Decorating & Design
February 23, 2023
10+ Great Ideas To Maximize Your Small Space
Short on square footage? You don’t need a big footprint for great design. These homeowners and designers got creative by using every inch of space in their compact homes. Scroll down for clever design ideas that will inspire you to get the most out of your small space.
This bi-level Alberta lakehouse didn’t have enough space for a formal dining table or breakfast room, so the designers got creative in the hardworking kitchen. They installed a long island with seating on either side to accommodate group dinners and a curvy breakfast bar with lake views for casual meals.
Floating shelves are hidden behind an arched hood, an ideal spot for overflow kitchenwares and accessories.
A rolling library ladder leads to a rooftop lookout in this 910-square-foot Vancouver Island duplex.
This kitchen features a slim, freestanding island that was custom-built with hooks and a rod to store the family’s collection of pots and pans.
An office space located off the kitchen is tucked under the stairs of this coastal-inspired home. “Their style is a little boho, and they wanted their house to stand out from others in their Coronado neighborhood; something different, modern and eclectic,” says designer Mariana Postlethwaite.
“This was our first time doing a banquette off of an island, and it allowed us to make room for a kitchen table,” says design firm Collective Studio. “If you look closely, we added a mitered lip on the counter which is a clever way to avoid spills on the banquette.”
Alison Mazurek of 600sqft.com navigates living small with a family of four. “This Italian wall bed, where Trevor and I sleep, was an investment, but it’s allowed us to stay in our one-bedroom home,” she says. Tour their 660-square-foot Vancouver home here.
Her kids’ bunk beds also fold up into the wall, freeing up space on the floor for a play area.
If you don’t have room for a designated laundry room, take cues from this multitasking kitchen corner where full-height cupboards conceal a pullout pantry and stacked washer and dryer.
In this romantic guest room, custom cabinets create a niche for the bed, which can be flipped up against the wall and hidden behind lace drapery.
In this kitchen, unused space between the island and pantry turned into a dining nook for a family to gather. “I’m obsessed with function, so we started there,” says designer Olivia Botrie. “Beautiful kitchens are great, but they need to be hardworking.”
“I’m always a sucker for a banquette because you can have storage in the bottom,” says Olivia.
In his renovation of a 350-square-foot pool house, architect Chris Sanders built vertically to take advantage of the unused attic space. “We wanted everything to co-exist: It can go from being a kid’s space to a locale for parties and family gatherings, so everything had to serve a variety of functions,” he says.