I.Y. projects from Pinterest. Sure, small spaces offer the unique challenge of maximizing your design chops in a teeny, tiny space, but the truth is it can be really frustrating. Not only do you have to find sneaky ways to make your small space look bigger, but you also have to figure out clever ways to store your stuff without turning it into a cluttered mess. But hitting the refresh button on your small home?

Think you just don’t have room for an area rug? We’re not so sure. These tiny houses prove that even the smallest of homes can benefit from a bold rug, whether you prefer something plush or are drawn to colorful kilim. Take a peek at these beautiful setups; we guarantee you won’t look at your bare floors the same way again. No room for a coffee table? Try placing a rug in front of the sofa instead. It’ll add extra warmth and encourage guests to plop down as they please.

Once upon a time, hearing the word “cabin” instantly prompted images of a primitive dwelling that required its occupants to rough it in the absence of modern home staples including electricity, running water and decor. Thanks to the abundance of luxe glamping sites, that outdated notion has been turned completely on its head. The latest eye-catching small space to pop up on our radar is this tiny cabin in a Brazilian forest, which appears just as alluring as it sounds.

According to the experts.

Allswell has become known for their luxury “bed-in-a-box” mattresses that are new to the saturated market and have already made some serious noise. As of today, the Walmart brand launched another risky but bold endeavor to stand out in the home space: selling their own custom-made tiny houses.

Even the most novice designer understands how easily vibrant colors can make a rather huge impact on their surroundings, and there’s no clearer example of this concept than Magenta, a bright pink tiny home on wheels. Joshua Woodsman of Pin-Up Houses designed the eye-catching residence, which measures a mere 66 square feet and is built atop a flat trailer for those who are perpetually consumed by wanderlust.

The design partnership that encouraged us to farm in our homes are back with yet another innovative home goods product, and you’ll probably want to take the news lying down—in bed, that is. Perhaps that will help you to better visualize the functionality behind British designer Tom Dixon and IKEA’s customizable bed. The aluminum modular bed marks the second offering from the DELAKTIG line, whose inaugural release was the sleek hackable sofa with interchangeable cushions.

It's a smart house that encourages "right sized" living.

In addition to the highly popular #vanlife movement, there’s another vehicle-turned-home trend bringing out creative builders by the truckload. To date, we’ve seen a garbage truck converted into a living space, various school busses turned into homes, and a fire truck transformed into a vacation home. Joining the list of these super original homes-on-the go is the Lorry, an army truck tiny house built by couple Tom and Sophie.

If you thought this cozy home might be taken from the pages of “Sleeping Beauty,” you aren’t too far off. Inspired by designs straight from fairy tales, “The Winckler” incorporates its natural surroundings through its shell made of locally sourced materials. The roof is made of split cedar shakes and the frame is constructed from timber, and inside is home to a stone fireplace that keeps the space warm in the wintertime.

When the typical city dweller yearns for a break from the traffic, crowds, noise, and light pollution, some of the most immediate forms of relief can come by hopping on a quick flight to a remote, quiet destination, or packing up the car for a weekend road trip. But when California couple Jeff Waldman and Molly Fiffer faced this familiar conundrum, they decided on a more permanent solution.

If you’re looking for the best way to maximize a one-bed or studio, here’s an unexpected source: New York City real estate agents, who are in and out of these small apartments all day long. Here, seven of the smartest real world small-space hacks these agents have ever seen. “The sweetest thing I’ve seen in a one bedroom was in the home of a single mom who had a trundle mattress underneath her four poster bed.

Of all the ways to become one with nature, a pretty straightforward path to convene with Mother Earth is by living in a forest. For some, it may sound like quite an outlandish proposal but this off-the-grid, open-air cabin in the mountains Panama makes the thought much more palatable. To bring the project known as Cabin 192 to fruition, architect Jose Isturaín of JIA enlisted the help of family members, friends, and area builders.

For those who have small living rooms, picking out paint colors can be a little tricky. On the one hand, painting the whole room white can open up the walls and make the small room feel a little more airy. On the other hand, limiting yourself to just one stark color can put a cramp on some people’s creativity.

If you compulsively follow #TinyHouse and #TinyLiving on social media or consider yourself a full-fledged follower of the Tiny House Movement, it can be easy to forget that tiny houses aren’t just a social media phenomenon. It can be hard to remember that people actually live in these teeny, tiny spaces. Truth is, it can be a wonderful way to have the house of your dreams—without spending a fortune. Of course, tiny houses aren’t all Instagram likes and easy, breezy living.

How do you make an home that measures just 484 square feet seem positively palatial? In the case of this Amsterdam apartment, the answer is: with really smart use of vertical space. Heren 5 architects, the designers behind this very modern pad, have managed to fit in a living room, dining room, kitchen, lofted bedroom, and even a walk-in closet and a hidden second bed.

This is how we "play" American Girl Dolls as adults.

