19 Impressive Hacks to Maximise Space in a Small Home

Maximise Space in the Living Room

Whether you’re looking to unwind for the evening, or host family and friends, follow these tips to make space in your living room:

1. Neutral colours, bigger space

Get your decorating cap on and give your living room a makeover. Go all white or choose other light neutral colours and pastels, like beige, cream or taupe. The trick is that when natural light hits these shades of colours, it fools the eye into thinking the space is larger and more open.

Keep the basis of the living room in a basic neutral colour and then use different textures and patterns to flesh it out. You can also choose a couple of other complementing colours to spice up the room’s decoration.

2. Invest in a wall-mounted TV

Nowadays having a TV can result in a huge waste of floor space (have you seen the size of them?!). Mount your TV to the wall instead and achieve a less cluttered look. A wall-mounted TV looks good above a fireplace (especially for cosy vibes) or above a chest of drawers.

3. Think multi-purpose storage

One of the best ways to maximise space in a small home is to purchase furniture pieces that have multiple purposes, or in other words, can be used in more than one way. Think trunks or ottomans which could be a storage solution as well as a table or seat.

4. Avoid bulky storage

When you do look for storage furniture for your living room, try not to go too big and bulky. Instead opt for minimalist pieces that don’t take up too much space, like floating shelves and built-in bookcases. There’s plenty more great ways to get creative when it comes to book storage, so see what works best for your space.

5. Exposed-leg furniture is the way to go

Create the visual of space with exposed-leg chairs, tables and shelving. They’ll give your small living room a spacious, open feel.

6. Go big with art

What piece of art would you like for your living room? Whatever it is, go big! A big art piece (we’re talking two-thirds of the wall or more!) can command a room, not only that, but it’ll make the space seem larger than it actually is too. It’s a handy trick, but a well-decorated room always lifts the mood too.

7. Large rug makes a large room

There’s a running theme here. Big.

Pick a big rug that fits under your furniture like the couch, table, cabinets etc. Believe it or not, it helps create the illusion of a larger space.

Maximise Space in the Kitchen

Home is where the food is. Well, that’s not how the saying usually goes… but a lovely, larger than life kitchen surely makes cooking a much more enjoyable experience.

1. Add light colours and furnishings

Similar to your living room, a small kitchen can benefit from a light and bright colour scheme. If you prefer to have pops of colour in your kitchen, keep the walls light and add colour to the furnishings and kitchen accessories.

2. Use overhead storage

Perfect for maximising space in your kitchen, overhead storage creates easy access (and storage) for things like pots, pans and utensils. You could also get magnetic strips to hang underneath your upper cabinets to hang your favourite mugs or spice jars.

3. Drawer organisers are the key to… organisation

Get your kitchen organised with drawer organisers. These are the ultimate hack! There’s a variety of organisers you can get. Some will help you organise cutlery, whilst others will organise dry goods. It’s also worth getting food storage containers and racks for things like snacks, spices and cereals.

4. Go retro

Go back in time and get yourself a retro-style fridge freezer. Modern kitchen styles love big, sleek appliances, but an older style definitely lends itself to smaller spaces. Slender and more compact, you could save yourself some critical space by going retro.

Maximise Space in the Bathroom

It’s quite a challenge to optimise the space in your bathroom, and let’s be honest, if you have a really small bathroom it will most likely feel like a daunting task. But these space hacks should help you out:

1. Say yes to floating sinks and vanity units

If it doesn't float, we don’t want it. Floating sinks, shelves and vanity units are perfect for small spaces because they take up very little space! A floating sink or vanity unit allows you to have cupboards or shelving underneath, filled with toiletries, makeup, electrical beauty appliances and more.

2. A mirror is a must

Adding a mirror is a great way to make any room in your home appear larger. As mirrors reflect light, it also helps to brighten up your space. The type of mirror you choose is completely up to you. From a big bathroom mirror, to a medicine cabinet with a mirrored front, both styles will help your quest for a bigger looking bathroom.

3. Swap the bathtub for a shower

If you’ve currently got a bathtub, you might want to consider getting rid of it and fitting a shower instead. The shower can take up a corner of the bathroom and you’ll have the rest of the space to do as you wish!

4. Use the back of the door for storage

Need space-saving storage in the bathroom? Use the back of the door! You can place a towel rail, put pegs on it or hang a fabric shelving unit that can be used for toiletries, beauty products or anything else!

Maximise Space in the Bedroom

Ah, finally, the bedroom. The place for relaxation, peace and sleep. Getting a good night’s rest isn’t easy in a small, cluttered bedroom. Use these suggestions to truly maxmise space in one of the most important rooms in your home.

1. Regularly declutter the closet

Perhaps one of the most valued pieces of advice for small homes is to declutter regularly. Especially if you’re somebody who is capable of accumulating a lot of stuff in a short space of time.

And the same goes for your clothes! Small homes tend to have smaller closets, if that’s the case for you, go through your closet every season, donate or recycle clothes you no longer want and while you’re at it, rotate your clothes. The clothes you’re not going to wear for the season can be put in vacuum bags until they’re needed again.

2. Try wall-mounted lights

Get rid of the need for bulky lamps on bedside tables and go for wall-mounted lights instead. Not only will they take up less space, but they’ll transform the look and feel of your room too. Also, LED light strips are very popular at the moment, they easily stick onto your walls and you can control the colour of the lights to set the mood.

3. Multi-functional furniture is a must

It’s easy to rack up a whole load of stuff in your bedroom, so do yourself a favour and get multi-functional furniture. Invest in cube storage units that can double up as a vanity table. Or get a bed base that has storage underneath - it’ll be a great spot for those vacuum bags filled with your clothes!

4. Less is more

When it comes to your bedroom (or any room for that matter), having a set of a few big pieces of furniture can really set the tone, and create the illusion of a bigger space. Rather than lots of smaller pieces which can end up making the room look cluttered.

When you’re looking to maximise space in your small home, one of your first steps might be to declutter your home. And it’s a great place to start! You’ll probably come across a lot of things you no longer want or need and so you can donate them, sell them, or look at creative recycling ideas.

On the other hand, you might find that you have some things you don’t want to part with, or you just don’t know what to do with them yet. In order to make the most of your space in a small home, rent a storage space nearby to keep your belongings you don’t have room for. One of our dedicated, local Hosts will have enough space to keep your things until you know what you want to do with them.