Space Saving Design Ideas for Furniture

Space-saving furniture is fast becoming a must-have in the modern world. For people living in small apartments in big cities or compact houses, making the most of the available space is the best way to create a comfortable and attractive home.

The best space-saving furniture is that which makes the best use of neglected areas. Innovative storage solutions fill otherwise overlooked nooks and crannies to leave the available floor space free for furniture.

The Benefits of Multi-Functional Furniture

Cleverly designed, multi-functional furniture serves more than one purpose, allowing you to make the most of every square foot of space available.

Nesting tables, folding furniture, beds that can be folded away to create more daytime space. Wall-hanging furniture and more all hold the key to creating a homely environment that has everything you need without feeling cluttered or overcrowded. 

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Innovative Beds

In a studio or smaller apartment, one of the best options for saving space is a Murphy bed. These beds can be lifted up into the wall during the day, when not in use, creating additional floor space during the daylight hours. Many of the modern designs can be folded in and out with ease, without requiring laborious bed-making chores each night.

Murphy beds come in all shapes and sizes and offer practical solutions for the daytime as well as somewhere comfortable to sleep at night.

A sofa bed is another option for saving space within a small apartment or home. There may also be space to fit in sliding plastic containers underneath, creating more storage to keeping clutter to a minimum.

Pop-Up Kitchens

Pop-up kitchens are one of the newer and more innovative ideas on the market. They are designed to make the most of the space available, without compromising on practicality.

Pop-up kitchens that can be compressed into a neat box or a variety of space-saving configurations after mealtimes and popped into a corner until needed again. Most include a fully working cooker top and stove, sink with running water, space for a microwave and even a dishwasher.

Utilizing Wall Space

Many households focus only on the available floor space when considering where to place furniture. Utilizing the wall space as well can save space and allow for multi-functional furniture that can be kept out of the way when not being used.

Space-saving ideas include folding chairs that can be hung from the walls. A series of colorful chairs folded flat and hung on kitchen wall can look stylish and have a practical purpose.

Other small space design ideas include tables that fold into the wall when not in use, wall-mounted ironing boards and free-floating office desks mounted on the wall.

Making the Most of High Ceilings

Loft apartments can have limited floor space, but many also come with the advantage of high ceilings. You can make the most of this height advantage in several ways by looking for innovative furniture solutions.

Elevated platforms with ladders can be used to create more storage space, a small home office or mezzanine guest bedroom.

A bunk-bed sofa offers seating by day and space for two guests to sleep over at night. High ceilings also generate opportunities to add storage for items that are not in everyday use, with overhead shelving or cabinets. Elevated bed frames create more floor space in a small bedroom, providing room underneath for a desk, chair, wardrobe and drawers.

Use the Stairs

Any dwelling with more than one story may have more hidden storage than you might think. Staircases are a wealth of unused nooks and crannies that can be put to good use with a little creative thinking.

Solid wooden staircases can be fitted with drawers under each step that can be pulled out and filled with household goods such as outdoor shoes, bedding and linens.

The space underneath the stairs can also be retrofitted to include spacious storage areas. These could be generously sized sets of drawers that pull out or static shelving and hanging space. Lining the sides of a staircase with narrow shelving could also provide a solution for a household with a love of books and minimal space for bookshelves.

Built-In Storage

Where the budget will stretch, investing in customized furniture to fit a smaller space can provide an innovative storage solution.

Even without customization, there are multiple items of furniture on the market that offer built-in storage as a side benefit.

These include beds with drawers that pull out from underneath, ottomans that provide linen storage underneath a comfortable bench seat and dining sets in which the chairs can be neatly stored underneath.

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Accessorize

As well as purchasing the best space-saving furniture, there are several tricks to make a smaller space seem bigger than it really is.

Innovative lighting solutions that banish dark corners can immediately make any room seem bigger. Natural light is best, so leaving windows uncovered where possible helps to generate a feeling of spaciousness. There are also many lighting products on the market designed to recreate the feel of natural light.

Mirrors reflect the image of the room and create the illusion of a larger space.

One large rug will make a room look bigger than several smaller rugs, particularly when the furniture is placed partially on the rug. This helps to unify clusters of objects and ground the space cohesively.

If you have household items that will not fit in your current layout but which you want to hold onto, a storage unit from CubeSmart provides additional storage outside the home.