As someone who lives in just 570 square feet with no closets, I’ve come to know a thing or two about storage; when you don’t have it you deeply appreciate it. Chances are, whether you live in a tiny house, a small apartment in a crowded city, or a dorm room, the same is true for you. You also probably don’t think of a walk-in closet as a realistic amenity ready and waiting to walk into your life at any moment—but well, that’s where you’d be wrong.

We shared our favorite tiny houses sourced straight from Instagram, but now it’s time to give our micro properties on Pinterest a little bit of lovin’, too. Since Pinterest is where visual imagery comes to life in the form of shareable pins, it only makes sense that a hub of beautiful tiny homes would exist on its platform.

With the abundance of tiny homes cropping up every day, constructing a stand-out residence requires more and more creativity, and designers appear to have an endless supply of it. The latest adorably small house we’re crushing on is this moss-adorned cabin designed by Jacob Witzling, the same builder who had us wanting to permanently camp out in his whimsical tiny house on a truck bed.

Snap out of it!

When I was little, my sisters and I had a pop-up Barbie camper, and I thought it was the coolest thing in the world. This real-life camper is just like that, right down to the kitchen in a slide-out drawer—and unlike the Barbie version, it can be ready to go in just 30 seconds. This one, called the iCamp, is a design of Dutch company Udo Camp. Making Barbie’s camper move-in ready required painstakingly fitting together a series of teeny-tiny connectors and support poles.

They say good things come in small packages—and fans of the tiny house movement seem to agree. More and more people are giving up typical homes (and typical mortgages) and choosing the pared-down experience of living in small prefab homes—but that doesn’t mean sacrificing luxury or comfort. Here are five examples of prefab homes that pack a ton of upscale amenities into tiny spaces.

With the cold weather comes the opportunity to snuggle up to the fireplace, cuddle under a fleece blanket, and cradle a hot cup of tea for the entire day (or entire season, whatever your availability allows.) And what better place to do that than in the comfort of a snug tiny cabin? In short, these micro wooden wonders that we speak of are tiny houses with a rustic twist. Think log cabin, but shrunken down a size (or two).

When I moved from a two-bedroom townhouse in Houston to a 250-square-foot studio apartment in New York, I was ready to do without. What I didn’t know, at the time, was what that would look like. I was all idealism, sure that I could blaze new trails, go bravely without things many Americans couldn’t imagine giving up. Three years in, this is what the reality of that transition looks like.

Living in a small space sometimes isn’t as fun as all those Instagrammable tiny houses make it look. With square footage at a premium, smaller apartments and houses come with their unique hurdles that make it challenging to decorate your space. Where are you supposed to put all your clothes? How do you fit an entire dining room into an area that’s as big as most people’s closets?

Going directly head to head with low-cost, eco-friendly temporary housing from the likes of IKEA, Italian production company WASP (World’s Advanced Saving Project) has just debuted a $1,000 3D printed tiny house—and it’s made of materials as old as civilization itself.

If you didn’t already know, tiny campers are having a major comeback. And the Droplet Trailer—a modern camping pod inspired by traditional models—is further proving that notion to be valid. Constructed around a queen-sized bed that comfortably sleeps two, this mini-camper embodies Scandinavian design that is seen through its minimalist approach. With a wood interior and aluminum composite exterior, the 950-pound Droplet is “bright, spacious, and robust.

At first glance, Jacob Witzling’s tiny truck cabin makes you think of what the Weasley’s wonky home (aka the ever-chaotic Burrow) would look like if the wizards shrunk their family residence, then hauled it around on the back of an old pickup. (Honestly, Witzling’s tiny design still looks that way after staring at it for a bit longer.

Do you ever walk into a stylish space and mentally try to decipher storied or custom pieces from those that were shipped in a flat pack from IKEA? That’s a cool game to play, right? IKEA, arguably Sweden’s finest contribution to the 20th and 21st century (I kid…?), has become a mecca of sorts for the broke-twenty-something-who-has-no-furniture folk to the high-caliber tastemaker fold, and for good reason: there is literally something for everyone.

Backyard sheds are all the rage right now. They provide convenience for homeowners who have hobbies, but don’t have the square footage to bring their vision to life indoors. For avid readers, the image of a perfect home includes an elaborate library; fully stocked with first edition novels and a rolling ladder for easy access.

Plus, smart tips for making the most of these often sterile spaces.

Tiny house enthusiasts should be more than willing to take a gander at Tiny Heirloom’s latest compact custom home. The stylish dwelling known as the Goose is the latest in the brand’s non-custom Signature Series. Constructed on a gooseneck trailer, the Goose comes equipped with off-the-grid technology and is available in three different versions that range from 31 feet to 37 feet long and measure 8 feet wide and 13.6 feet in height.

Book stacks, begone.

Once an alternative living solution, tiny homes are now firmly in the mainstream. Their minimalist and functional designs have become inspiration for apartment dwellers and owners of larger homes alike. You know the look—bright white walls, creative storage solutions, multipurpose furniture, and as much natural light as possible. It’s an undeniably effective way to style a small space, but it’s starting to feel a little bit cookie cutter.

