Furniture For Small Spaces

Living room - Credit: iStockPhoto.com

With ever-climbing
real estate costs, the desire to live a more urban lifestyle and a decrease in family size, renting or owning apartments and condos is a reality for many people. Obviously, the square footage of these dwellings is significantly smaller than that of your parents’ five-bedroom house, so when you’re contemplating how to fill up your pad, you have to spend a lot of time considering how much space is available to you. What you don’t want to do, however, is sacrifice style for furniture you don’t really love simply because it fits in your place. That’s why we’ve decided to help apartment- and condo-dwellers by searching far and wide for fabulous furniture for small spaces.

To find out how to use your
furniture to make the most of a small room without neglecting aesthetics, read on.

Ikea Karlstad Sofa Bed - Credit: Ikea.comIkea Karlstad Sofa Bed

Chances are if you live in an apartment or condo, you may only have one bedroom. To increase the comfort of those who plan to crash at your place, a sofa bed is the most compact solution and the perfect type of furniture for small spaces. Ikea’s Karlstad model will add a touch of funky cool to your living room when you purchase it in a bright color like red or blue.

In addition to giving your home a style boost, this super-versatile sofa bed is a functional piece. Apart from being able to use it both as a sofa and a bed for two, it comes with a washable mattress pad and a removable cover you can
dry clean so it should remain in good condition even if you have a parade of visitors coming through your place.

Underneath the sofa you’ll find space for keeping pillows and quilts, so this piece can double as a storage area for your linens if your home is short on closet space. Lastly, Ikea offers a variety of covers for this item, so when you get bored of one color, just buy another set of covers to completely and instantly change the look and feel of your small space.

Puck nesting tables - Credit: CB2.comPuck nesting tables

Shelving that attaches to the walls along with tables that can be tucked away are your best friends when it comes to keeping stuff off your floor in a small space. This set of accent tables, available at CB2, can be used separately wherever you need an extra side table or two. The smaller table can be easily nested underneath the larger one when you need to clear out some space and make the room appear less cluttered.

Made and finished by hand, these simple but striking tables are useful and will infuse a modern minimalist style into any room they’re in. Plus, no matter what the current look of your abode, these tables are guaranteed to complement your existing furniture and any
interior decorating you may have already done.

Artelano Studio Eoos Collection Kitchen Table - Credit: UnicaHome.comArtelano Studio Eoos Collection Kitchen Table

With their Eoos collection, Artelano specializes in convertible designs, making this label one to take note of when shopping for furniture for small spaces. This sleek dining table with a white lacquered glass top is deceptively simple. Push one side up to evoke the feeling of a trendy café and save a good foot of space when you’re dining solo or when you’re throwing together an impromptu casual dinner for a visitor.

When you need to take things up a notch and do some entertaining or impress a girl with a
romantic meal, fold the table down and voila -- you instantly have a proper dining table. Alternately, expand this table when you’re hosting a party because it will easily accommodate stacks of glasses and plates in addition to all the nibbles you lay out, along with several bottles of liquor if you don’t have enough space to install a separate bar.

Broadway Condo-Sized Dresser - Credit: Overstock.comBroadway Condo-Sized Dresser

A dresser is a must if you live in a small space because less space overall usually means you don’t have many closets. Make more room for your clothes and avoid the problem of being unable to find anything in your closet by investing in a small dresser. This one from Broadway is specifically designed for condo-living. Style-wise, the smooth, polished, black finish on this wooden dresser will give your bedroom a subtly sleek lift.

Functionally speaking, with six drawers you’ll be able to store all your socks and underwear in this piece as well as garments that are best stored flat, like
cashmere sweaters. Use the top of the dresser to stack items you don’t have space for elsewhere in your room. When you have an overnight visitor, simply slip these items into one of the drawers and display accessories like a large candle on the dresser’s top to give a relaxed ambiance to your room.

Liberty Small Ottoman - Credit: Furniture.PriceGrabber.comLiberty Small Ottoman

An ottoman is more than a large cushion to put your feet up after a long day. It also makes your pad seem more like a home by imbuing your living room with cozy warmth, and it doubles as an extra seat when you’ve got a lot of guests. This pick from Liberty offers one extra advantage: You can lift the top to reveal a sizable storage space. Make use of this cleverly designed piece to store knick-knacks and tidy your place in a hurry or keep magazines, DVDs or video games here. While the exterior is designed to look like supple brown leather, it’s actually made from vinyl, so this ottoman is a snap to clean with a damp cloth, while having the look of a more luxurious piece.

tiny decor

Less cleaning and proximity to the city center are just a few of the benefits of living in a smaller space. The challenge if you’re an apartment or condo resident is to find furniture that doesn’t crowd your place but is also easy on the eyes. As you can see from our finds, stylish options of furniture for small spaces exist and you can even find pieces that do double duty as additional storage spaces. If space is an issue for you, hopefully now you’re inspired to seek out selections like these to create a more organized and roomy look for your place.
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