Small Spaces, Big Ideas

How to make small living rooms look bigger

Fake soaring ceilings
Rooms seem taller when the walls and ceiling are painted a continuous color. In the picture, an airy white shade camouflages the living area's decidedly 8-foot-6-inch height—especially when contrasted with the dark floor.

Let there be (natural) light
Windows look much cleaner when they're not cluttered up by curtains and valances. The sunshine bounces off the walls and tiles for an expansive, mirrored effect.

Choose convertible furnishings
By folding down the back and arms of the day bed, you can turn a rainy-day movie-watching perch into a comfy guest bed.

Don't forget flooring
Another trick in order to make the space feel larger is laying tile diagonally from corner to corner. The tactic highlights the condo's longest axis instead of chopping up the floor plan into individual rooms.

Entertaining in a Small Space

If you have been avoiding to hold a party or a dinner because your house is small, think again. Read the following tips and send out the invitations to your friends already.
* Start by clearing the clutter from the room.

* Tuck your kitchen appliances away in cabinets, or think up creative ways to hide them.

* Push back or remove furniture from the room to provide more floor space for your guests.

* Use a coffee table or other low table for dining.

* Throw pillows are a great seating solution when you're short on chairs.

* Utilize your bedroom by pushing the bed up against the wall, covering it with fabric, and adding some pillows. Instant seating!

* Limit your color scheme to two or three colors that look good together.

* Keep your menu simple—this is not the time for elaborate menus.

* Serving food buffet-style is easy for you and your guests—no fussy place settings!

Floor Plans

Think big
Borrowing one square foot from the living room and another from the bedroom enabled Greg to create this dramatic, freestanding wall that defines both spaces and provides ample storage. Because "modern design can be cold," he says he built the unit with warm hemlock.

Lose the "entertainment center"
A flat screen mounted on the wall looks slick and eliminates the need for a TV stand or armoire.

Construct a secret electronics stash
This cabinet hides an otherwise cluttered cache of DVDs and A/V equipment—including a 400 CD-changer. The speaker cloth allows sound and infrared (from remote controls) to pass through.

Bedrooms

Embrace built-ins
The design for this side of the room divider serves as both a vast headboard and a place to stockpile books or other items. It also lends the room a clutter-free appearance.

Allow for circulationWhen your bed is this low, you can get away with having really narrow walkways adjacent to it. This queen-size version features a 6-inch ledge that can be used as a sitting.

Kitchen and Dining

Embed lighting
This deceptively simple stainless-steel arc make it possible to add task lighting to an area with impenetrable concrete ceilings.

Build a space within a space
The wraparound structure also carves out a dining area from an entryway not much larger than a coat rack. It creates an entirely new room—and the bead-blasted surface doesn't show fingerprints.

Defy gravity
This is a cantilevered eating area that would allow free-flowing movement (and room for one or two additional guests), so this bar is created that doesn't require the usual support legs.

Living Small, loving it

Small-space dwellers Jay Shafer, Jack Sammis, Jane Mount and Maxwell and Sara Kate Gillingham-Ryan each utilize some of the following ways to make the most of their tiny abodes.

* Get rid of items you don't need or don't love so you can focus on the things you do love.

* Maximize storage space by designating a place for every belonging.

* Personalize your home with things you love that represent who you are.

* Make a room look bigger by painting all the walls white.

* Create ambient light by replacing doors with curtains and lighting a closet from within.

* Organize your space so you fit in 90 percent of everything and have 10 percent open. If you have openness, the world will bring more to you!

* Make the most of outdoor space—whether it's a small garden, patio or front yard.

* Build up! Create customized cabinets that go from floor to ceiling.

Source - Oprah.com