Le Koroc is a floating paradise designed for enjoying summer lake life in Canada with minimal impact on the environment—handcrafted from the ground up (or pontoon base up, anyway) to help its owner “explore nature differently” with a solar-powered, off-grid vessel that’s half fishing boat and half luxury tiny house. Crafted entirely by hand by a Canadian woodworker on a pontoon base, this is a tiny home for the lake-lover in all of us.

When the thought of a wooden retreat comes to mind, it immediately accompanies images of solitude and a discrete place that blends in with its surroundings. However, this modern tiny house in upstate New York meets at least half of those criteria due to its bold structure that allows it to stand out against a natural backdrop.

If you’re anything like me, your Instagram feed over Memorial Day Weekend was filled with FOMO-inducing photos of friends camping out in nature’s splendor across the country—whether shot from the rear windows of a camper van or RV or from within the confines of a glamping resort. ‘Tis the season to rusticate and sleep under the stars, and these tiny glamping pods are the new objet d’envy.

Since exotic beach getaways are always high on the priority list (or at least, they should be), here’s a Greek rental house that you’re sure to swoon over. Listed on Glamping Hub, the dreamy ocean-facing tiny house is an hour and a half drive from Thessaloniki on a private beach in Paliouri, Chalkidik, also known as Halkidiki. The exclusive spot promises views of the Aegean Sea and soothing scents of pine.

Here to help you make the most out of your mobile lifestyle is Santa, Barbara, California-based startup Living Vehicle, an all-aluminum towable trailer. At 212 square feet, the tiny space provides enough leg and sleeping room for six people, plus it’s pet-friendly and comes with a lithium ion-powered solar system that allows it to go completely off-the-grid.

Equal parts charming and eclectic is a most fitting description of this Old Time Caravan from father-son building duo Nick and Aaron Troisi, jointly known as The Unknown Craftsmen. The team constructed the tiny house caravan at the request of a former client who wanted an entirely self-sustaining space. The caravan’s distinct personality shines through in its design features, which include a curved roof, custom woodwork, and round windows.

Here at Apartment Therapy, we write about tiny houses a whole lot. Sometimes, I find myself wondering if we’ve reached peak tiny house. Are these adorable little dwellings on wheels just glorified trailer homes? Are they destined for the pages of Craigslist in a few years, once the mania dies down? Or are they a reflection of a cultural shift in the way we look at our homes, where bigger isn’t always better?

The trend of tiny living is well, huge. Whether it’s municipalities looking to solve affordable housing crises, or individuals looking to live a simpler life in the woods, tiny homes seem to be the answer to nearly every question these days. Now the tiny living phenomena has inspired equally tiny, yet incredibly functional and beautifully designed, kitchens for modern living.

The multifunctional built-ins are just the beginning.

The latest tiny dwelling from New Frontier Tiny Homes just might inspire you to downsize – and write a few best-selling books in the process. Named the Cornelia after internationally renowned children’s author Cornelia Funke, the tiny house serves a three-in-one purpose as a writing studio, guest house and library. In addition to being comfortable and cozy, the Cornelia also features luxe design elements and amenities, a staple of New Frontier’s tiny homes.

When I saw the pictures of this apartment I immediately knew who the designer was, because only one person could make an apartment this small look this good. Parisian designer Marianne Evennou specializes in turning tiny apartments into tiny, perfect jewel boxes, and this little space, measuring a mere 18 square meters (or 194 square feet) is no exception. When you walk in the apartment’s front door, the first space you enter is the hallway.

The incredible thing about super small homes is their genius isn’t limited to their square feet. A space might be tiny, but it can teach you a lot. Constraint sparks creativity, after all. All of these homes are 400 square feet and under…and the folks who live in them have advice to share.

Any way you slice it, 269 square feet is just not a lot of space. But thanks to a clever design, and lots of smart storage solutions, this small Japanese apartment manages to fit in everything that’s needed for living comfortably—and look good doing it. Here’s how. Open shelving can be a nice way to display your stuff, or keep things you need within easy reach, but it’s not always the best choice for small spaces.

When furnishing a small space, it would seem to make sense to pick pieces that are small. After all, you don’t want to overwhelm the room with bulky, oversize furniture. But there’s one big exception: the sofa. In most living rooms, the sofa is the biggest piece of furniture, and the biggest design statement, and a larger sofa (that still fits comfortably in the room, of course) can help to visually expand the boundaries of the space.

Tiny houses are charming, and a great way to simplify and streamline your life—but the tradeoff, for many tiny house designs, is having to struggle up a ladder at night to reach your tiny peaked loft bedroom. Forget where you are in the morning, and you may just whack your head on the tiny adorable roof of your tiny adorable home. But the Escher, a creation of New Frontier Tiny Homes, takes a different approach: it has a bedroom you’d actually want to wake up in.