How to Take Advantage of a Small Space
How to Take Advantage of a Small Space
In August, we moved from our 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom apartment to a 1 bedroom with a den, 1 bedroom apartment. We downsized from 1,100 square feet to about 840 square feet. We knew going in that we would have to get rid of some stuff and that it would be a little tight. We also knew that organization was going to be key. So after we signed the lease, I got to work on figuring out how to take advantage of a small space we did have. I have broken this post up into sections, so you can read about each part of our (tiny) home based on what you are looking for.
I do want to point out that we have lived in a small space before. When we lived in South Carolina, when I very first started blogging, we lived in a 400 square foot loft style apartment. So I have some prior experience living in a smaller space! We love our new space and while it has taken some getting used to, it is just what we needed!
How to Take Advantage of a Small Space | Kitchen
I think the kitchen was the easiest space to organize. While we did go from having a MASSIVE pantry to no pantry at all, we do have a lot of cabinet space here. I used the baskets from our old pantry organization to help me use as much space as possible. The other thing I used was the wire shelves you can get at Target or Walmart that split up a shelf and give you more space. I love these for spaces that were holding bowls and plates that really could have been storing so much more. And now they are!
I decided that we were going to utilize the bar as much as possible. So we got 4 bar stools. This is where we eat, hang out and have people over. I love that it is the central part of our home. I also wanted a place to put Jackie's bottles/dishes/food so that I didn't have to go digging for it but still looked good. I love these drawers that I found at the Container Store. They are perfect for storing all of her stuff and they sit so nicely next to each other. It also worked out that I was able to put her high chair on top! We decided that this high chair was perfect for our space because it would sit on the counter without moving and when Jackie is older, we can strap it to one of the bar stools.
How to Take Advantage of a Small Space | Living Room & Office
These were probably the two hardest rooms for me to do. We struggled with where to set up the couches and the tv. We loved the floor plan of this apartment because it was so open in comparison to the other floor plans in our building. But it made furniture placement difficult. After lots of measuring and drawing out our options, this is what we came up with. I originally wanted the couches and tv where the office now is. But it would have been WAY too tight. But I love how close everything is to Jackie's play area so it worked out.
I knew that in order to keep our new place looking the way I wanted, we were going to need lots of shelving. So I measured, remeasured, researched and went to IKEA. Thanks to my favorite person Emma, we were able to find all the stuff I needed, and get it into the apartment. Just two of us and Jackie. Let me tell you, those boxes were HEAVY! Emma is the best!
The shelves in the office are my favorite. I love the style and they give a little more warmth to the space. I tried to use a lot of what we already had so I wasn't buying too much stuff, but I did get baskets that I loved from Target for all of the bottom shelves. We plan on living here for 2 years, which means Jackie will be crawling and walking here. To make sure that our new space looked the way I wanted, while also being baby proof I decided that the baskets were going to have things Jackie could play with. So her books, blankets and toys are scattered throughout the house. I love this concept right now. We will see how I feel when she is mobile! We did also set up a music corner in the office. The Husband has his keyboard & guitar and in the baskets are musical toys for Jackie.
How to Take Advantage of a Small Space | Bedrooms
Jackie's room was easy to organize. I had spent a lot of time getting her room ready before she arrived so we just downsized it to fit in the den. You can read all about the nursery reveal here.
Our bedroom was a little more difficult. We have an AMAZING closet that I will address in the next section but the bedroom itself isn't very big. We had to do a lot of measuring to figure out the best place for our dressers. My other hang up was our bed frame. Our old bed frame was a standard 14" and I was able to fit a lot of things under it. Because we lost the amazing closet space from our old apartment, I needed extra storage. I found this 18" bed frame and knew it was perfect. We loved how easy it was to put together and I was able to fit SO MUCH under it! This is the bed skirt I found that works with it.
How to Take Advantage of a Small Space | Closet
I had so much fun organizing our closet. I had done a massive clean out, so we were able to fit everything in, but it was a little tight. I found these collapsable shelves at Target, sadly they aren't sold there anymore. But they are great for purse/shoe/accessory storage! I then used the white bins from our closet reorganization to help make it look finished. The wire drawers are from the Elfa Closet organizers at the Container Store. I did add a hanging rod on my side of the closet so my shirts weren't as crowded.
How to Take Advantage of a Small Space | Bathroom
The washer & dryer are located in the bathroom, so it was really important to make sure everything was organized really well in this space. I found these great drawer organizers from The Container Store for the top drawers. I used plastic drawers I already had for under the sink. I love the floor to ceiling cabinet in this room. I really tried to utilize it so that we are storing extra toiletries and cleaning supplies in it. The very top shelf is where I keep all of Jackie's bath stuff.
RUBBERMAID INTERLOCKING DRAWER ORGANIZERS
How to Take Advantage of a Small Space | Shop the Post
Please let me know if you have any questions about how I organized everything! I'd love to hear about how you organized your own small spaces.
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